

STRBNOMY 


METHODS 


.FLANS 


OUTLINES 


TEST QUESTIONS TYPE STUDIES 


CIVIL GOVERNMENT 


POLITICAL ECONOMY 














































































































































rum iMra 


tpct rv« nrsrrmN^ 


type stuiufs 


CIVIL GOVERNMENT 


POLITICAL ECONO W 


























































































































































































































































































































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11 
























11 , 





















. 















THE NEW 

PRACTICAL REFERENCE 

LIBRARY 


EDITOR IN CHIEF 

CHARLES H. SYLVESTER 

t\ 

FORMER CITY SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS, STATE INSPECTOR OF HIGH SCHOOLS, PROFESSOR OF LITERATURE 
AND METHODS OF TEACHING IN STATE NORMAL SCHOOL, AND STATE INSTITUTE CONDUCTOR, 
WISCONSIN; AUTHOR OF ‘‘ENGLISH AND AMERICAN LITERATURE.” 


ASSOCIATE EDITOR 


ELLSWORTH D. FOSTER, LL. B. 

FORMER SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS; CONDUCTOR OF TEACHERS* INSTITUTES; MEMBER FACULTY BENTON 
HARBOR (MICH.) COLLEGE AND NORMAL; AUTHOR OF “CYCLOPEDIA OF CIVIL GOVERNMENT.** 


KENNETH L. M. PRAY, A.B. 

PHILADELPHIA “RECORD** 

ANNA McCALEB, Ph.B. 

UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO 


ASSISTANT EDITORS 

HELGA LEBURG HANSON, A.B. 

NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY 

ALBERTUS V. SMITH, Ph.B. 

UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO 


VOLUME I 


HANSON-ROACH-FOWLER COMPANY 


CHICAGO 

1918 


KANSAS CITY 


NEW YORK 




■«** 








Copyright, 1907, 1908,' 1909, 19101 1911, 1912, 1913,1914, 1915, 1917, 1918 
HANS ON-BELLOWS. PUBLISHING COMPANY* 


JUL II |yis I 


O' 


©C1.A499720 


\ 


EDITORS AND CONTRIBUTORS 


EDITOR IN CHIEF 

CHARLES H. SYLVESTER 




FORMER CITY SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS, STATE INSPECTOR OF HIGH SCHOOLS, PROFESSOR OF LITEBATUBB 
AND METHODS OF TEACHING IN STATE NORMAL SCHOOL, AND STATE INSTITUTE CONDUCTOR, 
WISCONSIN; AUTHOR OF ‘‘ENGLISH AND AMERICAN LITERATURE.” 







ASSOCIATE EDITOR 

ELLSWORTH D. FOSTER, LL. B. 

FORMER SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS; CONDUCTOR OF TEACHERS* INSTITUTES; MEMBER FACULTY BENTON 
HARBOUR (MICH.) COLLEGE AND NORMAL; AUTHOR OF “CYCLOPEDIA OF CIVIL GOVERNMENT.” 


KENNETH L. M. PRAY, A.B. 

PHILADELPHIA “RECORD” 

ANNA McCALEB, Ph.B. 

UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO 


ASSISTANT EDITORS 

HELGA LEBURG HANSON, A.B. 

NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY 

ALBERTUS V. SMITH, Ph.B. 

UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO 


PARTIAL LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS AND REVIEWERS 


Edwin A. Alderman, 

President of University of Virginia. 
William B. Aspinwall, 

Professor of Education, New York State 
Normal College, Albany, N. Y. 

D. R. Augsburg, 

Author of “Augsburg’s Drawing.” 

Kendric C. Babcock, 

Dean of the College of Liberal Arts, 
University of Illinois. 

David B. Barrows, 

Former Director of Education, Philippine 
IslUnds. 

Alfred Bayliss, 

Former Superintendent of Public Instruc¬ 
tion, Illinois, and President of State Normal 
School, Macomb, Ill. 

Jessie Elizabeth Black, 

University of Chicago. 

Frederick E. Bolton, 

Professor of Education, State University, 
Seattle, Washington. 

Elias F. Carr, 

State Normal School, Trenton, N. J. 

W. T. Carrington, 

President of State Normal School, Spring- 
field, Mo. 

P. P. Claxton, 

United States Commissioner of Education. 


Foster D. Coburn, 

Former Secretary of Kansas Department 
of Agriculture. 

Frank B. Cooper, 

City Superintendent of Schools, Seattle, 
Washington. 

E. B. Craighead, 

Former President of the University of 
Montana, Missoula, Mont. 

Carrol W. Doten, 

Secretary of American Statistical Asso¬ 
ciation. 

H. J. Dumbach, S. J., 

Former President of St. Ignatius College, 
Chicago, Ill. 

C. A. Duniway, 

President of University of Wyoming. 

Andrew W. Edson, 

Associate Superintendent of Schools, New 
York City. 

Lawton B. Evans, 

Superintendent of Schools, Augusta, Ga. 

Charles Fordyce, 

Dean of School of Education, University 
of Nebraska. 

J. I. Foust, 

President, State Normal and Industrial 
College, Greensboro, N. C. 




PARTIAL LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS— (Continued) 


E. McQueen Gray, 

Former President of University of New 
Mexico. 

James Monroe Green, 

Principal of New Jersey State Normal and 
Model Schools, Trenton, N. J. 

L. D. Harvey, 

Former Superintendent of Public Instruc¬ 
tion in Wisconsin; Superintendent of Stout 
Training Schools, Menomonie, Wis. 

Thomas Hodges, 

Former President of University of West 
Virginia. 

P. W. Horn, 

Superintendent of Schools, Houston, Texas. 

Willis E. Johnson, 

President of Northern Normal and Indus¬ 
trial School, Aberdeen, South Dakota. 

L. H. Jones, 

Former President of State Normal Collegei 
Ypsilanti, Mich. 

Joseph Kennedy, 

Professor of Philosophy and Education, 
University of North Dakota. 

James D. Le Cron, 

University of Wyoming. 

A. L. McDonald, 

California Development Board. 

Albert E. Maltby, 

Principal of State Normal School, Slippery 
Rock, Pa. 

James W. Mayberry, 

Professor of Chemistry, Epworth Uni¬ 
versity, Oklahoma City. 

S. C. Mitchell, 

Former President of University of South 
Carolina. 

Charles E. Monroe, 

Professor of Chemistry, The George Wash¬ 
ington University, Washington, D. C. 

Henry C. Morrison, 

Superintendent of Public Instruction, New 
Hampshire. 

A. A. Murphree, 

President of University of Florida. 

Charles Willis Needham, 

Former President of The George Washing¬ 
ton University, Washington, D. C. 

A. C. Nelson, 

Former Superintendent of Public Instruc¬ 
tion, Utah. 

Charles Alexander Nelson, 

Head Reference Librarian, Columbia Uni¬ 
versity, New York City. 


Dr. G. H. Parker, 

Professor of Zoology, Harvard University, 
Cambridge, Mass. 

William W. Parsons, 

President of Indiana State Normal School, 
Terre Haute, Ind. 

-G. M. Philips, 

Principal of State Normal School W ?st 
Chester, Pa. 

J. H. Phillips, 

Superintendent of Schools, Birmingham, 
Ala. 

Robert W. Prescott, 

University of Oregon. 

Walter E. Ranger, 

Commissioner of Public Schools, Rhode 
Island. 

Walter E. Russell, 

Principal of State Normal School, Gorham, 
Maine. 

Joseph D. Salkeld, 

Manager of Consolidated Publicity Bureau, 
Saint Paul, Minn. 

Nathan C. Schaeffer, 

State Superintendent of Public Instruction, 
Pennsylvania. 

Frank E. Spaulding, 

Superintendent of Schools, Cleveland, Ohio. 

C. W. Stoddart, 

Department of Agricultural Chemistry, 
Pennsylvania State College. 

Mason S. Stone, 

Commissioner of Education, Vermont. 

A. T. Stuart, 

Former Superintendent of Schools, Wash¬ 
ington, D. C. 

W. O. Thompson, 

President of Ohio State University. 

John N. Tillman, 

Former President of University of Arkansas. 

Henry M. Tyler, 

Professor of Greek and Dean of Smith 
College, Northampton, Mass. 

George W. Ward, 

Former President of Maryland State Nor- 
mal School, Baltimore, Md. 

W. F. Webster, 

Principal of East High School, and author 
of a series of English text-books, Minne¬ 
apolis, Minn. 



PREFACE 


HTHIS library has been prepared in response to a general demand for a reference 
work of medium size which presents in a practical way the answers to the 
many and varied questions which rise in the course of everyday experience. While 
intended primarily for the use of students and their teachers, it will be found of 
permanent value to those busy people in every occupation who desire brief and 
direct information not easily accessible elsewhere. Accuracy, balance, clearness 
and convenience are the essential characteristics of such a work, and the editors 
feel that The New Practical Reference Library conforms in a notable degree 
to these requirements. 

To secure balance and accuracy, the work was divided into more than a score 
of departments, such as geography, pedagogy and education, biography and his- 
tory. These departments were given to qualified editors, who worked under 
careful supervision and who finally brought together the thousands of articles 
which they had written and adjusted them in harmony with the proportions of 
the work. The editors have not relied solely upon their own experience and 
judgment, but have had the advice and assistance of business men and educators 
from every state in the Union. The latest information has been secured through 
thousands of letters addressed to prominent persons in the important towns and 
cities of the United States. The state articles have been revised by residents 
possessing full information concerning their own states. Statistics have been 
compiled from the very latest reports, provided they had the merit of strict relia¬ 
bility, and the narrative of events is brought to the eve of publication. 

The department of pedagogy and education has been wrought out more fully 
than was ever before attempted in any work of this kind, and consists of practical 
articles on psychology, the history of education and methods of teaching; informa¬ 
tion concerning important universities, colleges and other educational institutions; 
brief accounts of educational systems in states and countries, and a large number 
of biographies of men who are prominent in educational affairs. Geography is 
the largest department, but others, such as natural history, law and politics, art, 


PREFACE 


literature, music and mechanic arts, have been given space and consideration 
adequate to their great demands. 

The language is direct and simple, technicalities of all sorts have been studiously 
avoided, and it is felt that almost anyone can read any article and understand its 
contents. Nevertheless, scientific accuracy has not been sacrificed. 

To make the work convenient in use, the long articles have been divided by 
conspicuous subheads. Moreover, the greatest care has been taken to arrange 
material under the most common and appropriate headings; in other words, to 
place it in the spot where it will be oftenest sought. At the same time references 
are made to it from all other closely related articles. This system of cross-references 
binds together, also, the material of every department, and enables the reader to 
find quickly anything relating to the subject he seeks. By following the references 
one is led into broad courses of systematic reading. 

In appearance, the volumes are a notable improvement upon other works of 
reference of similar size, and in one respect are unique, namely, in the use of large, 
clear type. In a large encyclopedia that is rarely consulted, and then only for 
brief moments, one might possibly justify small type, but a useful book for daily 
reference by young students and busy people should make no unnecessary demands 
on the eyesight, nor waste valuable time with its crowded lines. 

The publishers have admirably embellished the work with the finest multi¬ 
colored illustrations, new engraved colored maps and vivid relief maps of the 
continents; choice full-page, colored halftones; new and correct pen and ink por¬ 
traits, and more than a thousand other pictures. As all have been selected primarily 
for the important purpose of clarifying and broadening the text, they form an 
integral part of the work. 

The pronunciation of all but the simplest titles is indicated by phonetic respelling. 

The work is thoroughly American in its attitude toward all topics, and ample 
space has been given to those things with which the average American is inevitably 
concerned. On the other hand, those foreign persons, places and events which 
are interesting and important to an American student have been treated gener¬ 
ously. This library of reference is modern; and present-day facts, forces and 
tendencies have been regarded as of more interest and importance than ancient 
history. 

The publishers wrote to more than fifteen hundred prominent educators, includ¬ 
ing every state superintendent and leading city and county superintendents, 
asking what should constitute the salient features of such an important work as 


PREFACE 


this. With very few exceptions the inquiries were answered at length. The 
publishers therefore desire especially to thank these educators for their many 
helpful and valuable suggestions, and also desire to acknowledge their great in¬ 
debtedness to those whose names appear on other pages as direct contributors. 

The editors have felt the responsibility which has rested upon them and 
they have spared no effort to make The New Practical Reference Library 
a work of value to inquirers of all classes, a work that scholars will appreciate. 
Chicago, January 1, 1907. C. H. S. 


THE 1918 EDITION 

Since the original Preface was written many editions have appeared. The 
extraordinary sale of the work has justified its creation and has established it 
as an authority throughout the country. Each succeeding edition has been 
an improvement on its predecessor and has carried out, more fully, the idea 
of making The New Practical Reference Library the one indispensable 
reference requirement for every home and school. 

The present, or 1918 edition, contains a number of noteworthy improve¬ 
ments. Hundreds of additional illustrations, consisting of color plates, half¬ 
tones, and drawings in the text, add much to the attractiveness of the volumes. 
The text has not been neglected; besides new articles on many cities and 
prominent people, there have been inserted a number of new subjects which 
have come into prominence since the last edition. The War of the Nations, 
which broke out in the summer of 1914, is discussed in an authoritative 
article, and references to the war have been added to all the countries involved 
and to the cities affected by the movements of the great armies. 

The Educator, which has been an invaluable aid to teachers, as well as 
children and their parents, throughout the country, has received some im¬ 
portant changes, notably a new article on the system of education used by 
Madame Montessori. 

The Index, with its departmental classifications, has been thoroughly 
revised, and includes references to all the new articles as well as the old ones. 

The Editors 


Chicago, July, 1918. 



PRONUNCIATION 

The pronunciation of titles is indicated by accenting the word 
or by respelling it phonetically in italics. In the phonetic spelling, 
letters are used to indicate the sounds which they most commonly 
represent. 

A vowel is short when followed by a consonant in the same 
syllable, unless the syllable ends in silent e. 

A vowel is long when standing alone or in a syllable which ends . 
in silent e or when ending an accented syllable. 

5 is always soft, and never has the sound of z. 

The foreign sounds which have no equivalent in the English 
language are represented as follows: 

K for the German ch, as in Bach: (Bach, baK), 

N for the French n, as in Breton: (Breton, bretoN'). 

6 for the German 6, as in Gottingen: (Gottingen, go'ting en). 

ii for the German u, as in Bliicher: (Bliicher, bluK'ur). 



A, the first letter in almost all alphabets. 
In its primary sound, that of a in father, it is 
the purest of the vowels and is produced with 
the entire vocal channel in the most open posi¬ 
tion possible. Most modern languages, as 
French, Italian and German, have only one 
sound for a, namely, that heard in father, but 
in English this letter is made to represent eight 
sounds, as in the words father, mat, mate, mare, 
final, ball, what and ask, besides being used in 
such digraphs as ea in heat and oa in boat. 

A, in musL, is the sixth note in the diatonic 
scale of C, and stands when in perfect tune to 
the latter note in the ratio of f to 1 (See 
Music). The second string of the violin is 
tuned to this note. 

Al, Aal and AA1, used as symbols by Dun, 
Bradstreet and other financial agencies to 
indicate a high rating. A means resources 
of $500,000 to $750,000; Aa means $750,000 
to $1,000,000; A A means over $1,000,000. 
The numeral 1 shows that the credit rating 
is of the best. In popular usage the expres¬ 
sion Al has come to mean excellence of any 

kind. _ 

Aachen, ah'lcen. See Aix-la-Chapelle. 

Aalborg, awl’borg, (eel castle), a seaport of 
Denmark, in Jutland, on the south shore of the 
Lim-Fjord, connecting the Cattegat and the 
North Sea. The manufactures, consisting of 
brandy, spirits, lumber, leather and soap, and 
the fisheries are increasing rapidly. Aalborg 
has a museum, cathedral and a library of 
30,000 books. Population in 1910, 31,509. 

Aali Pasha, ah'le pa shah', (1815-1871), a 
distinguished Turkish statesman. At the age 
of fifteen he became a clerk in the foreign 
office and rose steadily from one diplomatic 
post to another, at home, Vienna and else¬ 
where, till in 1844 he became ambassador at 
London. This varied experience left on his 
mind a profound impression of the absolute 
necessity for extensive reforms in the govern¬ 
ment of the Ottoman Empire; and these reforms 
2 


he attempted, without success, to introduce. 
At the Congress of Paris he represented the 
porte, and maintained its cause with zeal and 
skin . He was grand vizier more than once and 
was made field marshal and pasha. He was 
active in repressing Egyptian efforts to shake 
off the supremacy of the porte. 

Aar or Aare, ahr, (ancient Obringa) a river 
of Switzerland, which rises in the upper Aar 
glacier of the Schreckhorn, in the canton of 
Bern. It crosses the lakes of Brienz and Thun 
and falls into the Rhine opposite Waldshut. 
It is navigable from the Rhine to Thun, and a 
canal has been built between Meiringen and the 
Brienz. The gorge of the Aar, at Meiringen, 
is one of the famous beauty spots of Switzer¬ 
land. 

Aard-vark, ahrd vahrk, an ant-«ater found 
in South Africa. It is a stout animal, with 
long, pig-like snout, tubular mouth, the usual 
termite-catching tongue, large ears, fleshy tail 
and short, bristly hair. The limbs are short 



AABD-VARK 


and very muscular; on the fore feet are four, on 
the hind five, powerful claws, used in burrow¬ 
ing and in excavating the hills of the white ants 
on which it feeds. It is nocturnal in its 
habits and is very inoffensive and timid. 
When pursued, it can burrow itself out of 
sight in a few minutes, working inward with 
such rapidity as to make it almost impossi¬ 
ble to dig it out. Its total length is about five 
feet, of which the tail is about one foot nine 
inches. Its dwelling is a burrow at a little 
distance from the surface, and thence it may 









Abbot 


Aard-wolf 

be observed creeping at dusk. The flesh is con¬ 
sidered a delicacy. 

Aard-wolf, a South African carnivorous 
animal, fox-like in size and habit, but having 
longer ears and a less bushy tail. It resembles 
a hyena in its sloping back and in its color, the 
body being gray, irregularly striped with black, 
but it has five toes on the fore feet, and the head 
is much more pointed and civet-like. It feeds 
on carrion, white ants and the like, but not on 
living vertebrates. It is timid and nocturnal in 
its habits, social but quarrelsome in its life, and 
tolerably swift in its pace, though usually trust¬ 
ing rather to burrowing than to flight. 

Aarhuus or Aarhus, awr'hoos, a seaport of 
Denmark, in Jutland, on the Cattegat. 37 mi. e. 
of Yiborg. It has a cathedral, a library of 
200,000 volumes and various manufactures. 
Population in 1910, 55,193. 

Aaron, ar'un, the elder brother of Moses, 
always second to him in command, but one of 
the greatest of the Jewish high priests. He 
acted as spokesman for Moses when the latter 
delivered the Jews from the Egyptians, and he 
was one of the leaders of the nation in its wan¬ 
derings. When Moses was on Mount Sinai, 
Aaron made the golden calf which the Israelites 
worshiped. Aaron was not allowed to enter 
Canaan, byt died and was buried on Mount 
Hor. See Ex. xxix; Num. xvi and xx, 
8-13. 

Ab'acus, a calculating machine used in 
teaching the elements of number. It consists 
of a, rectangular 
frame which holds 
parallel rods upon 
which beads or 
balls are strung. 

A handle is at¬ 
tached to the lower 
side of the frame, 
so that when the 
abacus is in use 
the rods are held 
in a horizontal po- 
\ sition. The ancient 
abacus contained 
vertical columns 
which correspond¬ 
ed to the order of 
figures, as units, 
tens and hun¬ 
dreds. This in¬ 
strument was in general use among the Greeks 
and Romans, and is still employed in Persia and 


other countries of the Far East for reckoning 
purposes. The Chinese abacus is called 
shwanpan, which means reckoning board. 

Ab'alo'ne or Ear Shell, a Californian mol- 
lusk, of which there are several species. The 
shell is a very broad spiral that resembles a 
shallow dish lined with bright mother-of-pearl, 
and has considerable commercial value. The 
animal, which moves about over rocks at the 
bottom of the sea near the shore, is an impor¬ 
tant article of food for the Chinese and other 
Oriental peoples. 

Ab'atis, a very old defense, still used in 
fortifications, although wire entanglements are 
more effective. The ordinary abatis consists 
of trees fastened down side by side with their 
sharpened branches pointed toward the enemy. 

Ab'bey, a monastery or religious community 
governed by an abbot; or in the case of a female 
community, by an abbess. The difference 
between a priory and an abbey is that the 
former is a less extensive establishment and is 
governed by a prior. . Among the most famous 
abbeys in Europe are those jf Cluny and Clair- 
vaux in France, the Abbey of Saint Galle in 
Switzerland, and Fulda in Germany. Among 
the famous English abbeys are those of West¬ 
minster, Tintern, Paisley and Saint Mary’s 
of York. At the time of the Reformation the 
abbeys in England were destroyed by Henry 
VIII. 

Abbey, Edwin Austin (1852-1911), an 
American painter, bom in Philadelphia. He 
studied in the United States and removed to 
England in 1883. His first works of importance 
were illustrations for periodicals, and water-color 
paintings. The Search for the Holy Grail , in 
the Boston Public Library, is his most note¬ 
worthy production. As a colorist and intel¬ 
lectual painter, Abbey ranks among the fore¬ 
most American artists. 

Ab'bot, a prelate of high rank in the Roman 
Catholic Church, who governs a convent or 
monastery. The first abbots were laymen, but 
priestly abbots appeared in the Western Church 
in the seventeenth century and have continued 
to the present day. Their powers were at first 
limited, but as the abbeys grew in wealth the 
abbots grew in power, until they came to be 
ranked next to bishops as prelates of the Church 
and had the right to vote in church councils. 
Abbots are elected by the assembly of monks, 
and the election is confirmed by the pope or 
the bishop, who has direct control over the 
monastery. See Abbey. 




































Abbot 


Abbreviations 


Abbot, Ezra (1819-1884), an American 
biblical scholar. He studied at Phillips Exeter 
Academy, graduated at Bowdoin in 1840, and 
in 1856 became assistant librarian at Harvard. 
From 1872 until his death he was professor of 
New Testament interpretation in the Cam¬ 
bridge Divinity School. Perhaps his most 
important work was in connection with the 
American Revision of the Bible, the scholarly 
accuracy of which he did much to secure. He 
left his main library of five thousand volumes 
to Harvard, the remainder to the Cambridge 
Divinity School. His chief book is The Author¬ 
ship of the Fourth Gospel. 

Ab'botsford, the former country seat of Sir 
Walter Scott, on the south bank of the Tweed, 
near Melrose Abbey, 28 mi. s. e. of Edinburgh, 
Scotland. In 1811 it was purchased by Scott 



ABBOTSFORD 


and given its name because it was located near 
a ford which was formerly used by the abbots 
of Melrose. It stands in the midst of pictur¬ 
esque scenery, forming an extensive and irregu¬ 
lar pile in the Scottish baronial style of archi¬ 
tecture. It has been appropriately described 
as a “romance in stone.” 

Abbott, Jacob (1803-1879), a popular 
American writer of books for the young. He 
was a teacher and subsequently a clergyman, 
but after 1839 he devoted himself entirely to 
writing. Of his two hundred volumes, the 
best-known are the Rollo Books and the Fran¬ 
conia Stories. He also wrote numerous biog¬ 
raphies for children. 

Abbott, Lyman (1835- ), a clergyman, 

son of Jacob Abbott, bom in Massachusetts. 
He graduated at the University of New York 
and was admitted to the bar. He studied the¬ 
ology and was ordained in the Congregational 
Church in 1860. For five years he preached in 
Terre Haute, Ind., and later was pastor of the 
New England Church in New York City, but 
resigned in 1869. He edited the “Literary 
Record” of Harper's Magazine, the Illustrated 


Christian Weekly, and was associated with the 
Rev. Henry Ward Beecher on the Christian 
Union, afterward becoming editor in chief. 
In 1889 he became pastor of Plymouth Church, 
Brooklyn, where he remained for ten years, 



LYMAN ABBOTT 


when he became editor of The Outlook, the 
successor of the Christian Union. Mr. Abbott 
wrote a Life of Henry Ward Beecher and edited 
Beecher’s sermons. He also contributed fre¬ 
quently to leading magazines, upon religious 
themes. 

Abbre viations, devices for saving time 
and space, consisting either of shortened forms 
of words, or of arbitrary signs or symbols sub¬ 
stituted for words. The most common method 
of abbreviating is the substitution of the initial 
letter for the word itself, but one or more letters 
are often added to prevent ambiguity. Abbre¬ 
viations were in common use among the Greeks 
and Romans, and in the manuscripts of the 
Middle Ages they were so numerous as to render 
some works exceedingly difficult to read. Even 
after printing was invented, the excessive use of 
abbreviations continued for a time. 

The following brief list contains many of 
those abbreviations that are not easily recog¬ 
nized: 

A. B. Artium Baccalaureus, Bachelor of Arts. 

A. D. Anno Domini, in the year of the Lord. 

ad lib. ad libitum, at pleasure. 

Ala. Alabama. 





Abbreviations 


Abbreviations 


Alas. Alaska. 

A. M. Ante meridiem, before noon; Ars Magister. 

Master of Arts. 

Ari. Arizona. 

Ark. Arkansas. 

Ave. Avenue. 

B. A. Baccalaureus Artium. Bachelor of Arts. 

B. C. Before Christ; British Columbia. 

B. D. Bacca. aureus Divinitalis, Bachelor of 
Divinity. 

B. M. Baccalaureus Medicinae, Bachelor of Medi¬ 
cine. 

B. S. Bachelor in the Sciences. 

B. V. Beata Virgo, Blessed Virgin; Bene vale, 
farewell. 

B. Y. P. U. Baptist Young People’s Union. 

Cal. California. 

C. E. Civil Engineer. 

C. J. Chief Justice. 

C. M. Common meter. 

C. O. D. 'Cash (or collect) on delivery. 

Col. or Colo. Colorado. 

Con. Contra, against, in opposition. 

Conn, or Ct. Connecticut. 

Cf. Confer, compare. 

Cr. Credit, creditor. 

C. S. A. Confederate States of America; Con¬ 

federate States Army. 

Ct. Connecticut; court. 

Dak. Dakota. 

D. C. Da Capo, from the beginning—in music it 

means repeat; District of Columbia. 

D. D. Divinitalis Doctor, Doctor of Divinity. 

Dec. December; declination. 

Deg. Degree; degrees. 

Del. Delaware; delegate; delineavit, he (or she) 
drew it. 

Dept, or Dpt. Department, 
do. Ditto, the same. 

D. P. Doctor Philosophiae, Doctor of Philosophy. 
Dr. Debtor; dcctor; drachms. 

D. Sc. Doctor of Science. 

D. V. Deo volente, God willing. 

E. East. 

E. G. Exempli gratia, for example. 

Esq. Esquire, 
et al. Et alii, and others, 
etc. or &c. Et cetera, and others, and so forth, 
et seq. Et sequenles, el sequentia, and what fol¬ 
lows. 

Fahr. or F. Fahrenheit. 

Fla. Florida. 

f. o. b. Free on board. , 

Fol. Folio. 

Ga. Georgia. 

G. A. R. Grand Army of the Republic. 

G. B. Great Britain. 

Gov. Gen. Governor General. 

G. P. O. General Post-office. _ 

H. I. Hawaiian Islands. 

H. J. S. Hie facet sepultus. here lies buried 

la. Iowa. 

l b. or ibid. Ibidem, in the same place. 

Ida. Idaho. 

i. e. Id est, that is. 

Ill. Illinois. 

Ind. Indiana, index. 

Inst. Instante mense, this month. 


I. O. U. I owe you. 

Jr. Junior. 

Kan. Kansas. 

K. C. B. Knight Commander of the Bath. 

Ky. Kentucky. 

La. Louisiana. 

Lat. Latitude. 

lb. or lbs. Libra or librae, pound or pounds in 
weight. 

L. I. Long Island. 

Lieut, or Lt. Lieutenant. 

LL. B. Legum Baccalaureus, Bachelor of Laws. 
LL. D Legum Doctor, Doctor of Laws. 

LL. M. Legum Magister, Master of Laws. 

M. A. Master of Arts; Military Academy. 

Mass. Massachusetts. 

M. B. Medicinae Baccalaureus, Bachelor of Medi¬ 
cine; Musicae Baccalaureus, Bachelor of 
Music. 

M. C. Member of Congress; Master of Ceremonies; 

Master Commandant. 

Md. Maryland. 

M. D. Medicinae Doctor, Doctor of Medicine. 
Mdse. Merchandise. 

Me. Maine. 

M. E. Methodist Episcopal; Military or Me¬ 
chanical Engineer. 

Messrs. Messieurs, Gentlemen. 

Mex. Mexico, or Mexican. 

Mich. Michigan. 

Minn. Minnesota. 

Miss. Mississippi. 

Mile. Mademoiselle. 

Mme. Madame, Madam. 

Mo. Missouri; month. 

Mont, or Mon. Montana. 

M. P. Member of Parliament. 

Mr. Mister. 

Mrs. Mistress. 

M. S. Master of Science; Memoriae sacrum, sacred 

to the memory. 

MSS. Manuscripta, manuscripts. 

N. B. New Brunswick; North Britain (that is, 

Scotland); North British (that is, Scotch); 
nota bene, mark well, take notice. 

N. C. North Carolina. 

N. E. New England; northeast. 

Neb. Nebraska. 

Nev. Nevada. 

N. H. New Hampshire. 

N. J. New Jersey. 

N. M. New Mexico. 

No. or no. Numero, number. 

N. Y. New York. 

O. Ohio. 

O. K. f Jocular). All right or correct. 

Okl. Oklahoma. 

Or. or Ore. Oregon. 

O. T. Old Testament, 
oz. Onza, ounce. 

P. or p. Page; part; participle; pondere, by 

weight. 

Pa. Pennsylvania. 

Per cent. Per centum, by the hundred. 

Ph. B. Philosophiae Baccalaureus, Bachelor of 
Philosophy. 

Ph. D. Philosophiae Doctor, Doctor of Philosophy. 

P. I. Philippine Islands. 


Abd-el-Kader 


Abd-ul-Hamid II 


P M. Post meridiem, afternoon, evening; Past 
Midshipman; postmaster. 

P. O. Post-office; Province of Ontario. 

Port. Portugal, or Portuguese. 

pp. Pages. 

Pres. President. 

Prof. Professor. 

pro tem. Pro tempore, for the time being. 

Q. E. D. Quod erat demonstrandum, which was to 

be proved. 

R. I. Rhode Island. 

R. R. Railroad. 

R. S. V. P Repondez s’il vous plait, answer, if 

you please—please reply. 

Ry. Railway. 

S. A. South America; South Australia. 

S. C. South Carolina; Supreme Court. 

Sc. B. Scientiae Baccalaureus, Bachelor of 
Science. 

S. D. South Dakota. 

Sr. Senior. 

Syn. Synonym: synonymous. 

Tenn. Tennessee. 

Ter. Territory. 

Tex. Texas. 

Th. or Thurs. Thursday. 

Treas. Treasurer. 

Ult. Ultimo, last; of the last month. 

U. S. A. United States of America; United 
States Army. 

U. S. M. United States mail; United States 
Marines. 

U. S. N. United States Navy. 

U. S. S. United States Senate; United States 
ship. 

Ut. Utah. 

Va. Virginia. 

viz. videlicet, to wit, namely. 

vs. Versus, against; versiculo, in such a verse. 

Vt. Vermont. 

Wash. Washington. 

W. C. T. U. Women’s Christian Temperance 
Union. 

Wis. Wisconsin. 

W. Va. West Virginia. 

Wy. Wyoming. 

Xmas. Christmas. 

Y. M. C. A. Young Men’s Christian Associa¬ 
tion. 

Y. P. S. C. -E. Young People’s Society of Chris¬ 
tian Endeavor. 

Y. W. C. A. Young Women’s Christian Associ¬ 
ation. 

Abd-el-Kader, ahbd'ellcah'dur, (1807-1873), 
a famous Arab chief. He distinguished him¬ 
self by his determined resistance to the French 
arms in North Africa. In 1835 he was 
strong enough to inflict a signal defeat on 
General Tr6zel, but the French gradually ob¬ 
tained the mastery. Abd-el-Kader was sent to 
Toulon and was liberated by Louis Napoleon in 
1852. 

Ab' dica'tion, properly the voluntary, but 
sometimes also the involuntary, resignation of 
an office, especially that of a sovereign. The 


more important abdications since the eighteenth 


century are the following: 

Charles Emmanuel IV of Sardinia.June 4, 1802. 

Charles IV of Spain.March 19, 1808. 

Joseph Bonaparte of Naples.June 6, 1808. 

Gustavus IV of Sweden.March 29, 1809. 

Louis Bonaparte of Holland.July 2, 1810. 

Napoleon of France. ...April 14, 1814; June 22, 1815. 

Victor Emmanuel of Sardinia.March 13, 1821. 

Charles X of France.August 2, 1830. 

William I of Holland.October 7, 1840. 

Louis Philippe of France.February 24, 1848. 

Ferdinand of Austria....December 2, 1848. 

Charles Albert of Sardinia.March 23, 1849. 

Isabella II of Spain.June 25, 1870. 

Amadeus I of Spain. ..February 11, 1873. 

Abd-ul-Aziz of Turkey.May 30, 1876. 

Abd-ul-Hamid II of Turkey.April 27, 1909. 

Nicholas II of Russia.March 15, 1917. 

Constantine I of Greece.June 12, 1917. 


The English law, that the king cannot abdi¬ 
cate without the consent of Parliament, is con¬ 
trary to the custom of many countries. 

Abdo'men, in man, the lower cavity of the 
trunk, separated from the upper cavity, or 
thorax, by the diaphragm and bounded below 
by the bones of the pelvis. It contains the 
intestines, liver, stomach, spleen, pancreas, 
kidneys and other organs. A serous membrane, 
called the 'peritoneum, lines the cavity and is 
reflected from it in such a way as to enclose the 
contents, giving them the necessary freedom of 
movement and at the same time keeping them 
in their proper position. This membrane is 
the seat of the disease peritonitis. The chief 
organs of the abdomen and chest are shown in 
the plate. See plate facing next page. 

Abd-ul-Aziz, ahbd'ul az eez', (1830-1876), 
thirty-second sultan of the Ottoman Empire, 
brother to Abd-ul-Medjid, whom he succeeded 
in June, 1861. He concluded treaties of com¬ 
merce with France and England, both of which 
countries he visited in 1867. He was deposed 
in May, 1876, and in June of the same year he 
committed suicide, or more probably was 
assassinated. 

Abd-ul-Hamid II, ahbd'ul lia meed', (1842- 
1918), thirty-fourth sultan of the Ottoman 
Empire, son of Abd-ul-Medjid, succeeded to 
the throne on the deposition of his brother, 
Murad V. The country at his accession was 
in a disturbed condition, to which the declara¬ 
tion of war by Russia in 1877 came as a climax. 
The Turks were defeated, and the Empire might 
have been completely overthrown, nad not the 
European powers, fearing that Russia would 
grow too powerful, interfered ° I the peace 
negotiations. Turkey did, however, lose all 




















Abd-ul-Medjid 

claim to Bosnia, Bulgaria, Herzegovina, Monte¬ 
negro, Roumania and Servia. The sultan was 
also obliged to promise a reform in his treat¬ 
ment of his Christian subjects, but these prom¬ 
ises he never fulfilled. However, by constantly 
playing the European nations against one 
another, he succeeded in warding off their inter¬ 
ference. In 1908 he was compelled by the Young 
Turks to grant a constitution, and in April, 1909, 
he was deposed. 

Abd-ul-Medjid, ahbd'ul me jeed ', (1823- 
1861), thirty-first sultan of the Ottoman Empire. 
He succeeded his father, Mahmud II, m 1839. 
Abd-ul-Medjid favored reforms, but most of 
them remained inoperative, or caused bloody 
insurrections where attempts were made to 
carry them out. His reign was marked by the 
Crimean War and by the menace of Mehemet 
All of Egypt. 

A Beck'et, Thomas. See Becket, Thomas 1. 

A'bel, the name of the second son of Adam 
and Eve (Gen. iv, 2). Abel was a shepherd 
and, according to the biblical story, offered 
his sacrifices in such a spirit that they were 
regarded with greater favor by the Lord than 
were Cain’s. The latter, enraged at this, slew 
his brother. 

Abelard, ab'e lard, Pierre, (1079-1142), an 
illustrious French scholastic philosopher and 
theologian. He went to Paris at the age of twenty, 
where he established himself as a philosophical 
lecturer in 1113. Later he obtained the chair 
held by his former master. At this moment his 
reputation was greatest. From Rome, England 
and Germany, students hastened to listen to his 
eloquent logic, and he numbered among his 
followers the ablest men of his time. He 
secretly married Heloise, the beautiful niece of 
Fuibert, canon of Notre Dame, who in revenge 
put an end to their union. A council held at 
Soissons in 1121 condemned Abelard’s opinions 
on the Trinity as heretical, and soon after he 
withdrew to Nogent-on-the-Seine, where he 
built an oratory, and named it the Paraclete, or 
Comforter. In 1140 the pope condemned him, 
as a heretic, to perpetual silence. Two years 
after, he died. 

Aben, ah'ben, -EzYa (1093-1168), a cele¬ 
brated Jewish rabbi, born at Toledo, Spain. 
He was noted for his knowledge of astronomy, 
medicine, mathematics and philosophy, but he 
particularly distinguished himself as a commen¬ 
tator on Scripture. 

Abercrombie, ab'er crvm'by, James (1706- 
1781), a British soldier. He commanded the 


Aberdeen 

British forces in America during the French and 
Indian War, was defeated at Ticonderoga and 
was therefore superseded the next year. After his 
return to England he was elected to Parlia¬ 
ment. 

Ab erdeen', a royal burgh of Scotland, 
capital of Aberdeenshire and fourth largest city 
of Scotland. The city is beautifully laid out 
and has streets which are regular and well- 
paved. It contains many notable buildings, 
chief among which are the municipal and 
county buildings, the Music Hall buildings, the 
Trades’ Hall, the Roman Catholic church. 
Cathedral of Saint Machar and a university. 
The university was established in 1860 by the 
union and incorporation of the University and 
King’s College of Aberdeen and the Marischal 
College and University of Aberdeen. Its library 
contains 130,000 volumes. There are also 
numerous other colleges and schools, among 
which are Gordon’s College, an art school and 
the Mechanics’ Institution. Aberdeen has an 
excellent harbor, which facilitates trade and 
which is responsible for the extensive com¬ 
merce. It is a large manufacturing center, the 
chief industries including woolen, cotton, jute 
and linen factories, large soap, candle, chemical 
and paper works, shipbuilding yards and estab¬ 
lishments for preparing granite for all uses. 
In 1336 Aberdeen was burned by the English, 
but was rebuilt and named New Aberdeen. Its 
present prosperity began in 1818, when the art 
of granite polishing was rediscovered. Popula¬ 
tion in 1910, 181,918. 

Aberdeen, S. D., the county seat of Brown 
co., 280 mi. w. of Minneapolis, Minn. It is the 
seat of the northern normal and industrial school, 
one of the largest of the state educational 
institutions. It is a railroad, manufacturing and 
wholesale distributing center. Nine lines of rail¬ 
way extending in different directions from the 
city give it the nickname “Hub City.” Popula¬ 
tion in 1910, 10,753. 

Aberdeen, Wash., the chief city of Chehalis 
co., is situated at the head of nagivation on the 
Chehalis River and on branches of the Northern 
Pacific and Chicago, Milwaukee and Puget Sound 
railroads. It is at the head of Gray’s Harbor 
and has an important ocean and inland trade. 
It is an important lumbering center, containing 
large sawmills, shingle mills and canning fac¬ 
tories. Population in 1910, 13,660. 

Aberdeen, John Campbell Gordon, Sev¬ 
enth Earl of (1847- ), a British statesman. 

Originally a member of the conservative party, 



THORAX AND ABDOMEN.—i, i, i, i, Muscles of the chest. 2, 2, 2, 2. 
Ribs. 3, 3. 3. Upper, middle and lower lobes of the right lung. 4, 4. Lobes of the 
left lung. 5. Right ventricle of the heart. 6. Left ventricle. 7. Right auricle. 8. 
Left auricle. 9. Pulmonary artery. 10. Aorta. 11. Descending vena cava. 12. 
Trachea. 13. Oesophagus. 14,14,14,14. Pleura. 15, 15. Diaphragm. 16,16. Right 
and left lobes of the liver. 17. Gall cyst. 18. Stomach. 19. Duodenum. 20. As¬ 
cending colon. 21 Transverse colon. 22. Descending colon. 23, 23. Small in¬ 
testine. 24. Thoracic duct opening into the left subclavian vein. 25. Spleen. 













































Abernethy 


Abraham 


in 1876 he joined the liberal party and cast his 
lot with Gladstone, who, in 1886, appointed him 
lord lieutenant of Ireland. From 1893 to 1898 
governor general of Canada, in 1905 he was 
again appointed lord lieutenant of Ireland. 

Ab'ernethy, John (1764-1831). He was 
an eminent English surgeon, a pupil of the cele¬ 
brated John Hunter. In 1787 he became assist¬ 
ant surgeon to Saint Bartholomew’s Hospital, 
and was also lecturer on anatomy and surgery. 
In 1815 he was elected principal surgeon. His 
rough and eccentric ways made him a notable 
character wherever he was seen. He published 
several valuable medical works. 

AVerra'tion, in physics, the term used to 
indicate the failure of rays of light to meet at a 
common focus when refracted by a lens or 
reflected by a mirror. When parallel rays of 
light pass through a double convex lens (See 
Lens), those near the edge are brought to a 
focus sooner than those passing through near 
the center. This causes the formation of an 
indistinct image. In optical instruments, such 
as the camera and telescope, this defect is reme¬ 
died by the use of a diaphragm, which shuts off 
the edge. The diaphragm increases the dis¬ 
tinctness of the outline of the image but decreases 
its brilliancy. A large concave mirror acts la a 
similar manner, and the image cast upon a 
screen held in front of a mirror can be made 
more distinct by the use of a diaphragm. When 
the light is strong, this unequal refraction often 
separates the rays of light into their prismatic 
colors, so that we see a border of rainbow colors 
around the image. This is known as chromatic 
aberration. In telescopes and microscopes 
chromatic aberration is overcome by making 
the object glass of two pieces, one being of one 
kind of glass and the other of another. In this 
way each kind of glass counteracts the aberra¬ 
tion of the other. 

In astronomy, the difference between the true 
and the observed position of a heavenly body 
is called aberration. 

Ab'igail, the beautiful wife of Nabal, a rich 
man of Carmel (/ Sam. xxv), and afterward 
the wife of David. From her speech to David, 
her name in modem days has been applied to 
any female servant. 

Abilene, Tex., the county-seat of Taylor co., 
160 mi. w. of Fort Worth, on the Houston & 
Pacific Central and other railroads. Abilene 
has large grain and cattle interests, some 
important factories, and is a famous health- 
resort. Population in 1910, 9,204. 


Ab'ington, Mass., a manufacturing town in 
Plymouth co.. 20 mi. s. e. of Boston, on the 
New York, New Haven & Hartford railway. 
The place was settled about 1680 and was 
made a town in 1712. Population in 1910, 
5455. 

Ab'iogen'esis. See Spontaneous Genera¬ 
tion. 

Abo, aw'bo, a seaport in Russian Finland, 
the capital of Finland till 1819, when it was 
supplanted by Helsingfors. It is one of the 
most important shipbuilding ports of the Rus¬ 
sian government and is also an important trade 
center the chief industries being sugar refineries, 
cotton mills and tobacco factories. Population 
in 1910, 43,680. 

Abolitionists, ab'o lish’un ists, a patty 
which became influential during the first half of 
the nineteenth century in America, in favor of 
the immediate abolition of slavery. Its impor¬ 
tance practically dates from the beginning of 
the work of William Lloyd Garrison in 1829 
and the formation of the American Anti-slavery 
Society in 1833. The party divided soon after 
this time, however. Garrison and his followers 
advocating abolition even at the cost of dis¬ 
union, while the more moderate party wished 
abolition through constitutional forms. They 
formed the Liberty party and later the Free- 
Soilers, and finally, in 1856, joined the Repub¬ 
lican party. Among the prominent leaders of 
the radical Abolitionists were Wendell Phillips 
and John G. Whittier. See Political Parties 
in the United States. 

Abomey, ah'bo may', capital, until recently, 
of the kingdom of Dahomey, in West Africa, 
near the coast of Guinea. The town is sur¬ 
rounded by a mud wall and a trench which 
encloses a large tract of land, most of which is 
under cultivation. An impoftant trade in ivory 
gold and palm oil is carried on. Population, 
about 20,000. 

Aboukir or Abukir, ah'bookeer a small 
village on the Egyptian coast, 13 mi. n. e. of 
Alexandria. In Aboukir Bay, in 1798, took 
place the naval Battle of the Nile, in which 
Nelson annihilated a French fleet and destroyed 
the naval power of France in the Mediterranean. 
Near this place, also, in 1799 Napoleon defeated 
the Turks under Mustapha. 

A braham, the greatest of the Hebrew patrh 
archs and founder of the Hebrew race. His- 
name was originally Abram {exalted father), but 
according to the account in the book of 
Genesis this was changed to Abraham, (father 


Abrasives 


Abu-bekr 


of a multitude), because of the covenant be¬ 
tween him and Jehovah that he should be 
the father of many nations. His two sons, 
Isaac (Gen. xvm-xxxv) and Ishmael (Gen. 
xvi, xxi) were the reputed founders of the 
Hebrews and Arabs, respectively. 

Abra'sives, natural and artificial materials 
used for cutting and polishing wood, metals and 
stone. The most common natural abrasives 
are corundum, emery, sand, garnets and the 
varieties of rocks used for grindstones and whet¬ 
stones. Other natural abrasives used to some 
extent are pumice, Tripoli and infusorial earth. 
The artificial abrasives are carborundum, 
crushed iron, steel and rouge. Crushed steel 
and steel emery are made by heating a good 
grade of steel to a high temperature and cooling 
it quickly in water, then reducing the cold steel 
to a powder by means of crushing machines or 
heavy hammers. This is then mixed with glue 
and applied to belts and wheels in the same 
manner as are emery or sand. The coarse 
grades of abrasives are used for cutting or rolling 
the material, and the finer grades for polishing. 
See Carborundum; Emery; Sand Blast. 

Abruzzi, ah broot' see, Prince Luigi Ama- 
deo, Duke of the (1873- ), mountain- 

climber and Arctic explorer, first cousin to 
Victor Emmanuel III, king of Italy. He was 
the first (1897) to ascend Mt. Saint Elias, 
and in 1900 he gained fame by his attempt to 
reach the North Pole. Though unsuccessful, 
he attained 86°39' N. latitude, the highest lat¬ 
itude reached up to that time. In 1903 he 
ascended the peaks of Mount Ruwenzori, in 
equatorial Africa, and in 1906 led a mountain¬ 
climbing expedition to the Himalayas. The 
records of these explorations he has published 
in several books. His proposed marriage with 
an American woman in 1912 was opposed by 
the king. 

Ab'salom, the third son of David, king of 
Israel. The account of his rebellion, death, 
and David’s touching lamentation for his 
son, are to be found in II Samuel. 

Ab'sinth or Absinthe, an emerald-green 
liquor, consisting of an alcoholic solution 
strongly flavored with an extract of several 
sorts of wormwood, oil of anise and other sub¬ 
stances. Absinth at first produces exhilaration, 
but its continued use leads to derangement of 
the digestive organs and the nervous system. 
Its effects are so perniciou's that the French 
government has forbidden its use in the army 
and navy. 


Absolution, remission of a penitent’s sins 
in the name of God. The passages of Scripture 
on which the Roman Catholic Church founds 
its doctrine of absolution are such as Matthew 
xvi, 19; xvm, 18; John xx, 23. 

Absorbents, the system of minute vessels 
by which the nutritive elements of food and other 
matters are carried into the circulation of verte¬ 
brate animals. See Lacteals; Lymphatics; 
Skin. 

Absorption is that property of certain organs 
of the body by which they take into themselves 
fluids of various kinds. The manner of absorp¬ 
tion still remains a mystery so far as what the 
living cell itself can accomplish, independent of 
the physical and chemical laws. Two fluids of 
varying density will pass through a moist mem¬ 
brane and intermix; they will also pass through 
under pressure; they will mix when brought into 
direct contact with each other. In these differ¬ 
ent ways, much of the digested matter in the 
alimentary canal enters the blood. The cur¬ 
rent may be reversed when certain substances 
are taken into the stomach, as Epsom salts 
cause the flow of the water of the blood into the 
intestines. In order to be absorbed, a substance 
must be in the liquid or gaseous state; the less 
dense the substance the more rapid the absorp¬ 
tion. Nearly all the absorption of food occurs 
in the small intestine, though some water, salt 
and sugar are taken up in the mouth and the 
same materials, with peptones, are taken up in 
the stomach. The principal organs of absorp¬ 
tion are the lymphatics, lacteals, blood vessels 
and skin. See Digestion; Lacteals; Lym¬ 
phatics. 

Abstraction, in psychology/ that process by 
which we separate a single idea from numerous 
ideas in consciousness, and focus the attention 
upon it; as, when looking at an object, we focus 
the attention upon its color to the exclusion of 
other qualities. Abstraction first appears in a 
child when he notices the difference between 
objects. Abstraction is one of the important 
phases of attention, and in its highest form it 
constitutes one of the most advanced mental 
activities. In the adult mind abstraction leads 
to classification. See Attention; Appercep¬ 
tion; Concept; Synthesis. 

Abstract of Title. See Title. 

Abu-bekr, ah'boo bek'r, (570-634), the father- 
in-law and first successor of Mohammed. His 
right to the succession was unsuccessfully con¬ 
tested by Ali, Mohammed’s cousin, who later 
became the fourth caliph and started the schism 


Abukir 

which divided Mohammedans into two sects, 
Sunnites and Shiites. 

Abukir, ah'boo keer \ See Aboukir. 

Abushehr, ah'boo sher', or Bushire, a sea¬ 
port of Persia, situated on the Persian Gulf, 130 
mi. s. e. of Shiraz. It is at the terminus of one 
Df the most important caravan routes in Persia 
and on this account is ah important commercial 
port, though its harbor is so shallow that it can 
not be entered by large vessels. The leading 
exports are opium, tobacco, cotton, silk, mother- 
of-pearl, hides and carpets, while the imports 
are cotton goods, metals, tea and sugar. Popu¬ 
lation, about 25,000. 

Abu-simbel, ah'boo sim'bel, or Ipsam'bul, a 
village of Nubia, on the left bank of the Nile. 
It is remarkable for containing two of the most 
perfect and magnificent existing specimens of 
Egyptian rock-cut temples. The fa 9 ade of one 
of them is adorned with several colossal sitting 
statues of Rameses II, the largest pieces of 
Egyptian sculpture yet discovered. 

Abu'tilon, a troublesome weed in the middle 
United States, commonly known as velvet leaf. 
Other species of the same genus are cul¬ 
tivated in pots and in summer gardens for then* 
pretty, bell-shaped flowers. The genus is gen¬ 
erally tropical and belongs to the mallow 
family. 

Aby'dos, an ancient city of Asia Minor, situ¬ 
ated on the Hellespont, opposite Sestos. Near 
this place Xerxes and his army crossed over to 
Europe on a bridge of boats. Ancient writers 
say that Leander swam nightly from Abydos to 
Sestos to see his beloved Hero, and it is also 
said that Lord Byron accomplished this feat in 
swimming. 

Abydos (now Arabat-el-Madfun), a village of 
Upper Egypt, about 6 mi. w. of the Nile, famous 
as the site of the temple of Osiris and the palace 
of Memnon. The ruins of both of these struc¬ 
tures still exist. In the temple of Osiris in 1818 
Mr. Bankes discovered the famous Abydos 
Tablet, containing a list of the predecessors of 
Rameses the Great. 

Ab'yssin'ia, a country of Africa lying s. w. 
of the Red Sea, from which it is separated by 
the narrow province of Eretria. It extends 
from 5° 30' to 17° north latitude, and from 
36° to 42° east longitude. It is bounded on 
the s. by British East Africa, on the n. w. by 
British Sudan, on the n. e. by Eretria and 
French and British Somaliland, and on the s. e. 
by Italian Somalilahd. The area is about 150,- 
000 square miles; population, 10,000,000. 


Abyssinia 

Surface and Drainage. The main part of 
the country is a plateau, having an average alti¬ 
tude of 8000 feet. In the center is a great 
depression occupied by Lake Tsana, having an 
area of 12,000 square miles, and from which 
flows the Atbara. On the north are the Samen 
Mountains, whose average altitude is 10,000 
feet. South of these is the Talba Wakha, with 
a somewhat lower altitude. The southern part 
of the country is less mountainous and some¬ 
what rolling. 

These highlands are the source of a number 
of important rivers, among them the Atbara 
and Blue Nile. With the exception of the Blue 
Nile, none of the streams in this region is navi¬ 
gable. 

Climate. Abyssinia is divided into three 
climatic areas. The first includes those portions 
having an altitude below 4800 feet, which pos¬ 
sess a tropical or semi-tropical climate. The 
second embraces regions extending from 4800 
to 9000 feet, which have a temperate climate, 
the average temperature being from 80° to 48°, 
according to altitude. The third embraces 
those portions of the country having an alti¬ 
tude above 9000 feet. Here the average tem¬ 
perature is from 50° to 45°. In the lowlands 
the rainy season is from December to May, 
and in the higher lands of the interior two rainy 
seasons prevail, the first from April to June 
and the second from July to October. Through¬ 
out the country the climate is healthful. 

Mineral Resources. Ores of iron and 
silver and deposits of salt and coal are found 
in the mountains and on the plateau. Gold is 
found in the beds of the streams, and recent 
explorations indicate that there are rich veins 
in the mountains, but none of the mines has 
been worked. 

Agriculture. Agriculture is the principal 
industry. The land is divided among families 
instead of among individuals, and possession 
holds only during occupancy. The methods of 
cultivation are primitive, but the soil is fertile 
and yields good returns. The vegetation of the 
lowlands is luxuriant, and tropical fruits, sugar 
cane, coffee, bananas, indigo and dates are culti¬ 
vated. In the middle region are found cereals, 
oranges, lemons, olives and fruits ol the temper¬ 
ate region, while in the third region grazing and 
cultivation of the more hardy cereals, such as 
w heat, oats and rye, are the chief occupation. 
There are no manufactures worthy of mention. 

Commerce. The commerce is limited. The 
imports have been restricted to bare necessities, 


Abyssinia 


Academy 


and the exports to those commodities that can 
be most easily transported. A railway now 
extends fyom the Fench port of Jibutal, on the 
Gulf of Aden, to Harar, the chief commercial 
center of the country, and will be continued to 
Addis Abeba, the capital. This road furnishes 
an important outlet for the products of the 
region through which it passes, and will be the 
means of increasing the commerce. The lead¬ 
ing foreign nations in trade with Abyssinia are 
Great Britain and the United States. A coin is 
issued by the king and is known as the Maria 
Theresa dollar, but bars of salt and cartridges 
also are used for money. 

Inhabitants and Language. The Abys- 
sinians are descendants from the Hamites and 
the Arabians who immigrated from Asia, but 
there are also numerous tribes of various nation¬ 
alities, especially those that have descended from 
the Abyssinj ans and the negroes to the south. In 
color the Abyssinians vary from dark brown to 
black. They are of medium stature and of a 
quiet, tractable nature. The language of the court 
and the ruling class is Amharic, and that of the 
common people, Agua. In general the people 
are in a semi-civilized or barbarous state and 
use the most primitive implements and methods 
in their various occupations. They practice 
polygamy. Education is in the hands of the 
clergy and is limited to the merest elements of 
the common branches; but the people are begin¬ 
ning to adopt the ways of civilized nations. 

Government and Religion. The govern¬ 
ment is an absolute monarchy of long standing. 
The ruler is called Negus , which means the 
king of kings. The government is supposed to 
observe an ancient code of Roman laws, but the 
king and native princes set these aside at pleas¬ 
ure. Local administration is in the hands of 
petty princes and native chiefs, each of whom 
supports a band of retainers to defend his terri¬ 
tory against hostile tribes. The prevailing 
religion is a rude form of Christianity, which 
dates back several centuries before Christ, but 
some of the natives are Mohammedans. 

History. Abyssinia is one of the oldest 
nations in existence. It is supposed that it 
is the Cush of the Scriptures, and the people 
believe it to have been the home of the Queen 
of Sheba. The ruler claims his descent from 
Menelek, the son of this queen and King Solo¬ 
mon, but good authorities consider his claims 
somewhat fanciful. By the spread of Moham¬ 
medanism at the close of the sixth century the 
people were cut off from intercourse with other 


countries, and as a result they relapsed into 
partial barbarism. In the fourteenth century 
the country began to regain its power and flour¬ 
ished for about two hundred years, when its inter¬ 
course with foreign nations was again cut off, 
and it remained secluded until about the begin¬ 
ning of the nineteenth century. In 1868 the 
Abyssinians were brought into conflict with the 
British because of depredations upon British 
outposts. They were thoroughly defeated and 
the king committed suicide. Menelek II was 
made king in 1889 and proved a shrewd and able 
administrator. In the year of the succession of 
King Menelik to the throne, Italy attempted to 
secure a protectorate over Abyssinia by force of 
arms. The Italians were defeated and compelled 
to leave Abyssinia independent. In 1908 Mene¬ 
lek appointed his son, Ledy Jeassu, his successor. 
In the same year Abyssinia became a member 
of the Postal Union. 

Acacia, a ka'sha, a genus of plants consisting 
of trees Qr shrubs with compound pinnate 
leaves and small leaflets, growing in Africa, 
Arabia and the East Indies and other tropical 
and subtropical countries. The flowers are 
arranged in spikes or globular heads, and grow 
in the axils of the leaves near the ends of the 
branches. The 
fruit is a dry un¬ 
jointed pod. Sev¬ 
eral of the species 
yield gum-arabic 
and other gums; 
some have puck- 
ery barks and pods 
that are used in 
tanning; an Indian 
species yields the 
’■valuable medicine 
s called catechu. 
The wattle tree of 
Australia, from 
fifteen to thirty 
feet in height, is 
the most beauti¬ 
ful and useful of the species found there. Its 
bark contains a large percentage of tannin, 
and is hence exported. Some species yield 
valuable timber and some are cultivated for 
the beauty of their flowers. In America as a 
tree it is little known, even in the warmer re¬ 
gions surrounding the Gulf of Mexico. 

Acad'eruy, an association for the promotion 
of literature, science or art. The name is derived 
from a school which Plato taught in a grove 



Acadia 


Acclimatization 


near Athens, belonging to the Greek hero 
Academus. As generally used, the word now 
means n secondary school, or it may mean a 
body of men engaged in any scholarly, scien¬ 
tific or artistic pursuit, or even the building 
in which art treasures are kept or the work of 
the society is carried on. The French Academy, 
established by Richelieu in 1635, is the most 
noted of all the academies. As organized, it 
contained forty members, and its object was to 
control the French language and create a refined 
literary taste. The institution still exists very 
much as it was organized, and to be elected a 
member of it is one of the greatest honors 
which a literary person can receive. The first 
American academy was the American Philo¬ 
sophical Society, organized in 1744 in Phila¬ 
delphia. The Academy of Natural Sciences of 
Philadelphia was organized in 1812. Since 
these were founded many other academies have 
been established, and before the development of 
the high school system these institutions, usually 
under the patronage of some religious society, 
afforded the only means of obtaining a secondary 
education. 

Aca'dia, the name formerly given to Nova 
Scotia, See Nova Scotia. 

Acan'thus, a genus of plants or shrubs, 
mostly tropical, two species of which are char- 
acteiized by large white flowers and deeply 



ACANTHUS 

Natural Leaf and Conventionalized Leaf. 


indented shining leaves. They are favorite 
ornamental plants in gardens. In architecture 
the name is given to a kind of foliage decoration, 
much employed in Roman and later times. 
The conventionalized form is the characteristic 
decoration of the capital in the Corinthian 
column. 

Acapulco, ah'Jca pool'Jco, a seaport on the 
Pacific coast of Mexico, 200 mi. s. s. w. of the 
City of Mexico. The region is subject to fre¬ 
quent earthquakes, and the town consists almost 
entirely of one story houses, constructed of light 


material. The harbor is the best on the entire 
Pacific coast of America, Before the construc¬ 
tion of the Pacific railroads the town had an 
extensive trade with China and the West Indies, 
but this has now almost ceased. Most of the 
trade is now carried on with San Francisco. 
The exports are fruit, timber, indigo, cacao, 
hides, wool and cochineal. The population is 
about 5000. 

Accent, ak'sent, an emphasis placed on a 
certain syllable of a word by which it is made 
more prominent than the other syllables. In 
words which contain more than two syllables 
there may be more than one accent, but one is 
always stronger than the others, and is known 
therefore as the primary accent, while the others 
are secondary, as in syn'copa'tion. The tend¬ 
ency at present in English is toward throwing 
the accent back towards the beginning of the 
word as far as euphony permits, as incom'- 
parcble. 

In music, accent is the stress placed on cer¬ 
tain tones in a bar of music. It falls always in 
the first part of the bar, and in long measures, 
as in words of several syllables, there may be 
a primary accent and one or two slight, secon¬ 
dary accents. 

Ac'cident Insurance. See Insurance:. 

Accli matisation or Acclimation, the 

process by which a plant or animal adapts 
itself to a climate which is not natural to it. 
If the new species establishes itself in the new 
climate, the process is called naturalization. 
Cultivated plants, such as cereals, the potato 
and common fruits, are the best examples of 
acclimatization. Although in most of these the 
process seems to have been perfected, yet cer¬ 
tain limitations are always appearing; for 
instance, corn cannot be grown in the short, 
cool seasons of the northern temperate regions, 
while wheat does not thrive as well in the 
warmer climates. There are countless instances 
of partial acclimatization, where the plant may 
grow thriftily for a time but fail to mature fruit 
or to reach the same woody structure which it 
possesses in its natural home. 

Animals vary considerably in their power to 
adapt themselves to different climates. Some, 
such as the dog, the cat, the domestic fowls and 
mice, have followed man into all parts of the 
world and seem to thrive wherever they locate. 
In general, it is true that any animal organism 
may adapt itself perfectly to certain conditions 
if they are presented slowly and by degrees, 
while if thrown suddenly among the same con- 



Accordion 

ditions it will die. Man himself possesses great 
adaptability, yet when changes are made sud¬ 
denly, he may fall prey to fatal diseases. When¬ 
ever representatives of the races inhabiting the 
temperate climates are transported to the 
tropics, they find it difficult to preserve health 
and vigor for any great length of time. Modern 
sanitation and intelligent care, however, enable 
these people to five for many years in hot 
climates, preserve their health and even carry 
on the industries of their first home. 

Ripley’s Racial Geography of Europe, Heil- 
prin’s Geographical and Geological Distribution 
of Animals and Ireland’s Tropical Colonization 
are standard works of reference on this subject. 

Accor'dion, a small wind instrument in the 
form of a box, from 8 to 12 inches long and 4 
inches wide, 
containing a 
number of 
metallic 
reeds, which 
are set to 
vibrating by 
air forced 
into them 
by the fold¬ 
ing bellows. 

The bellows 
is operated 
by the left hand, the right hand pressing a 
series of keys to regulate the pitch of the tones 
produced. See Concertina. 

Accounting, the methods by which the 
records of a business are analyzed. The 
purpose of bookkeeping is to show debts, both 
those due by a business and those due to a 
business. (See Bookkeeping.) The purpose 
of accounting is to show profits and losses. 

The failure of a large corporation is almost 
always accompanied by a statement that the 
exact condition of the finances cannot be 
learned until experts have spent several days 
or weeks in examining the books. This ap¬ 
parent relation between success and account¬ 
ing demands an explanation. 

The average manufacturer does not know 
what things cost him. Not so many years 
ago business was conducted on a small scale. 
A manufacturer made only one commodity, 
or one line of commodities. A dealer bought a 
few goods which he distributed by comparatively 
simple methods. He paid rent, salaries and 
insurance and bought his stock; deducting 
these expenses from his total sales gave his 


Acetylene 

net return. With the growing complexity 
of business, a single company manufactures 
or sells hundreds of commodities, many of 
which are by-products. If a firm makes a 
hundred products, ten of which are sold at a 
loss, the manager would be foolish not to drop 
the ten and increase profits on the other 
ninety. Some expenses may be for perma¬ 
nent improvements; these should not be 
charged as expenses for one year only, thus 
wiping out the profit for that year. The field 
of accounting is the analysis of a business into 
its operations, and the determination of the ex¬ 
pense and profit from each operation. The 
principles of accounting are applied to every 
feature of business records. These features 
may be summarized in seven groups: 

1. Capital and revenue, their differences. 

2. Depreciation, or wearing-out and con¬ 
sequent loss in value. 

3. Balance sheets and their interpretation. 

4. Cost accounting. 

5. Special accounting, for railroads, etc. 

6. Government accounting. 

7. Auditing, or the examination of records. 

Acetanilid, as'el an'il id, a white crystalline 

pow r der made by treating aniline with acetic 
acid. It is highly poisonous, but because of its 
action in allaying pain it is frequently given as 
a medicine. It is the active and often dangerous 
principle in headache powders. 

Acetates, as'e tayts, salts of acetic acid. 
The acetates of most commercial or manufac¬ 
turing importance are those of aluminum and 
iron, which are used in calico-printing; of cop¬ 
per, which, as verdigris, is used as a color; and 
of lead, best known as sugar of lead. The 
acetates of potassium, sodium and ammonium, 
of iron, zinc and lead, and the acetate of mor¬ 
phia, are employed in medicine. 

Acetic, a set'ic, Acid, an acid produced by 
the oxidation of common alcohol and of many 
other organic substances. Pure acetic acid has 
a very sour taste and pungent smell, burns the 
skin and is poisonous. Pure strong acetic acid 
is called glacial acetic add and at temperatures 
below 62° F. it is a solid. Vinegar is simply 
dilute acetic acid, and is prepared by exposing 
wine or weak spirits to the action of the air. 
It is also obtained from malt which has under¬ 
gone fermentation. Acetic acid, both concen¬ 
trated and dilute, is largely used in the arts, in 
medicine and for domestic purposes. See 
Vinegar. 

Acetylene, a set'i leen, a pure gas consisting 













Achaeans 


Achin 


of carbon and hydrogen. It is clear, colorless 
and heavy, has a distinct odor, and burns with a 
flame of intense brilliancy. It is present in 
ordinary illuminating gas only to the extent of 
from £ to per cent. The gas is poisonous to 
the same extent as ordinary gas, but its char¬ 
acteristic odor gives warning if there is any leak. 
There is no odor from the gas while burning, 
the flame being clear, white and steady, without 
smoke and with little heat. Acetylene gas is 
produced, commercially, by the action of water 
on calcium carbide, the result of electrical fusion 
of coal dust and lime in the proportion of 1130 
pounds of coal dust to 1750 pounds of lime 
with a resultant of 2000 pounds of calcic car¬ 
bide. This is a dark, gray, cinder-like sub¬ 
stance. Large factories for making it are 
located at Niagara Falls, N. Y., and at Sault 
Ste. Marie, Mich. The calcium carbide can 
be exposed to the most intense heat of a blast 
furnace without perceptible effect. Dry air 
does not act upon it to any appreciable ex¬ 
tent, but the instant that water is brought in 
contact with the carbide, 
acetylene gas is produced. 

A double change takes 
place. The oxygen of 
the water unites with the 
calcium of the calcium 
carbide, forming oxide 
of calcium, which com¬ 
bines with the water, 
forming hydrate of cal¬ 
cium. The hydrogen of 
the water unites with 
the carbon of the calcium 
carbide, forming the 
acetylene, which rises and 
is used. In using acety¬ 
lene a special burner is necessary. It contains 
two small opening, 1 and 2, from which the gas 
issues and mingles with the air before it ignites. 

Achaeans, a kee'anz, one of the four main 
divisions of the ancient Greeks. They migrated 
from Thessaly to the Peloponnesus, which they 
ruled in the heroic period. From very early 
times a confederacy existed among the twelve 
towns of this region. After the death of Alex¬ 
ander the Great it was broken up, but was 
revived again in 280 B. c., and from this time 
grew in power till it spread over the whole 
Peloponnesus. It was finally dissolved by the 
Romans in 146 B. c., and after this the whole 
of Greece, except Thessaly, was called Achaia 



ACETYLENE BURNER 


Achates, a ka'teez, a companion of Aeneas in 
his wanderings after his flight from Troy. He 
is always distinguished in Vergil’s Aeneid by 
the epithet fidus (faithful), and has become 
typical of a faithful friend and companion. See 
Aeneas; Aeneid. 

Achelous, ak'elx/us, (now called Aspro- 
potomo), the largest river of Greece. It rises on 
Mount Pindus, flows southward, separating Aeto- 
lia and Acarnania, and falls into the Ionian Sea. 
It is 100 miles long and is not navigable. Achelous 
was the name of the river-god of Greece. 

Acheron, aide ron, the ancient name of sev¬ 
eral rivers in Greece and Italy, all of which 
were connected b^ legend with the lower world. 
The best known is the Acheron in Epirus, which 
enters the Ionian Sea, 7 miles southeast of Parga. 

Achill, ak'ill, or Eagle Island, the largest 
island on the Irish coast. There are several 
mountains rising to a height of 2000 feet. The 
chief occupation of the 5000 inhabitants is fishing. 

Achilles, alcil'eez, a Greek legendary hero, 
the chief character in the Iliad. He was the 
son of Peleus and of the nereid Thetis, and was 
instructed in eloquence and the arts of war by 
Phoenix, and in medicine by the centaur Chiron. 
He joined in the war against Troy and during 
the early years of that struggle w T as of great 
help to the Greeks. When Agamemnon, how¬ 
ever, took from him Briseis, a captive maiden 
who had fallen to his share, he refused to take 
further part in the war, and the fortunes of the 
Greeks became desperate. When his friend 
and kinsman, Patroclus, was killed, Achilles, 
led by his fierce desire for revenge, became 
reconciled with Agamemnon, returned to the 
fight and killed Hector, the bravest of the Trojan 
1 warriors. Achilles, according to early legends, 
had been dipped by his mother in the Styx, and 
thus made invulnerable except for one heel, by 
which she had held him. It was in his heel 
that he received the wound which killed him. 

Achilles, Tendon of, the strong tendon 
which connects the muscles of the calf with the 
heel. It may be easily felt just above the heel. 
For the origin of the name, see Achilles. 

Achin, a cheen', Atcheen, or Atjeh, a prov¬ 
ince of Sumatra, in the northwestern part. 
The capital of the province is a town of the 
same name, on the river Achin, near the sea. 
Achin has engaged in many bloody wars 
with the Netherlands, which claim sovereignty 
over all Sumatra, and its subjugation was 
completed only after a long struggle. Popu- 









Acid 


Acrostic 


lation in 1910 estimated at 600,000. 

Acid, as'id, a name popularly applied to a 
number of compounds, solid, liquid and gaseous, 
having more or less the qualities of vinegar, the 
general properties assigned to them being a tart, 
sour taste, the power of changing vegetable blues 
into reds and of being in various degrees 
neutralized by alkalies. An acid has been 
defined as a substance containing hydrogen, 
which hydrogen is in whole or in part replace¬ 
able by a metal in the form of a base; being 
monobasic, dibasic or tribasic, according to the 
number of hydrogen atoms replaced. When 
hydrogen is replaced by a metal, the result is 
called the salt of that metal. Sulphuric acid, 
nitric acid and hydrochloric acid are manufac¬ 
tured on an extensive scale, and are very useful 
products. There are many useful acids which 
occur in nature, and a great many more that 
are prepared artificially. See Acetic Acid; 
Citric Acid; Carbolic Acid; Formic Acid; 
Hydrochloric Acid; Lactic Acid; Nitric Acid; 
Sulphuric Acid. 

Acireale, ah'che ra ah'le, a seaport of Sicily 
at the mouth of the River Aci near the foot of 
Mount Etna. It is celebrated for its mineral 
springs and for the grotto of Galatea and the 
cave of Polyphemus in the neighborhood. 
The manufactures are silk, linens and cottons, 
and there is a considerable trade in corn, wine 
and fruit. Population in 1911, 36,000. 

Aclin'ic Line, the magnetic equator, an 
irregular curve in the neighborhood of the 



terrestrial equator, on which the magnetic needle 
balances itself horizontally, having no dip. See 
Dipping Needle. 

Aconcagua, ah'kon Jcah'gua, an extinct vol¬ 
cano of the Argentine Republic, in the southern 
part of the Andes. It i3 usually considered the 
highest mountain in America, its height being 
estimated at 23,000 feet. It was first ascended 
in 1897 by Zurbriggen. A river of the same 
name, 200 miles in length, rises on the southern 
slope of the mountain and enters the Pacific. 


Ac'onite, a genus of hardy herbs represented 
by the well known wolf’s-bane or monk’s-hood, 
and remarkable for their poisonous properties 
and medicinal qualities. Aconite acts upon the 
heart to lessen its action, and in fatal doses it 
kills by paralyzing the heart. 

Acoustics, a kov/stiks or a koo'stiks. See 
Sound. 

Acre, a'knr, a standard measure of land, 
used in the United States and England. Orig¬ 
inally the name seems to have meant the amount 
of land which one man could plow in a day. 
The acre consists of 4840 square yards, is divided 
into 4 roods, and each rood into 4 perches. J.t 
is approximately equal to .404 hectares. 

Acre, ah'kur or a'kur, or Ak'ka, a city ana 
seaport of Syria, at the foot of Mount Carmel. 
In ancient times it was a place of great impor¬ 
tance, and it is famous for many sieges. In 
1104 it was taken by the Crusaders, and in 1187 
by the Saracens, and was recovered by Richard 
Coeur de Lion and given to the Knights of 
Saint John of Jerusalem. Again, in 1291, it 
was taken by the Saracens. Bonaparte 
attempted to take Acre in 1799, but the siege 
proved unsuccessful. In 1832 it was taken by 
Ibrahim Pasha and was bombarded by the 
English and Austrians in 1840. 

Ac'robat, a term applied to any person 
skilled in rope-walking, balancing or tumbling 
acts. Acrobats have entertained the public for 
centuries w r ith their remarkable performances, 
though doubtless never by greater skill or more 
w'onderful evolutions than are now practiced. 
All exercises with apparatus in gymnasiums are 
now known as acrobatic performances. 

Acrop'olis, the citadel or chief place of a 
Grecian city, usually on an eminence command¬ 
ing the town. That of Athens, the best exam¬ 
ple, contained some of the finest buildings in 
the world. See Parthenon; Erechtheum; 
Temple of Nike Apteros; Propylaea; 
Theseum. 

Acros'tic, a poem of which the first or last, 
or certain other letters of the lines, taken in 
order, form some word, name, motto or sen¬ 
tence, as in the following: 

T ruth as refined as ever Athens heard, that wakes 
to perish never; 

H ope like the gleaming taper’s steady light, 

I ncite our hearts to noblest thought and word 
and deed and best endeavor; 

N umberless blessings truth and hope impart, 
sweet melodies inspiring; 

Kindling the soul with zeal to do the right, in 
virtues never tiring. 





* 


Actaeon 

A poem of which both first and last letters are 
thus arranged is called a double acrostic. In 
Hebrew poetry, the term is applied to a poem 
of which the initial letters of the lines or stanzas 
were made to run over the letters of the alphabet 
in their order, as in Psalms cxix. Acrostics 
have been much used in complimentary verses, 
the initial letters giving the name of the person 
eulogized. 

Actaeon, ak tee'on, in Greek mythology, a 
great hunter who was turned into a stag and 



was torn to pieces by his own dogs, for looking 
on Diana when she was bathing. 

Ac'tinism, the chemical action caused by 
light. When sunlight is resolved into its spec¬ 
trum (See Light, subhead Spectrum), it is 
found that the different rays possess the power 
of producing chemical changes in a varying 
degree. The most rapid changes occur in the 
violet rays and the dark space just beyond, 
while the red rays have little power to cause 
chemical action. The varying chemical power 
of the different rays can be shown by directing 
a spectrum on to a sheet of white paper moist¬ 
ened with a solution of nitrate of silver. The 
shading will decrease in intensity from the por¬ 
tion on which the violet rays fall to beyond the 
red rays, where little or no change can be 
detected. Practical applications of this prop¬ 
erty of light are made in the arts. Photog¬ 
raphers use a red light in the developing room, 
since its rays will not affect the undeveloped 
negatives. Horticulturists sometimes use blue 
or violet glass for covering hot-houses or hot- 


Adams 

beds in which they wish plants to grow rapidly. 
The blue and purple rays are also used by 
physicians in treating certain diseases, and 
recent research has shown that the blue rays 
are very effective. 

Acton, John Emerich Edward Dalberg 
Acton, Baron (1834-1902), English historian, 
born at Venice; At the age of twenty-five 
he settled in England, and in the next year 
was elected to Parliament, where he became 
known as the devoted adherent and intimate 
friend of Gladstone. In religion, as in politics, 
he was liberal, and he was steadily opposed to 
the reactionary influences in the Roman Cath¬ 
olic Church. He served in Parliament until 
1865, and in 1869 was raised to the peerage. 
Meanwhile, though he wrote but little, his 
scholarliness was bringing him fame, and in 
1892 he was appointed Regius Professor of 
Modern History at Cambridge University. 
He planned and partly edited the Cambridge 
Modem History, in ten great volumes. His 
working library, of 80,000 volumes, was pur¬ 
chased by Andrew Carnegie and presented to 
Viscount Morley, by whom it was given to 
Cambridge University. 

Actium, alc'shium, (now Ak'ri), a promon¬ 
tory on the western coast of Northern Greece, 
memorable for the naval victory gained here by 
Octavianus (afterward the Emperor Augustus) 
over Antony and Cleopatra, 31 B. c. Cleopatra 
fled with sixty Egyptian ships, and Antony fol¬ 
lowed her to Egypt. The deserted fleet was 
overcome after a brave resistance. Antony’s 
land forces went over to the enemy. 

Acts of the Apostles, one of the books of 
the New Testament, written in Greek, probably 
i:. 63 or 64 a. d., and usually attributed to Saint 
Luke. It embraces a period of about thirty 
years, beginning immediately after the Resur¬ 
rection and extending to the second year of the 
imprisonment of Saint Paul in Rome. 

Adam and Eve, the names given in Scripture 
to our first parents, an account of whom and 
their immediate descendants is given in the 
early chapters of Genesis. 

Ad'ams, Mass., a town in Berkshire co., 16 
mi. n. of Pittsfield, on the Hoosac River and the 
Boston & Albany railroad. It has a public 
library and contains manufactures of cotton and 
woolen goods, foundry products and other arti¬ 
cles. Greylock Mountain, which has an eleva¬ 
tion of 3535 feet and is the highest point i'j 
Massachusetts, lies within the limits of the 
town. It was laid out in 1749 as East Hoosuck 



Adams 


Adams 


and incorporated under its present name in 
1778. Population in 1910, including the vil¬ 
lages of Renfrew, Maple Grove and Zylonite, 
13,026. 

Adams, Charles Francis (1807-1886), an 
American statesman, son of John Quincy 
Adams. His early years were spent in Europe, 
but he finished his education at Harvard, and 
afterward studied law. After serving some 
years in the Massachusetts legislature, he was 
elected to Congress in 1858. In 1861 he was 
sent to England as American minister, and for 
seven years he performed the arduous duties of 
his office with the utmost tact and ability. He 
was one of the arbitrators of the Alabama 
claims. 

Adams, Charles Francis, Jr .(1835-1915), 
an American author and statesman, born in 
Boston. He graduated at Harvard in 1856 and 
was admitted to the bar in 1858. He served in the 
Union army and was made brigadier general at 
the close of the war. In 1869 he was appointed 
to the board of railroad commissioners for Mas¬ 
sachusetts, and in 1884 he became president of 
the Union Pacific railway, a position which he 
filled for six years. He published Chapters of 
Erie; Notes on Railway Accidents, and Massa¬ 
chusetts: Its Historians and Its History, besides 
much other work of a miscellaneous character. 

Adams, Charles Kendall (1835-1902), an 
American educator and historian, born at 
Derby, Vermont. He was educated in the 
University of Michigan and in universities in 
Germany, France and Italy. In 1885 he was 
elected president of Cornell University, where 
he served for seventeen years. He resigned this 
position and in 1893 was chosen president of 
the University of Wisconsin, which position he 
held until a short time before his death. Doctor 
Adams was the founder of the seminary of his¬ 
tory in the University of Michigan, and the first 
to introduce the seminary method of studying 
history into the United States. He is the author 
of a number of works, the most important being 
Democracy and Monarchy in France, A Manual 
of Historical Literature and Columbus, His Life 
and Work. He was also editor-in-chief of 
Johnson's Universal Encyclopedia. 

Adams, Henry (1838- ), an American 

historican, son of Charles Francis Adams. He 
was professor of history at Harvard from 1870 
to 1877, and was most successful in his work 
there. He has published several historical 
works most important of which is the History 
of the United States Jrom 1801 to 1817 . The 
3 


life of John Randolph in the American States¬ 
men Series was written by him. 

Adams, Herbert Baxter (1850-1901), an 
American historian, bom near Amherst, Mass. 
He studied at Amherst College and Heidel¬ 
berg, Germany, and became connected with 
Johns Hopkins University, where he rose to a 
professorship of history. He edited the well- 
known Johns Hopkins Studies in History and 
Political Science, wrote many important essays, 
mainly on educational history, and is known for 
a two volume life of Jared Sparks. He was a 
lecturer at Smith College and at Chautauqua, 
was much interested in university extension 
and helped to found the American Historical 
Association. His best work was in training 
students of history and encouraging historical 
research. 

Adams, John (1735-1826), second president 
of the United States, born at Quincy, Mass. 
He was educated at Harvard University and 



adopted the law as a profession. In 1764 he 
married Abigail Smith, a woman of considerable 
strength of character, who had much influence 
on her husband's life. Adams’s attention was 
directed to politics by the question as to the 
right of the English Parliament to tax the colo¬ 
nies, and in 1765 he published some essays 
strongly opposed to the claims of the mother 
country. As a member of the Continental Con¬ 
gress he was strenuous in his opposition to the 
home government, and in organizing the various 
departments of the colonial government. On 
May 13th, 1776, he seconded the motion for a 



Adams 


Adams 


declaration of independence proposed by Lee 
of Virginia and was appointed a member of the 
committee to draw it up. The declaration was 
actually drawn up by Jefferson, but it was 
Adams who carried it through Congress. 

In 1778 he went to France on a special mis- 



THE ADAMS HOUSES, QUINCY. MASS. 

John Adams was born in the house to the right, John 
Quincy Adams in the house to the left. 


sion, and after a brief home visit returned to 
Europe. For nine years he resided abroad as 
representative of his country in France, Holland 
and England. After taking part in the peace 
negotiations he was appointed, in 1785, the first 
ambassador of the United States to the court 
of Saint James. 

He was recalled in 1788, and in the same year 
was elected vice-president of the republic, under 
Washington. In 1792 he was reelected vice- 
president, and at the following election was 
chosen president. The commonwealth was then 
divided into two parties, the Federalists, who 
favored strong central government and were 
suspected of monarchic views, and the Anti- 
federalists, Republicans or Democrats Adams 
adhered to the former party, but the real leader 
of the party was Hamilton, with whom Adams 
did not agree and who tried to prevent his elec¬ 
tion. His term of office proved a stormy one, 
and broke up the Federalist party. His reelec¬ 
tion in 1800 was opposed by Hamilton, who 
succeeded in effecting the return of the Demo¬ 
cratic candidate, Jefferson. Adams then retired 
from office into private life. He had the conso¬ 
lation of living to see his son president. He 
died July 4, 1826, the fiftieth anniversary of 
the declaration of independence, and on the 
same day as Jefferson. His works have been 
ably edited by his grandson, Charles Francis 
Adams. 

Adams, John Quincy (1767-1848), sixth 
president of the United States, son of John 
Adams, the second president. He was bom at 
Quincy, MaSs., accompanied his father to 
Europe and was educated there in part, but 


graduated at Harvard in 1788. He was admitted 
to the bar and soon began to take an active 
interest in politics. His published letters on 
public issues having attracted general attention, 
in 1794 he was appointed by Washington min¬ 
ister to The Hague. He afterward was sent to 
Portugal, and by his father to Berlin. Adams 
entered the state Senate and was elected by the 
Federalists to the United States Senate from 
Massachusetts in 1803. During this service he 
became a warm follower of the Republican 
administration and thus incurred the displeasure 
of his constituents to such an extent that he 
resigned in 1808, and in 1809 went as ambas¬ 
sador to Russia. He assisted in negotiating the 
peace of 1814 with England and was afterward 
appointed resident minister at London. Under 
Monroe he was secretary of state, and in that 
capacity had much to do with framing the 
famous Monroe Doctrine. 

At the expiration of Monroe’s double term of 
office he succeeded him in the presidency (1825) 
as the candidate of the so-called National- 



Republicans, those Republicans who favored 
protection and internal improvements. Little 
was accomplished during his administration 
except the passage of a protective tariff law in 
1828, known as the “Tariff of Abominations” 
(See Tabiff). He was not able, as president, 






















JANE ADDAMS 









Adams 


Addas 


to satisfy any one of the numerous political 
factions, and was not reelected. In 1830 he 
returned to the lower house of Congress and 
continued to represent his state with remarkable 
ability till his death, his efforts being chiefly in 
behalf of the abolitionist party. This is the 
only case in which an ex-president has served in 
Congress. 

Adams, Maud Kiskadden (1872- ), an 

American actress, born in Salt Lake City, Utah. 
In the companies of which her mother was a 
member, Maud Adams often appeared while a 
child, and at sixteen years of age she joined 
Sothem’s company. As a member of Froh- 
man’s stock company her reputation grew stead¬ 
ily, and with her presentation of Lad) Babbie in 
The Little Minister, a dramatization of Barrie’s 
novel, she scored a great success. As Juliet, 
and as the Due de Reichstadt in L’Aiglon, she 
gained increased popularity, to which her pro¬ 
ductions of Barrie’s Quality Street, Peter Pan 
and What Every Woman Knows added. 

Adams, Samuel (1722-1803), an American 
statesman, second cousin of John Adams. He 
early devoted himself to politics, and in the 
dispute between America and the mother 
country he showed himself one of the most 
unwearied, efficient and disinterested laborers 
for American freedom and independence. He 
was one of the signers of the declaration of 1776, 
which he labored most indefatigably for several 
years to bring forward. He sat in Congress 
eight years, but during that period showed a 
lack of depth of view and legislative wisdom. 
From 1789 to 1794 he was lieutenant governor 
of Massachusetts, from 1794 to 1797 was gov¬ 
ernor, and then retired from public life. 

Adams, William Taylor (1822-1897), Amer¬ 
ican author of juvenile stories, better known by 
his pseudonym, Oliver Optic. He taught for 
twenty years in Boston, and was once a member 
of the state legislature. His works comprise 
over one hundred volumes, of which may be 
mentioned the Young America Abroad Series; 
The Boat Club Series and The Starry Flag 
Series. 

Adam’s Apple. See Larynx. 

Ad'dams, Jane (1860- ), an American 

social settlement worker, bom at Cedarville, Ill. 
She pramiaren »r. K/vKTnrfl College in 18R1. »tm| 
then spent two years in travel and study in 
Europe. After a year’s study of social conditions 
in Philadelphia, Miss Addams went to Chicago, 
where she secured the cooperation of Miss Ellen 
Gates Starr in the establishment of Hull House, 


a social settlement in one of the city’s poorest 
districts (see Hull House). Her energy and 
ability and her sane sympathy with the dwellers 
in the slums soon brought the settlement to 
prominence and made it the leading institution 
of its kind in the United States. She has made 
an intimate study of the problems of the slums, 
and she is universally recognized as one of the 
foremost authorities on such social questions as 
tenements and child labor. In addition to 
her position as head resident of Hull House, 
Miss Addams assumed many duties of a semi¬ 
public nature. She was for three years one of 
the city’s inspectors of streets and alleys. In 
1909 she was president of the National Con¬ 
ference of Charities and Correction. She is a 
leader in the movement to give free suffrage to 
women, and in 1912 was a prominent delegate 
to the first national convention of the Progressive 
party, being the first woman to make a speech 
seconding the nomination of a candidate for the 
presidency. Throughout the campaign of that year 
she was active in the support of Mr. Roosevelt. 
Miss Addams has written a number of books on 
social and political reform, including Democracy 
and Social Ethics, Newer Ideals of Peace, and 
The Spirit of Youth and the City Streets. 
Another book, Twenty Years at Hull House, is 
the record of the great work for which she will 
always be best remembered. 

Ad'dax or Ad'das, a species of antelope of 
northeastern Africa. The horns of the male 
are about four feet long, beautifully twisted 



ADDAX 


into a wide sweeping spiral of two turns and 



Adder 


Ade 


a half, with the points directed outward. It 
has tufts of hair on the forehead and throat, 
and large broad hoofs. 

Ad'der, a name given to certain poisonous 
vipers, as well as to certain harmless snakes. In 
the United States the term is applied to the 
copperhead and to the water moccasin, but in 
general, when the name is used without quali¬ 
fication, the adder of Great Britain, the only 
poisonous snake in the islands, is referred to. 
The puff adder or asp is a snake of South Africa 
whose bite is always fatal. The name is derived 
from the serpent’s power of puffing out the upper 
part of its neck when irritated or alarmed. It 
is very thick and attains a length of four or five 
feet. The natives poison their arrows with its 
venom. 

AddingMachine.SeeCALcuLATiNGMACHiNE. 

Addis Abeba, ah'dis a ba'bah, the capital 
of Abyssinia, in the province of Shoa, situated 
at an altitude of over 8,000 feet. ‘It has no 
regular streets and is cut into several sections 
by deep ravines. This city was the scene of 
the signing of the treaty of peace between 
Italy and Abyssina in 1896, in which Italy 
resigned her claim to a protectorate and 
acknowledged the independence of Abyssinia. 
Population, estimated at 50,000. 

Ad'dison, Joseph (1672-1719), an English 
poet and essayist, born at Milston, in Wilt¬ 
shire. He studied at Oxford and won a name 
for himself by his easy, graceful Latin verse. 
After his graduation he was given a pension 
by the government, which enabled him to 
travel on the continent for several years. 
While in Italy he penned his poetical Letter 
to Lord Halifax. In 1704 he wrote The 
Campaign, a poem addressed to the duke 
Marlborough, celebrating his victory at the 
battle of Blenheim, and this secured him sev¬ 
eral government appointments. He com¬ 
menced to write for the Tattler, in 1709, and 
for its successor, the Spectator, in 1711. His 
tragedy of Cato, produced in 1713, met with 
great success. His marriage to the dowager 
countess of Warwick occurred in 1716, but 
he gained little happiness from the union. 
Of Addison’s poetry one or two sacred pieces 
will endure as long as the language; but it is 
by his essays in the Spectator that he is best 
known. For humor and poetic grace, for 
elegance of style and for good-humored satire, 
these essays remain unsurpassed. Best 
known is the delightful series on Sir Roger de 
Coverley, with its excellent character-drawing, 


regarded by critics as a step in the development 
of the novel. 

Addition, ad dish'un. See Arithmetic. 

Address', Forms of, in the United States 
are not so rigidly observed as in monarchical 
countries and are less formal and elaborate. 
The Constitution of the United States pro¬ 
vides that no title shall be granted by the 
government and that no official of the United 
States shall accept a title from any foreign 
state. The president of the United States and 
the governor of Massachusetts possess by 
legislative act the title Excellency and the 
same title is usually given by courtesy to 
governors of other states. In addressing 
the president or a governor in writing, or in 
speaking of him formally, the form used is, 
His Excellency the President of the United 
Stales or His Excellency the Governor of -. 

The vice-president of the United States, the 
heads of executive departments, the justices of 
supreme and superior courts, lieutenant 
governors of states, mayors of cities and sena¬ 
tors and representatives of the United States 
and of the several states are addressed as The 

Honorable -, to which is usually added the 

official title as, The Honorable - -, 

Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United 
States. Members of the Supreme Court of 
the United States, however, are called Mr. 
Justice in conversation. 

Archbishops are addressed The Most Rev¬ 
erend -, Archbishop of -. A cardinal is 

addressed His Eminence -, Cardinal Arch¬ 

bishop of . Roman Catholic or Episcopal 

bishops are addressed The Right Reverend. 

Holders of professional degrees are usually 
addressed in writing by the abbreviation of 
their titles, such as Dr., Prof, and Rev. The 
article the should never be used with an ab¬ 
breviation; The Reverend - is correct, but 

The Rev. - is incorrect. 

The abbreviation Esq., for Esquire, is fre¬ 
quently used in the United States and gen¬ 
erally in Canada and Great Britain. When 
Esq. follows the name of a person the ab- ’ 
breviation Mr. is never used. In Great 
Britain the title esquire seems to have been 
confined at first to lawyers, country gentlemen 
with large estates and to the oldest sons of 
knights, but no particular significance is now 
attached to its use. 

Ade, George (1S66— ), an American 

humorist, playwright and author, born at Kent- 
land, Ind. He graduated at Purdue University 


Adelaide 


Adjective 


and did newspaper work in Lafayette, Ind., 
and in Chicago, where he became known for his 
sketches of street-life. Among other books, he 
published two volumes of Fables in Slang, 
remarkable for their wit and knowledge of 
human failings. Of his later works, The Sultan 
of Sulu, Peggy from Paris, The Sho-gun 
and The Fair Co-Ed are light operas, marked 
by the same qualities as his earlier works; 
and he has exhibited the same characteristics 
in several popular comedies, including The 
College Widow and The County Chairman. 

Ad'eiaide, the capital of South Australia, 
on the Torrens River, 7 mi. from the coast and 
508 mi. n. w. of Melbourne. The Torrens has 
been enlarged by damming a lake in its vicinity 
and is crossed by a number of beautiful bridges. 
The most important buildings are the Parlia¬ 
ment buildings, costing nearly half a million 
donars, the town hall, the South Australia Insti¬ 
tute, library and art galleries. The city also has 
a beautiful botanical garden and other parks. 
It is the see of a Catholic and Anglican bishop 
and contains a large number of churches. The 
chief industries are iron foundries, woolen mills, 
soap and starch factories, tanneries and brew¬ 
eries. Lead and copper are mined in the 
vicinity, and the city carries on a large trade. 
Adelaide was founded in 1836 • Population in 
1908, including suburbs, 178 ; 300. 

Port Adelaide, the port of the city, which is 
seven miles distant, has an excellent harbor 
and is the port of call for nearly all European 
vessels. Population, about 5000. 

Aden, ah'den or a'den, a seaport town and 
territory on the southwest coast of Arabia, 
belonging to Great Britain. Occupying an 
important military position, Aden is strongly 
fortified and permanently garrisoned and may 
be called the Gibraltar of the East. It is situated 
in the crater of an extinct volcano and is sur¬ 
rounded by rocky peaks, which attain a height 
of from 1000 to 1775 feet. The harbor is 
deep and commodious and Aden is one of the 
most important coaling stations on the route of 
vessels pass through the Suez Canal. Popula¬ 
tion in 1911, 46,165. 

Aden, Gulf of, that portion of the sea lying 
between Arabia and Aden and extending from 
the strait of Bab-el-Mandeb to the Indian Ocean, 
or Arabian Sea. 

Adenoids, the excessive growth of certain 
spongy tissues which lie between the back of 
the nose and the throat. These tissues lie 
in the passage through which air, if inhaled 


through the nostrils, must pass before it 
reaches the lungs, and they also are close to 
the openings of the tubes passing from the 
throat to the ear. Enlargement of these 
tissues, occurring mostly in young children, 
prevents proper breathing and lung develop¬ 
ment and makes the child dull of hearing. 
Inflamed tonsils and “chronic colds” are 
likely to accompany adenoids. Children who 
breathe with their mouths open are likely to be 
found suffering from adenoids or from inflamma¬ 
tion of the tonsils. (See Tonsils.) In recent 
years the operation of removing adenoids is 
generally performed with success. 

Adhe'sion, the attraction which different 
substances have for each other when brought into 
close contact. It is by adhesion that chalk sticks 
to a blackboard, paint to wood, and the lead of a 
pencil to paper. Adhesion may also exist between 
two solids, between a solid and a fluid, or between 
two fluids. A plate of glass or of polished metal 
• laid on the surface of water and attached to one 
arm of a balance will support much more than its 
own weight in the opposite scale from the force 
of adhesion between the water and the plate. 

Adige, ah'deja (German, Etsch), a river of 
northern Italy, which rises in the Rhaetian Alps. 
It flows southeast into the Adriatic Sea, 180 
miles from the river’s source, and forms a delta 
connected with that of the Po. 

Adirondack Mountains, a group of moun¬ 
tains belonging to the Appalachian system, 
extending from the northeast corner of the State 
^ of New Aork to near its center. The scenery is 
wild and grand, diversified by numerous beau¬ 
tiful lakes, and the whole region is a iavorite 
resort of sportsmen and tourists. The district 
has been preserved in its natural beauty by state 
legislation constituting it a public park. 

Ad'jective, in grammar, the part of speech 
which is used to limit or define a noun or a word 
or phrase equivalent to a noun. One of the 
more common classifications of adjectives 
divides them into (1) descriptive adjectives, 
which include not only adjectives denoting 
quality, as white, round, good, but also numeral 
adjectives, as one, two; (2) pronominal adjec¬ 
tives, as this, that. In this latter class the arti¬ 
cles are sometimes included (See Article). 
In the English language the adjective always 
precedes its noun unless it be a predicate adjec¬ 
tive. English adjectiver do not change their 
form tor gender or number, but the adjectives 
of quality admit of comparison to express 
various degrees of the quality indicated. 


Adjutant 


Adrian 


Ad'jutant, a species of stork common in 
India, where it is protected by law because of 
its habit of destroying small noxious animals 
and acting as a scavenger. The adjutant has 
a slate-colored back and wings, with white 



body and a nearly naked flesh-colored neck 
marked with black. It stands about five feet 
high and has an enormous bill and an inflatable 
pouch under its neck. It was called adju¬ 
tant bird because of the important ways it 
assumes. 

Ad'ler, Felix (1851- ), an American 

lecturer and educator, born at Alzey, Germany, 
and educated at the universities of Berlin and 
Heidelberg. On completion of his education 
he was appointed professor of Hebrew and 
oriental literature at Cornell University, but is 
more generally known as the founder in New 
York of the Society for Ethical Culture, of 
which he became the lecturer. Under Doctor 
Adler’s management the influence of this society 
became such as to secure the establishment of 
similar societies in other parts of the United 
States and in foreign countries. In 1902 
Doctor Adler was appointed professor of social 
and political ethics in Columbia University. 
He was the author of Creed and Deed and The 
Moral Instruction of Children. 

Adme'tns, in Greek mythology, king of 
Pkerae, in Thessaly, and husband of Alcestis, 
who gave signal proof of her attachment by 
consenting to die in order to prolong her hus¬ 
band’s life. See Alcestis. 


Ad'miralty Island, an island 80 miles long 

off the coast of Alaska, just south of Juneau. 
It is separated from the mainland by a narrow 
channel and is covered with excellent timber. 
The inhabitants are Sitka Indians. 

Admiralty Islands, a cluster of about forty 
islands north of New Guinea, belonging to 
Germany. The largest is about 60 miles in 
length. They possess dense groves of cocoa- 
nut trees and are covered with rich vegetation. 
Thuy were discovered in 1616. 

Ado'be, the name of a sun-dried brick used 
in arid regions in Arizona, New Mexico and 
Mexico. The Dricks are baked by exposing 
them to the sun for ten days cr two weeks, 
during which time they are turned daily. They 
are of two sizes, 18 X 9 X 4 inches, and 16 X 
12 X 4 inches. When dried, the bricks are 
stacked for use. The large size are so lai<^ in 
walls that the length of the brick will be cross¬ 
wise, while th»j smaller size are laid lengthwise 
of the wall. These bricks are serviceable for 
building in dry climates, but they cannot be 
used where there is much rainfall. Bricks made 
in a similar manner were used by the ancient 
Egyptians and Babylonians in constructing most 
of their buildings. 

Ado'nis, a genus of plants of the same 
family as the buttercup. In the corn-adonis or 
pheasant’s eye the petals are bright scarlet like 
the blood of Adonis, from which the plant is 
fabled to have sprung. 

Adonis, in classical mythology a beautiful 
boy who was loved by Venus. He was killed 
during a boar hunt, and Venus, inconsolable, 
begged Proserpina for his return from the lower 
regions, and it was finally granted that the boy 
should spend half of the year on earth. 

Adrian, the name of six popes of Rome, no 
one of whom was noted for any great deeds. 
Adrian IV, originally named Nicolas Break- 
spear, the only Englishman that ever occupied 
the papal chair, was born about 1100 and died 
1159. He studied in France, became abbot of 
St. Rufus in Provence, and pope in 1154. Dur¬ 
ing his reign was begun the long contest with the 
German House of Hohenstaufen, which finally 
brought about the overthrow of that dynasty. 
Adrian V settled the dispute between King 
Henry III of England and his nobles in favor 
of the former, but died a month after his elec¬ 
tion to the papal chair (1276). 

A'drian, Mich., the county-seat of Lenawee 
co., 70 mi. s. w. of Detroit, on the Raisin River, 
and on the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern, 

















Adrianople 

the Wabash and other railroads. It is the seat 
of Adrian College, the state industrial home for 
girls and Saint Joseph’s Hospital and Academy. 
The city has a large trade in farm produce, and 
contains manufactures of wire fences, electrical 
supplies, pianos, organs, mail boxes and other 
articles. It was settled in 1825 and was char¬ 
tered as a city in 1853. Population in 1910, 
10,763. 

A'driano'ple, the most important military 
post of European Turkey, situated about 135 
mi. n. w. of Constantinople. The chief build¬ 
ings are a great mosque, a palace now in ruins, 
a grand aqueduct and a splendid bazaar. The 
manufactures are silk, woolen and cotton stuffs, 
attar of roses and leathers. Adrianople was 
founded by the emperor Hadrian and was the 
capital of the Ottoman Empire from 1361 to 1453. 
Here was signed in 1829 a treaty between Russia 
and Turkey, in which the latter power recognized 
the independence of Greece. During the 
Balkan War, the city was besieged by the Bul¬ 
garians and Servians for six months and sur¬ 
rendered on March 27, 1913, but on July 21 
it was recaptured. Population about 80,000. 

A'driat'ic, or ad're at'ic, Sea, The, an arm 
of the Mediterranean, stretching in a north¬ 
westerly direction from the Straits of Otranto, 
between Italy and the Turkish and Austrian 
dominions. Its length is about 480 miles, its 
average breadth about 100 miles, and its area 
about 60,000 square miles. In the north it 
forms the Gulf of Venice and in the northeast 
the Gulf of Trieste. The Po River has carried 
so much silt into the sea that cities once on its 
coast are now inland. 

Adul teration, a term used by magistrates 
and analysts not only in its proper sense, of 
fraudulent mixture of articles of commerce 
with noxious or inferior ingredients, but also 
applied to accidental impurity, and even, in 
some cases, to actual substitution. The chief 
objects of adulteration are to increase the 
weight or volume of anything, to give a color 
which pleases the eye or disguises an inferior 
article, to substitute a cheaper form for a 
dearer, or to give it a false strength. Bread is 
adulterated with alum or sulphate of copper, 
which gives solidity to the gluten of inferior 
flour; with chalk or carbonate of soda to correct 
the acidity of such flour, and with boiled rice 
or potatoes, which enables the bread to carry 
more water and thus to produce a larger num¬ 
ber of loaves from a given quantity of flour. 
Milk is usually adulterated with water. The 


Adventists 

adulterations generally present in butter consist 
of an undue proportion of salt and water, lard, 
tallow and other fats. Genuine butter should 
not contain less than 80 per cent of butter-fat. 
Tea is adulterated (chiefly in China) with sand, 
iron-filings, chalk, gypsum, China clay, exhausted 
tea leaves and the leaves of the sycamore, 
while color and weight are added by black-lead, 
indigo, Prussian-blue, gum, turmeric, soapstone 
and other substances. Mixed with ground 
coffee are ground chicory, roasted wheat, 
roasted beans, acorns and rye, while the mix¬ 
ture is colored with burned sugar and other 
materials. Chicory is adulterated with different 
flours and colored with such substances as 
burned sugar and Venetian red. Tobacco is 
mixed with sugar and treacle, aloes, liquorice, 
oil and alum, and such leaves as rhubarb, 
chicory, cabbage and burdock. Confections are 
adulterated with flour and sulphate of lime. 
Pepper is adulterated with linseed-meal, flour, 
mustard and husks. Color is given to pickles by 
salts of copper. Brandy is diluted with water, 
and burned sugar is added to improve the color; 
gin is mixed with excess of water, and flavoring 
matters are added. For champagne, gooseberry 
and other inferior wines are often substituted. 
Medicines, such as jalap, opium, rhubarb, aloes, 
sarsaparilla and squills, are mixed with various 
foreign substances. Castor-oil has been adul¬ 
terated with other oils; and inferior oils are 
often mixed with cod-liver oil. The adultera¬ 
tion of seeds is largely practiced. Thus, turnip- 
seed is mixed with rape, wild mustard or char¬ 
lock. Clover-seed is also much mixed with the 
seeds of the plantain and mere weeds. 

Laws against adulteration have been passed 
in various countries and at various times, 
and the tendency new is to be severe in 
assigning penalties, especially to such forms 
of adulteration as may be a menace to public 
health. See Pure Food Laws. 

Ad'ventists, several religious sects which, 
accepting the general doctrines of Christianity, 
expect a second personal coming of Christ and 
the early end of the world. All arose from 
the preaching of William Miller, who began in 
1831 to prophesy the end of the world and the 
establishment of Christ’s kingdom in 1843. Since 
the passing of that date the Adventists have 
been simply waiting for the appearance of 
Christ and make no attempt to fix the date. 
The Adventists are now separated into a num¬ 
ber of different sects, of which the Church of 
God, the Evangelical Adventists, the Age-to- 


f 


Adverb 


Aeneid 


Come Adventists and the Life and Advent 
Union are small and local. The Advent Chris¬ 
tians, who number more than 26,000, have over 
600 churches and sustain foreign missions in 
England and Asiatic countries. The World’s 
Crisis and All Nations, Monthly are their lead¬ 
ing publications. The largest sect dates from 
a meeting held at Washington, New Hampshire, 
in 1845. See Seventh Day Adventists. 

Ad'verb, in grammar, the part of speech 
which is used to limit or modify a verb, an 
adjective or another adverb. Adverbs may be 
classified as follows: (1) adverbs of place, as 
here, there; (2) of time, as now, again; (3) of 
number, as once, first; (4) of manner, as how, 
well; (5) of degree, as very , more; (6) of cause, 
as why; (7) of assertion or denial, as yes, no. 
The largest class of adverbs in English is 
formed from adjectives by the addition of the 
syllable ly, as slow, slowly. Adverbs do not 
change their form in comparison, as do adjec¬ 
tives, but are compared by the use of more and 
most. 

Ad'verti' sing, ad'ver ti'zing, a method by which 
a producer makes known the merits of his prod¬ 
uct. This branch of business is of ancient origin, 
having been traced back to ancient Palestine, 
Greece and Rome, but in its modern form and 
extent it is of comparatively recent date. It has 
two purposes: for the benefit of the producer, to 
create a demand for his goods; for the benefit of 
the purchaser or consumer, to bring to his 
knowledge the virtues of commodities whose 
use will be of advantage to him. It has had its 
greatest' growth in the United States and is most 
widely carried on through newspapers and 
magazines. It has been estimated that more 
than $500,000,000 are spent upon advertising 
in the United States each year. Besides the 
newspapers and magazines, the mediums most 
commonly used are catalogues, booklets, circu¬ 
lars, handbills; street advertising by means of 
signs and billboards, and salesmen. The 
importance of advertising has become so gener¬ 
ally acknowledged that it practically constitutes 
a new and separate branch of modern business, 
thousands of men connected with every line of 
production and distribution being engaged only 
in the advertising of their special products or 
methods. The most recent development is the 
establishment of schools for the training of 
advertisement writers. 

Adz, a tool used by carpenters for smoothing 
timber. It has an edge shaped like a chisel 
and from four to five inches long. The head is 



curved and has a socket for the handle, which 
is straight and about three feet long. The line 
of the edge is crosswise to that of the handle. 
The cooper’s adz has a short 
handle and is used with one 
hand. An adz used for making 
eave-troughs and hollow ware 
has the blade shaped like a 
gouge. 

Aegean, e je'an, Sea, that 
part of the Mediterranean 
which washes the eastern shores 
of Greece, the southern coast 
of Turkey and the western 
coast of Asia Minor. Its 
length is about 400 miles and 
its breadth 175 miles at the 
widest point. It contains nu¬ 
merous islands, many of which are of volcanic 
origin. The chief ones are Euboea, Chios, 
Lesbos, Lemnos and Samos. 

Aegina, e ji'na, a Greek island in the Gulf 
of Aegina. It is about 8 miles long and the 
same in breadth. Except in the west, where 
the surface is more level, the island, is moun¬ 
tainous and unproductive. The inhabitants are 
chiefly engaged in trade, seafaring and agricul¬ 
ture, and the chief crops are almonds, olives and 
grain. Aegina was especially celebrated in 
ancient times for its beautiful buildings, among 
which was the temple of Jupiter on Mount 
Saint Elias. Population, about 9,000. 

Aegis, e'jis, according to Homer, the shield 
of Jupiter. It was borne either by Jupiter or 
by Minerva, and according to some legends had 
the gorgon’s head fastened in its center. When 
Jupiter was angry he shook the aegis and its 
thunder was heard on earth. 

Ae'gospot'ami (goat-river), a place on the 
Hellespont in the Thracian Chersonese, where 
the Athenian fleet was completely defeated in 
405 b. c. by the Spartan Lysander. This vic¬ 
tory ended the Peloponnesian War. 

Aene'as, a Trojan warrior who, according to 
Homer, was next to Hector in bravery and in 
prominence during the Trojan War. The 
account of his wanderings after the fall of his 
city forms the theme of Vergil’s Aeneid. See 
Aeneid. 

Aene'id, the great Roman epic poem, by 
Vergil. It is divided into twelve books, of 
which the first six are modeled to some extent 
upon the Odyssey, the last six upon the Iliad. 
The gods are represented as taking part in the 
affairs of men, and as being divided in their 



Aeolus 

councils respecting the fate of mortals. Indeed, 
it is the hatred of Juno that brings upon Aeneas 
all his woe, while Venus toils to thwart the 
plans of the hostile goddess and bring her 
beloved Trojans to Latium. Summarized 
briefly, the story is as follows: The hero 
appears, in the sixth year of his wanderings, 
sailing from Sicily. Juno succeeds in bringing 
about a terrible storm, during which Aeneas is 
shipwrecked upon the coast of Africa. He is 
kindly received by Dido, queen of Carthage, 
and to her relates the story of the fall of Troy, 
the burning of the city, his escape to Mount 
Ida and his varied wanderings and perils until 
at last he reached Sicily, where he buried his 
father. Anchises. whom he had carried on his 



AENEAS AT THE COURT OP DIDO 

Guerin 

shoulders from the burning city. By the strata¬ 
gems of Venus, Dido is made to fall in love with 
Aeneas, to whom she offers her hand and crown. 
Obeying the command of the gods, the hero 
leaves Carthage, and Dido, in rage and despair, 
dies by her own hand. Aeneas sails for Italy, 
but is driven ashore in Sicily. The fleet is 
set on fire by the Trojan women, but is saved 
by Jupiter, and Aeneas continues his voyage 
and reaches Italy. Here he visits the Sibyl of 
Cumae, who conducts him down to the infernal 
regions, where his father Anchises tells him of 
the fate in £tore for him and his descendants, 
the Romans. After reaching ^atium, his desti¬ 
nation, Aeneas makes a treaty with Latinus, 
king of the region about the mouth of the Tiber, 
and is promised his daughter, Lavinia, in mar¬ 
riage. Juno interferes to break the treaty and 
brings on a war with the neighboring kings, in 
which the Trojans are at length victorious. 
The Julian family traced descent from Aeneas. 

Ae'olus, in Greek mythology, the god of the 
winds, which he kept confined in a cave in the 
Aeolian Islands, releasing them when he wished 


Aeschylus 

or when he was commanded by his superiors 
among the gods. 

A'erolite. See Meteor. 

A eronautics. See Balloon and Flying 
Machine. 

A erostatic Press, a simple contrivance for 
■ rendering the pressure of the atmosphere 
available for extracting the coloring matter 
from dye-woods, and for similar purposes. A 
horizontal partition divides the machine into 
two parts. The lower part is connected with 
an air-pump, by means of which the air can be 
withdrawn from it. The substance from which 
the coloring matter is to be extracted is laid 
upon the partition, which is perforated, and a 
perforated cover is placed over it. Upon this 
the liquid intended to form the extract is poured, 
and as the air is extracted from the lower vessel 
by the pump, the pressure of the atmosphere 
forces the liquid through the substance and this 
extracts the coloring matter. 

Aeschines, es'kineez (389-314 b. c.), a 
celebrated Athenian orator, the rival and 
opponent of Demosthenes. He headed the 
Macedonian party in Greece, or those in favor 
of an alliance with Philip, while Demosthenes 
took the opposite side. Having failed in 330 
B. c. in the prosecution against Ctesiphon for 
proposing to bestow a crown of gold upon 
Demosthenes for his services to the state, he 
withdrew from Athens. Latterly he established 
a school of eloquence at Rhodes. 

Aeschylus, es'Ici lus, (525?-456 b.c.), the 
earliest of the three great writers of Greek 
tragedy. He was of noble family, according 
to legend a descendant of Codrus, the last king 
of Athens. His father was probably connected 
with the worship of Ceres, and Aeschylus him¬ 
self was early familiar with the Eleusinian 
Mysteries, strange religious rites into which he 
was afterward initiated. Aeschylus first won 
fame, not by poetry, but by bravery on the 
battlefield during the Persian wars. This 
military experience probably had an influence 
on his work in two ways: it turned his thoughts 
to patriotic studies and the glorification of his 
country, and it disposed the Athenians to regard 
his work favorably. For distinguished valor at 
Marathon (490), he, with his two brothers, 
received public honors. 

The first success of Aeschylus in a dramatic 
competition was won in 485, and we are told 
that this was the first of thirteen such successes. 
In the latter part of his life he was defeated by 
Simonides in the contest for a prize offered for 














Aesculapius 

the best elegy on those who fell at Marathon. 
Aeschylus spent most of his latter years in 
Sicily and died there, according to an improbable 
legend, as the result of a blow upon the head 
from a tortoise which an eagle dropped. Of 
Aeschylus’s seventy dramas but seven are pre¬ 
served, in addition to a few fragments. These 
are The Persians , The Suppliants, Prometheus 
Bound, The Seven against Thebes, Agamemnon, 
Choephori and Eumenides. The three last 
named form a trilogy. The Prometheus is 
perhaps the best known to English readers 
through Mrs. Browning's poetical version: 
Aeschylus introduced a second actor, and was 
the first to provide appropriate scenery and 
costumes. In style, the tragedies of Aeschylus 
are grand and somber, as befits their themes. 

Aesculapius, es'ku la'pi us, in classical 
mythology, the god of medicine, usually said 
to have been the son of Apollo. He was 
entrusted in his youth to the centaur Chiron, 
who taught him the art of healing. So skillful 
did he become that he was able to bring the 
dead to life, and for this, Jupiter, at the request 
of Pluto, who disliked to be robbed of his vic¬ 
tims, killed Aesculapius with a thunderbolt. 
In art the god of medicine was usually repre¬ 
sented as carrying a knotted staff, round which 
was entwined a serpent, the symbol of health. 

Ae'sop, a famous Greek writer of fables, is 
said to have been a contemporary of Croesus 
and Solon, about the middle of the sixth cen¬ 
tury B. c. He visited the court of Croesus, and 
is also said to have visited Pisistratus at Athens. 
Finally he was sent by Croesus to Delphi to 
distribute a sum of money to each of the citizens. 
For some reason he refused to distribute the 
money, whereupon the Delphians, enraged, 
threw him from a precipice and killed him. 
Much of the account of Aesop is probably only 
legend and it is possible that such a man never 
existed. The fables called by his name were 
not written until long after he is supposed to 
have lived. In modem times several collections 
have been published. Among the most familiar 
of these fables are The Fox and the Grapes, 
The Wolf and the Lamb, The Ass in the Lion's 
Skin, The Lion and the Mouse and The Ox 
and the Frog. 

Aesthetics. See Esthetics. 

Aetna, et'nah. See Etna. 

Aeto'lia, an ancient division of Greece, 
situated on the north side of the Gulf of Corinth. 
Aetolia was originally settled by colonists from 
Epirus. By their exclusiveness these people 


Afghanistan 

estranged the other Greeks, so that even in the 
Golden Age they remained rude mountaineers 
and farmers. During the Macedonian wars the 
Aetolians became famous as soldiers of fortune 
and brought home great wealth. When the 
Gauls invaded Greece, the Aetolians took an 
active part in saving the country from the bar¬ 
barians. Aetolia with Acarnania now forms a 
province of the kingdom of modern Greece. 

Affida'vit, a document generally used when 
evidence is to be laid before a judge or a court, 
while evidence brought before a jury is delivered 
orally. The person making the affidavit signs 
his name at the bottom of it, and swears that 
the statements contained in it are true. 

Affin'ity. See Relationship. 

Affinity, in chemistry, that force by means 
of which two or more substances unite to form 
a compound in which the properties of each 
substance are lost; as, oxygen and hydrogen 
unite to form water, and hydrogen and chlorine 
to form hydrochloric acid. We do not know 
the nature of this force, but it is present to a 
greater or less extent in all substances. In 
some elements, such as oxygen and chlorine, 
it is strong, and these unite to form a large 
number of compounds; in others, like nitrogen 
and argon, it is very weak, and these have but 
few compounds. Elements unite only in defi¬ 
nite proportions, as atom for atom in the case 
of hydrogen and chlorine, or two atoms of one 
to one of the other, as in case of hydrogen and 
oxygen in forming water. Some elements unite 
in proportion of three atoms of one to two of 
another, and so on. The proportions are always 
the same for the same elements, but they may 
vary by multiples (See Atomic Theory). 
The action resulting from chemical affinity 
usually produces more or less heat. Heat, also, 
may destroy this force and separate the com¬ 
pound into its elements, as, when steam is 
passed through a red-hot tube it is separated 
into oxygen and hydrogen. 

Afghanistan, af gan'is tahn' , a country in 
Asia. In part „the boundaries are not well 
defined, but recently a joint Russian and British 
commission surveyed and marked by boundary 
stones the land from the Oxus to the Persian 
frontier. The area of Afghanistan is about 
280,000 sq. mi. 

The country consists largely of lofty, bare, 
uninhabited tablelands, sandy, barren plains, 
ranges of snow-covered mountains and deep 
ravines and valleys. Some of the valleys are 
well watered and fertile, but by far the larger 


Afghanistan 

part of the whole surface is rocky and unpro¬ 
ductive. The climate is extremely cold in the 
higher, and intensely hot in the lower regions. 
Fruits of many varieties grow wild in the valleys, 
and the principal crops raised are wheat, barley, 
rice, maize, tobacco, sugar-cane and cotton. 
The chief towns are Kabul, Kandahar, Ghuzni 
and Herat.^ The people, most of whom are of 
the original Afghan race, are divided into a 
number of tribes, which are bold and warlike 
and are constantly engaged in dissensions among 
themselves. The Afghan language contains a 
great number of Persian words and is written 
with Arabic characters, but is distinct from the 
Persian. In religion the Afghans are Moham¬ 
medans of the Sunnite sect. See Sunnites. 

History. The history of Afghanistan from 
the time of Alexander the Great to the eighteenth 
century consists merely in a series of conquests 
made by different nations. In 1738 the country 
was conquered by the Persians and for a number 
of years a tolerably strong government was 
maintained. About 1825 Dost Mohammed 
succeeded in gaining a preponderating influence 
in the country, which, from the date of the exile 
of its ruler, Shah Shuja, had been in a state of 
anarchy. In 1839 the British army entered the 
country, occupied Kabul and replaced Shah 
Shuja on the throne; but two years later a wide¬ 
spread insurrection occurred among the Afghans; 
a number of British officers, women and children 
were murdered, and in the following year the 
British left Kabul. Soon, however, a fresh 
army came from India, retook Kabul and fin¬ 
ished the war. Shah Shuja had been assassi¬ 
nated and Dost Mohammed again obtained the 
throne. He died in 1863 and left as his suc¬ 
cessor his son, Shere Ali, who for a time main¬ 
tained friendly relations with the British. War 
was declared against him, however, in 1878; the 
British troops entered Afghanistan, the ameer 
fled to Turkestan and his son, Yakub Khan, who 
succeeded him, concluded a treaty with the 
British in 1879. The extension of the British 
frontier, the control by Britain of the foreign 
policy of Afghanistan and the residence of a 
British envoy in Kabul were the chief stipula¬ 
tions of the treaty. Encroachments by the 
Russians on territory claimed by Afghanistan 
almost brought about a rupture between 
Britain and Russia in 1885. The position of 
Afghanistan between the territory of Russia and 
that of Great Britain gives it its chief claim to 
political importance. Population, 1910, about 
4,500,000. 


Africa 

Af'rica, the second largest grand division of 
the globe, lies in the eastern hemisphere, between 
latitude 37° 25' north and 34° 50' south, and 
longitude 51° 21' east and 17° 30' west. Its 
greatest extent from north to sooth is about 
5000 miles, and its greatest breadth from east 
to west, a little less. The area of the continent, 
exclusive of islands, is 11,250,000 square miles, 
and including the islands, a little over 11,500,000 
square miles. The coast line is 15,000 miles. 
The surrounding waters are the Mediterranean 
Sea and Strait of Gibraltar on the north, the 
Atlantic Ocean on the south, and the Indian 
Ocean, Gulf of Aden and Red Sea on the east. 
Aside from the Gulf of Guinea, which fills the 
great bend in the western coast, and the inden¬ 
tation which forms the Rea Sea on the northeast, 
there are no coast waters of special significance, 
the coast line being very regular. On the north 
are the two small gulfs of Gabes and Sidra, 
formerly known as the Great and Lesser Syrtes. 
Africa is joined to Asia by the Isthmus of Suez, 
and barely separated from Europe by the Strait 
of Gibraltar, which in its narrowest place is only 
eight and one-half miles wide. The important 
projections are capes Bon on the north, Verde 
on the west, Good Hope on the south and Guar- 
dafui on the east. The islands are few, and with 
the exception of Madagascar, the most important 
groups geographically connected with the con¬ 
tinent are the Madeira, the Canaries and Cape 
Verde Islands. Single islands of some geographic 
and historic importance are Fernando Po, Saint 
Helena, Saint Thomas, Ascension, Saint Mary, 
Bourbon and Mauritius. 

Surface and Drainage. In general, Africa 
consists of a plateau which rises abruptly from 
the ocean, with narrow lowlands at its base. 
Upon this plateau rise disconnected mountains 
and fragments of ranges. The great bend in 
the western coast naturally divides the surface 
into two sections, the northern, which is approxi¬ 
mately elliptical in form, and the southern, which 
is roughly triangular. The northern division 
is considerably lower than the southern, but it 
contains an important mountain range, the Atlas, 
running parallel to the southern coast of the 
Mediterranean and attaining its greatest height 
in the western half, where some of the peaks 
exceed 14,OCX) feet. Toward the east it descends 
rapidly and is followed by some depressions that 
are below the sea level. On the south the Atlas 
range slopes directly to the plateau which forms 
the Sahara. This region has an irregular surface 
containing small plateaus of different degrees of 


Africa 


Africa 


elevation separated by wadys, or the valleys of 
dried-up streams. Running across these plateaus 
are ranges of hills and low mountains, which 
extend in various directions. (See Sahara.) 
South of the Sahara is the Sudan, which extends 
to the Gulf of Guinea. This is a still lower 
region and has a surface consisting of plains and 
valleys interspersed with hills. To the south¬ 
west of the Sudan are the Kameroon Mountains, 
a low range which forms the highlands at the 
head of the Gulf of Guinea. 

Extending southward from the vicinity of the 
Red Sea is the most important ridge of highlands. 
This attains its greatest elevation in the vicinity 
of mounts Kenia and Kilimanjaro, which are 
the most lofty peaks on the continent, the former 
having an elevation of over 18,000 feet and the 
latter of 19,750 feet. In the equatorial regions 
this highland is broken up into a number of 
parallel ridges, and between these are found the 
basins which contain the great lakes, Victoria 
Nyanza, Albert Nyanza and Tanganyika. 
Proceeding southward from Kilimanjaro, this 
highland takes the form of a mountain range and 
is known as the Drakenberg Mountains, which 
attain an altitude of 10,000 feet and extend to the 
southern extremity of the continent. On the 
western side of the southern plateau the highlands 
are lower, but the average altitude of this portion 
of the continent is about 4000 feet, while that of 
the northern section is but a little over 2000 feet. 

The relief of the continent exerts an impor¬ 
tant influence over its drainage. Of the four 
great river systems all but one, the Zambezi, 
flow into the Atlantic or its tributary waters. 
Of these, the Nile and the Kongo have their 
head waters in or near the equatorial regions. 
Where the streams flow over the edge of the pla¬ 
teau they contain falls which obstruct navigation. 
The celebrated cataracts of the Nile, the rapids 
in the Kongo at Leopoldville, and Victoria 
Falls, on the Zambezi, are among the best illus¬ 
trations of these cataracts, which are described 
in the articles upon their respective rivers. 
In the western portion of the northern projec¬ 
tion of the continent the Senegal and Niger are 
the most important streams. The latter has 
its source quite near the coast and makes a remark¬ 
able bend before discharging its waters into the 
gulf. The southern portion of the continent is 
drained by the Orange and its tributaries flow¬ 
ing into the Atlantic, and the Limpopo into the 
Indian Ocean. To the north of the Zambezi 
are the Rovuma, Tana, Juba and Shebli, all 
comparatively unimportant streams. 


Aside from North America, Africa contains 
the largest fresh-water lakes. Leading these is 
the Victoria Nyanza, approximately circular in 
form and having a diameter of about 180 miles. 
Next to Lake Superior it is the largest body of 
fresh water on the globe. The other lakes 
found in this portion of the continent are Albert 
Nyanza, Albert Edward, Tanganyika and 
Nyassa. Directly west of Nyassa is Lake 
Bangweolo, in which the Kongo has its source. 
Lake Chad, in the center of the Sudan, is an 
important inland lake with no outlet. Salt 
lakes are comparatively few and small. 

Mineral Resources. But little is yet 
known of the geology of Africa, but so far as it 
has been studied, the indications are that the 
continent has been subject to fewer convulsions 
than those to the north, and the formations 
seem to be more regular than in Europe, Asia 
or America. Among the rocks are found many 
excellent building stones. The granite and 
syenite of the Nile basin have been known to 
the civilized world since the days of the Pha¬ 
raohs. Extensive deposits of granite are also 
found along the Orange River, and deposits of 
sandstone and other stones are found to the 
north of the Orange River and in other localities. 
Iron and copper are also distributed over the 
continent. The Kongo basin contains valuable 
deposits of these ores, and some of the native 
tribes have attained considerable skill in fash¬ 
ioning the iron into agricultural implements 
and weapons, but none of the mines has been in 
the least developed. Coal has been found in 
paying quantities near the Zambezi River and 
is known to exist in some other sections, but no 
systematic survey has yet been made to deter¬ 
mine the extent and value of the deposits. 
The most valuable mineral region as far as 
known consists of the diamond and gold regions 
in South Africa, the former near Kimberley in 
the northern part of Cape Colony, and the latter 
in Transvaal Colony. The diamond mines at 
Kimberley were opened in 1868, and since that 
time more than 8400,000,000 worth of diamonds 
in the rough have been taken from them. They 
produce about 98 per cent of the world’s output 
of this precious stone. The gold mines near 
Johannesburg were opened in 1883, and their 
value increased rapidly until at the breaking out 
of the Boer War in 1897 it was 855,000,000 a year. 
During that conflict operations practically ceased, 
but since then the mines have been rapidly 
developed, and their yearly output is now about 
8152,000,000. See Diamonds; Kimberley. 










3NI1 


Como* 

































































































































o 




3 


CD 


Q 






































































































































































RELIEF MAP OF AFRICA 






Africa 


Africa 


Climate. The climate of Africa is more 
uniform than that of any other continent. This 
is due largely to the fact that the equator crosses 
it almost midway between the northern and 
southern extremities; therefore, the temperature 
gradually diminishes from the central portion 
of the continent toward the north and the south. 
The climate can be divided into tropical and 
warm temperate. The tropical region extends 
on the north almost to the northern boundary 
of the Sahara, and because of altitude and other 
local conditions the region of greatest heat is 
found between the tenth and twentieth parallels 
of north latitude. To the north of the Sahara 
and in the region of the Atlas Mountains the 
climate very closely resembles that of southern 
Europe, but in the Sahara there is a marked 
difference between summer and winter. During 
the winter this is an area of high pressure and 
the wind blows outward, while during the sum¬ 
mer the intense heat of the sun causes sea 
breezes, but because of the hot surface over 
which these blow, they are dry winds, and the 
region seldom has any rain. 

The altitude of the southern part of the con¬ 
tinent gives it a cooler climate in corresponding 
latitudes than is found in the northern. Even 
in the equatorial regions the interior is healthful, 
and Europeans can reside there without diffi¬ 
culty, while in the same latitude, with scarcely 
any exception, the low regions along the coast 
prove fatal to white men. South Africa has a 
temperate climate corresponding quite closely to 
that found in the states of Virginia, Kentucky 
and Tennessee. 

The distribution of rainfall is very unequal. 
In the equatorial regions, especially along the 
course of the Kongo, the precipitation is very 
heavy. Here there are two rainy seasons in the 
year, caused by the vertical position of the sun, 
but as we go north or south from this region 
the rainfall diminishes, and in the temperate 
regions there is practically only one rainy 
season each year; over portions of the 
Sahara no rain ever falls, and over the rest of it, 
very little. The arid region south of the Zam¬ 
bezi, forming the so-called Desert of Kalahari, 
is not totally devoid of rain and has enough 
moisture to make it a profitable grazing country. 
To the south of this the rainfall is frequent 
throughout the year, and agriculture can be 
successfully followed. 

Vegetation. The vegetation is very closely 
related to the rainfall. In the northern portion 
of the continent the oak and olive are found, 


as are the semi-tropical fruits, grains and vege¬ 
tables common to the countries of southern 
Europe. The inhabitants of Algiers, ■ Morocco 
and other states bordering upon the Mediter¬ 
ranean derive considerable income by exporting 
these products to Europe. As we go southward 
from this region the vegetation becomes very 
scarce until at the Sahara it ceases altogether, 
except in the isolated cases where springs are 
found, but as we near the northern coast of the 
Gulf of Guinea, the desert yields to the savanna 
region which characterizes most of the Sudan. 
This is composed of open country covered with 
herbage and interspersed with groups of forest. 
From the Gambia River to the coast, and 
extending southward to within a short distance 
of the mouth of the Kongo and thence eastward 
almost to Lake Victoria Nyanza, there is an 
area of tropical forest which, for extent, size, 
variety of trees and density of vegetation, is 
equaled only by the forests of the Amazon. 
The region covered by this forest is more than 
half as large as the United States, and over 
most of this the vegetation is so dense that the sun 
seldom penetrates to the ground. A few other 
forest regions are found. These are in Abys¬ 
sinia, around the sources of the Kongo, in British 
Central Africa and along the coast of Ger¬ 
man East Africa. With these exceptions, south 
of the great forest area the savanna belt extends 
across the continent until the Zambezi River is 
reached. From this, the southwestern portion 
almost to the Cape of Good Hope is arid, and 
a narrow strip along the western coast is almost 
a desert. This region follows the coast north¬ 
ward as far as the tenth parallel of south lati¬ 
tude. The corresponding portions of the east 
coast contain forests and open country and are 
sufficiently well watered to admit of successful 
agriculture. The trees in these regions, as well 
as other forms of vegetation, are peculiar to the 
locality, a fact undoubtedly due to the distance 
of this portion of the continent from other land 
masses. The interior of the plateau contains 
extensive areas which are valuable for grazing 
and other agricultural purposes. Many varie¬ 
ties of palm are found in the warm temperate 
regions on both sides of the equatorial belt. 

Animal Life. Africa is the home of the 
largest members of the animal kingdom, and 
owing to the absence of great central mountain 
barriers they may be found in all regions without 
special modification of type. Among the car¬ 
nivorous animals are the Hon, the panther, 
hyena, leopard, fox and jackal. The leading 



Bamboo 


Cork Tree 


Date Palm 


Acacia 


PLANTS OF AFRICA 

























Africa 

herbivorous animals are the elephant, rhinoceros, 
buffalo, giraffe and hippopotamus. Several 
species of antelopes are also found. The mon¬ 
key family is spread over the whole continent, 
represented by numerous types such as the 
Barbary ape, the dog-faced baboon, the Gallago 
lemur and the anthropoid chimpanzee and 
gorilla. Animals resembling the horse are the 
zebra, quagga, the pigmy Mauritanian ass and 
the camel. Of the mammals there are about 
500 species peculiar to this continent, of which 
about 50 are of the antelope family. Among the 
birds found in Africa are the ostrich, secretary, 
ibis, guinea fowl, weaver bird, roller bird, love 
bird, wax bill, sun bird, parrot, quail and others. 
The reptiles include the huge python, the croco¬ 
dile and many poisonous snakes; while among 
the insects are termites, locusts, the destructive 
Tsetse fly and many butterflies of brilliant 
hues. 

Inhabitants. Africa is peopled by four 
races, the Semitic and Hamitic races in the 
north, and the negro and Hottentot races in the 
central and southern portions. From time 
immemorial northern Africa has been the home 
of the white race, and equatorial and Southern 
Africa the home of the colored race; but these 
have gradually intermingled so that the Sudan 
is peopled by a mixed race. Frequent conquests 
by the Mediterranean countries have also caused 
so many changes in the population that race 
distinctions are now difficult to trace. The 
equatorial regions are peopled by the negro 
race belonging to the branch generally known 
as the Bantus. This branch is very extensive 
and includes dl of the tribes from the region 
south of the Sudan to the country of the Hotten¬ 
tots, almost in the extreme southeastern portion 
of the continent. The various tribes inhabiting 
this vast section differ from one another in size, 
color and features; yet they all speak kindred 
languages and possess numerous other points 
of resemblance, sufficient to classify them as 
belonging to the Bantu branch. A rare excep¬ 
tion to these tribes is found in the dwarfs dwell¬ 
ing in the dense forests along the Aruwimi. 

The Hottentots, inhabiting the southeastern 
portion of the continent, are undoubtedly a 
branch of the negro race, but they differ from 
the Bantus in color, in general features and in 
language. The most important nations inhab¬ 
iting this part of the continent are the Kaffirs, 
Bushmen and Hottentots. These have now all 
been brought under the control of the British 
government. 


Africa 

The best authorities estimate the population 
of Africa at about 175,000,000, but the number 
of people in the interior is not definitely known. 
There are now about 1,125,000 Europeans on 
the continent, and this number is increasing 
each year, the chief immigrations being to 
British South Africa. 

Political Divisions. Since 1S75 the polit¬ 
ical map of Africa has been almost entirely 
changed. The modifications have been due to 
the lapid progress of explorations, to conflicts 
with some of the native tribes and to the pre¬ 
dominating influence which some of the great 
powers of Europe exercise. As a result of these 
influences, the entire continent, with tne excep¬ 
tion of Abyssinia and Liberia, is now directly 
or indirectly under control of one of the Euro¬ 
pean governments. The principal political 
divisions are as follows: 

Independent states: Abyssinia and Liberia. 

Quasi-independent states: Egypt and British 
Sudan. While Egypt and the Sudan maintain 
governments nominally subject to Turkey, they 
are practically under British rule, and the Kongo 
Free State is under the jurisdiction of the king 
of Belgium. Morocco in 1912 formally accepted a 
French protectorate. There are also many 
petty native kingdoms in the colonial possessions 
of European powers. 

British colonies: Basutoland, Bechuanaland 
Protectorate, British Central Africa Protect- # 
orate, British East Africa, Cape of Good Hope, 
Gambia, Gold Coast, Lagos, Mashonaland, Mat- 
ebeleland, Natal, Niger Coast Protectorate, 
Nigeria, Orange Free State, Rhodesia, Sierra 
Leone, Somali Coast Protectorate, Transvaal, 
Uganda, Walfish Bay, Zanzibar, Zululand. Area 
3,031,084 square miles; total population, 42,- 
647,761. The Niger territories, formerly 
governed by the Royal Niger Company, since 
1900 have been directly under the control of 
the British government. 

French colonies: Algeria, Algerian Sahara, 
Dahomey, French Kongo, French Guinea, 
French Sudan, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Sahara, 
Senegal, Somali Coast and Obock, Tunis, 
Wadai. Total area, 3,479,000 square miles; 
total population, 41,000,000. 

German colonies: Kameroon, German East 
Africa, German Southwest Africa, Togoland. 
Total area, 930,760 square miles; total popu¬ 
lation, 14,200,000. 

Portuguese colonies: Angola, Portuguese East 
Africa, Portuguese Guinea. Total area, 790,240 
square miles; total population, 8.059,000. 



4 


ANIMALS OF AFRICA 





















































Africa 


Africa 


Italian colonies’. Eritrea, Somaliland and 
Tripoli. Total area, 600,000 square miles; total 
population, 2,300,000. Tripoli alone has an 
area estimated at nearly 500,000 square miles. 
Until 1912 Tripoli belonged to Turkey, but in 
that year it became an Italian possession as a 
result of war between the two countries. 

Spanish colonies: Rio d’Oro, Spanish Kongo. 
Total area, 244,000 square miles; total popu¬ 
lation, 107,000. 

History. Africa is the home or the oldest 
civilization. Egypt was an ancient nation before 
the Roman Empire was founded, and extending 
along the coast of the Mediterranean were various 
nations from Egypt to Carthage, which, previous 
to and during a portion of the existence of the 
Roman Empire, held considerable influence. 
Undoubtedly the power of these nations pre¬ 
vented the exploration of the continent to the 
south; hence the Nile valley and a narrow strip 
along the northern coast were the only portions 
of the continent that were known to the world 
for many centuries. During the Middle Ages 
the influx of Arabs was attended by some explora¬ 
tion of the regions around the upper portions 
of the Nile and the eastern part of the Sudan, 
and in the fifteenth century several voyages of 
discovery were made along the western coast. 
Finally, in 1485 Bartholomew Diaz, sailing 
under the auspices of King John of Portugal, 
discovered and sailed around the Cape of Good 
Hope. Twelve years later Da Gama, following 
the same course, sailed around the cape and 
reached India. But these voyages did not 
awaken any general interest, though in the latter 
half of the sixteenth century the Portuguese 
established colonies on both the eastern and 
western coasts, where they still hold possessions. 

The event which led up to the present interest 
in Africa was the exploration of the interior by 
Mungo Park, who made an extended expedition 
through the Niger country from 1795 to 1797. 
HowSver, it was a number of years after this 
before his efforts were seconded by others. In 
1840 David Livingstone began his great work 
of exploration and philanthropy in southern 
Africa, working northward from Cape Town. 
Between this date and the time of his death in 
1873, Doctor Livingstone explored nearly all of 
that portion of the continent as far north as the 
head of Lake Tanganyika (See Livingstone, 
David). On his death the proprietors of the 
New York Herald and London Telegraph com¬ 
bined to send Henry M. Stanley, who had previ¬ 
ously visited Livingstone on Lake Tanganyika, 


to complete the work which the great explorer 
left unfinished. On this expedition Mr. Stanley 
explored the country around the headwaters of 
the Nile, then traveled from Lake Victoria 
Nyanza southward as far as Lake Bangweolo, 
thence followed the Lower Lualaba until he 
reached the Atlantic coast, settling the problem 
as to the extent and direction of the Kongo, by 
proving that this river and the Lualaba were one. 

Pa/rtitioning of Africa. -In 1876 the African 
International Association was organized, with 
Leopold II, king of the Belgians, as president. 
The purpose of this association was to explore 
systematically the equatorial portion of Africa, 
beginning upon the eastern coast and working 
westward. Mr. Stanley, having accomplished 
this feat, was immediately engaged by the associ¬ 
ation to return to Africa and open up to settle¬ 
ment a large tract of country on the Kongo. Mr. 
Stanley’s efforts resulted in the establishing 
of the Kongo Free State (See Stanley, Henry 
M., and Kongo Free State). The interest 
which this movement aroused among the nations 
of Europe led to the convening of the Berlin 
Congress in 1885, at which all of the leading 
nations of Europe and the United States were 
represented. The purpose of this congress was 
to arrive at a mutual agreement by which, with¬ 
out conflict, the different nations could extend 
their influence over the portions of Africa still 
unoccupied or unclaimed by civilized pow r ers. 
As a result of their deliberations, tin continent 
was divided among them as now shown on the 
political map. See Political Divisions, above. 

Under the influence of Great Britain, France 
and Germany, improvements have been rapidly 
introduced into the regions under their respective 
control. The greatest of these enterprises are 
the Cape-to-Cairo Telegraph and the Cape-to- 
Cairo Railway; the latter is described under its 
appropriate title. 

South African Union. The aggressive atti¬ 
tude of the English settlers led to the Boer War, 
which lasted from October, 1899, to March, 1902, 
and resulted in making British colonies of the 
Orange Free State and the Transvaal Republic. 
Since the war the tendency of the English colo¬ 
nies toward a closer union resulted in 1910 in the 
formation of a new federation, which took the 
name The Union of South Africa. The federa¬ 
tion includes Cape of Good Hope, Transvaal, 
Orange Free State and Natal, which are now 
provinces in the Union. These provinces have 
a combined area of 473,184 square miles and 
a population of about 6,000,000, one-fifth 



Native Hut, East Africa 


East African Women Wear a 
Disc of Wood in the 

RfS*, u pp er L| p 


A Little Lump of Misery 


One Method of Trapping Elephants f. 


Central African Home 


%es d^ 


Knotted String Calendar 


How the African Locks His Door 


Native Village in Sierra Leone 


NATIVE AFRICAN CIVILIZATION 









































African M. E. Church 

of which are white. The general provisions of 
the constitution are similar to those of Canada, 
except that the colonies are not given as much 
power in local legislation. English and Dutch 
are the official languages. There are two cap¬ 
itals; the legislative capital is located at Cape 
Town and the executive js at Pretoria. Right 
to vote is restricted exclusively to the white 
population. 

See articles on the different political divisions 
and rivers. There have been many books written 
upon Africa. Among the most accessible of 
these are Stanley’s Through the Dark Continent, 
The Congo and the Founding of Its Free State, 
and Darkest Africa; Livingstone’s Missionary 
Travels and Researches in South Africa; Bacon’s 
The White Man's Africa and Roosevelt’s African 
Game Trails. 

African Methodist Episcopal Church, a 

branch of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
organized in Philadelphia under Richard Allen 
in 1816, exclusively for the benefit of the colored 
people. Four years later the African Methodist 
Episcopal Zion Church was organized. Each 
of these organizations, while independent of 
the mother church, is conducted under the same 
rules and polity as the church from which it 
sprang. The African Methodist Episcopal 
Church had in 1906, 495,000 members, and the 
Zion Church had 185,000. See Methodist 
Episcopal Church. 

Af rikander, the Dutch term often applied 
to white persons born in South Africa. See 
Boers. 

Agamemnon, in Greek mythology, king of 
Mycenae and Argos, brother of Menelaus, and 
commander of the allied Greeks at the siege of 
Troy. Returning home after the fall of Troy, 
he was treacherously assassinated by his wife, 
Clytemnestra, and her lover, Aegisthus. He 
was the father of Orestes, Iphigenia and Electra. 

Aganip'pe, a fountain on Mount Helicon, in 
Greece, sacred to the Muses, which had the 
property of inspiring with poetic fire whoever 
drank of its waters. 

Ag'aric, a fungus, of which over a thousand 
species are known. They are arranged in five 
sections, according as the color of their spores 
is white, pink, brown, purple or black. Many 
of the species are edible, like the common mush¬ 
room which grows in fields and pastures. See 
Mushrooms. 

Aga'sias, a Greek sculptor of Ephesus, who 
flourished about 400 b. c., and whose celebrated 
statue, known as the Borghese Gladiator, repre- 


Agassiz 

senting a soldier contending with a horseman, 
is now in the Louvre, Paris. 

Agassiz, ag’ah se, Alexander (1835-1910), 
an American naturalist, son of Louis Agassiz, 
was born in Neuchatel, Switzerland. He 
came to the United States in 1849, and gradu¬ 
ated at Harvard in 1855. He was cn the 
California Coast Survey and was with his 
father in the museum of zoology at Cambridge, 
Mass. He was later superintendent of the 
Calumet and Hecla copper mines, Lake Superior, 
and amassed a great fortune, of which he gave 
liberally to Harvard. After visiting different 
museums in Europe he was made curator of 
the museum in Cambridge, which was founded 
by his father. Professor Agassiz was elected 
a member of the National Academy of Sciences 
and other scientific societies in this country and 
Europe, and was soon recognized as one of the 
great authorities on marine zoology. 

Agassiz, Louis John Rudolph (1807-1873), 
an eminent naturalist, son of a Swiss Protestant 
clergyman. He completed his education at 



Lausanne, and early developed a love of the 
natural sciences. He studied medicine at 
Ziirich, Heidelberg and Munich. His atten¬ 
tion was first specially directed to the study of 
'fishes by being called on to describe the Bra¬ 
zilian fishes. As professor of natural history 
at Neuchatel he distinguished himself by his 
discoveries concerning fossil fishes. His 
researches led him to propose a new classifica- 



Agassiz 

tion of fishes, which he divided into four classes, 
distinguished by the characters of the skin! 
His system has not been generally adopted, but 
the names of his classes have been used. In 
1830 he began the study of glaciers. In 1838 
he was induced to settle in America, where he 
was connected as a teacher first with Harvard 
University, Cambridge, and later with both 
Cornell University and Harvard. He engaged in 
various investigations and explorations and pub¬ 
lished numerous works. In 1865 he made zoo¬ 
logical excursions and investigations in Brazil, 
which were productive of most valuable results. 
Agassiz held views on many important points 
in science different from those which prevailed 
among the scientific men of the day, and in 
particular he opposed the theory of evolution. 
His most important writings are Researches on 
Fossil Fishes, Glacial Systems, Outlines of 
Comparative Physiology and A Journey to 
Brazil. 

Agassiz, Mount, an extinct volcano in 
Arizona, 10,000 feet in height. There is 
another peak of the same name in Utah which 
rises to a height of 13,000 feet. 

Agassiz Association, an organization which 
was formed by Harlan H. Ballard in 1879 to 
promote nature study among young people. 
It was named in honor of Louis Agassiz, the 
great scientist. The organization has spread 
over a large part of the world and has as many 
as one thousand chapters and ten thousand 
members. There are many advantages con¬ 
nected with membership. A correspondence 
course of free instruction on scientific subjects 
and natural history is given, and prizes are 
offered for original research. The headquarters 
of the Association are at Pittsfield, Mass. The 
badge worn by the members is a Swiss cross and 
the official paper is The American Boy. 

Ag'ate, a variety of quartz usually classified 
as chalcedony. Agates are variegated, the 
colors being arranged in parallel lines or so 
as to give the stone a moss-like appearance. 
They are extremely hard, but take a high polish, 
and are used for making choice marble and for 
ornaments. Agates are found in many localities, 
but most of the commercial supply comes from 
Uruguay and Brazil. They may vary in color 
from pure white to jet black, but shades of red 
are the most common. 

Agath'ocles (361-289 b. c.), tyrant of Syra¬ 
cuse, was the son of a Sicilian potter. After 
working a while at his father’s trade he became 
a leader of a robber band. He afterward 


Agen 

became a soldier under Damas, attained impor¬ 
tance, and on the death of Damas married his 
widow, thus acquiring immense wealth and 
laying the foundation of his political fortunes. 
He became autocrat of Syracuse in 317 b. c. 
He declared all debts canceled and confiscated 
the property of the rich and divided it among 
the poor 

Aga've, a genus of plants, popularly known 
as American aloes. They are generally large, 
an4 have a massive tuft of fleshy leaves with a 
spiny apex. They live for many years—ten to 
seventy, according to circumstances—before 
flowering. This long delay gives them the 
common name of century plant. When the 
time for flowering approaches, a tall stem 
springs from the center of the tuft of leaves 
and grows very rapidly until it reaches a height 
of fifteen, twenty or even forty feet, and bears, 
toward the end, a large number of flowers. 
When the fruit has matured the stem dies to 
the ground. The best known species is the 
common American aloe, now extensively grown 
in the warmer parts of Europe and Asia. The 
sap, when fermented, yields a beverage resem¬ 
bling cider, called by the Mexicans pulque. 
The leaves are used as fodder; their fibers are 
formed into thread, cord and ropes; an extract 
from the leaves is used as a substitute for soap; 
slices of the withered flower-stem are* used as 
razor-strops. 

Age. In law, age is applied to the periods of 
life when men and women are enabled to do that 
which before, for want of years and consequently 
of judgment, they could not legally do. Full 
age in male or female is twenty-one years, which 
age is completed on the day preceding the 
anniversary of a person’s birth. 

The term is also used to designate thf 
successive epochs or stages of civilization in 
history or mythology. 

The Archaeological Ages or Periods are the 
Stone Age, the Bronze Age and the Iron Age, 
these names being given in accordance with the 
materials chiefly employed for weapons and other 
implements during the particular period. See 
Bronze Age; Iron Age; Stone Age. 

Agen, a zhahN', a town of France, capital of 
the department of Lot-et-Garonne, on the Ga¬ 
ronne River, 73 mi. s. e. of Bordeaux. Agen has 
an important trade with Toulouse and Bordeaux 
and manufactures cotton, serge, leather, wool 
and linen fabrics of fine quality. It is a quaint 
old town and was known amongst the Romans 
as Aginnum. It is the seat of a bishopric and 





Agent 


Agra 


has a cathedral which dates from the time of 
Clovis. Population in 1910, about 23,000. 

A'gent, in law, a person employed to act for 
another, called the principal, the relation 
between them being called agency. With refer¬ 
ence to the authority conferred upon him, an 
agent may be general or special, the latter having 
authority to act for his principal only in a special 
business. No particular form of appointment 
is required, except in a few special cases; for 
instance, an instrument under seal is neces^ry 
to confer authority to do an act in the name of 
the principal under seal. Such an instrument, 
and the authority conferred by it, is called 
power of attorney. The agent may bind his 
principal by acts within the scope of his author¬ 
ity. He is personally liable to third persons on 
contracts made as the agent, when he does not 
disclose the principal for whom he is acting, but 
not otherwise, unless he exceed his authority. 
Public agents are not usually themselves liable 
upon contracts made in their official capacity. 
The principal is generally liable to third persons 
for civil offenses committed by the agent when 
acting within the scope of his agency; but this 
does not relieve the agent of personal liability 
himself. As against the principal, an agent is 
entitled to compensation for his services and 
reimbursement for the expenses of his agency, 
and for personal loss or damage in properly 
transacting the business thereof. As a means of 
enforcing these rights, the law gives him a lien 
upon the property of the principal in his hands. 
See Contract; Lien. 

Ages'ila'us (444-360 b. c.), a king of Sparta 
who acquired renown by his exploits against the 
Persians, Thebans and Athenians. Though 
a vigorous ruler and almost adored by his 
soldiers, he was of small stature and lame from 
his birth. Xenophon, Plutarch and Cornelius 
Nepos are among his biographers. 

Agincourt or Azincourt, ah zhaN Jcoor’, a 
village of northern France, in the department 
Pas de Calais, famous for the battle of 1415, in 
which Henry V of England, with a force of 
15,000 men, overcame the French, who numbered 
about 60,000. 

Ag'new, Daniel Hates (1818-1892), an 
American surgeon who was a specialist on 
diseases of the eye and of women. He was a 
profound anatomist, and had wonderful skill 
and ease in operating. Sympathetic and gentle, 
he was an ideal physician and consultant. He 
was emeritus professor of surgery, and honorary 
pi-otessor of clinical surgery at the University of 


Pennsylvania. He became widely known through 
his treatment of President Garfield’s wound. 
Doctor Agnew wrote Practical Anatomy (1856) 
and The Principles and Practices of Surgery 
(1878-1883). 

Agnosticism, ag nos'ti sizm, the doctrine that 
the existence of a personal God or an unseen 
world can not be proved or disproved. Those 
holding this doctrine also maintain that one can 
not prove his own existence. Agnosticism is 
founded on the inability of the human mind to 
arrive at absolute knowledge and belief and the 
failure of scientific investigation to discover the 
first causes for the phenomena of nature. An 
ancient form of agnosticism is found in the 
doctrine of a school of philosophers known as the 
Sophists. 

Ag'nus De'i, a term applied to Christ in John 
I, 29, and in the Catholic liturgy a prayer begin¬ 
ning with the words “Agnus Dei,” generally 
sung before the communion. The term is also 
commonly given to a medal, or more frequently 
a cake of wax, consecrated by the pope and 
stamped with the figure of a lamb supporting 
the banner of the cross. These medals are 
distributed to the faithful the first Sunday after 
Easter. In the Greek Church, Agnus Dei is a 
cloth bearing an image of a lamb. It is used 
to cover the cup in the communion service. 

Agouti, a goo'le, the name of several rodents, 
forming a family by themselves. There are 
eight or nine species, all belonging to South 
America and the West Indies. The common 



AGOUTI 


agouti, or yellow-rumped cavy, is of the size of a 
rabbit. It burrows in the ground or in hollow 
trees, and lives on vegetables,. It grunts like a 
pig, and is as greedy, so that where it is com¬ 
mon it does much injury to crops. The agouti’s 
flesh is white and palatable. 

Agra, ah'gra, a city of India, capital of a 
province of the same name, 841 mi. n. w. of 
Calcutta and 110 mi. s. e. of Delhi. It has 


Agram 

interesting structures, among which are the 
imperial palace, the Moti Masjid, or Pearl 
Mosque; the mosque called the Jama Masjid, 
or Great Mosque, and the Taj Mahal, a mauso¬ 
leum of the seventeenth century, built by the 
emperor Shah Jehan to his favorite queen (See 
Taj M att a t,). Agra has a trade in grain, sugar, 
tobacco and cotton, and manufactures, includ¬ 
ing inlaid mosaics, for which the inhabitants 
have acquired a world-wide reputation. The 
city is one of the oldest in India and has been 
prominent since the first part of the sixteenth 
century. During the Sepoy mutiny of 1857 it 
was a place of refuge for Europeans, after it 
was captured by the British. At present Agra 
is an important railway center and also a com¬ 
mercial and financial center of northwest India. 
Population in 1911, 185,449. 

Agram, ah'gram, a city in the Austrian 
Empire, capital of Croatia and Slavonia, 160 mi. 
s. s. w. of Vienna. It contains the government 
buildings, cathedral, university, theater and 
other beautiful buildings. Agram carries on an 
active trade, and manufactures carpets, silk, 
tobacco, leather and linens. Population in 1910, 
79,000. 

Agra'rian Laws, laws enacted in ancient 
Rome for the division of the public lands. 
The right to the use of the public land belonged 
originally only to the ruling class; but latterly 
the claims of the plebeians to it were also 
admitted, though they were often unfairly 
treated in the sharing of it. Hence arose much 
discontent among the plebeians, and various 
remedial laws were passed, none of which, 
however, was ever put into execution. 

Agric'ola, Gnaeus Julius (37-93), a Roman 
statesman and general. As governor of Britain 
he reduced the greater part of the island to 
subjection, and although he was the twelfth 
Roman general who had been in Britain he 
was the first who in any degree reconciled the 
Britons to the Roman yoke. He constructed 
the chain of forts between the Forth and the 
Clyde, and sailed round the island, discovering 
the Orkneys. His life, written by Tacitus, his 
son-in-law, gives a most valuable account of 
Britain during the early Roman rule. 

Agricola, Rudolphus (1443-1485), an emi¬ 
nent educator of the Middle Ages, born at 
Baflo, Holland. On completing his education 
he returned to his native country and gained 
reputation through his introduction of the study 
of Greek into the countries north of the Alps. 
Later he delivered lectures at Heidelberg and 


Agricultural Experiment Stations 

Worms. His most important work in education 
relates to methods of study and instruction, in 
which he advocated certain radical reforms. 
He established three principles essential to the 
pursuit of any study: (1) understand what 
has been learned; (2) retain what is understood; 
(3) derive advantage from what has been 
learned. 

Agricultural College, a college estab¬ 
lished for the purpose of higher education in 
agriculture. The first suggestion of an agri¬ 
cultural college was made by Washington in his 
first message to Congress in 1790, but it was 
many years before this suggestion bore fruit. 
The first agricultural college in England was 
established in 1845, and the first one in the 
United States was founded in connection with 
the University of Michigan in 1857. In 1862, 
by the passage of what is known as the Morrill 
Act (See Morrill, Justin S.), large tracts of 
government land were granted the different 
states, for the purpose of maintaining agricul¬ 
tural colleges, and in 1890 each college was 
granted fifteen thousand dollars a year addi¬ 
tional, with provision that this grant should be 
increased by a thousand dollars a year until it 
reached $25,000. Every state now maintains 
an agricultural college, and most of them are 
in connection with state universities. The 
courses of study include chemistry, with special 
reference to its application to agriculture, 
physics, geology, botany, animal physiology and 
kindred subjects. In addition to these studies, 
there is much experimental work in laboratories 
and practice work on the farm connected with 
the college. The courses vary considerably in 
different states, some colleges emphasizing one 
branch and some another. This variation is 
due largely to local influences, as the college 
of each state attempts to make its work of such 
a nature as to adapt it to the most important 
interests of the locality. See Agricultural 
Experiment Stations; Agriculture, subhead 
Agricultural. Education; Agriculture, De¬ 
partment of. 

Agricultural Experiment Stations, sta¬ 
tions for carrying on scientific experiments in 
the interests of agriculture, horticulture and 
dairying. The first agricultural experiment sta¬ 
tion in the United States was established at 
Wesleyan University, Middletown, Conn., in 
1875. In 1887 Congress made an appropria¬ 
tion of $15,000 a year to each state and terri¬ 
tory for the purpose of maintaining stations of 
this sort, and there are now stations in every 




Agriculture 


Agriculture 


state and territory, including Alaska, Hawaii, 
Guam and Porto Rico. They are usually con¬ 
nected with agricultural colleges. The work of 
these stations is to experiment with fertilizers and 
soils; to improve varieties of grain and fruit and 
breeds of live stock; to study the habits of, and 
to devise means for destroying, noxious insects, 
and to study the diseases of domestic animals 
and provide means for their prevention and cure. 
Each station emphasizes the line of w r ork that is 
of greatest importance to the agricultural inter¬ 
ests of the state in which it is. located. The 
results of their experiments are made known 
through bulletins, which are distributed free to 
the farmers of the state in which the station is 
located. There are now over 700 agricultural 
experiment stations in the world. They have 
been the chief means of introducing scientific 
methods into agriculture. See Agriculture; 
Agricultural College. 

Agriculture, tl.^ art of cultivating the ground 
for the purpose of raising grain and othei crops 
for man and domestic animals. Agriculture is 
the oldest of occupations and the basis of all 
other arts. It began with the dawn of civiliza¬ 
tion and, with occasional interruptions, has con¬ 
tinued to make progress to the present time. The 
Egyptians, Babylonians, Assyrians and Chinese 
are the oldest civilized nations who practiced 
agriculture systematically. Many references to 
Egypt as a grain or com country are found in the 
Old Testament, and in the earliest records of the 
other ancient nations we find references to their 
agriculture. The Greeks carried on agriculture 
to a limited extent, but with systematic methods 
and good results, though their country was not 
well suited to this line of industry. The Romans 
attained great perfection in the art and became 
the foremost of the ancient nations. Several of 
their writers produced works on agriculture, 
which show that they were familiar with and 
practiced the best principles and methods in 
vogue at the present time. The Romans were 
familiar with the use of fertilizers, the rotation 
of crops, methods of breeding domestic animals 
and irrigation. Wherever they went they took 
their knowledge and methods of agriculture, and 
as a result of their conquests this art received 
great advancement in Britain and a number of 
other countries of Europe and western Asia. 

During the Middle Ages agriculture declined. 
Nearly all of the land in Europe was owned by 
the nobility, who spent their time in war and the 
chase, and left the tilling of the soil to serfs and 
vassals. As a result agriculture became almost 


a lost art and it was not until the sixteenth century 
that it again received attention. During this 
century the foundations of the present methods 
were laid in England and other European 
countries, and from that time to the present its 
progress has been regular and systematic. The 
leading agricultural countries of Europe are 
England, France and Germany. 

The United States. Early Progress. The 
early English settlers brought with them the 
methods of agriculture practiced in the mother 
country and tried to adapt these to their new 
surroundings. Their implements were crude 
their seed scarce and often of inferior quality, 
and in New England che soil was stubborn and 
the climate unfavorable. Under these conditions 
it is not surprising that the early colonists made 
but little progress, and that with the exception 
oi tobacco and cotton in the South only suffi¬ 
cient crop3 were raised to supply the need.- of the 
family or a very limited local market. This con¬ 
dition continued until after the Revolutionary 
War, and the farmers became so wedded to their 
oid methods that changes for the better were 
received with but little favor. 

The opening to settlement of the vast territory 
in the Mississippi valley and the wonderful 
fertility of the prairie lands led to new and im¬ 
proved methods of agriculture. The con¬ 
struction of railways and canals into this territory 
enabled the farmers of the newer states to com¬ 
pete successfully in the eastern markets with 
those of the older states, and in a short time this 
competition became so strong as to compel the 
farmers of New England and the North Atlantic 
states to change both their methods and their 
crops. 

Agricultural Education. Since the beginning 
of the twentieth century agricultural education 
has made great advancement in all civilized 
countries. In the United States in 1897 the 
income of the agricultural and mechanical col¬ 
leges was $5,000,000, and in 1910 it exceeded 
$18,000,000. In 1897 the teaching of agriculture 
in rural schools was practically unknown; in 
1910 it was required by law in 13 states, and 
efforts to teach it to some extent had been made 
in over 40 states and territories. The number 
of students in agricultural colleges is increasing 
each year and many of these institutions have 
provided graduate departments for students who 
desire to prepare themselves for teaching agri¬ 
culture in high schools and colleges. In a number 
of states extension departments have been organ¬ 
ized, and these through lecture bulletins and in 


Agriculture 


Agriculture 


some states, through correspondence courses, 
reach a large number of people. Some states are 
providing courses in agriculture in high schools, 
and also establishing agricultural high schools. 
Farmers’ institutes are maintained in all states. 

Agricultural Machinery. The invention and 
manufacture of agricultural machinery in the 
United States has been one of the greatest agen¬ 
cies in promoting agriculture and bringing it 
to its present degree of perfection. The first 
machine of importance was the cotton gin, 
invented by Eli Whitney in 1793. This was 
followed by the reaper and the thrashing 
machine. To these machines were added the 
numerous patterns of plows, cultivators, seeders, 
harrows and machines for dairy purposes and 
other branches of farm industry. The depart¬ 
ment of agriculture estimates that through these 
inventions the work of farm labor has been made 
more than twenty times as productive as it was 
in 1830. The use of agricultural machinery 
has greatly reduced the expense of leading pro¬ 
ductions and made possible the cultivation of 
the great farms in the Mississippi valley and the 
Northwest. 

Division of Labor. One of the most marked 
results of the education of the farmer is the 
division of labor among agriculturists. For¬ 
merly nearly every farmer engaged in general 
farming; now each engages in some one line of 
this industry, as dairying, fruit growing, stock 
raising or the growing of large crops of cereals, 
as wheat and com, thus adapting his farm to 
the industry for which it is best suited on account 
of soil and location with reference to the mar¬ 
kets. This specialization has been accompanied 
with marked improvement in the varieties of 
plants and breeds of live stock. Varieties of com 
and wheat especially adapted to the soil and 
climate of the corn and wheat belts of the United 
States have been perfected so that the farmers of 
these regions now reap the greatest possible re¬ 
ward for their efforts. This is also true in the 
development of breeds of cattle for beef and for 
dairy purposes, and in the perfection of the hog 
and various breeds of sheep (See Breeding). 
With the increase of production there has been 
a corresponding increase in demand for Ameri¬ 
can products in foreign lands, so that there has 
been no over-production. 

See Agricultural College; Agricultural 
Experiment Stations; Agriculture, Depart¬ 
ment of; Fertilizers; Horticulture; Ma¬ 
nures. Consult Bailey’s Principles of Agri¬ 
culture, and James’s, Practical Agriculture. 


Agriculture, Department of. The United 
States department of agriculture was organized 
in 1862 as a bureau under the department of 
the interior. In 1889 it was made an executive 
department of the government, and its secretary 
became a member of the president’s cabinet. 
The department is organized into several bureaus, 
such as the weather bureau, bureau of plant 
productions, bureau of soils, bureau of forestry 
and bureau of chemistry. Each of these is 
divided into several divisions, each division 
carrying out its special function. These duties 
are closely related to the work of the agricul¬ 
tural experiment stations and include the fol¬ 
lowing lines of investigation: 

(1) Improvement in plant production. This 
is secured by breeding, whereby better varieties 
are obtained. The Illinois experiment station 
has improved the quality of corn to a marked 
degree, as has the Minnesota station the quality 
of wheat. Plant production is further improved 
by the discovery of new varieties, such as the 
macaroni wheat, which are better adapted to 
the localities than those already used; also by 
the introduction of new plants, like the alfalfa, 
into localities for which they are specially suited. 

(2) The study of soils. This is for the pur¬ 
pose of determining the adaptation of soils to 
crops, and a systematic study of soils is now in 
progress on an extensive scale. While it will 
require some years to complete the work, as 
far as it has been carried it has given satisfactory 
results. 

(3) The study of rotation of crops. This is 
of great importance in those localities where 
farmers are prone to raise the same crop year 
after year, thereby exhausting the soil. 

(4) The improvement and perfection of breeds 
of live stock. 

(5) The issue of frequent bulletins which 
give the results of investigations in various 
bureaus. The department is now issuing over 
500 different documents, whose annual publica¬ 
tion exceeds 7,000,000 copies. 

The annual appropriations for the depart¬ 
ment are about $3,900,000, of which $720,000 
is for state agricultural experiment stations. 

One of the most important of recent changes 
in the department was the organization of the 
division of forestry into the bureau of forestry, 
whereby its powers were extended and its 
appropriations increased. The bureau now 
manages the forest reserves, preventing thefts 
of lumber and, as far as possible, forest fires. 
The bureau also assists farmers, lumbermen and 




Agrigentum 


Aimard 


others in managing forest lands. Except on large 
estates this assistance is given without charge 
to the owner, but the proprietors of large estates 
are required to pay the expenses of their assist¬ 
ants. See Forestry. 

Ag'rigen'tum, now called Girgenti, a Greek 
city on the southern coast of Sicily, founded 
about 582 B. c.; in ancient times the most impor¬ 
tant place on the island, with the exception of 
Syracuse. That it was a powerful and mag¬ 
nificent city is shown by its ruins. In 405 B. c. 
it was almost completely destroyed by the 
Carthaginians, and it never regained its former 
splendor. During the first Punic War it was 
taken by the Romans and later passed into the 
possession of the Saracens. The population of 
the ancient city at the height of its splendor is 
supposed to have been 200,000; the population 
of the modern city is about 22,000. 

Ag'rimony, a genus of plants belonging to the 
rose family, but having small yellow flowers in a 
large cluster a* the ends of the stems. The 
plant grows or vaysides and waste fields, stands 
two feet tall and bears downy, pinnate leaves. 
It has an aromatic odor and is bitter to the taste. 

Agrip'pa. See Herod Agrippa I and Herod 
Agrippa II. 

Agrippa, Marcus Vipsanius (63-12 b. c.), a 
Roman statesman and general, the son-in-law of 
Augustus. He commanded the fleet of Augustus 
in the Battle of Actium. To him Rome is 
indebted for three of her principal aqueducts, 
the Pantheon and other public works. 

A'gue. See Malaria. 

Aguinaldo, ah'ge nahl’do, Emilio (1870- ), 

the leader of the Filipino insurrection against 
the authority of the United States. It is not 
known who his parents were, but he was brought 
up in the home of a learned Jesuit priest in the 
province of Cavite. When about fifteen years 
of age he became a student in the medical 
department of the university at Manila. About 
1888 he became involved in trouble with the 
authorities and went to Hongkong, where he 
came in contact with the British and received 
considerable information about modem methods 
of warfare. He is said to have served for some 
time in the Chinese army and as a member of 
the crew of a Chinese warship, under European 
instructors. Returning to the Philippines, he 
became mayor of Cavite Viejo and was acting 
in that capacity at the outbreak of the insurrec¬ 
tion in 1896. Owing to the prominent part he 
took in this uprising, Aguinaldo was offered a 
large sum of money to leave the country. He 


accepted the terms and went into exile at Hong¬ 
kong. At the outbreak of the Spanish-American 
war he returned to Manila for the avowed pur¬ 
pose of aiding the United States, but in the next 
year assumed the offensive against the United 
States. He directed the rebel forces with con¬ 
siderable ability maintaining his supremacy by 
an unusual shrewdness, combined with great 
firmness of character. After a number of severe 
engagements, his troops became so hard pressed 
that they were compelled to flee to the mountains. 
In March, 1901, while in temporary head¬ 
quarters at Palanan, Aguinaldo was captured by 
General Frederick Funston. He was brought 
to Manila, where he took the oath of allegiance 
to the United States and issued a proclamation 
to the Filipinos in which he advised them to lay 
down their arms and acknowledge the sovereignty 
of the United States. See Philippines, subhead 
History. 

Agulhas, a goo’lyas, Cape, in the south part 
of Africa, about 100 mi. e. s. e. of the Cape of 
Good Hope. Its highest point is 405 feet, and 
on the cape stands a lighthouse on an elevation 
of 52 feet above high water. The tower is 70 
feet high, and the light is seen for over 18 miles. 

A'hab, the seventh king of Israel., At the 
instigation of his wife, Jezebel, he erected a 
temple to Baal and became a cruel persecutor 
of the true prophets. His history may be found 
in the last seven chapters of 1 Kings. 

Ahasuerus, a haz'u e'rus, in Scripture history, 
a king of Persia, probably the same as Xerxes, 
the monarch of the days of Esther, to whom the 
Scriptures ascribe a singular deliverance of the 
Jews from destruction. Ahasuerus is also a 
Scripture name for Cambyses, the son of Cyrus 
(Ezra tv, 6), and for Astyages, king of the 
Medes (Dan. ix, 1). 

A'haz. the twelfth king of Judah, succeeded 
his father Jotham and ruled 736-728 B. c. For¬ 
saking the true religion, he gave himself up to 
idolatry and plundered the temple to obtain 
presents for Tiglath-pileser, king of Assyria 
(77 Kings xvi.) 

Ahazi'ah. 1 . The son of Ahab and Jezebel, 
and eighth king of Israel, who died from a fall 
through a lattice in his palace at Samaria, after 
reigning from 853 to 852 B. c. (7 Kings xxii, 51- 
53). 2. The fifth king of Judah, and nephew 
of the above. He reigned but one year and was 
slain (842 b. c.) by Jehu (77 Kings vra, 24- 
29). 

Aimard, amah/. Gustave (1818-1883), a 
French novelist. He lived for ten years among 


Ainmiller 


Air Cells 


the Indians of North America and wrote a 
number of stories dealing with Indian life, which 
have been popular in English translations. 
Among these may be mentioned The Arkansas 
Trappers, Lynch Law and The White Scalpers. 

Ainmiller, ine'mil ur, Max Emanuel (1807- 
18701, a German artist who may be regarded as 
the restorer of the art of glass-painting. As 
inspector of the state institute of glass-painting 
at Munich he raised this art to a high degree of 
perfection by the new or improved processes 
introduced by him. A series of forty windows in 
Glasgow Cathedral, containing one hundred his¬ 
torical and Scriptural pictures, is his chief work. 

Aino, i'no, or Ainu, i’noo, the native name of 
an uncivilized race of people inhabiting the 
Japanese island of Yezzo, also Saghalien and 
the Kurile Islands, and believed by some to be 
the aboriginal inhabitants of Japan. The Ainos 
average less than five feet in height, but are 
strong and active. They are considered the 
filthiest people on the globe. Their hair is 
black and covers the whole body and most of 
the face; in complexion they are dark brown, 
approaching to black. 

Ain-tab, ine tahb\ a town of northern Syria, 
60 mi. n. of Aleppo. It is well fortified and is 
an important military post. The manufactures 
are cottons, woolens and leather. There is here 
an American Protestant mission. Population, 
about 45,000. 

Air, the gaseous substance of which our atmos¬ 
phere consists. It is a mixture of about 79 
parts nitrogen and 21 parts oxygen. The gases 
exist separately and do not unite to form a com¬ 
pound as oxygen and hydrogen do to form 
water. The oxygen is necessary to animal life, 
and it is that portion of the air which serves 
to purify the blood in respiration. The chief 
use of the nitrogen appears to be to dilute the 
oxygen. Water contains air having a larger 
proportion of oxygen than that found in the 
land, and fishes which breathe by gills obtain 
their oxygen from the air in the water. The 
properties of air are discussed under Atmos¬ 
phere. See also Air Brake; Air Compressor; 
Air Engine; Air Pump; Barometer; Combus¬ 
tion; Liquid Air; Respiration. 

Air Brake, a device for stopping cars by 
operating the brakes by compressed air. The 
principal features of this system are the air 
pump, installed on the locomotive just in front 
of the cab; the main reservoir, in which the 
compressed air is stored; the engineer’s valve 
in the engine cab, by which all the operations 


of the air brake are controlled; the train pipe, or 
principal service pipe, which supplies the auxil¬ 
iary air reservoirs under each car with com¬ 
pressed air; the triple valve, which serves to feed 
the compressed air into the auxiliary reservoirs 
and to supply the brake cylinder with air. It 
is this triple valve which makes the system 
automatic. 

The air. compressed by the air pump, is led 
through a pipe to the main storage tank. From 
this air tank, a pipe leads to the engineer’s 
valve in the engine cab, within easy reach of 
the engine driver. The air generally is com¬ 
pressed to a pressure of 90 pounds to the square 
inch in the main reservoir. A certain movement 
of the handle of the engineer’s valve opens the 
ports which permit the air to pass into the train 
pipe, which runs from the locomotive under 
each car. This pipe is connected between the 
cars by a rubber hose, so that it is continuous. 
When the engineer wishes to apply the brakes, 
he throws the handle of the engineer’s valve to 
a certain position. That opens a port which 
permits the air in the train pipe to escape into 
the open air. This lowers the pressure in the 
train pipe, and the balanced valve, responding 
to the higher pressure in the car reservoir, 
slides back, and thus opens an aperture which 
permits the air in the car reservoir to reach the 
brake cylinder. The pressure of the air forces 
the piston of the brake cylinder forward, and 
this piston, through suitable levers, presses 
the brake shoes against the wheels and the 
brakes are set. Within the brake cylinder is 
a coiled spring. When the engineer desires to 
release the brakes, he feeds air from the main 
reservoir on the locomotive into the train pipe 
thus increasing the pressure. This forces the 
balanced valve the other way, and thus opens 
an aperture which releases the air in the brake 
cylinder into the open air. The coiled spring, 
reacting, forces the brake piston back to its 
normal condition, and thus releases the brakes. 

The air brakes used on electric cars operate 
on the same principle, but are of simpler con¬ 
struction. The pump for compressing the air 
is operated by an electric motor which obtains 
its current from the wire that supplies the car 
motor. See Air; Air Compressor; Com¬ 
pressed Air. 

Air Cells, small cavities containing air only, 
found in the stems and leaves of plants. They 
are largest and most numerous in water 
plants such as the lily, the leaves of which are 
buoyed up by their means. The minute cells 





Air Compressor 


Air Pump 


in the lungs of animals are also called air cells, 
and there are curious air cells in the bodies of 
birds. These are connected with the lungs and 
are situated in the chest cavity and in the 
abdomen, and sometimes extend even into the 
bones. They are most fully developed in birds 
that have strong, powerful flight, such as the 
albatross. See Air. 

Air Compres'sor, an air pump for forcing air 
into a closed vessel. The simplest form is the 
common bicycle pump. This has a valve in 
the piston opening downward, and another in 
the bottom of the cylinder opening outward. 
When the piston is raised, the cylinder below 
it is filled with air. When the piston is forced 
down, the valve in it is closed, the valve in the 
cylinder is forced open and the air is driven into 
the vessel. Whatever the size of an air com¬ 
pressor, it operates on this principle. 

Very large air compressors, operated by 
water power, steam engines or electric motors, 
are often used in mines and tunnels for forcing 
a circulation of air and for supplying air to 
operate machine tools. In this case the air 
acts the same as steam in a steam engine. 
Some of these compressors are so powerful that 
they will condense the air until it exerts a 
pressure of three thousand pounds to the square 
inch. The compressed air is stored in a 
reservoir, from which it is drawn as required. 
See Air; Compressed Air. 

Air En'gine, an engine in which compressed 
air, or air heated and so expanded, is used 
as the motive power. A great many engines 
of the former kind have been invented, some 
of which have been found to work quite well 
where no great power is required. They may 
be said to be essentially similar in construc¬ 
tion to the steam engine, though of course the 
expansibility of air by heat is small compared 
with the expansion that takes place when 
water is converted into steam. For this reason 
the cylinders of air engines are much larger 
than those of steam engines. Engines working 
by compressed air have been found very useful 
in mining and tunneling, and the compressed 
air may be conveyed to its destination by means 
of pipes. In such cases the waste air serves 
for ventilation and for reducing the oppressive 
heat. See Air; Air Compressor. 

Air Gun, an instrument for the projection 
of bullets by means of condensed air, gen¬ 
erally either in the form of an ordinary gun 
or of a stout walking-stick, and about the same 
length. -A quantity of air being compressed 


into the air chamber by means of a condens¬ 
ing syringe, the bullet is put in its place in 
front of this chamber and is propelled by the 
expansive force of the compressed air, which is 
liberated on pressing the trigger. The simplest 
form of air gun is the popgun, made by fitting 
a wooden piston to the hollow shaft of a goose 
quill. See Air; Air Compressor; Com¬ 
pressed Air. 

Air Plants or Epiphytes, ep'i fites, plants 
that grow upon other plants or trees, appar¬ 
ently without receiving any nourishment other¬ 
wise than from the air. The name is restricted 
to flowering plants and is suitably applied to 
many species of orchids. The conditions neces¬ 
sary to the growth of such plants are excessive 
heat and moisture, and hence they live chiefly 
in the damp and shady tropical forests of Africa, 
Asia and America. They are particularly 
abundant in Java and tropical America. 

Air Pump, a pump for exhausting air and 
other gases from a closed space, or for com¬ 
pressing air within an enclosed space (See 



Air; Air Compressor). The ordinary suc¬ 
tion pump for raising water is constructed on 
the same plan and operates on the same prin¬ 
ciple as the air pump. In fact, before the water 
reaches the top of the pipe the air has been 
exhausted by the pump which pumps the water. 
An ordinary air pump consists of a cylinder A, 
connected by the tube D with a closed vessel 
with the receiver G. Within the cylinder is the 
piston P, on the upper surface of which is the 
valve E, opening upward. At the bottom of the 
piston is the second valve F, which also opens 
upward. H is a screw which opens and closes 
the connection between the cylinder and the 
receiver, and J is an air-tight tube containing 
a U-shaped tube, in which there is a quantity 
of mercury, connected with the receiver G. C 






















Air Ship 


Ajax 


is the plate upon which the receiver rests. In 
operating the pump the piston is forced down¬ 
ward and the valve E is opened, thus transfer¬ 
ring the air from below the piston to the space 
above it. When the piston is raised, the valve 
E is closed and the air is forced out through the 
tube K. The space below the piston becomes 
a vacuum and the expansive force of the air in 
G opens the valve F and fills the cylinder. 
With the second stroke of the piston this air is 
forced through the tube K, and to on with each 
repeated stroke until the air in G becomes so 
rarified that it can no longer operate the valve 
F. The difference in height in the columns of 
mercury in J indicates how perfect a vacuum 
has been obtained. 

Many interesting experiments can be per¬ 
formed with the air pump. A lighted candle 
placed under the receiver immediately goes out 
when the air is exhausted, thus showing that 
air is necessary to combustion. A bell sus¬ 
pended from a silk thread can be heard when 
the receiver is filled with air, but when the air 
is exhausted it cannot be heard. This shows 
that air is necessary to the propagation of 
sound. If a glass of water be placed under the 
receiver, as the air is exhausted bubbles will 
rise to the surface of the water, showing that 
it contains air, which, as the pressure above is 
lessened, expands and rises. A shriveled apple 
or a prune placed under the receiver becomes 
plump as the air is exhausted, and a bladder 
filled with air will be expanded until it bursts, 
because of the expansive force of the air it 
contains. The air pump was invented by 
Otto von Guericke, about 1654. 

Air Ship. See Flying Machines. 

Aix-la-Chapelle, ayx'lah sha peV , or Aachen, 
a city of Rhenish Prussia, 44 mi. w. s. w. 
of Cologne. The most important build¬ 
ing is the cathedral, the oldest portion of 
which was erected in the time of Charlemagne, 
as the palace chapel, about 796. This place 
was the favorite residence of Charlemagne, who 
died in 814. A gold coffin containing his 
remains is to be seen in the cathedral at the 
present time. Thirty-seven German emperors 
and eleven empresses have been crowned in the 
city, and the imperial insignia were preserved 
here till 1795, when they were carried to Vienna. 
There are a number of warm sulphur springs 
here, and several mineral springs which have a 
reputation for curing rheumatism and other 
diseases. Aix-la-Chapelle is an important com¬ 
mercial center. The chief manufactures are 


cloth, gloves, leather, chemicals, linen and 
paints. Population in 1910, 156,008 

Aix-la-Chapelle, Congress of, a congress 
held at Aix-la-Chapelle in 1818, for the pur¬ 
pose of adjusting the affairs of Europe after 
the wars of Napoleon. The Czar Alexander I 
of Russia, Emperor Francis I of Austria and 
King Frederick William III of Prussia were 
present in person. Among the great states¬ 
men present were Metternich, Castlereagh, 
Wellington, Hardenberg and Richelieu, the 
grandson of the great cardinal. The chief 
thing accomplished was the withdrawal of the 
foreign troops from France and the recognition 
of France as one of the great powers of Europe 
on her agreeing to the Holy Alliance. See 
Napoleon I; France, subhead History. 

Aix-la-Chapelle, Treaties of. The first 
was concluded May 2, 1668, between Louis XIV 
of France and the Triple Alliance, including 
England, Sweden and Holland. Louis, after 
the death of Philip IV, laid claim to a large 
portion of the Spanish Netherlands. He had 
already seized several fortresses, and Holland 
in alarm concluded the Triple Alliance. Louis, 
fearing this strong combination, accepted terms 
bv which France retained possession of the 
fortresses of Charlerois and Lille and gave back 
Franche Comt£ to Spain. 

The second treaty was concluded in 174.8, at 
the close of the War of the Austrian Succession 
(See Succession W.ars). The cause of the 
war was the dispute of the claim of Maria 
Theresa to the throne of Austria. All the great 
pow ers of Europe were engaged in this war, 
and by the terms of the treaty the different 
states held nearly the same possessions as before. 

Ajaccio, a yah’cho, the capital of Corsica, 
the birthplace of Napoleon, and the seat of a 
bishop. It has extensive coral and sardine 
fisheries. Population in 1910, 22,264. 

A'jax, the name of two Grecian chiefs who 
were prominent in the war against Troy, known 
respectively as the Greater and the Less. Ajax 
the Greater was from Salamis, commanded 
twelve ships in the struggle against Troy and 
is represented by Homer as the boldest of the 
Greeks after Achilles. Ajax claimed the arms 
of Achilles after the latter’s death, but they 
w r ere awarded to Ulysses. Ajax became insane 
and after killing all the sheep of the Greeks, 
which in his delusion he imagined were the 
followers of his rival, he slew himself. Ajax 
the Less is remembered chiefly for his brutal 
treatment of Cassandra after the fall of Troy. 



A Eempis 

A Kem'pis, Thomas. See Thomas a Kempis. 

Akron, O., the county-seat of Summit co., 35 
mi. s. of Cleveland, on the Baltimore & Ohio, the 
Erie and other railroads. The name Akron (from 
the Greek word meaning height) was given to the 
city because it lies about 500 feet above Lake Erie. 
The surrounding country contains numerous 
lakes. Many hotels have been constructed here 
and the district is traversed by electric railways, 
so that the section is becoming a popular summer 
resort. Natural gas is found and the Little Cuya¬ 
hoga River furnishes water power for various 
manufactures. The products include flour, woolen 
goods, stoves and steam engines. One of the 
largest printing and publishing establishments in 
the world is located here. Akron is the greatest 
rubber manufacturing center in the United States, 
and the largest watch factory in the world is at 
Barberton, a suburb. It is the seat of Buchtel 
College, a non-sectarian and co-educational 
institution with about 300 students, and the city 
maintains a hospital and a public library. Akron 
was founded in 1825, was incorporated as a town 
in 1836, and received its charter as a city in 1865. 
Population in 1910, 69,067. 

Alabama, al a bah'ma, The Cotton State, 
one of the Gulf states, is bounded on the n. by 
Tennessee; on the e. by Georgia, from the 
southern half of which it is, separated by the 
Chattahoochee River; on the s. by Florida and 
the Gulf of Mexico and on the w. by Mississippi. 
Its greatest length is 330 miles, and greatest 
width 220 miles. The total area is 51,998 square 
miles, of which 719 are water. Population in 
1910, 2,138,093, a gain of 309,396 in ten years. 

Surface and Drainage. Spurs of the Appal¬ 
achian Mountains enter the northeastern part of 
the state from Georgia, and form low parallel 
ranges, nowhere exceeding 1600 feet in altitude. 
A low range known as the Raccoon Mountains 
extends northward across the state. In the east 
central part of the state the Lookout Mountains 
terminate abruptly about sixty miles from the 
boundary. To the southwest of these ranges is 
a low elevation, the Cumberland Plateau, con¬ 
taining rich deposits of coal and iron ore. The 
southern portion of the state, including three- 
fifths of its area, is a part of the Great Coastal 
Plain and is all lowland, with a deep, fertile soil. 

The Tennessee River flows across the northern 
part of the state, forming a great bend. The 
valley adds much to the scenery of the region. 
The Mobile system drains the greater part of 
the state. Other important streams are the 
Tombigbee and its tributary, the Black Warrior, 


Alabama 

which drain the western part of the state into 
Mobile Bay, the only important indentation along 
the coast. This bay forms one of the most 
spacious and safe harbors of the Gulf and is an 
important factor in the commercial life of Mobile. 

Climate. The climate varies with altitude 
and elevation. The northern portion of the 
state has a delightful climate, with a mean 
temperature for January of about 43° r.nd for 
July about 84°. Even in winter the thermom¬ 
eter seldom falls below freezing point. The 
elevation tempers the intense heat of summer, 
and this portion of the state is becoming a resort 
for invalids and others who wish to escape the 
rigors of a northern winter. In the lowlands 
and the southern part of the state the heat is 
more intense and the conditions are less health¬ 
ful. The rainfall in the northern portion 
averages 54 inches, and in the southern portion 
63 inches. 

Mineral Resources. The northeastern 
portion of the state, extending southward as far 
as Columbus, Ga., and westward, including 
the Cumberland Plateau, is rich in minerals. 
Within this area have been found extensive 
deposits of iron ore and of bituminous coal. 
Besides this there are also deposits of asbestos, 
asphalt, copper, granite, lithograph stone, mar¬ 
ble, and pottery and porcelain clays. Salt is 
obtained in the southwestern portion of the 
state. Coal and iron are mined extensively, 
and Alabama is now one of the leading states 
in the production of iron ore, being exceeded 
only by Minnesota and Michigan. In the pro¬ 
duction of coal the state ranks fifth both in 
amount and in value. Marble, other building 
stone and bauxite are also important products. 

Agriculture. With the exception of the 
northeastern portion, where the mountains are 
most numerous, all of the soil is fertile, and 
agriculture is the most generally distributed 
and most important industry. In the northern 
half of the state wheat, com, oats, rice and 
other cereals are grown, while through the cen¬ 
tral portion runs a belt of black land known as 
the cotton belt, and including, also, the cane- 
brake region. Upon this land most of the 
cotton of the state is raised. The cotton is the 
most important crop, and the annual produc¬ 
tion is about 1,250,000 bales. Melons, apples 
and other fruits are grown in the northern half 
of the state, and in the southern porti n the 
fig, pomegranate, olive, apricot and orange are 
found; also some sugar cane and rice. 

Most of the land is held by large landholders. 


Alabama 


Alabama 


who have divided it into small farms which are 
rented to colored people. 

The important forest trees in the mountain 
region are the oak, hickory, chestnut, cedar, 
elm and pine. In the low plains of the south 
are forests of Cyprus, yellow pine and magnolia. 

Manufactures. The development of the 
iron and coal mines has led to the establishment 
of large manufacturing industries. These con¬ 
sist of smelting works, foundries and coke ovens 
in the mineral regions, sawmills in the for¬ 
ests, gristmills, leather-dressing establishments, 
distilleries for the manufacture of turpentine 
and resin and factories for the manufacture 
of cotton goods. Since 1900 the manufacture of 
iron and steel and their products, cotton goods 
and other products have developed rapidly. 

The quarrying of marble and other building 
stone gives employment to considerable numbers 
in certain localities. Fertilizers are manufac¬ 
tured by combining the cotton-seed meal with 
phosphates which are obtained from mines in 
Florida. Alabama is advancing rapidly and the 
conditions for nearly all lines of manufacturing 
industry are so favorable that she bids fair to 
take her place in the front rank of the manu¬ 
facturing states of the Union. 

Commerce. The state has an extensive trade 
in coal, iron and cotton. The manufactures do 
not yet supply the local demands; hence many 
manufactured articles are brought in from other 
states. Fruits and lumber are exported, the 
latter to considerable extent; but the cereals 
and live stock of the state are no more than 
sufficient to meet the local needs. 

Transportation. The large rivers, the Ala¬ 
bama, the Tombigbee and Chattahoochee, are 
navigable for some distance. Numerous lines 
of railway also pass through the state from north 
to south and from east to west. The entire rail¬ 
road mileage is about 4500 miles, and all of the 
leading cities and towns have railway advan¬ 
tages Mobile is the only seaport, and conse¬ 
quently is the most important trade center for 
cotton, coal and lumber A great deal of lumber 
is also sent to Pensacola, Fla. 

Government. By the constitution, the right 
of suffrage is restricted to those who can read and 
write and interpret any clause of the United 
States Constitution in English, and who have 
for the greater portion of the year preceding 
registration been engaged in some lawful occu¬ 
pation, unless they own, either directly or through 
their wives, a certain amount of property upon 
which taxes have been paid. The legislature 


consists of a senate and house of representatives. 
The senate cannot exceed in number one-third 
of the members of the house, and members of 
both houses are elected for four years. The 
executive department consists of a governor, 
lieutenant governor, attorney general, state 
auditor, secretary of state, state treasurer, 
superintendent of education and commissioner 
of agriculture and industries. Each of these 
officers is elected for four years at the time of the 
election of members of the legislature. None 
is eligible for reelection, and the governor is not 
eligible by election or appointment to any office 
in the state or the United States during his term 
of office, or within one year after the expiration 
of his term. The judicial power is vested in the 
supreme court, circuit courts, chancery and 
probate courts, and such others as may be 
established by law. The senate may sit as a high 
court of justice for the impeachment of any 
state officer. The local government is admin¬ 
istered by counties and municipalities. 

Cities. The chief cities are Montgomery, the 
capital, Birmingham, Mobile, Selma, Anniston, 
Talladega, Bessemer and Tuscaloosa, each of 
which is described under its title. 

Education. A good system of public schools, 
requiring separate schools for white and colored 
children, is maintained throughout the state. In 
1907 a law requiring the establishing of at least 
one high school in each county and providing 
an appropriation for partially paying the salaries 
of teachers in these schools, was passed. The 
state maintains several normal schools located 
respectively at Florence, Jacksonville, Troy, 
Livingston, Montgomery, Huntsville and Tus- 
kegee, the last three being for colored students. 
There is an industrial school for white girls at 
Montevallo. There are several agricultural 
schools, a number of universities and several 
colleges for women. Among the prominent insti¬ 
tutions are the University of Alabama, at Tusca¬ 
loosa, Southern University, at Greensboro, Saint 
Bernard College, at Cullman, the Polytechnic 
School and Agricultural and Mechanical College, 
at Auburn, £&nd the Tuskegee Normal and 
Industrial Institute. See Tuskegee Normal 
and Industrial Institute. 

Institutions. The hospitals for the insane 
are at Tuscaloosa (white) and Mount Vernon 
(colored). The school for negro deaf mutes and 
for the blind, and the Alabama Academy for the 
Blind are at Talladega. The penitentiary is at 
Wetumpka and the Alabama Industrial School 
for Boys is at East Lake. 





Alabama 


Aladdin 


History. Alabama was visited by De Soto 
in 1541, but was not colonized, and was a part of 
the British Carolina grant of 1663. The French 
established a settlement at Mobile Bay in 1702 
and founded the present city of Mobile in 1711. 
Thereafter, it was the capital of Louisiana until 
the territory was transferred to England, when 
this region became a part of West Florida. 
After 1783 there was a serious boundary dispute 
with Spain and it was not definitely settled until 
1819, when all of Florida was ceded to the United 
States. Alabama became a territory of the 
United States in 1817 and was admitted to state¬ 
hood two years later. It was decidedly pro¬ 
slavery, an earnest advocate of the Mexican War 
and was one of the first of the Southern states to 
secede (January 18, 1861). Its capital, Mont¬ 
gomery, became the capital of the Confederate 
States. During the carpet-bag regime, the state 
suffered serious losses through reckless specu¬ 
lation and fraud, but since that time has steadily 
advanced in population and wealth. In 1901 
an amendment was adopted to the constitution 
which practically restricted suffrage to the white 
citizens. 

Alabama, a river of Alabama, formed by the 
junction of the Coosa and the Tallapoosa, a few 
miles above Montgomery. After a course of 
300 miles, it joins the Tombigbee and assumes 
the name of the Mobile. It is navigable through¬ 
out. 

Alabama, The, a vessel built at Birkenhead, 
England, in 1862, by Messrs. Laird & Sons, for 
the Confederate States. At Terceira, one of the 
Azores, she received guns, stores and coal from 
another vessel. Captain Semmes then assumed 
command and on August 24, 1862, named the 
vessel the Alabama and hoisted the Confederate 
flag. Before September 16 she had destroyed 
Federal ships and provisions valued at more 
than her own cost, and for nearly two years after¬ 
ward she was the terror of Union merchantmen 
in every sea. In all, she captured sixty-five 
vessels and destroyed property estimated at 
$4,000,000. Swift-sailing cruisers scoured the 
seas in search of her, and she was at length forced 
to take refuge in the port of Cherbourg, on the 
coast of Normandy, June 11, 1864. A few days 
later, the United States steamer Kearsarge, 
commanded by Captain Winslow, also arrived 
at Cherbourg. June 19 a fight took place outside 
the port, and in less than an hour the Alabama 
was sunk. Semmes and others were picked up 
Dy an English yacht. 

Not many months after the Alabama had 


commenced her destructive career, Mr. Seward, 
secretary of state, informed the British govern¬ 
ment that the United States would claim dam¬ 
ages for injuries done to American commerce 
by vessels fitted out in British ports. At length 
Great Britain was induced to submit to arbi¬ 
tration the question of her culpability in regard 
to the escape of the Alabama. A congress met 
at Geneva, Dec. 17, 1871, consisting of repre¬ 
sentatives of Great Britain and the United 
States and of three members appointed one 
each by the king of Italy, the president of the 
Swiss Confederation and the emperor of Brazil. 
The decision, given Sept. 15, 1872, was adverse 
to Great Britain, which was ordered to pay to 
the United States the sum of $16,145,833. 

Alabama, University of, a non-sectarian, 
co-educational institution established at Tusca¬ 
loosa'in 1831. It has about sixty professors and 
instructors and some over eight hundred stu¬ 
dents. Its library contains 25,000 volumes; 
the grounds and buildings are valued at 
$300,000, and its endowment fund at $1,000,000. 
Its income is about $95,000 a year. A medical 
school connected with the University is located 
in Mobile. 

Al'abaster, a name applied to a granular 
variety of gypsum. It was much used by the 
ancients for the 
manufacture of 
ointment and per¬ 
fume boxes, vases 
and the like. It 
is usually of a pure 
white color and is 
so soft that it can 
be scratched with 
the thumb nail. It 
is found in many 
parts of Europe, 
in great abundance 
and of peculiarly excellent quality in Tuscany. 
From the finer and more compact kinds, vases, 
clock-stands, statuettes and other ornamental 
articles are made, and from inferior kinds the 
cement known as plaster of Paris. A variety of 
carbonate of lime, closely resembling alabaster in 
appearance, used for similar purposes under 
the name of Oriental alabaster, is found in caves 
in the form of stalactites or stalagmites. It may 
be distinguished from true alabaster by being 
too hard to be scratched with the nail. 

Aladd'in, the hero of one of the tales in the 
Arabian Nights. He gains possession of a 
wonderful lamp, which when rubbed, calls to 



Alameda 


Alaric II 


his aid a powerful genius who is obliged to 
fulfill all of Aladdin’s requests. Among the 
wonderful things which Aladdin orders the 
slave of the lamp to do for him is to build a 
palace for his bride. This is done in a single 
night, but later when the princess is left alone 
in the house she is deceived by a magician, 
who gains control of the lamp and compels the 
slave of the lamp to carry off the palace to 
Africa. Another mighty genius, however, 
which is compelled to serve Aladdin on account 
of his possession of a wonderful ring, brings 
back the palace and regains for Aladdin the 
possession of the lamp. 

Alameda, ah la ma'dah, Cal., a city in 
Alameda co., on San Francisco Bay and on the 
Southern Pacific railroad. It is a popular resi¬ 
dence place for San Francisco business men 
and is the seat of the College of Notre Dame. 
The city contains the largest borax works in 
the world and extensive potteries, oil refineries 
and ship-building yards. Alameda was incor¬ 
porated in 1854 and has grown rapidly since 
1870. It owns and operates its electric lighting 
plant. Population in 1910, 23,383. 

Alamo, ah'la mo, an old Catholic mission 
located at San Antonio, Texas, and celebrated 
for the battle that occurred during the war for 



THE ALAMO 


Texan independence, in 1836. The mission 
was a stone structure -surrounded by a strong 
wall over two and a half feet thick and eight 
feet high. Within this enclosure about 180 
Texans and Americans under Colonel Travis 
were besieged by the Mexicans under Santa 
Anna. Among the company were James 
Bowie, David Crockett and J. B. Bonham, all 
prominent Texan pioneers. The attack was 
made so suddenly that the troops had little 
5 


time to procure supplies of food or ammunition, 
but, notwithstanding their limited means and 
the superior numbers of the Mexicans, they 
resisted the siege for eleven days. Then Santa 
Anna, having received large reenforcements and 
heavy artillery, assailed the mission early on 
the morning of March 5, and overcoming a 
gallant resistance, in which nearly all of the 
inmates were killed, captured the place. Re¬ 
gardless of the laws of war, the Mexicans mur¬ 
dered in cold blood the few Texans remaining 
and spared only a colored man and the women 
and children. This atrocity incensed the Texans 
to the utmost limit, and for the remainder of 
their struggle with Mexico “Remember the 
Alamo” was their battle cry. The fierceness 
of this conflict and the peculiar circumstances 
attending it have given the Alamo the name 
of the “Thermopylae of America.” 

Aland, ol’land, Islands, a group of about 
eighty islands and numerous rocks and islets 
belonging to Russia, situated in the Baltic Sea, 
near the mouth of the Gulf of Finland. The 
fortress of Bomarsund was destroyed by an 
Anglo-French force in August, 1854. The 
islands were taken from Sweden by Russia in 
1809. Population, about 24,000. 

Alarcon y Mendoza, ah lahr hone’ e men do’~ 
ihah, Don Juan Ruiz de (?-1639), one of the 
most distinguished dramatic poets of Spain; 
born in Mexico. He went to Europe about 
1622; in 1628 he published a volume con¬ 
taining eight comedies and in 1635 another 
containing twelve. One of them, called The 
Truth Suspected, furnished Corneille with the 
groundwork and greater part of the substance 
of his Liar. The Wearer of Segovia and Walls 
Have Ears are still performed on the Spanish 
stage. 

Al'aric I (?-410), a famous chieftain of the 
Visigoths, who twice invaded Italy and besieged 
Rome three times. He was naturally generous, 
and it was owing to him that the splendid 
buildings of Greece and Rome suffered so little 
damage during his invasions. The most lasting 
effect of his inroads on the Western Empire was 
the establishment of th€ Visigothic Empire in 
Spain by the warriors whom he left behind him. 

Alaric II, eighth king of the Visigoths, who 
succeeded his father, Euric, in 485. He pre¬ 
ferred peace to war, but, because he was an 
Arian, he was obliged to contend with Clovis, 
who undertook the defense of orthodox Catholi¬ 
cism. The army of Alaric was defeated, and 
he was slain (507). 










Alaska 


Alaska 


Alas'ka, a territory of the United States, 
occupying the extreme northwestern portion of 
North America and a narrow strip along the 
Pacific coast southward to British Columbia. 
It extends from latitude 54° 40' to 71° 30' north, 
and from longitude 130° to 168° west from 
Greenwich, with its farthest point 187° west. 
The greatest length from north to south and east 
to west is nearly equal, being about 800 miles; 


the area in round numbers is 591,000 square 
miles, which is more than twice the area of Texas. 
The western coast is extended by two large inlets, 
Norton Sound on the south and Kotzebue Sound 
on the north of Seward Peninsula, which extends 
within 48 miles of East Cape in Kamtchatka. 
The coast line has an extent of 8,000 miles, which 
is greater than the entire Atlantic coast line of the 
United States. 

Surface and Drainage. The mountains 
and rivers divide Alaska into four districts, as 
follows: 

1. The Coast District, extending along the 
coast from British Columbia to the beginning of 


Alaska Peninsula and inland to the coast range 
of the Alaskan Mountains. It has a width 
varying from 30 to 75 miles and includes a 
number of adjacent islands. This district is 
famous for its glaciers, which fill the heads of 
many of the narrow inlets. Those around the 
head of Lynn Canal and Glacier Bay are best 
known (See Muir Glacier). The principal 
rivers of this region are the Copper, with its 


tributary, the Chichitna, and the Matanuska, 
Knit and Suchitna, all flowing into Cook’s Inlet. 
The Suchitna is navigable for about 110 miles, 
and its tributary, the Yetna, for about 100 miles. 

The coast district is bounded on the north by 
the principal range of the Alaskan Mountains, 
which form a watershed between it and the 
Kuskokwim and Tanana rivers This is the 
highest mountain range in North America and 
culminates in Mount McKinley, which has an 
altitude of 20,464 feet. 

2. The Alaskan and Aleutian District. This 
projection is formed by a continuation of the 
mountains in a southwestward direction. The 
























Alaska 

chain of islands, about 150 in number, is a series 
of mountain peaks projecting above the sea and 
reaching almost to the Asiatic coast. All are 
extinct volcanoes, and some have an altitude 
of 8000 feet. 

3. The Kuskokwim District. This includes 
the basin of the Kuskokwim River and contains 
a large area suitable for settlement. 

4. The Yukon District. This embraces all 
of the territory from the southern watershed of 
the Yukon basin to the Arctic Ocean. In the 
eastern portion it is mountainous, but to the north 
and west it consists of a low, gradually sloping 
plain. The Yukon receives two important 
tributaries, the Tanana from the south and the 
Porcupine from the north. See Yukon River. 

Climate. Each topographical district differs 
from the others in climate and soil. The coast 
district is protected from the w T inds from the 
north by the high mountain barrier that forms 
its inland boundary. It is also subject to the 
influence of the warm Pacific or Japan Cur¬ 
rent. For these reasons it has a much warmer 
climate than those portions of the eastern coast 
of the continent having the same latitude. The 
thermonieter seldom rises above 80° or falls below 
zero. The condensation by the mountains 
of the moisture from the Pacific causes an 
abundance of rain, and fogs usually prevail, 
except in Cook’s Inlet, which for some reason is 
free from them. The temperature of the Alas¬ 
kan and Aleutian district averages a little lower 
than that of the Coast district, while that of the 
Kuskokwim has an average of zero for mid¬ 
winter and of 50° for summer. The vast interior, 
both north and south of the Yukon, has an Arctic 
climate. The winters are cold and long and the 
summers short and warm. The Yukon is navi¬ 
gable only from June 15 to September 15, 
and the harbors on Bering Sea are blockaded 
with pack ice for about the >same length of time 
as the river remains frozen, though the tem¬ 
perature on Norton Sound is milder than in the 
interior. 

Minerals. Much of the interior is still unex¬ 
plored and the mineral resources are not fully 
known. 

Coal. Coal lignite of a rather poor quality 
has been discovered in the vicinity of Cape Lis- 
bume and in a number of other places along the 
Arctic coast, and it has occasionally been used 
by ships cruising in these waters. Coal is also 
found along the Yukon and on the Aleutian 
Islands, on Kenai Peninsula, at the head of 
Prince William Sound and in other places. 


Alaska 

Gold. Although the presence of gold along 
the beds of the rivers was known to the Rus¬ 
sians, no prospecting occurred during their 
occupation of the country, as it was against the 
policy of the government. In 1870 Americans 
began prospecting and soon discovered placers 
and veins of varying richness. The most impor¬ 
tant of these was on Douglas Island, where a 
mining camp was soon opened and work on the 
placers was begun. Soon after, rich veins of 
quartz ore were discovered. Permanent works 
for operating the mines were erected and the 
town of Juneau was established. These mines 
have been operated with profit ever since, and 
many other paying mines have been opened in 
their vicinity. On Baranof Island, near Sitka, 
around the head of Lynn Canal, around other 
islands and on the mainland, at the head of Cook’s 
Inlet and in other places the sand and gravel on 
the beach are found to contain gold in paying 
quantities. But the most remarkable develop¬ 
ment has been in the Yukon district, where gold 
was discovered in 1897. This discovery led to the 
prospecting of the entire valleys of the Yukon 
and its tributaries, and valuable deposits were 
found, both along the river beds and among the 
mountains, but they are not so rich as those of the 
Klondike region. Following these discoveries 
was that on the north shore of Norton Sound, 
where the sands of the beach and along neighbor¬ 
ing streams have proved extraordinarily rich. 
Since 1899 the output from these mines has been 
about $7,000,000 a year. Successful mines are 
in operation near Dawson, Canada, and in a few 
other places. The annual output of gold for the 
territory is about $16,000,000. 

Other Minerals. Rich deposits of copper 
have been discovered in the Copper River 
ountry and on Prince of Wales Island and 
silver ore occurs in a number of localities where 
gold is found. There are also petroleum beds, 
and on Prince of Wales Island valuable marble 
quarries have been opened. 

Vegetation. The islands and mainland of 
the Coast district are covered with dense forests 
of evergreen trees, which extend up the moun¬ 
tains to the snow line. In these forests are 
found thousands of square miles of white pine, 
cedar, fir and Alaska spruce, all of which are 
valuable for lumber. West of Cross Sound and 
in the Kuskokwim valley the growth of trees is 
lighter, but the mountians and hills at the head 
of this valley are quite heavily timbered. The 
valley of the Yukon contains but few trees, but 
during summer sustains an abundant growth 



Alaska 


Alaska 


of grass and other herbage. Along the Copper 
River are also large areas which produce luxu¬ 
riant growths of grass. The tundras north of 
the Yukon contain little but Arctic vegetation. 

Animal Life. The animals of Alaska are 
numerous. Commercially, a number of them 
are important on account of the value of their 
furs. These are the mink, Alaskan fox (white 
and blue fox), red and black foxes, the marten 
and the fur seal. The seal fisheries are 
located on and around the Pribilof Islands 
and are under the control of the United States 
Government, and by Act of Congress in 1912, 
the killing of seal in United States waters is 
prohibited until January 1, 1918. Pelagic or 
open-sea sealing is forbidden by treaty between 
Great Britain, Japan, Russia and the United 
States. The herd on the Pribilof Islands now 
numbers about 300,000 seals. The common 
seal and the walrus are hunted by the natives, 
who make use of all parts of these animals 
for food, clothing and other domestic pur¬ 
poses. The reindeer and sledge dog are of 
great value to the inhabitants as beasts of 
burden. In summer many species of birds and 
insects are found. 

Fisheries. The coast waters and rivers 
abound in fish. As yet only the salmon fish¬ 
eries have been developed, and their output 
averages about $8,000,000 annually. The head¬ 
quarters of the industry are at Kodiak Island. 
The cod, halibut and herring fishing grounds 
are thought to be more extensive than those of 
the Atlantic coast, and in due time the taking 
of these fish will become an important industry. 

Agriculture. Until recently Alaska has not 
been considered as a possible agricultural 
country, and it is too far north ever to attain to 
an important position in this industry. How¬ 
ever, the possibilities are greater than were 
formerly supposed. The line which marks the 
northern limit of cereals extends across the 
territory from a little north of Eagle City to 
Saint Michaels. South of this, wheat, oats, rye 
and barley ripen, and the soil is of such fer¬ 
tility that it yields good crops. Garden vege¬ 
tables are raised in the Yukon valley and as 
far north as Dawson. The abundance of wild 
grass assures a good hay crop, and live stock 
can be kept through the winter without diffi¬ 
culty. Large areas in the valleys of the Kus- 
kokwim and Copper rivers and their tributaries 
are suitable for cultivation. A number of stock 
growers from Montana and other mountain 
states have established ranches on the Aleutian 


Islands, where conditions are especially favor¬ 
able for grazing. 

Transportation. During the open season 
all ports have regular and frequent communica¬ 
tion with the northern ports of the Pacific 
coast. Regular lines of steamers ply between 
Seattle, Valdez, Kodiak, Saint Michaels and 
Nome. At Saint Michaels these steamers make 
connection with the Yukon steamers, which 
ascend the river as far as Dawson. Other lines 
of steamers ply between Seattle and Sitka, 
Juneau, Skagway and other coast towns. A 
railway is in operation from Skagway through 
White Pass and is to be extended to Dawson 
Most of this line is in Canadian territory. At 
the end of 1913 there were about 500 miles of 
railway in operation. Additional lines are 
projected, and in 1914 an act of Congress pro¬ 
vided for the construction of a railroad into 
the interior, this line to be built and operated 
by the United States Government. 

Nome is connected with Saint Michaels by 
cable and with Eagle City and Dawson by tele¬ 
graph, and through the Canadian line termi¬ 
nating at Eagle City the leading settlements are 
in communication with the rest of the world. 
The United States mail is now delivered regu¬ 
larly at all settlements, though during the 
severest winter months these deliveries are at 
long intervals. 

The commerce of the territory is growing 
rapidly. In 1892 the foreign trade, including 
exports and imports, amounted to $28,366. In 
1900 it was $72,462 and the exports alone now 
exceed $25,000,000 a year. 

Government. Alaska is now an organized 
territory, whose governor is appointed by the 
president of the United States. It is divided 
into four judicial districts, the regular sessions 
of the courts being held at Juneau, Nome, 
Valdez and Fairbanks. The legislature is 
composed of a senate of .eight members elected 
for four-year terms, and a house of represen¬ 
tatives of sixteen members with two-year 
terms. Legislation on a few measures is re¬ 
served to Congress, but on most matters the 
legislature of the territory may act. At its first 
session, in 1913, the legislature extended the 
franchise to women. Towns of over 300 
people may be incorporated and elect their own 
officers. 

Education. A few schools are maintained 
by the United States bureau of education, for 
which a limited government support is granted. 
The larger settlements are also allowed the privi- 


Alaska 


Albania 


lege of using a portion of the ’•evenue obtained 
from licenses and other fees in support of schools. 
There are no higher institutions of learning in 
the territory. 

Cities and Towns. Previous to 1897 Sitka 
and Juneau were the only towns of importance, 
but since the discovery of gold, several towns 
have sprung up, and some of them have grown 
rapidly. Sitka, on Baranof Island, is the oldest 
town. Juneau, at the entrance of Taku Inlet, 
since 1906 the seat of government, has a popu¬ 
lation of about 2,000, and is the center of a 
mining industry. Skagway is the seaport of the 
White Pass railway, and Eagle City is on the 
Yukon, at the point where it crosses the Cana¬ 
dian boundary. Nome, on Norton Sound, now 
has a population of 2,600. See Juneau; Nome; 
Sitka. 

Inhabitants. The native inhabitants include 
three races: the Eskimos, who occupy the 
country north of the Yukon; the Athabaskan 
Indians, who inhabit the mountainous regions 
in the eastern portion of the valley of the Yukon 
and southward as far as Cook’s Inlet, and'the 
Aleuts, who occupy the Aleutian Islands. In 
1910 the native population numbered 25,331, 
more than half of whom were Eskimos. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 64,356. 

History. The peninsula and islands of 
Alaska were first explored by a Dane, Vitus 
Bering, in the employ of Russia, in 1740. The 
first settlement was made on Kodiak Island in 
1784, and fifteen years later, with the organization 
of the Russian-American Fur Company, a vigor¬ 
ous trade and missionary policy was adopted in 
the region; but the inhospitable climate led to 
serious financial losses, and Russia ceded the 
territory to the United States in 1867 for $< ,200,- 
000. In 1900 it became a judicial and civil 
district under the control of Congress. On 
August 24, 1912, Alaska was organized as a 
territory by act of Congress, and the legisla¬ 
ture met for its first session in March, 1913. 
Two important international controversies 
have arisen in connection with Alaska within 
recent years; one, the control of the seal fish¬ 
eries, the other, the boundary between Canada 
and Alaska. The former was based upon the 
claim of the United States that Bering Sea 
was a closed sea, subject to the control of 
Russia and the United States, and that un¬ 
licensed fishermen should not kill seals, even 
outside the three-mile boundary. The claim 
was referred to a commission, which de¬ 
cided against this contention, but also favored 


such restrictions on the killing of seals as would 
save the industry. The boundary controversy 
arose over the interpretation of a treaty between 
Russia and Great Britain, which specified that 
the boundary should follow the windings of the 
coast and should be fixed ten marine leagues 
inland. Was the line to be ten leagues inland 
from the coast of the outer islands, or from the 
coast of the mainland? The question was of 
little importance until the discovery of gold in 
the so-called Klondike region in this disputed 
territory. After several attempts to adjust the 
difficulty by negotiation, the question was referred 
to a commission consisting of three representa¬ 
tives of. the United States and three of Great 
Britain. The decision was rendered in October, 
1903, and was substantially in favor of the 
American claim. By the decision part of the 
gold fields recently discovered are in Canadian 
territory and part in American territory, but the 
vast Pacific coast line is wholly within the con¬ 
trol of the United States. 

Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition, held in 
Seattle, Wash., from June 1 to October 16, 1909. 
The exposition grounds, which were on a narrow 
peninsula between Lake Washington and Lake 
Union, included 250 acres. In general the 
buildings were in the French Renaissance style 
of architecture. The main buildings were 
grouped on both sides of a beautiful terraced 
court, at the head of which stood the United 
States Government Building. The lower 
end of the court, which was left open, afforded a 
magnificent view of snow-capped Mount Rainier. 
Seven of the buildings became the property of 
the University of Washington after the close 
of the exposition. The total attendance was 
3,740,561 and the total expenses exceeded $10,- 
000,000. The exposition closed with every debt 
paid. 

Al'ba Lon'ga, at one time the most powerful 
city of Latium, according to tradition built by 
Ascanius, the son of Aeneas, three hundred years 
before the foundation of Rome. In later times 
its site became covered with villas of wealthy 
Romans. 

Alba'nia, a kingdom in the Balkan Penin¬ 
sula, bounded on the n. by Montenegro, on the 
e. by Servia, on the s. by Greece, and on the 
w. by the Adriatic Sea. The country is moun¬ 
tainous and is said to contain rich mineral 
deposits. Albania has many species of 
oak, poplar, hazel, plane, chestnut, cypress and 
laurel. The vine flourishes, together with the 
orange, almond, fig, mulberry and citron; maize, 




Albany 


Albany 


wheat and barley are cultivated. Its animals 
include bears, wolves and chamois; sheep, goats, 
horses, asses and mules are plentiful. The chief 
exports are live stock, wool, hides, timber, oil, 
salt-fish, cheese and tobacco, which are shipped 
principally from the ports of Prevesa, Avlona 
and Durazzo, the capital. In 1913 Albania was 
made an autonomous kingdom. (See Balkan 
War). Prince William of Wied, chosen king, 
or mpret, by the powers, abdicated in 1914 on 
the outbreak of the War of the Nations; to 
succeed him the Albanian senate chose Prince 
Burhan-Eddin, son of Abdul-Hamid II. Pop¬ 
ulation, about 850,000. 

Albany, N. Y., the capital of the state and 
the county-seat of Albany co., 145 mi. n. of 
New York and 297 mi. e. of Buffalo, is on the 
west bank of the Hudson River and on the New 
York Central, the Boston & Maine, the Dela¬ 
ware & Hudson, the Boston & Albany, the West 
Shore and other railroads. It is also connected 
by electric lines with Troy, Schenectady, Am¬ 
sterdam and other places. The city has a 
river frontage of about four miles and an ex¬ 
tent of five miles to the west over a narrow 
alluvial plain along the river, where the prin¬ 
cipal business streets are located. There are 
about 148 miles of streets, of which 85 miles 
are paved. The city has eleven public parks, 
covering an area of 470 acres. Rural Ceme¬ 
tery, Saint Agnes and Beth Emeth cemeter¬ 
ies are located close to the city, the tomb of 
President Arthur being in the first named. 
The most prominent structure in the city is 
the state capitol, which was begun in 1871 
and has cost over $24,000,000. In 1911 the 
building was seriously damaged by a fire, 
which destroyed the wing containing the state 
library and caused a total loss of more than 
$5,000,000. The building is constructed of 
Maine granite and is considered one of the 
most remarkable structures in the country. 

Facing the capitol on the west are the state 
hall, built of white marble, and the city hall, a 
Gothic structure of red sandstone. The city 
contains over seventy churches, of which Saint 
Peter’s (Prostestant Episcopal) is said to be 
the finest specimen of the French Gothic style 
of architecture in the United States. All 
Saints’ Cathedral is noted for its magnificent 
mosaic work. Other churches worthy of note 
are the Cathedral of the Immaculate Concep¬ 
tion, the Beth Emeth Synagogue, the Madison 
Avenue Reformed and the First Dutch Re¬ 
formed. The post office, executive mansion, 


state armory, Dudley Observatory, the Bender 
Laboratory and State Museum of Natural his¬ 
tory are important public buildings. 

The educational institutions include the 
State Normal College, law, dental and medical 
departments of Union University, the Dudley 
Observatory, several academies, including the 
Albany Academy, the Albany Academy for 
Girls, the second oldest institution for the 
education of girls in the United States, a 
training school for nurses, a school for librari¬ 
ans and schools for the deaf. The city also 
has the county penitentiary. The new build¬ 
ing for the State Education Department 
and the State Library, which cost about 
$5,000,000, is a magnificent addition to the 
city. 

Albany has excellent transportation facili¬ 
ties. Besides the railway connections men¬ 
tioned above, large steamboats ascend the 
Hudson from New York and other points, 
while canals connect the city with Lake Cham¬ 
plain and the Great Lakes. It is an impor¬ 
tant center of passenger travel, and especially 
of the extensive freight traffic from the South, 
East and West. The leading manufactures, 
include shirts, collars and cuffs, stoves, 
electrical appliances, structural iron, pianos, 
chemicals, cigars, paper goods, carriages, 
wagons, flour, boots and shoes and various 
other articles. Large railroad construction 
and repair shops, printing establishments, 
packing houses and breweries are also lo¬ 
cated here. 

The city claims to be the second oldest per¬ 
manent settlement within the limits of the 
original thirteen states, a trading station having 
been established on Castle Island in 1614, under 
the name of Fort Nassau. The first real settle¬ 
ment was made in 1624, and the name was 
changed to Fort Orange. When New Nether¬ 
lands was transferred to the English in 1664, 
the present name of Albany was given the 
settlement, in honor of the Duke of York and 
Albany, afterwards King James II. It was 
chartered as a city in 1686. Albany was made 
the capital in 1797, and since the opening of 
the Erie Canal in 1825 it has grown steadily. 
Population in 1910, 100,253. 

Albany, Ga., the county-seat of Dougherty 
co., is situated on the Flint River, 107 mi. s. w. 
of Macon and on the Albany & Northern, the 
Central of Georgia and other railroads. It is 
an important railroad center. The chief indus¬ 
tries include cotton-pressing, brick-making and 


Albany Regency 

the manufacture of fertilizers. The city is an 
important cotton port. Population in 1910, 8190. 

Albany Regency. See Van Buren, Martin. 

Al'batross, a large web-footed sea bird of 
which there are a number of species. The bill 
of the albatross is straight and strong, the upper 
mandible hooked at the point and the lower 
one cut off squarely. In color its upper parts 
are grayish-white and the belly white. It is 
the largest sea bird known, some measuring 
seventeen and a half feet from tip to tip of their 
expanded wings. The albatrosses are found 
at the Cape of Good Hope and in other parts 
of the southern seas, where they have been 
known to follow ships for whoxe days without 
ever resting. They are met at great distances 
from the land, where they settle down on the 
waves at night to sleep. Whenever food is 
abundant the birds gorge themselves to such a 
degree that they can neither fly nor swim. 
Their food consists of small marine animals, 
carrion, fish spawn, etc. Only one large egg 
is laid, and that is placed in a rude nest made 
by scraping the earth into a ridge. The young 
are entirely white and covered with beautiful 
woolly down. Sailors regard the albatross with 
superstition and think that to kill one brings 
bad luck. Coleridge used this belief as the 
foundation of his poem, The Ancient Mariner. 

APbemarle Sound is situated in the north¬ 
east part of North Carolina, extending from 
the mouths of the Chowan and the Roanoke 
rivers north to the Atlantic coast, from which it 
is separated by a long island. Its length is 
about 55 miles, and its width from 4 to 15 miles. 
The water is shallow and is nearly fresh. 

Al'bert, Francis Augustus Charles Em¬ 
manuel (1819-1861), prince of Saxe-Coburg- 
Gotha, see Victoria (Queen of England). 

Albert I. (1875- ), king of Belgium, son 

of Philip, Prince of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha and 
Count of Flanders, born April 8, 1875. He 
succeeded his uncle, Leopold II, who died De¬ 
cember 17, 1909, without leaving male issue. 
Under the Salic Law the three daughters of 
Leopold were excluded from the succession, and 
the crown passed to Albert. Albert’s private 
and public life is above reproach. He married, 
on October 2, 1900, the Princess Elizabeth of 
Bavaria, and has three children, two boys and a 
girl. King Albert made a special study of social 
sciences and economics, and long before his 
accession was known as a liberal in politics. He 
traveled extensively, visited the United States 
in 1898, and later studied conditions in the Bel- 


Albert Edward Nyanza 

gian Congo at first hand. He recommended 
better treatment for the natives, and on his 
accession announced that the Belgian govern¬ 
ment must administer Congo affairs humanely. 
Albert further proved himself an able and ener¬ 
getic ruler in 1914, on the outbreak of the great 
War of the Nations. He personally took the field 
in command of the Belgian army, resisted every 
step of the German advance, led the defense of 
Antwerp, and shortly before Antwerp’s fall with¬ 
drew the remnant of his forces to join the British 
and the French. Although repeatedly urged to 
yield the active management of the campaign to 
others, he continued to expose himself to all the 
hardships and dangers which were faced by his 
soldiers. King Albert is a second cousin of 
King George V and also of Emperor William II. 

Alberta, a province of Canada, organized in 
1905, bounded on the w. by British Columbia, 
on the n. by the Northwest Territories, on the 
e. by Saskatchewan, and on the s. by Montana. 
Its northern boundary is the 60th parallel 
north latitude and its eastern boundary the 
110th meridian west longitude. The area is 
255,285 sq. mi., about the size of the state of 
Texas, and the population in 1911 was 374,663. 
The province, except a small area in the west 
and southwest, lies wholly within the great 
central plain of North America. The southern 
half is fertile, but almost entirely treeless. 
Two great river systems, the Saskatchewan 
eastward and the Mackenzie northward, drain 
the province. A small section in the extreme 
southern part is drained by the Milk River 
into the Missouri. Bears, wolves, panthers, 
coyotes, moose and antelope, also many smaller 
animals, such as martens, beavers and otters, 
are found in various parts. 

The southern and central sections have ex¬ 
tensive coal deposits and the northern section 
has large pine, spruce and poplar forests. 
Farming and ranching are the principal indus¬ 
tries, coal-mining being third in importance. 
Wheat, oats, barley, sugar beets, apples and 
plums are the leading agricultural products. 
Over 3,500,000 acres are under irrigation in the 
southern part of the province. The value of 
manufactured goods is about $20,000,000 a 
year; the leading branches of manufacturing 
are slaughtering and meat-packing, flour-mill¬ 
ing, and the making of log and lumber products. 
Calgary, Edmonton, the capital, Lethbridge 
and Medicine Hat are the principal cities. 

Albert Ed'ward Nyan'za, a lake on the 
boundary line between the Kongo Free State and 




Albert Lea 


Albuquerque 


Uganda, Africa, which was discovered by Stanley 
in 1876 and named for the Prince of Wales, later 
King Edward VII, in 1889. It is one of the 
sources of the Nile and is connected with Albert 
Nyanza by the Semliki River. 

Albert Lea, Minn., the county-seat of Free¬ 
born co., is situated on the Chicago, Milwaukee 
& St. Paul and other railroads, 108 mi. s. of 
Minneapolis. The industries include the manu¬ 
facture of woolens, flour and foundary products. 
The city is the seat of Albert Lea College, for 
women. Population in 1910, 6192. 

Albert Nyanza, a lake of east central Africa, 
one of the head-waters of the Nile. It is about 
100 miles long and 20 miles wide. It abounds 
with fish and its shores are infested with croco¬ 
diles and hippopotami. This lake receives the 
Victoria Nile from the Victoria Nyanza, and the 
White Nile issues from its northern extremity. 

Albigenses, al'bi jen’seez, so called from the 
district Albigeois, where they first appeared, a 
religious sect which sprang up in the south of 
France during the thirteenth century. The 
Albigenses professing a belief in doctrines at 
variance with the Church of Rome, Pope Inno¬ 
cent III preached a crusade against them. They 
persisted, however, in their heresy, slew the papal 
legate, Pierre de Castelnau, and war began in 
1209. After many thousands had perished on 
both sides, a peace was concluded in 1229. 
Toulouse lapsed to the crown of France, and thus 
that country acquired the Mediterranean coast. 

Albi'nos, a name given to human beings or 
an^ other animals from whose skin, hair and 
eyes the dark coloring matter is absent. The 
skin of albinos, therefore, no matter to what 
race they belong, is of a uniform pale, milky 
color. Their hair is white, the iris of their eyes 
is pale rose color and the pupils intensely red. 
The absence of the dark pigment allows the 
multitude of blood vessels in these parts of the 
eye to be seen. Albinism is often noticed in 
the flowers of plants. 

Albion, Mich., a city in Calhoun co., 20 mi. 
w. of Jackson, on the Michigan Central and the 
Lake Shore & Michigan Southern railroads. It is 
the seat of Albion College. Its principal manu¬ 
factures are plows, carriages, harness, flour, 
windmills and agricultural implements. The 
city was first settled in 1830. Population in 
1910, 5833. 

Albion, N. Y., a banking post village, capital 
of New Orleans co., 30 mi. w. of Rochester. It 
is situated on the Erie Canal and on the New 
York Central and Hudson River railway. The 


manufactures are chiefly of iron and there are 
extensive stone quarries here. Population in 
1910, 5016. 

Albo'ni, Marietta (1823-1894), one of the 
greatest of modern contraltos, bom at Cesena, 
Italy. She made her first visit to the United 
States in 1852, singing in both opera and recital. 
Her voice had a compass of two and a half 
octaves, and possessed remarkable power, sweet¬ 
ness and flexibility. 

Albu'men or Albumin, a substance, or rather, 
group of substances, so named from the Latin 
term for the white of an egg, which is one of its 
most abundant known forms. It may be taken 
as the type of the protein compounds or the 
nitrogenous class of food stuffs. It is a com¬ 
pound of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and oxygen, 
with a little sulphur. It abounds in the serum 
of the blood and the vitreous and crystalline 
humors of the eye. Another variety of albumen 
exists in most vegetable juices and many seeds, 
and has nearly the same composition and proper¬ 
ties as egg albumen. When albumen coagulates 
in any fluid it readily encloses any substances 
that may be suspended in the fluid. Hence it 
is used to clarify syrupy liquors. In cookery 
white of eggs is employed for clarifying, but in 
large operations like sugar-refining the serum of 
blood is used. From its being coagulable by 
various salts, and especially by corrosive sub¬ 
limate, with which it forms an insoluble com¬ 
pound, white of egg is a convenient antidote in 
cases of poisoning by that substance. With 
lime it forms a cement to mend broken ware. 

In botany the name albumen is given to the 
food supply which surrounds the embryo in the 
seed, the term in this case having no reference 
to chemical composition. Albumen constitutes 
the meat of the cocoanut, the flour or meal of 
cereals, the horny part of the coffee bean and the 
bony-like substance in vegetable ivory. 

Albuquerque, ahl'boo ker'ka, N. M., the 
county-seat of Bernalillo co., 73 mi. s. w. of 
Santa Fe, on the Rio Grande River and on the 
Atchison, Topeka & Santa F6 and the Atlantic 
& Pacific railroads. The town lies on an 
elevation of 5,000 feet above the sea and is in 
a rich gold, silver, iron and coal mining region. 
It has railroad and machine shops, manufac¬ 
tures of iron and brick and a large trade in 
grain, hides and wool. The University of 
New Mexico, a government school for Indians 
and several academies are located here. The 
place was founded by the Spaniards in 1706 
and named in honor of Albuquerque, then 


Alburnum 


Alcohol 


viceroy of New Mexico. The new part of the 
town, however, may be said to date from 1880. 
Population in 1910, 11,020. 

Aibur'num, the soft white substance which is 
found in trees between the inner bark and the 
wood, and, in progress of time acquiring solidity, 
becomes itself the wood. Alburnum is another 
name for sapwood. 

Alcaeus, cd see'us, one of the first Grecian 
lyric poets, born at Mitylene, in Lesbos. He 
flourished there at the close of the seventh and 
beginning of the sixth centuries b. c. Of his life 
little is known. A strong, manly enthusiasm for 
freedom and justice pervades his lyrics, of which 
only a few fragments are left. 

Alcam'enes, a famous Athenian sculptor, 
said by some to have been the pupil of Phidias, 
and by others to have been his rival. His 
latest work is dated in 403 b. c., but his most 
famous works were done earlier. One of his 
best sculptures is Aphrodite in the Garden, at 
Athens. 

Alcestis, alses'tis, in Greek mythology, the 
wife of Admetus, king of Thessaly. In accord¬ 
ance with an oracle, her husband was to die 
unless some one could be found who would meet 
death in his place. His aged father and mother 
were asked to sacrifice themselves for him, but 
they refused, and Alcestis finally took upon 
herself the task of saving him. As he recov¬ 
ered, Alcestis died, but she was brought back 
from the gate of the tomb by Hercules, or, 
according to another legend, was sent back by 
Proserpina after her arrival in the lower world. 

Alchemy or Alchymy, al'kemy, the art 
which in former times occupied the place of, 
and paved the way for, the modern science of 
chemistry, as astrology did for astronomy. Its 
aims were not scientific, being confined solely 
to the discovery of the means of prolonging 
human life and of changing the baser metals 
into gold and silver. Among the alchemists it 
was generally thought necessary to find a sub¬ 
stance w’hich would possess the power of dis¬ 
solving all substances into their elements. 
This general solvent, which at the same time 
was to possess the power of removing the cause 
of disease from the human body and renewing 
life, was called the philosopher’s stone, and its 
pretended possessors were known as adepts. 
It is thought that alchemy originated in Egypt. 
From Egypt the art was carried to Arabia, 
where in the eighth century a school of alchemy 
published the first known work on chemistry 
proper. From Arabia alchemy found its way 


into Europe, where the earliest genuine works 
on the subject are those of Roger Bacon and 
Albertus Magnus, written in the thirteenth 
century. Thomas Aquinas and Raymond Lully 
are also great names in alchemy. But more 
famous than all the others was Paracelsus, a 
Swiss physician, whose work was very important 
towards developing the manufacture of drugs. 
He was followed by Lavoisier, Priestley and 
Scheele, who, by the use of balances, tested the 
results of alchemy and laid down the principal 
ideas of modem chemistry. 

Alcibiades, al si bi'a deez, (about 450-404 
b. c.), an Athenian general and politician, the 
nephew of Pericles. In youth he was remark¬ 
able for his dissolute life. He came under the 
influence of Socrates, but even Socrates was 
unable to turn him from his vicious habits. 
After the death of Cleon he attained a political 
ascendency which left him no rival but Nicias. 
He played an important part in the Pelopon¬ 
nesian War, in 415 advocated the expedition 
against Sicily and was chosen one of the leaders; 
but before the expedition sailed he was accused 
of mutilating the statues of Hermes, on one 
of his midnight carouses. Rather than stand 
his trial he went over to Sparta, divulged 
the plans of the Athenians and assisted the 
Spartans to defeat them. Learning of a plot 
against his life formed by the jealous Spartan 
generals, he left Sparta and took refuge with the 
Persian satrap Tissaphemes. He began to 
intrigue for his return to Athens, offering to 
br ing Tissaphernes over to the Athenian alliance, 
and finally his banishment was canceled. He 
remained abroad, however, in command of the 
Athenian forces, and took Chalcedon and 
Byzantium. In 407 he returned to Athens, 
but in 406 he was deprived of his command. 
He again sought refuge in Phrygia, and there 
he was assassinated. 

Al'cohol or Ethyl Alcohol (sometimes 
called spirits of wine), a chemical compound 
appearing as a limpid, colorless liquid, with an 
agreeable smell and a strong, pungent taste. 
Alcohol has been known from great antiquity 
and is still used in large quantities in the arts 
and sciences; it forms the vital principle 
in all the spirituous liquors consumed in the 
world. It is the alcohol in them that makes 
wine, whisky, brandy and other liquors intoxi¬ 
cating, and the strength of the liquor varies 
with the quantity of alcohol it contains. When 
brandy, whisky and other spirituous liquors, 
themselves distilled from cruder materials, are 



Alcoran 


Alcuin 


again distilled, highly volatile alcohol is the 
first product to pass off. Charcoal and carbon¬ 
ate of soda, put in the brandy or other liquor 
before distillation, partly retain the fusel-oil 
and acetic acid it contains. The product thus 
obtained by distillation is called rectified spirits 
or spirits of wine , and contains from 60 to 95 
per cent of alcohol, the rest being water. By 
distilling rectified spirits over carbonate of 
potassium, powdered quicklime or chloride of 
calcium, the greater part of the water is retained 
and nearly pure alcohol passes over. The last 
traces of water can be removed only by a long 
and varied process involving another distillation. 
The specific gravity of alcohol varies with its 
purity, decreasing as the quantity of water it 
contains decreases. By simple distillation the 
specific gravity of alcohol can scarcely be 
reduced below .825 at 60° F.; by rectification 
oyer chloride of calcium it may be reduced to 
.794; in its ordinary form it is about .820. Alco¬ 
hol is composed of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, 
in the proportions of 2 to 6 to 1, respectively. 
Under a barometric pressure of 29.5 inches it 
boils at 173° F.; in the exhausted receiver of 
an air pump it boils at ordinary temperatures. 
Its very low freezing-point renders it valuable 
for use in thermometers for very low tempera¬ 
tures. Alcohol is extremely inflammable, and 
bums with a pale-blue flame, scarcely visible 
in bright daylight. 

Denatured Alcohol. When alcohol is 
rendered unfit for drinking and some other 
special purposes, by mixing other substances with 
it it is said to be denatured. The Germans 
have taken the lead in the production of dena¬ 
tured alcohol. Their process consists in mixing 
with pure alcohol wood spirit, small quantities 
of benzol pyridin and oil of lavender or rosemary. 
For some purposes alcohol is only partially 
denatured, that is, it is rendered unfit for 
drinking, but otherwise may be used for all 
purposes for which pure alcohol is used. The 
United States government removed the tax on 
denatured alcohol in 1907, thus making it 
inexpensive. It is used for heat, light, power 
and a number of manufacturing purposes. See 
Wood Spirit. 

Al'coran. See Koran. 

Alcott, awl'kid, Amos Bronson (1799- 
1888), an American writer, born in Wolcott, 
Conn. He organized a school in Boston on a 
novel plan, but it did not succeed. He then 
went to Concord, Mass., where he became one 
of the leaders in the Transcendental school 


of philosophy (See Transcendentalism; 
Brook Farm). Mr. Alcott was widely known 
as a lecturer and writer on speculative and 
practical themes. Among his publications are 
Tablets, Concord Days, Table Talk and Sonnets 
and Canzonets. See halftone, Concord. 

Alcott, Louisa May (1832-1888), an Ameri¬ 
can author, born in Germantown, Pa., the 
daughter of Amos Bronson Alcott. For a 
number of years she wrote for periodicals, 



while she was occupied as a school-teacher. In 
1862 she served as a volunteer nurse in military 
hospitals, and the letters which she wrote for 
a newspaper during that time were later col¬ 
lected as Hospital Sketches. In 1866 Miss 
Alcott visited Europe and on her return wrote 
Little Women, a book that at once established 
her popularity. Some of her other publications 
have been almost equally popular, although 
none of them has quite the charm of her first 
work. Among these other books are Little 
Men, Jo’s Boys, An Old-Fashioned Girl, Eight 
Cousins and Rose in Bloom. 

Alcuin, aTkwin, (about 735-804), a learned 
Englishman, the confidant, instructor and 
adviser of Charles the Great. Charlemagne 
became acquainted with him at Parma, invited 
him to court and established a school called 
the Palace School, which was placed in the 
charge of Alcuin. Most of the schools in France 
were either founded or improved by Alcuin. 
He left the court in 796 and retired to the abbey 
of Saint Martin of Tours, but kept up a con- 


Alden 


Alderney 


stant correspondence with Charles to his death. 
He left works on theology, philosophy and 
rhetoric, and poems and letters, all of which 
have been published. 

Alden, awl'den, Henry Mills (1836- ), 

an American author and editor, born in Ver¬ 
mont. He studied at Williams College and at 
Andover Theological Seminary, but never 
entered the ministry. He married and settled 
in New York in 1861. His classical scholar¬ 
ship, as shown in his first essays and lectures, 
was excellent; he became managing editor 
of Harper’s Weekly in 1863, and after 1869, as 
editor of Harper’s Magazine, devoted himself 
to American literary culture. He was a col¬ 
laborator in Harper’s Pictorial History of the 
Great Rebellion, has written some verse and 
several admirable metaphysical essays, including 
A Study of Death. 

Alden, Isabella McDonald (1841- ), 

an American author, was born in Rochester, 
N. Y. She was editor of several religious 
papers, including the Christian Endeavor World, 
and wrote some serious books for adults, among 
which is a life of Christ; but she became best 
known through her stories for young people, 
of which she wrote more than sixty, under the 
pen name of Pansy. 

Alden, John (1599-1687), one of the Pilgrim 
Fathers. The romantic incident of his court¬ 
ship of Priscilla as the emissary of Miles Stan- 
dish is preserved in Longfellows’ The Courtship 
of Miles Standish. See Mullens, Priscilla. 

Alden, William Livingston (1837-1908), 
an American journalist, bom in Massachusetts. 
He graduated at Jefferson College, practiced 
law and then began to write for several papers. 
He first won attention by his humor in the New 
York Times, oi which he became the London 
correspondent in 1893. The sport of canoeing 
was introduced into this country by him. He 
was United States consul-general at Rome from 
1885 to 1889 and was honored by King Hum¬ 
bert. Among his books are The Moral Pirates, 
Life of Christopher Columbus and A New Rob¬ 
inson Crusoe. 

Alder, awl’der, a genus of plants, of the 
birch order, consisting of trees and shrubs 
growing in the temperate and colder regions of 
the globe. Common alder is a tree which 
grow’s in wet places in the United States, Europe 
and Asia. Its wood, light and soft and of a 
reddish color, is used for a variety of purposes 
and is well adapted for such things as are 
kept constantly in water. The roots and knots 


furnish a beautifully-veined wood, well suited 
for cabinet work. The charcoal made from the 
alder wood is used in manufacturing powder. 
The bark is used in tanning and leather dress¬ 
ing; by fishermen for staining their nets and in 
dyeing different shades of yellow and red. 
With the addition of copperas, the dye becomes 
black. 

Alderman, awl’dur man, Edwin Anderson 
(1861- ), an American educator, born at 

Wilmington, N. C. He graduated at the state 
university and entered the teaching profession, 



EDWIN ANDERSON ALDERMAN 


becoming, successively, superintendent of city 
schools at Goldsboro, assistant state superin¬ 
tendent of instruction in North Carolina, pro¬ 
fessor in the state normal college, professor of 
pedagogy in the University of North Carolina, 
and, finally, president of that institution. In 
1904 he was elected president of the University 
of Virginia. He is well known as an author 
and lecturer upon educational and historical 
topics. 

Alderney, awl’dur ny, a small island belong¬ 
ing to Great Britain, off the coast of Normandy 
and 60 mi. from the nearest point of England; 
the most northerly of the Channel Islands. 
About one-third of the island is occupied by 
grass lands, and the Alderney cows, a small¬ 
sized but handsome breed, are famous for the 
richness of their milk. The climate is mild and 
healthy. Population, about 2000. 



Aldershot 


Alexander 


Aldershot, awl'dur shot, a town and military 
station in northeast Hampshire, England. The 
great military camp there was originated in 
1854 by the purchase by the government of a tract 
of moorland known as Aldershot Heath, within 
the limits of Surrey, Hampshire and Berkshire. 
Population in 1911, about 35,000. 

Al'dine Editions, the name given to the works 
which came from the press of Aldus Manutius 
and his family at Venice (1490-1597). They 
gained the respect of scholars and the attention 
of book-collectors by their scholarliness and their 
excellent typography. Many of them were the 
first printed editions of Greek and Latin classics, 
while others were texts of Italian authors. 

Aldrich, awl'drich, Nelson Wilmarth 
(1841-1915), an American politician, born in 
Rhode Island. He was a member of the assem¬ 
bly in 1875 and was elected to Congress in 1878 
and again in 1880. In 1881 he resigned to enter 
the United States Senate as a Republican to 
succeed General Burnside, and served continu¬ 
ously until 1911, when he refused reelection in 
order to devote all his time to the work of the 
National Monetary Commission. 

Aldrich, Thomas Bailey (1836-1907), an 
American editor, story-writer and poet. He 
was for a short time in a New York banking 
house, but he found his work uncongenial and 
turned his attention to literature. His first work 
was done on the staffs of various New York 
periodicals. From 1881 to 1890 he was editor 
of the Atlantic Monthly. Among Aldrich’s best 
known works are the poems The Ballad of Babie 
Bell, Cloth of Gold, Flower and Thom and 
Unguarded Gates; while among his prose works 
perhaps the best known are The Queen of Sheba, 
The Story of a Bad Boy, Marjorie Daw and 
Prudence Palfrey. His prose, like his verse, is 
light and graceful, but is not distinguished by 
great depth or power. 

Ale, a liquor in which the process of fermen¬ 
tation has been stopped before all the sugar is 
changed to other compounds. This sugar is 
changed by later fermentation in the barrel into 
alcohol and carbonic acid, and this change makes 
ale stronger than beer. The strength of ale 
depends upon the time given it in which to cure; 
for mild ale, this is one week; for pale ale, from 
two to four months, and for strong ale, from ten 
to fifteen months. See Brewing. 

Alembert, a lahN bare', Jean de Rond d’. 
See D’Alembert, Jean de Rond. 

Alencon, a len'sone, or (Fr.) a lahN soN', 
a town of France, capital of department Ome 


on the right bank of the Sarthe, 105 mi. w. of 
Paris. It was long famed for the manufacture 
of point-lace, called point d’Alen^n. Fine 
rock-crystal, yielding the so-called Alencon dia¬ 
monds, is found in the neighboring granite 
quarries. Population in 1911, 17,000. 

Alep'po, a city of Asiatic Turkey in north 
Syria, the capital of the province of the same 
name, 70 mi. e. of the Mediterranean. In 1170 
the city was captured by the Crusaders, and in 
1516 it came finder the power of the Turks. 
Aleppo has suffered severely from earthquakes 
and plagues, but it is now a very prosperous city 
and has an extensive commerce by caravan with 
Bagdad and other eastern places. Its most 
important manufactures are costly silks, flowered 
and woven with gold and silver threads. Popu¬ 
lation, estimated 150,000. 

Aleutian, alu'shan, Islands, a group of 
islands formed by the extension of the peninsula 
of Alaska, and separating Bering Sea from the 
Pacific Ocean. There are about 150 islands in 
the group, and they were formerly known as the 
Catherine Archipelago. The chain is in the 
shape of an arch. Most of the islands are small 
and all have rugged or mountainous surfaces. 
Hot springs are common, but some of the larger 
islands contain cool springs and rapid streams. 
Those containing soil are covered with growths 
of shrubbery, grass, moss and lichens, but there 
are no large trees. Until recently it was sup¬ 
posed that these islands were unsuited to any 
form of agriculture, but the largest have been 
found well adapted to the raising of live stock, 
and since 1900 several ranches owned by resi¬ 
dents of the United States have been established 
upon them. The natives are known as Aleuts, 
and are a branch of the Eskimo stock. See 
Alaska. 

Alexan'der, the name of eight popes, the 
earliest of whom, Alexander I, is said to have 
reigned from 109 to 119. The most famous 
is Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia, 1431-1503), 
born at Valencia, in Spain. He was in his 
early youth a handsome and gallant courtier, 
practiced alike in all the vices and graces of 
his time, but he soon developed remarkable 
executive ability and at the age of twenty-five 
was appointed a cardinal by his uncle, Pope 
Calixtus III. At the death of Innocent VIII 
he became pope. He set himself the task of 
reducing the power of the Italian princes and 
increasing the papal revenues. Endowed with 
sagacity and fearlessness, he accomplished all 
he undertook. Among the events of his reign 


Alexander 


Alexander 


are the introduction of the Index Expurgatorius 
(index of prohibited books), the partition of the 
New World between Portugal and Spain, and 
the death of Savonarola. Alexander VIII, 
the last pope of the name, ruled from 1689 to 1691. 
He was a Venetian and assisted the Venetians in 
a war against the Turks. 

Alexander, the name of three Scottish kings. 
Alexander I (about 1078-1124), a son of 
Malcolm Canmore and Margaret of England, 
was a great benefactor of the church and a firfn 
vindicator of the national independence. Alex¬ 
ander II (1198-1249) succeeded his father, 
William the Lion, in 1214. He gave aid to the 
English barons in their struggle with King John 
for the securing of the Magna Charta. Alex¬ 
ander III (1241-1285) succeeded his father, 
Alexander II, in 1249. He brought the Hebrides 
and the Isle of Man under his sway by the defeat 
of the Norse king Hakon, in 1263. Alexander 
was strenuous in asserting the independence both 
of the Scottish kingdom and the Scottish church 
against England. Under him Scotland enjoyed 
greater prosperity than for generations afterward. 

Alexander the Great, (356-323 b. c.). king 
of Macedon, the greatest character in history 
before the Christian era. In early youth Alex¬ 
ander gave evidence of invincible courage, 
wonderful strength and endurance and bound¬ 
less ambition. At the age of thirteen he became 
a pupil of Aristotle. During the lifetime of his 
father, Philip of Macedon, he shared in the wars 
for the supremacy of Macedon over the neighbor¬ 
ing states of Greece, and on the assassination of 
his father he came to the throne, at the age of 
twenty. He put to death several of the mur¬ 
derers of his father and the latter’s second wife 
and infant son. The conditions under which 
his reign began were far from favorable. His 
youth and inexperience led the Greek states to 
think that a revolution would be an easy thing, 
and the first two years of his reign were chiefly 
occupied in subduing the revolting cities of Greece 
and hostile tribes beyond the northern frontier 
of Macedonia. While he was absent in Thrace 
it was reported that he had been slain, and a 
considerable revolt was begun anew in Greece, 
with Athens and Thebes as its center. Alex¬ 
ander appeared before the latter city; the allies 
of Thebes, including Athens, deserted her, and 
the city was taken by storm and totally destroyed, 
the house of the poet Pindar alone being spared. 
The remaining states of Greece were pardoned. 

In the spring of 334 Alexander set out for the 
conquest of the Persian Empire. With an army 


of thirty-five thousand he crossed the Hellespont, 
and at the Granicus he totally defeated a Persian 
force, thereby opening the gate to all Asia Minor. 
The next year, on the plain of Issus, the invading 
force met a great Persian army of 600,000 under 
the command of Darius III, and the Persians 
were again routed. Alexander next turned his 
attention to Phoenicia and Syria, and soon the 
whole of these provinces submitted to him, ex¬ 
cepting the famous city of Tyre, which was only 
taken after a siege of seven months. Its popu¬ 
lation of thirty thousand was sold into slavery. 
The ancient city of Gaza resisted Alexander for 



ALEXANDER THE GREAT 

From a bust in the Royal Museum, Berlin 

two months, and then its citizens met the same 
fate as those of Tyre. Egypt alone remained of 
the Persian provinces on the Mediterranean, and 
Egypt welcomed Alexander as a deliverer from 
Persian tyranny. At one of the mouths of the 
Nile the conqueror foimded the city of Alexan¬ 
dria, which became an important factor in the 
commerce of the Mediterranean. He next pro¬ 
ceeded to the famous temple of Jupiter Ammon, 
in the Libyan desert, and there he had himself 
declared a son of Jupiter. He then turned his 
army eastward, to complete his overthrow of the 
Persian Empire. At Arbela he met the army of 
the Persians, numbering more than a million, 
and fought one of the decisive battles of the 
world, in which he was again successful. He 
entered Babylon and Susa, which threw open 
their gates to him, and in the latter city seized 
for his own use the rich royal treasure of silver 
and gold which the Persian kings had been ac¬ 
cumulating through the centuries. 





Alexander 


Alexander 


Alexander was now regarded by himself and 
by the Persians as the successor of Darius, who 
had been slain in the battle at Arbela. The 
victorious army was next led northward for the 
subjugation of various tribes about the Caspian 
Sea, and thence across the Hindu Kush into 
Bactria and Sogdiana. In 327 Alexander led 
his army to India, where all the native princes 
submitted except Porus, a powerful king north 
of the Indus, who was defeated. Alexander 
rediscovered the sea-route from the Indus to the 
Euphrates via the Indian Ocean, an achievement 
of great importance for the commerce of India. 
He made Babylon the capital of his vast empire. 
By means of colonies and intermarriage the 
peoples of Europe and Asia were to be fused 
into a single great nation, having common laws, 
language and ruler. He himself married a 
daughter of King Darius, and thousands of his 
soldiers took Asiatic wives. In the midst of his 
vast projects Alexander was seized by a fever 
and died at Babylon. Of the generals among 
whom his vast domain was divided, the most 
famous was Ptolemy, who founded in Egypt the 
line of rulers of that name. 

Alexander’s title to greatness lies in his mili¬ 
tary achievements. His insatiate vanity and 
unchecked excesses are a serious blemish. His 
uncontrolled passion led him to commit deeds, 
such as the murder of his dearest friend, Clitus, 
which he bitterly repented. It is said that he 
never asked his soldiers to do w T hat he would not 
do himself. He was a man of fine tastes and a 
liberal patron of art, philosophy and literature. 
The effects of his conquests were the ending of 
the struggle between Greece and Persia and the 
spreading of Hellenic civilization over Egypt 
and western Asia. The story of Alexander’s 
life and conquests is told in many ancient 
annals and in the romances and legends of many 
nations. 

Alexander I (1777-1825), emperor of Russia, 
son of Paul I. On the assassination of his 
father in 1801, Alexander ascended the throne 
and concluded peace with Great Britain, against 
which his predecessor had declared war. The 
Russian emperor identified himself with the 
Napoleonic schemes and obtained possession 
of Finland and territory on the Danube. The 
French alliance was too oppressive, and Alex¬ 
ander’s withdrawal from it led to the French 
invasion of 1812. In 1813 he published a mani¬ 
festo which served as the basis of the coalition 
of the European powers against France. After 
Waterloo, Alexander, accompanied by the 


emperor of Austria and the king of Prussia, made 
an entrance into Paris, where they concluded the 
treaty forming what is known as the Holy 
Alliance (See Holy Alliance). In the early 
part of his reign Alexander showed liberal 
tendencies and instituted various reforms; but 
after the formation of the Holy Alliance he was 
largely influenced in his policy by the reactionary 
doctrines of Mettemich. 

Alexander II (1818-1881), emperor of Rus¬ 
sia, who succeeded his father, Nicholas I, in 1855, 
before the end of the Crimean War. After peace 
was concluded the new emperor set about effect¬ 
ing the emancipation of the serfs in 1861, a 
measure which gave freedom, on certain condi¬ 
tions, to over twenty-two million human beings. 
Under him, too, representative assemblies were 
introduced, and he did much to improve edu¬ 
cation and to reorganize the judicial system. 
The latter part of his reign witnessed a return 
to the despotism usually characteristic of the 
czars, and the result was an ever increasing 
number of Nihilist risings. Alexander was 
killed by an explosive missile flung at him by a 
Nihilist in a street in Saint Petersburg, March 13, 
1881. During his reign occurred the Russo- 
Turkish War, the result of the ambitious Russian 
designs on Turkish territory. 

Alexander III, Alexandrovitch (1845- 
1894), emperor of Russia, succeeded his father 
Alexander II, in 1883. His intention was to 
pursue a more liberal course than his father had 
done and he had in fact before his accession 
come into conflict with his father through his 
opposition to reactionary methods. However, 
the excesses of the Nihilists finally forced him 
to make his reign as despotic and conservative 
as was that of his father. Nihilism was sternly 
repressed, but despite this fact several attempts 
were made on his life. With regard to foreign 
affairs his policy was one of peace, but he fol¬ 
lowed the old Russian policy of interfering in 
the Balkan States. He was succeeded on his 
death in 1894 by his eldest son, Nicholas. 

Alexander, William (1726-1783), an Ameri¬ 
can soldier, called Lord Stirling, bom in New 
York City. He served in the French and Indian 
War, and at its close went to England, where he 
presented his claim to the earldom of Stirling 
before the British House of Lords, but without 
success. On the outbreak of the Revolution he 
joined the colonial army, and at the Battle of 
Long Island he was taken prisoner. Within the 
year he was exchanged, and in 1777 he was made 
a major general. Alexander was one of the 


Alexander Nevski 


Alexandria 


founders of King’s College (now Columbia), 
and became its first president. 

Alexander Nevski (1222-1263), a Russian 
hero and saint. He fought against the Mongols, 
the Danes and the knights of the Teutonic 
order, and in 1240 gained a splendid victory on 
the Neva over the Swedes. His countrymen 
commemorated him in popular songs and raised 
him to the dignity of a saint; Peter the 
Great built a splendid monastery at Saint 
Petersburg in his honor and established an 
order which bears his name. 

Alexander Severus (205-235), a Roman 
emperor. He was raised to the imperial dig¬ 
nity in 222 by the praetorian guards, and gov¬ 
erned ably both in peace and war, although he 
was not a man of great strength of character. 
When on an expedition into Gaul to repress 
an incursion of the Germans, he was murdered 
with his mother in an insurrection of his troops, 
headed by the brutal Maximin, who succeeded 
him as emperor. 

Alexan'dra (1844- ), queen-mother of 

England, and daughter of Christian IX of 
Denmark, was born at Copenhagen. On March 
10, 1863, she was married to Albert Edward, 
Prince of Wales, who later reigned as King Edward 
VII. Her first public act was the opening of the 
Cambridge School of Art, in 1865, and she was 
present at the opening of Parliament in 1866. 
After the death of the Prince Consort, in 1861, 
Queen Victoria practically* withdrew from 
society, and this made the Princess of Wales 
the first lady of the country in social matters, 
a position which she sustained to the satisfac¬ 
tion of all. At the coronation of Edward VII, 
August 9, 1902, Alexandra was crowned queen. 
She is noted for her domestic virtues and uni¬ 
versal kindness. 

Alexandria, an ancient city and seaport in 
Egypt, at the northwest angle of the Nile delta, 
on a ridge of land between the sea and Lake 
Mareotis. Ancient Alexandria was founded by, 
and named in honor of, Alexander the Great, 
in 332 B. c., and was long a great and splendid 
city, the center of commerce between the East 
and West, as well as of Greek learning and 
civilization, with a population at one time of 
perhaps 1,000,000. It was especially celebrated 
for its great library and also for its famous 
lighthouse, one of the wonders of the world 
(See Lighthouse). Under Roman rule it was 
the second city of the Empire, and when Con¬ 
stantinople became the capital of the East it 
still remained the chief center of trade; but it 


received a blow from which it never recovered 
when captured by Amru, general of Caliph 
Omar, in 641, after a siege of fourteen months. 
Its ruin was finally completed by the discovery 
of the passage to India by the Cape of Good 
Hope, which opened up a new route for the 
Asiatic trade (See Alexandrian Library; 
Alexandrian School; Pharos). 

Modern Alexandria is built on a peninsula 
which was formerly the island of Pharos. It 



ALEXANDRA, QUEEN-MOTHER OF ENGLAND 


is divided into two parts, one of which is inhab¬ 
ited by Mohammedans and the other by Euro¬ 
peans. The latter portion is the better built, 
and it is here that the finest houses are situated, 
and also the principal shops and hotels, banks 
and offices of companies. This part of the city 
is supplied with gas, and with water brought 
by the Mahmudieh Canal from the western 
branch of the Nile. Alexandria is connected 
by railway with Cairo, Rosetta and Suez. A 
little to the south of the city are the catacombs, 
which now serve as a quarry; other relics of 
antiquity are Pompey’s Pillar, 98 feet 9 inches 


1 





Alexandria 


Alexius 


high, and a palace built by Mohammed Ali. 
Alexandria has two ports, with fine docks and 
other accommodations. It is one of the chief 
commercial ports on the Mediterranean and 
the great emporium of Egypt. The trade of 
Alexandria is large and varied, the exports being 
cotton, beans, peas, rice, wheat; the imports, 
chiefly manufactured goods. At the beginning 
of the nineteenth century Alexandria was an 
insignificant place of 5000 or 6000 inhabitants. 
The origin of its more recent career of prosperity 
it owes to Mohammed Ali. In 1882 the insur¬ 
rection of Arabi Pasha and the massacre of 
Europeans led to the intervention of the British 
and the bombardment of the forts by the British 
fleet, in July. When the British entered the 
city they found the finest parts of it sacked and 
in flames, but the damage was repaired. Popu¬ 
lation in 1907, 332,246. 

Alexandria, Ind., a city in Madison co., 48 
mi. n. e. of Indianapolis, on the Big Four and 
the Lake Erie & Western railroads. It has 
paper mills, iron and steel works, and extensive 
glass factories. Alexandria owns and operates 
its waterworks. The place was settled in 1834. 
Population in 1910, 5096. 

Alexandria, La., the parish-town of Rapides 
parish, 100 mi. n. w. of Baton Rouge, on the 
Red River and on the Southern Pacific, the 
Texas Pacific and other railroads. The city has 
important commercial and manufacturing inter¬ 
ests, including cotton and its products, molasses, 
sugar and hides. A convent of the Sisters of 
Mercy is located here, and a large national 
cemetery lies across the river. Before the Civil 
War the state university was located just above 
the city. Alexandria was settled in 1820 and 
incorporated twenty years later. It now owns 
and operates the waterworks and electric light¬ 
ing plant. Population in 1910, 11,213. 

Alexandria, Va., the county-seat of Alex¬ 
andria co., on the Southern, the Pennsylvania, 
the Baltimore & Ohio and other railroads, 
and on the Potomac River, 100 mi. from its 
mouth and six miles below Washington. The 
harbor is here a mile wide and sea-going ves¬ 
sels come up to the city. There is a large and 
increasing trade and the manufactures include 
shoes, flour, machinery, fertilizers, glass, chem¬ 
icals and brick. A Protestant Episcopal theo¬ 
logical seminary and several high schools and 
academies are located here. In 1755 General 
Braddock made his headquarters in the city. 
The inhabitants became frightened by the 
approach of the British fleet in 1814, and raised 


a large contribution to secure freedom from 
attack. During the Civil War the city was 
occupied by Federal troops and was the capital 
of that part of Virginia which remained loyal 
to the Union. Population in 1910, 15,329. 

Alexandrian Library, the largest and most 
famous of all the ancient collections of books, 
planned by Ptolemy Soter, king of Egypt, who 
died about 283 B. c. His son Ptolemy Phila- 
delphus and succeeding rulers developed and 
enlarged the library which at its most flour¬ 
ishing period is said to have numbered 700,000 
volumes. Many of the books were purchased 
in Athens, Rome and other countries. The 
main library was located in the temple of Sera- 
pis. Most of the books were burned at K e 
invasion of Alexandria by the Romans under 
Julius Caesar, and the remainder were destroyed 
by the Christians in 391 A. d. 

Alexandrian School or Alexandrine School, 
the school or period of Greek literature 
and learning that existed at Alexandria in 
Egypt during the three hundred years that the 
rule of the Ptolemies lasted (323-30 B. c.), and 
continued under the Roman supremacy. Ptol¬ 
emy Soter founded the famous library of Alex¬ 
andria, and his son, Philadelphus, established a 
sort of academy of sciences and arts. Many 
scholars and men of genius were thus attracted 
to Alexandria, and a period of literary activity 
set in, which made Alexandria for a long time 
the focus and center of Greek culture and intel¬ 
lectual effort. Among the grammarians and 
critics were Eratosthenes, Aristophanes and 
Aristarchus. Their chief merit lies in having 
collected, edited and preserved the existing 
monuments of Greek literature. Among those 
who pursued mathematics, physics and astron¬ 
omy were Euclid, the father of scientific geom¬ 
etry; Archimedes, great in physics and mechan¬ 
ics; Apollonius of Perga, w T hose work on conic 
sections still exists, and the astronomer and 
geographer, Ptolemy, whose system of astronomy 
was in general use until the middle of the seven¬ 
teenth century. There were also several poets 
and philosophers of note attached to the school. 
The Alexandrian School is noted for its criticism 
and for reproducing works of Greek authors in 
permanent and finished form. Because of this 
its influence extended through many centuries 
and is even felt in the classic culture of the 
present time. See Alexandrian Library. 

Alex'ius Comne'nus or Alexis Comnenus 
(1048-1118), Byzantine emperor. See Byzan¬ 
tine Empire. 


Alfalfa 


Alfred the Great 


Alfal'fa, a name given to a forage plant, 
one of the most valuable of the clover-like 
plants grown as green food for cattle. It is 
sometimes known as lucerne. Alfalfa is a native 
of Persia, and was early introduced from 
that country into Europe. It is largely culti¬ 
vated in parts of North and South America, and 
is especially adapted to the Southern and West¬ 
ern states. It is the best of all forage crops in 
a drought, for its strong roots penetrate deep 
into the ground. It delights in a rich limy soil, 
and never succeeds on damp soils or sticky 



clays. If the soil is lacking in phosphates and 
potash, these must be added in fertilizers. The 
long roots store plenty of nitrogen. It is a 
perennial, and if kept free from weeds affords 
good crops for six, seven or more years. It is 
sown broadcast or in rows, the latter being con¬ 
sidered the better method. It may be mown 
several times in a year, as it grows very quickly 
after being cut. Usually from two to five tons 
per acre are raised annually, and few other 
forage plants are ready for use so early in spring. 
Spring planting in the South, however, is not 
recommended by the department of agriculture, 
6 


because of the trouble caused by weeds which 
grow more rapidly than alfalfa; planting in 
June, July and August is said to give best results. 
Alfalfa has a rather erect stem; leaves with three 
rounded, toothed leaflets; purplish-blue or some¬ 
times yellow pear-shaped flowers. Its pods are 
twisted two or three times round. 

Alfieri, alfya're, Vittorio, Count (1749- 
1803), an Italian poet. After extensive Euro¬ 
pean travels he began to write, and as his first 
play, Cleopatra, was received with general 
applause, he determined to devote all his efforts 
to attaining a position among writers of dramatic 
poetry. He gave up everything for his work, 
even making over his property to his sister, 
that he might be bound by no ties of home and 
country. He died at Florence and was buried 
in the church of Santa Croce, between Machia- 
velli and Michelangelo, where a beautiful monu¬ 
ment by Canova covers his remains. His 
tragedies and comedies, while stiff and unnatural, 
are full of lofty sentiments. He is considered 
the first tragic writer of Italy and has served 
as a model for his successors. Alfieri composed 
also an epic, lyrics, satires and poetical trans¬ 
lations from the ancient classics. His autobi¬ 
ography is of peculiar interest as a frank, sin¬ 
cere account. 

Alfon'so XIII, (1886- ), king of Spain, 

son of Alfonso XII. Alfonso XII died before 
the birth of his son, and Maria Christina acted 
as regent until her son came of age and formally 
began his reign in 1902. During the regency, 
affairs in Spain were in a most disturbed con¬ 
dition, and in 1898 a war between Spain and 
the United States lost to Spain practically all 
of her colonies. After that time order was 
gradually restored, and the country began to 
recover its prosperity. Alfonso was married in 
May, 1906, to Princess Ena of Battenberg, a 
granddaughter of Queen Victoria of England 
and a first cousin of Emperor William II of 
Germany. 

Al'fred the Great (849-901), king of the 
West Saxons. He was the youngest son of 
Ethelwulf, who reigned from 836 to 858. Alfred 
came to the throne in 871, the intervening thirteen 
years having been occupied by the reigns of his 
three older brothers. At his accession Alfred 
found the country in a desperate state, owing 
to the inroads of the Danes. He made a truce 
with them and induced them to turn their atten¬ 
tion to the other provinces of Britain, but it was 
not long before they renewed hostilities. So 
successful were their attacks that Alfred, in 





Alfred the Great 

despair, fled to the hills and woods for safety. 
It is to this period that the familiar legend of the 
burning cakes belongs. He constantly planned 
and worked toward the driving out of the Danes, 
and after he had been joined by a band of trusty 
followers he made repeated sallies against the 
enemy’s possessions. In May, 878, he prepared 
to attack the Danish army under Guthrum at 
Edingdon. It is said that two or three days 
before the battle he entered the Danish camp 
disguised as a gleeman and gained all the 
information desired respecting their strength 
and position. In the battle that followed, the 
Danes were utterly defeated. Guthrum and his 
followers accepted Christianity and were assigned 
territory north of Wessex. Alfred afterward 
ceded to them the 1 eastern portion of Mercia, 
which became known as the Danelagh. Alfred 
was now the ruler of nearly all England, though 
never recognized by title as such. 

During the period of peace which followed, he 
rebuilt cities and fortresses and improved his 
fleet. Ships were stationed at intervals along 
the coast to guard against invasion and they were 
often useful m repelling the renewed attacks of 
the Danes. It is to this period that Alfred’s 
most important government reforms and literary 
labor belong. He established a regular militia, 
which was able to protect the several parts of the 
kingdom without leaving any district defenseless; 
made a code of laws which served as the basis of 
later codes, and promoted trade and commerce. 
His last years were passed in peace. He was 
succeeded by his son, Edward the Elder. 

Of all the monarchs to whom the title of 
“Great ’ has been given, none deserves it, in 
point of character, as does Alfred. The self¬ 
ish ambition and cruelty which have stained the 
characters of other great rulers are not recorded 
in his life. In the making and administration 
of laws, in his careful oversight of the courts of 
justice, in his promotion of the arts of peace, he 
had the welfare of his subjects ever in view. 
He was blessed with signal good judgment in 
choosing his advisers. Of his military genius, 
the record of obstacles patiently combated and 
victoriously overcome is sufficient witness. He 
was in belief and in practice a devout Christian; 
for many years he suffered uncomplainingly the 
ravages of a dread, mysterious disease. Alfred 
is conspicuous for the patronage he gave to 
letters, and his own learning and industrious 
scholarship are most remarkable. To bring 
knowledge within reach of his subjects he trans¬ 
lated Bede’s Ecclesiastical History of England, 


Algebra 

Gregory’s Pastoral Rule and Boethius’s Con- 
solations of Philosophy, from Latin into Anglo- 
Saxon, adding much of his own composition. It 
was during his reign that the valuable Anglo- 
Saxon Chronicle assumed a systematic form. 
Alfred represents all that is greatest and best in 
the early Christian civilization of the West, and 
was the herald of centuries far removed from him 
in point of time. 

Algae, al'je, an order of plants, found for the 
most part in the sea and fresh water, and com¬ 
prising seaweeds and other common forms. 
The higher species have stems bearing leaf-like 
expansions, and they are often attached to the 
rocks by roots, which, however, do not derive 
nutriment from the rocks. The stem is fre¬ 
quently absent, the plants being nourished 
through their whole surface by the medium in 
which they live. They vary in size from the 
microscopic diatoms to forms whose stems 
resemble those of forest trees, and whose fronds 
rival the leaves of the palm. They are entirely 
composed of cellular tissue, and many are edible 
and nutritious, as carrageen, or Irish moss, dulse, 
etc. Kelp, iodine and bromine are products of 
various species. The Algae are also valuable 
as manure. About twelve thousand species are 
known and these are classified in groups accord¬ 
ing to their color, being recognized as green, brown 
or red. Most green algae are fresh water plants 
(one kind is found on walls, walks and the north 
side of trees); the brown and red algae are usually 
confined to salt water. 

Algebra, al'je brah, a branch of mathematics 
which treats of the relation and properties of 
numbers by means of symbols. It has been 
called generalized arithmetic, since it is con¬ 
cerned with the discovery of the general pro¬ 
cesses and principles which arithmetic applies 
to particular cases. The following examples 
will illustrate the use of algebraic symbols: 
ax + by+cz denotes that a number represented 
by a; is to be multiplied by a number' represented 
by a; a number represented by y is to be mul¬ 
tiplied by a number represented by 6; a number 
represented by z is to be multiplied by a number 
represented by c, and these products are to be 
added together. Known quantities are usually 
represented by numerals or by the first letters of 
the alphabet, as a, b, c; unknown quantities are 
usually represented by the last letters of the 
alphabet, x, y, z. The field of alegbra includes 
the application of all fundamental processes to 
quantities represented by algebraic symbols— 
addition, division, multiplication, subtraction, 


Algebra 


Algeria 


involution, evolution—and besides, in its most 
general sense, involves the study of the solution 
of so-called equations, though this branch of 
algebra has recently become a separate study 
in itself. 

An algebraic equation expresses the value of 
one or more unknown quantities by expressing 
the equality between that value and a known 
quantity. If there is but one unknown quantity 
in the equation the expressed relation or value 
can be determined (that is, the equation can be 
solved) by means of a single equation. If there 
is more than one unknown quantity in the 
equation, in order to solve the equation or deter¬ 
mine the value of the unknown quantities there 
must be as many equations as there are unknown 
quantities, each equation expressing the relation 
between them. By comparing these relations 
the value of the unknown quantities can be 
determined. This comparison is made in 
various ways in conformity to certain axioms and 
principles (See Axiom). The method used to 
determine the unknown quantity is called 
elimination, since in every case the object is to 
create an equation containing but one unknown. 
When one unknown is treated as a known, the 
other is expressed in terms of the first and this 
expression is substituted for the second wherever 
it occurs, the process is called elimination by 
substitution. When one unknown quantity is 
treated as a known in two equations and two 
values for the other unknown are thus found 
which, are placed equal to each other, forming an 
equation with but one unknown quantity, 
the process is known as elimination by comparison. 
When each of the equations is multiplied by such 
a factor that the coefficients of one unknown in 
both equations become numerically equal and 
the equations are then added together or one 
substracted from the other, leaving an equation 
of but one unknown quantity, the process is 
elimination by addition or subtraction. 

The science of algebra practically began with 
the Greeks, the first systematic treatise being 
written by Diophantus about 350 a. d. An 
example of the problems considered by this 
author is, to find two numbers the sum of whose 
squares is a square. Algebra was improved and 
developed at the hands of the Arabs and about 
the thirteenth century was introduced into Italy, 
probably by the Moors who had invaded Spain. 
About the beginning of the sixteenth century a 
German, Stifel or Stifelius, by introducing many 
of the modem symbols, greatly simplified the 
processes of algebra and led to its rapid develop¬ 


ment. Of later mathematicians who have added 
important elements to the science are Vieta, 
Descartes, who extended algebraic methods to 
geometry (See Analytical Geometry), Euler, 
Newton, Liebnitz and Lagrange. 

Algeciras, al je si'ras, a seaport of Spain in 
the province of Cadiz, on the west side of the 
Bay of Gibraltar. It is well built and has a 
strongly protected harbor. It was the first con¬ 
quest of the Arabs in Spain, in 711, and was held 
by them till 1344, when it was taken by Alphonso 
XI of Castile, after a siege of twenty months. 
Near Algeciras, in 1801, the English admiral 
Saumarez defeated the combined French and 
Spanish fleets, after having failed in an attack a 
fe\^ days before. In 1906 at Algeciras was held 
the Moroccan conference, which was called to 
settle whether German or French influence 
should be paramount in Morocco. Population 
in 1910, 15,000. 

Alger, al’jer, Horatio (1834-1899). an 
American author of books for young people. 
His works, which are numerous and very popu¬ 
lar, deal largely with the life of self-supporting 
boys. They include Ragged Dick , Tattered 
Tom and Luck and Pluck. 

Alger, Russell Alexander (1836-1907), an 
American soldier and statesman, born in Ohio. 
At fourteen years of age he began to work as 
a farm laborer at $3 a month. He received a 
fair education, was admitted to the bar in 1859 
and began to practice at Cleveland. Shortly 
after, the Civil War broke out; he enlisted in 
the Second Michigan cavalry and served suc¬ 
cessively as captain, major and lieutenant 
colonel. He resigned from the army in 1864, 
and settled in Detroit, becoming interested in 
the lumber trade. In 1884 he was elected 
governor of the State of Michigan, and in Febru¬ 
ary, 1897. was selected by President McKinley 
as his secretary of war, which position he resigned 
August 1, 1899. His administration was vigor¬ 
ously criticised. He was United States senator 
from 1902 until his death. 

Alge'ria, a French colony in North Africa, 
having an area of about 184,000 sq. mi. The 
country is divided politically into three depart¬ 
ments: Algiers, the center of the European com¬ 
merce and colonization; Oran, next to Morocco, 
and Constantine, next to Tunisia. The Atlas 
Mountains traverse the country in two ranges, 
one of which is parallel to the c^ast and the other 
farther inland. The latter attains an elevation 
of 7,000 feet. The climate varies according to 
elevation and local conditions. There are three 



Algeria 

seasons: winter, from November to February; 
spring, from March to June, and summer, from 
July to November. In general the summer is 
hot and dry, but in many places along the coast 
the temperature is moderate; in winter the 
climate is so pleasing that Algeria is an important 
health resort. 

The chief agricultural products are wheat, 
barley, oats, tobacco, cotton, wine silk and 
dates. Early vegetables are also raised in con¬ 
siderable quantities and exported to France and 
England. Algeria is also the home of the 
esparto grass, extensively used in the manufac¬ 
ture of paper. The forests contain pine, oak, 
ash, cedar myrtle and a number of different 
gum trees. A large quantity of lumber is pro¬ 
duced, and Algeria ranks sixth among the 
lumber-producing countries under European 
jurisdiction. It is also an important wine- 
producing country There are valuable deposits 
of iron, copper, lead, sulphur, zinc, antimony 
and marble. 

In addition to the exports mentioned above, 
wine, olive oil, hides, wood, wool, tobacco, 
oranges and other fruits are exported. The 
imports consist of manufactured goods, coffee, 
furniture, machinery and coal. The manu¬ 
facturing industries are unimportant, but include 
morocco leather, carpets, muslins and silks. 
The French system of weights and measures and 
French money are generally used. The chief 
towns are Algiers, Oran, Constantine, Bona and 
Tlemcen. The highways are in charge, of the 
government and are kept in excellent condition. 
There are also about 1300 miles of railway in 
the country, besides telegraph lines connecting 
ail the principal points. 

The native inhabitants include Arabs and 
Berbers. The Arabs are wanderers, dwelling in 
tents and frequently moving from place to place. 
They have occupied the country since the twelfth 
century. The Berbers are the original inhab¬ 
itants of the territory and form a considerable 
part of the population. They speak the Berber 
language but use Arabic characters in writing. 
The Jews form a small part of the population, 
and there are some over 260,000 colonists of 
French origin and over 200,000 who are natives 
of other European countries, chiefly Spain and 
Italy. The colony is governed by a governor 
general, assisted by a council appointed by the 
French government. 

History. Algeria was known to the Romans 
as Numidia, and under their rule was very 
prosperous. It was conquered by the Vandals 


Algonkian System 

in 430 a. d. and was recovered by the Byzantine 
Empire about a century later. About • the 
middle of the seventh century it was overrun by 
the Saracens. Moors and Jews who were driven 
out of Spain by Ferdinand and Isabella at the 
end of the fifteenth century settled in Algeria, 
but the country was soon made tributary to Spain. 
Later it came under the protection of Turkey, 
and for some centuries was noted for the system 
of piracy practiced by its inhabitants. This was 
suppressed when the country came under French 
rule in 1830. Population in 1911, 5,563,828. 

Algiers, al jeerz ', a city and seaport on the 
Mediterranean, capital of the French colony of 
Algeria, on the Bay of Algiers, partly on the 
slope of a hill facing the sea. The old town, 
which is the higher, is oriental in appearance, 
with narrow, crooked streets, and houses that 
are strong, prison-like edifices. The modern 
French town, which occupies the lower slope 
and spreads along the shore, is handsomely 
built, with broad streets and elegant squares. 
There is a large shipping trade carried on, 
chiefly with France, but also with England, 
Spain and Italy. The climate of Algiers though 
extremely variable, makes it a very desirable 
winter residence for invalids and tourists. 
Population in 1911, 172,397. 

Algo'a Bay, a bay situated on the south coast 
of Cape Colony, 425 mi. n. e. of the Cape of 
Good Hope. It has an excellent harbor and is 
the only place of shelter for vessels during the 
northwest gales. The usual anchorage is off 
Port Elizabeth, on its west coast. Owing to the 
advantages of the harbor, this town has become 
one of the most important commercial points 
of South Africa. 

Al'gol, a remarkable star situated in the 
constellation of Perseus. For more than one 
hundred years it was recognized as 'ariable, 
growing brighter at certain regular intervals, 
then fading away. For a long time this phe¬ 
nomenon puzzled the astronomers exceedingly, 
but it has now been proved that most of the 
conditions may be accounted for by the pres¬ 
ence of a satellite revolving about Algol. Meas¬ 
urements show that Algol is something over 
1,000,000 miles in diameter, and its satellite 
about 830,000 miles. 

Algon'kian System, the name given in the 
United States to a great system of rocks between 
the Archaean below and the Cambrian above. 
All the formations are metamorphic or sedi¬ 
mentary, and are elastic and highly crystalline. 
They comprise granites, marbles, schists, slates. 







THE ALHAMBRA, GRANADA, SPAIN 







Algonquian Indians 

quartzites and conglomerates. The rocks con¬ 
tain but few fossils, and these are indistinct. 
The system is remarkably well developed 
around Lake Superior, where, in addition to the 
classes of rocks named, are found dikes and 
beds of igneous rock, also the great deposits 
of iron and copper which are among the richest 
in the world. See Archaean System; Cam¬ 
brian System; also Geology; Paleozoic Era; 
Rocks. 

Algon'quian Indians, the largest and most 
widely scattered group of tribes in North Amer¬ 
ica. They inhabited the land from Labrador 
southwest to the Carolinas and Tennessee, and 
west to the Rocky Mountains, surrounding the 
Iroquoian and bordering on the Siouan to the 
west and south, and the Athapascan tribes to 
the northwest. Nearly two-thirds of the 90,000 
now living are in Canada. They were fierce 
people, these Algonquians, and wherever they 
met the European colonists long and bloody 
wars followed until the natives were driven 
across the Alleghanies. Throughout the French 
and Indian wars they sided with the French 
and stubbornly fought against the English, but 
in the end, as was the case with more peace¬ 
ful tribes, they found themselves confined to 
scattered reservations west of the Mississippi. 
The Canadian Algonquian were better treated, 
and now live not far from their original homes. 

Corn was a great staple among the Algon¬ 
quian, who cultivated the soil about their per¬ 
manent homes of bark and logs. Among the 
chief tribes of this family are the Narragansett, 
Pequot, Delaware, Ottawa, Ojibwa, Miami, 
Illinois, Kickapoo, Pottawatomi, Arapahoe and 
Cheyenne, and to each of these is given a brief 
article in this work. 

Alham'bra (the Red Castle), the citadel and 
palace of the Moorish kings of Granada, stand¬ 
ing on a hill surrounded by a wall flanked by 
many towers, and having a circuit of two and 
a quarter miles. It was begun about 1248 and 
was captured by Ferdinand and Isabella in 
1492, when the Moors were driven from Spain. 
Charles V and Philip V later mutilated it, and 
though it has suffered much from fire and time 
it still remains the finest example of Moorish 
art in Spain. Artists and architects of later 
times have copied from the palace, and Wash¬ 
ington Irving has written its most interesting 
legends in The Alhambra. 

Ali, ah'le, (about 600-661), cousin and son-in- 
law of Mohammed, the first of his converts and 
the bravest and most faithful of his adherents. 


Alien and Sedition Laws 

It was not until after the murder of Othman, 
the third caliph, that Ali came to power aa 
caliph. His followers were known as Shiites, 
as opposed to Sunnites. 

A'Uas, in law, a term used to denote the 
different names assumed by a person in order 
to conceal his true name. The term can be 
applied only when a person is known to have 
acted under the various names. The same 
name is given to a writ issued after one of the 
same kind has been issued and for the same 
purpose. See Writ. 

Alicante, ah le kahn'te , an important town of 
the province of Alicante in Spain. Its former 
name was Lucentum, and it was an important 
town of the Romans. In 713 it was captured 
by the Moors, and Ferdinand III of Castile 
retook it. It is situated on the Mediterranean 
and possesses a very fine harbor, making it one 
of the finest seaports of Spain. The trade is 
considerable, wine, fruit, oil, silk and grain 
being among the exports. There are three 
churches, two nunneries, a library and a picture 
gallery. Population in 1910, 51,165. 

Alien, ayl'yen, in relation to any country, a 
person bom out of its jurisdiction and not 
having acquired the full rights of its citizenship. 
The position of aliens differs in different coun¬ 
tries, but, generally speaking, they owe a local 
allegiance and are bound equally with natives 
to obey all general rules for the preservation 
of order. In the United States aliens may 
acquire and hold real property without restric¬ 
tion, except in some states. Personal property 
they can take, hold and dispose of, like native 
citizens. Individual states have no jurisdiction 
on the subject of naturalization, though they 
may pass laws admitting aliens to any privilege 
short of citizenship. Five years’ residence in 
the United States and one year’s residence in 
the state where the application is made are 
necessary for the attainment of citizenship in 
the United States. See Naturalization. 

Alien and Sedition Laws, a series of laws 
enacted in 1798 by the United States Congress, 
during the presidency of John Adams. The 
alien law gave the president power to order 
aliens out of the country upon suspicion of 
political activity or for other reasons. The 
sedition law imposed a fine and imprisonment 
on those who conspired to resist government 
measures or who published libelous or scan¬ 
dalous statements concerning Congress or the 
president. The chief occasion of these laws 
was the activity in opposition to the adminis- 



Alimentary Canal 


Alleghany 


tration of those who sympathized with French 
interference in American affairs. The passage 
of the laws aroused such intense opposition 
that the Federalists were soon driven from office 
and never again gained control of the govern¬ 
ment. 

Alimen'tary Canal, a common name given to 
that portion of the digestive apparatus which 
begins at the mouth and includes the pharynx, 
oesophagus, stomach and intestines. Its length 
is about thirty feet in an adult, or five or six 
times the height of the individual. It is lined 
throughout with a mucous membrane which in 
different parts gives off the secretion peculiar 
• to each. Its muscular coat has the power to 
force food along. See Intestines; Stomach. 

Al'imony. See Divorce. 

Aliz'arin, a substance contained in the 
madder root, and used in dyeing reds of various 
shades. Formerly madder root was employed 
as a dye-stuff, but now the use of the root has 
been almost superseded by the employment of 
alizarin itself, prepared artificially from one of 
the constituents of coal-tar. 

Al'kali, a term first used to designate the 
soluble part of the ashes of plants, especially 
seaweed. Now the term is applied to various 
classes of bodies having the following properties 
in common: (1) solubility in water; (2) the 
power of destroying the property of acids, and 
forming salts with them; (3) the property of 
corroding animal and vegetable substances; (4) 
the property of changing the tint of many color¬ 
ing matters—thus, they turn litmus, reddened 
by an acid, into blue; turmeric, brown; and 
syrup of violets or an infusion of red cabbages, 
green. The alkalies are hydrates, or water in 
which half the hydrogen is replaced by a metal 
or substance acting like a metal. In its restricted 
and common sense the term alkali is applied to 
four substances only: hydrate of potassium 
(potash), hydrate of sodium (soda), hydrate of 
lithium (lithia) and hydrate of ammonium (an 
aqueous solution of ammonia). In a more 
general sense it is applied to the hydrates of 
the so-called alkaline earths (baryta, strontia 
and lime) and to a large number of organic 
substances both natural and artificial, described 
under Alkaloid. Volatile alkali is a name for 
ammonia. 

Al'kaloid. a term applied to a class of com¬ 
pounds having some of the properties of bases 
(See Base) and found in living plants usually 
combined with something else. Their names 
generally end in ine, as morphine, quinine, 


caffeine, etc. Most alkaloids occur in plants, 
but some are formed by decay of animal matter; 
and there is also a class of artificial alkaloids 
produced from coal-tar products. Most natural 
alkaloids contain carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen 
and oxygen. Those containing oxygen are 
solids, those without oxygen are liquids. Among 
the alkaloids are the strongest poisons and the 
most powerful remedies known to man. 

Al'kanet. the bark of the root of a plant 
with downy and spear-shaped leaves and clus¬ 
ters of small purple or reddish flowers. The 
plant is sometimes cultivated in Great Britain 
but most of the alkanet of commerce is imported 
from the Levant or from southern France. It 
imparts a fine deep-red color and is used for 
coloring oils, plasters, lip-salve and confections. 

Al'lah, in Arabic, the name of God. a word 
of kindred origin with the Hebrew word 
Elohim. Allah Akbar (God is great) is a 
Mohammedan war-cry 

Allahabad, ahl'lah hah bahd ' (*• City of 

God”) an ancient city of India, capital of the 
Northwest Provinces. Allahabad is one of the 
chiet resorts of Hindu pilgrims, who come to 
have their sins washed away by bathing in the 
waters of the sacred rivers Ganges and Jumna 
at their junction. It is also the scene of a great 
fair in December and January. The town is 
poorly built, but contains some remarkable 
buildings, of which the best examples are the 
great mosque, or Jumma Musjid, the palace of 
the sultan and the great citadel of Akbar. 
This citadel is the center of the fort of Alla¬ 
habad, one of the chief strongholds of British 
India. The city is situated in the midst of an 
agricultural district and forms the center of a 
large trade, the chief products being cotton, 
indigo and sugar. The town is as old as the 
third century b. c. From 1765 to the begin¬ 
ning of the nineteenth century it suffered from 
change of rulers, but finally came under British 
rule. In the mutiny of 1857 it was the scene 
of a serious outbreak and massacre. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 166,463. 

Al'lan, Sir Hugh (1810-1882), a Canadian 
financier and ship-owner, born in Scotland. In 
1824 he came to Canada and after some hard¬ 
ship established the Allan line of ocean steamers. 
He was a director of several banks, was one of 
the projectors of the Canadian Pacific railway 
and was knighted in 1871 for his service in 
upbuilding the commercial interests of Canada. 

Alleghany, al'le ga'ny, Mountains, a name 
sometimes used as synonymous with Appala- 


Alleghany Springs 


Allen 


chians, but also often restricted to the portion 
of those mountains that traverses the states of 
Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania from 
southwest to northeast, and consists of a series 
of parallel ridges for the most part wooded to 
the summit and with some fertile valleys 
between. Their mean elevation is about 2500 
feet; but in Virginia they rise to over 4000. 
See Blue Ridge; Cumberland Mountains. 

Alleghany Springs, a popular health resort 
in Montgomery co., Va., 3 mi. s. of Shawsville. 
It is noted for its medicinal springs and for the 
mineral springs in the close neighborhood. 

Allegheny, al le ga'ny, a city in Allegheny 
co., Pa., on the Allegheny River, opposite Pitts¬ 
burgh, with which it is connected by several 
handsome bridges. Allegheny is the terminus 
of the Western Pennsylvania, the Pittsburgh & 
Western, and the Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburgh, 
and is on the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne & Chicago, 
the Cleveland & Pittsburgh and several other 
railroads. Allegheny and Pittsburgh form one 
industrial and social community. The city’s 
manufacturing interests are large. Important 
among these are iron and steel rolling mills, car 
and locomotive works and manufactures of 
textiles, flour, salt, sanitary plumbing supplies, 
white lead, leather, stoves, pickles and preserves. 
The finest public buildings Are the city hall and 
the Carnegie Free Library. In the center of the 
city is a public park of 100 acres, containing 
pretty lakelets and fountains and a monument 
to Humboldt. The fine Library Monument, in 
memory of the soldiers from Allegheny county 
who perished in the Civil War, stands on a lofty 
crest overlooking the river. Among important 
educational institutions are the Western Theo¬ 
logical Seminary, the United Presbyterian Theo¬ 
logical Seminary, the Allegheny Theological 
Institute and the Western University of Pennsyl¬ 
vania. The town was laid out in 1785. In 1906 
Allegheny was united with the city of Pittsburgh. 
See Pittsburgh. 

Allegheny, a river rising in Pennsylvania and 
flowing into New York, then back into Pennsyl¬ 
vania, uniting with the Monongahela at Pitts¬ 
burgh to form the Ohio. It is 325 miles long 
and is navigable for 200 miles above Pittsburgh. 

Al'lego'ry. An allegory is a story told not 
for its own sake but for the purpose of presenting 
in a clear and interesting manner some abstract 
thought. To be complete, each character in 
the narrative should represent some quality, and 
the relation of the characters and the outcome 
of the narrative show the interaction of various 


qualities on one another. The most famous of 
English allegories is Bunyan’s Pilgrim's Progress. 
Tennyson’s Idylls of the King is one of the best 
of many allegories which are not wholly symbolic. 

Al'len, Ethan (1737-1789), an American 
soldier, was born in Litchfield, Conn., but about 
1763 settled near Bennington, Vt. In 1764 the 
king decided in favor of the claim of New York 
to jurisdiction over the Green Mountain terri¬ 
tory against the settlers of Vermont, and Allen 
was chosen to plead the cause of the settlers at 
Albany. The courts decided adversely, but 
Allen organized a band of troops known as the 
Green Mountain Boys, who, with the New 
Hampshire grantees, expelled the New York 
settlers. Governor Tryon of New York offered 
$750 reward for Allen. In 1775, after the 
Battle of Lexington, the condition of Fort 
Ticonderoga attracted the attention of the 
patriots, and Allen and Benedict Arnold both 
were eager to effect its capture. The Green 
Mountain Boys, with Allen, reached Lake George 
before Arnold overtook them, and on May 10, 
1775, when but a part of his men had as yet 
crossed the lake, Allen rushed into the fort and 
ordered the commander to surrender “in the 
name of the Great Jehovah and the Continental 
Congress!” 

After this Allen went to Philadelphia, where he 
received the thanks of Congress for his services. 
He was sent on a secret mission to Canada to 
learn the views of the Canadians as to rebellion, 
and accompanied Montgomery’s expedition. 
In an adventure at Montreal he was captured 
and sent to England, but was returned to this 
country, where he was confined in prison-ships. 
On obtaining his freedom Allen was appointed 
lieutenant colonel of the Vermont militia and 
was sent as an agent to Congress to secure the 
admission of Vermont to the Confederation. 
Congress hesitated, and the British commanders 
endeavored to persuade Allen to restore the 
authority of the crown. He was accused of 
treason, but it is believed that his relations with 
the British were all entered into for the sake of 
advancing the cause of the colonies. After the 
Revolution Allen lived in retirement and wrote 
a book on natural religion, entitled Reason the 
Only Oracle of Man. 

Allen, James Lane (1849- ), an American 

novelist, born near Lexington, Ky. He graduated 
at Transylvania University and after teaching 
at Kentucky University, became a professor of 
Latin and higher English at Bethany College, 
W. Va. After 1886 he lived in New York and 



Alien 


Alligator Pear 


wrote much fiction. His works show artistic 
finish and knowledge of human nature. Among 
them are The Choir Invisible, The Reign of Law 



JAMES LANE ALLEN 


and The Mettle of the Pasture. Among his best 
short stories are The White Cowl and Sister 
Dolorosa. 

Allen, William (1784-1868), an American 
clergyman and author. He became president 
of Dartmouth College in 1817, and was president 
of Bowdoin College from 1820 to 1839. His 
most important work was the American Bio¬ 
graphical and Historical Dictionary. 

Al'lentown, Pa., the county-seat of Lehigh 
co., 60 mi. n. w. of Philadelphia, on the Lehigh 
River and on the Philadelphia & Reading and 
other railroads. The city is on high ground in 
a fertile region and has extensive iron and steel 
works. It is second only to Paterson, N. J., 
in the production of American silks and ranks 
among the first of the cities of the United States 
in the manufacture of furniture. Other products 
include cement, cigars and thread. The popu¬ 
lation is mostly of German descent. The city 
has a fine hospital, is the seat of Muhlenberg 
College (Lutheran) and of the Allentown College 
for Women. The place was laid out as Allen¬ 
town about 1752 by William Allen, then the 
chief justice of Pennsylvania. In 1811 it was 
incorporated as the borough of Northampton, 
but the original name was restored in 1838. The 


city owns and operates the waterworks. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 51,913. 

Alli'ance, O., a city in Stark co., 57 mi. s. e. 
of Cleveland, on the Mahoning River and on 
the Pennsylvania and other railroads. It is in 
an agricultural region and has extensive manu¬ 
factures, including structural iron, steam ham¬ 
mers, boilers, agricultural implements, terra 
cotta ware and white lead. Mount Union 
College (Methodist Episcopal) is located here. 
The city owns and operates its waterworks. 
The place was settled in 1838 and was 
called Freedom till 1850. Population in 1910, 
15,083. 

Al'libone, Samuel Austin (1816-1889), an 
American author. He compiled a most useful 
Critical Dictionary of English Literature and 
British and American Authors and volumes of 
prose and poetical quotations. 

Al'liga'tor, a large reptile resembling the 
crocodile, dwelling in waters of tropical regions 
of the western hemisphere, where it frequents 
swamps and marshes and may be seen during 
the day basking on the dry ground in the heat 
of the sun. Alligators were formerly common 
along the southern shores of the United States 
and far up the Mississippi River. They are 
slow in growth and when fifteen years of age 
are not more than two feet long. Nearly a 
hundred years are required for them to reach 
their full length of sixteen feet. They are 
active animals and prey upon whatever game 
comes their way. Whenever they have cap¬ 
tured an animal, they take it into the water and 
eat below the surface. They are rather timid, 
in spite of their size, but defend themselves 
viciously if attacked; on shore they rush with 
open mouth at their enemies and thrash their 
powerful tails from side to side. The young are 
hatched by the sun from eggs, of which the 
female lays 200 or more in great heaps of vegeta¬ 
ble matter. The alligators of South America 
were very often called caymans. One species 
is known as the spectacled cayman, because of the 
high bony rim surrounding the orbit of each eye. 
In the United States the alligator is not often 
seen north of Florida, but at one time it was not 
uncommon from North Carolina to the Gulf 
of Mexico and west to Mexico. Millions have 
been killed for sport and because of their hide 
and ivory. The flesh of the alligator is often 
eaten. 

Alligator Pear, the fruit of an evergreen tree. 
It resembles a large pear, one to two pounds in 
weight, with a firm marrow-like pulp of a delicate 



Allison 


Allotropy 


flavor. It is called also avocado pear or vege¬ 
table butter. It is a native of tropical America 



ALLIGATOR PEAR 

a, fruit; b, flower; c, longitudinal section of fruit. 


and the West Indies and is cultivated in Florida 
and Southern California. 

Al'lison, William Boyd (1829-1908), an 
American statesman, born at Perry, Ohio. He 
was educated at Allegheny College, Pa., and 
Western Reserve College, Ohio, and practiced 
law in Ohio until 1857, when he removed to 
Dubuque, Iowa. He served in Congress as a 
Republican from 1863 to 1871, and in 1873 was 
elected to the United States Senate, being five 
times reelected. He was joint author of the 
Bland-Allison bill of 1878, for the purchase of 
silver bullion and the coinage of a certain number 
of silver dollars each month, and took a prom¬ 
inent part in the discussion and amendment 
of the so-called railroad rate bill in 1906. He 
was several times a prominent candidate for the 
Republican nomination to the presidency, and 
was always one of the party’s influential leaders. 

Allit'era'tion, the repetition of the same 
letter or sound at the beginning of two or more 
words immediately succeeding each other, or at 
short intervals, as many men of many minds; 
death defies the doctor; “puffs, powders, patches, 
fcibles, frillet-doux.” In the ancient German and 
Scandinavian and in early English poetry, 
alliteration took the place of terminal rhymes, 


the alliterative syllables being made to recur with 
a certain regularity in the same position in suc¬ 
cessive verses. The following illustration is 
from the Anglo-Saxon poem, Betywulf: “Flota. 
/dmig-lieals, fugle gelicost.” (The floater foamy- 
necked, to a fowl most like.) 

Allo'dium. See Feudal System. 

Allop'athy, the name applied by homeop¬ 
athists to systems of medicine other than their 
own. Hahnemann’s principle being that “like 
cures like,” he called his own system homeopathy , 
and other systems allopathy . See Homeopathy. 

Allot'ropy. Under special conditions many 
of the chemical elements have such totally 
'different habits and properties that they appear 
to be entirely different substances. Thus, for 
instance, sulphur as usually seen is a light yellow, 
opaque, solid substance that breaks easily and 
is readily dissolved by carbon disulphide. Under 
other conditions it appears to be an entirely 
different thing—a translucent, amber-colored 
substance, soft and elastic like india rubber and 
insoluble in carbon disulphide. It is, however, 
still sulphur, and nothing else. Again, phos¬ 
phorus under some conditions is a dark reddish- 
brown powder resembling chocolate, and non- 
poisonous; under others, it is colorless, trans¬ 
lucent and wax-like, melting and even taking 



WILLIAM BOYD ALLISON 


fire at a very low temperature, and is extremely 
poisonous. Yet in both conditions phosphorus 
is phosphorus. This property of appearing in 



Alloy 


Almanac 


different forms is known in chemistry as allot¬ 
ropy, and one form is said to be an allotropic 
modification of the other. It is really a special 
case of polymerism. See Polymerism. 

Alloy', sometimes a chemical compound, 
but more- generally merely a mechanical mixture 
produced by melting together two or more metals. 
Most metals mix together in all proportions, but 
others unite only in definite proportions, and 
form true chemical compounds. Others again 
resist combination and when fused together form 
not a homogeneous mixture but a conglomerate 
of distinct masses. The changes produced in 
their physical properties by the combination of 
metals are various. Their, hardness is in general 
increased, their malleability and ductility im¬ 
paired. The color of an alloy may be scarcely 
different from that of one of its components, or 
it may show traces of neither of the two. Its 
specific gravity is sometimes less than the mean 
of that of its component metals. Alloys are 
always more fusible than the metal most difficult 
to melt that enters into their composition, and 
generally even more, so than the most easily 
melted one. Newton’s fusible metal, composed 
of three parts of tin, two or five parts of lead and 
five or eight parts of bismuth, melts at tempera¬ 
tures varying from 198° to 210° F. and therefore 
in boiling water; its components fuse respectively 
at the temperatures 442°, 600° and 478° F. 
In some alloys, however, each metal retains its 
own fusing point. With a few exceptions metals 
are not used in a pure state. Printers’ types are 
made from an alloy of lead and antimony; brass 
and a numerous list of other alloys are formed 
from copper and zinc; bronze from copper and 
tin. 

All-Saints’ Day, a festival of the Christian 
Church, instituted in 835, and celebrated on 
November 1. It owes its origin to the fact that 
it was impossible to set aside a separate day for 
every saint. See Hallow-even. 

All-Souls’ Day, a festival of the Catholic 
Church, instituted in 998 and observed on 
November 2. Its object is the relief, by pray¬ 
ers and acts of charity, of the souls in purga¬ 
tory. 

All'spice is the dried berry of the pimento, 
a West Indian species of myrtle, a beautiful tree 
with white and fragrant aromatic flowers and 
shiny leaves of a deep green. The name comes 
from the fact that allspice is thought to resemble 
in flavor a mixture of cinnamon, nutmegs and 
cloves. The fruit is also called Jamaica pepper. 
It is employed in cooking, also in medicine as 


an agreeable aromatic, and it forms the basis 
of a distilled water and an essential oil. 

All'ston, Washington (1779-1843), an 
American painter, born at Waccamaw, S. C. 
After graduating from Harvard in 1800, Allston 
went to Charleston and here began active work 
in art. The next year he went abroad and 
visited London, Paris and Rome, where he 
spent his time studying the works of the great 
masters. In style he imitated the Venetian 
School and has been called the “American 
Titian.” His more important works are The 
Dead Man Revived, Uriel in the Sun, The 
Prophet Jeremiah and Belshazzar’s Feast. 

Allu'vium, deposits of soil, collected by the 
action of water, such as are found in valleys 
and plains, consisting of loam, clay and gravel, 
washed down from the higher grounds. Allu¬ 
vium deposits are found along the banks of 
nearly all streams of considerable size, and they 
constitute the deltas formed by the Nije, the 
Po, the Mississippi and other large rivers. The 
large tracts of fertile land found along the lower 
courses of these and other rivers are also formed 
by alluvial deposits, as are most flood plains. 
See Delta; Flood Plain; River. 

Al'macantar or Almucantar, an instru¬ 
ment consisting of a telescope floating in a 
basin of mercury. This arrangement gives a 
perfectly horizontal position to the telescope, 
through which a horizontal circle of the heavens 
parallel to the horizon can be viewed. It has 
been of considerable importance in astronomical 
observations. 

Alma Mater, a Latin phrase meaning “foster¬ 
ing mother.” The term was originally applied 
by the Romans to Ceres, the goddess of agricul¬ 
ture, to Cybele, the goddess of earth, and to other 
goddesses. Because a college or university is 
figuratively a “fostering mother” the words have 
been for many years applied to such institutions. 
Thus a graduate will speak of Harvard, Mich- 
gan or Leland Stanford as his “Alma Mater.” 

Al'manac, a book or table in which are given 
a calendar, the time of the rising and setting of 
the sun, the phases of the moon, the most 
remarkable positions and phenomena of the 
heavenly bodies, for every month and day of 
the year; also the several fasts and feasts to be 
observed in the church and state, the terms of 
courts and often much miscellaneous information 
likely to be useful to the public. In England 
almanacs have been known from the fourteenth 
century, and there are several English almanacs 
of that century existing in manuscript form. 


Almandine 

They became generally used in Europe within 
a short time after the invention of printing. 

Formerly the immense popularity of almanacs 
was due to the mass of astrological predictions 
with which they were filled, and the effect of 
these guesses at the future was often so bad 
that in France it was necessary to prohibit, at 
various times, the publication of prophetic 
almanacs. The most famous English almanac 
was Poor Robin's Almanack, which was pub¬ 
lished from 1663 to 1775, and which was an 
incredible mixture of ignorance and imposture. 
In 1828 the Society for the Diffusion of Useful 
Knowledge, by publishing the British Almanac, 
took the lead in the production of an almanac 
containing genuine information, and by con¬ 
trast showed the fraudulent nature of the infor¬ 
mation which had been furnished in the earlier 
almanacs. Even to the present day there are 
published in Great Britain almanacs containing 
astrological predictions, but they are not taken 
seriously, even by the ignorant classes. 

The most famous of the popular almanacs 
which have been published in the United States 
was Poor Richard's Almanac, begun by Franklin 
in 1732 and continued for twenty-five years. 
Now the publication of good almanacs is in 
America confined almost entirely to large news¬ 
paper houses. 

The Nautical Almanac and American Ephe- 
meris, published annually by the United States 
bureau of navigation, embraces all the elements 
necessary for determining at any time the 
absolute and relative places of the sun, moon 
and seven principal planets and of many^of the 
fixed stars, also several different series of phe¬ 
nomena for the determination of longitudes and 
latitudes, the distances of the moon from fixed 
stars and from planets and the time for the 
occurrence of eclipses. To these are added 
rules and tables for practical use in nautical 
astronomy, land observations and tables of 
tides. It is a text-book for the navigator, and 
no sailor leaves the American shore without it. 
The computations are made three years in 
advance and could be made still farther if 
necessary, but no cruise is made which lasts 
longer than that time. Similar publications are 
issued by the German, French and English 
nations. 

Almandine, al’man din, the name given to 
two precious stones. One, red in color and 
transparent, is a variety of garnet and is found 
chiefly in Alabanda, Caria; hence its name. 
The other is a variety of Spinel ruby and is 


Almond 

violet in color. Both varieties are beautiful 
gems for setting. 

Alma-Tadema, ahVma tahd’e ma, Lawrence 
(1836-1912), a Dutch painter, born in Fries¬ 
land, but long a resident of England. In 1879 
he became a Royal academician and was later 
made a member of various foreign academies. 
He is especially celebrated for his pictures of 
ancient Roman, Greek and Egyptian life, which 
are painted with great realism and archaeo¬ 
logical correctness. Some of his best known 
pictures are Reading from Homer, At the Shrine 
of Venus, The Four Seasons and Antony and 
Cleopatra. 

Almeria, ahl ma re’ah, a fortified seaport of 
southern Spain, 60 mi. s. e. of Granada. The 
important buildings are the Gothic cathedral 
and the Church of San Pedro. The leading 
manufactures include sugar, macaroni and 
white lead. The city has an important trade 
in fruit, grapes, almonds, pomegranates and 
iron ore, all of which are shipped from its port. 
The climate is very healthful and the city is a 
favorite resort for invalids. Population in 1910, 
about 50,000. 

Almond, ah'mund, the fruit of the almond, 
a tree which grows usually tp the height of 



ALMOND 

Branch, blossom and fruit. 


twenty feet, and is akin to the peach and nectar¬ 
ine. It has beautiful pinkish flowers that 
appear before the leaves, which are oval, pointed 
and delicately serrated. The almond is a native 
of Africa and Asia, now naturalized in southern 
Europe, and cultivated in England for its 






Aloe 


Alpena 


beauty and in California for its fruit. The 
fruit has a downy outer coat which covers the 
flattish, wrinkled stone that encloses the seed. 
There are two varieties, one sweet and the other 
bitter. Sweet almonds are a delicious food and 
furnish an oil used in flavoring. Bitter almonds 
contain prussic acid, a highly poisonous substance. 

Aloe, al'o, the name of a genus of plants 
some of which are not more than a few inches, 



ALOE 


while others are thirty feet and upward, in 
height. They are natives of Africa and other 
hot regions, have leaves fleshy, thick and more 
or less armed with spines at the edges or ends, 
and have flowers with a tubular corolla. The 
fibrous parts of the leaves of some species are 
made into such things as cordage, fishing nets, 
lines and cloth; the juice of several species is 
used in medicine as a bitter drug, under the 
name of aloes. The principal drug-producing 
species are the Socotrine aloe, the Barbadoes 
aloe and the Cape aloe. A beautiful violet 
color is afforded by the leaves of the Socotrine 
aloe. The so-called American aloe is a different 
plant altogether '(See Agave), as are also the 
aloes or lign-aloes of Scripture. 


Aloes Wood, aToze wood, or Eagle Wood, 

the inner portion of the trunk of forest trees 
found in tropical Asia and yielding a fragrant 
resinous substance, which, as well as the wood, 
is burned for its perfume. It is hard and fine¬ 
grained, takes a high polish and is highly prized 
for ornamental work. Another tree also pro¬ 
duces aloes-wood. This wood is supposed to 
be the lign-aloes of the Bible, and Hero¬ 
dotus says that it was sold for its weight in 
gold. 

Alpac'a, a cud-chewing animal of the camel 
tribe, a native of the Andes, especially of the 
mountains of Chile and Peru, and so closely 
allied to the llama that by some it is regarded 
rather as a smaller variety than a distinct 
species. It has been domesticated, and remains 



ALPACA 


also in a wild state. In form and size the 
alpaca approaches the sneep, but it has a longer 
neck. It is valued eiiiefly for its long, soft and 
silky wool, which is straighter .than that of the 
sheep, and very stnmg. The wool is woven into 
fabrics of great beauty. All of these are known 
as alpaca, and they are used for shawls, clothing 
for warm climates, coat-linings and umbrellas. 
The flesh of the aplaca is pleasant to eat and is 
wholesome. 

Alpe'na, Mich., the county-seat of Alpena 
co., 110 mi. n. of Bay City, on Thunder Bay 
and on the Detroit & Mackinaw railroad. The 
city has extensive fisheries, and there are foun¬ 
dries, saw mills, planing mills and cement 
works. Lumber is the chief export. Alpena 
has a good high school, a public library and 
several parks. It was settled in 1835 and 
incorporated in 1871. Population in 1910, 
12,706, 










Alpha 


Alps 


Alpha, aFfah, and Ome'ga, the first and last 
letters of the Greek alphabet, sometimes used 
to signify completeness. They are also used 
as a symbol of God. They were formerly the 
emblem of Christianity and were engraved on 
the tombs of the early Christians. 

Alphabet, al'fa bet, (from Alpha, and Beta, 
the first two letters of the Greek alphabet), the 
series of characters used in writing a language, 
and intended to represent the sounds of which 
it consists. The English alphabet, like all 
those of modern Europe except the Russian, 
is derived directly from the Latin, the Latin 
from the ancient Greek and that from the 
Phoenician, which again is believed to have 
had its origin in the Egyptian hieroglyphics. 
The Hebrew alphabet probably had practically 
the same origin, and the names of the letters 
in Phoenician and Hebrew must have been 
almost the same, for the Greek names, which, 
with the letters, were borrowed from the former, 
differ little from the Hebrew. 

By means of the names we may trace the 
process by which the Egyptian characters were 
transformed into letters by the Phoenicians. 
An Egyptian character, for example, recalled 
by its torm the idea of a house, in Phoenician 
or Hebrew, beth, and the character itself was 
given the name beth. This character would 
subsequently come to be used wherever the 
sound b occurred. Its form was afterward 
simplified and modified, but the name still 
remains, beth being still the Hebrew name for 
b, and beta the Greek. Our letter m, which in 
Hebrew was called mini, water, has still a 
resemblance to the zigzag, wavy line which by 
the Egyptians was used to represent water. 
The letter o, of which the Hebrew name means 
eye, was no doubt originally intended to repre¬ 
sent that organ. 

The Greek alphabet originally possessed only 
sixteen letters, though the Phoenician had 
twenty-two; the original Latin, as it is found in 
the oldest inscriptions, consisted of twenty-one 
letters, and the German has the same letters as 
the English, although the sounds of some of 
them are different. The Sanskrit alphabet is 
one of the most remarkable in the world. As 
now used it has fourteen characters for the 
vowels and diphthongs and thirty-three for the 
consonants, besides two other symbols. Our 
alphabet is an imperfect instrument, since, in 
the first place, it has not a character for 
every sound, and, in the second place, it has 
letters which are superfluous, because there 


are other letters which represent the same 
sounds. Thus a may stand for any one of eight 
sounds, while c is unnecessary because its two 
sounds are represented by k and s. An al¬ 
phabet is not essential to the writing of a 
language, since symbols may be used instead, 
as in Chinese. 

There is a remarkable Indian alphabet which 
was invented by Seequoyah of the Cherokee 
tribe. In his first attempts at alphabet-making 
he tried to represent the sounds of the Cherokee 
language by pictorial signs, using images of 
birds and beasts, but he soon gave this up and 
used instead such arbitrary signs as he thought 
would be most easily remembered. At first 
he used over 200 characters, but these were 
later reduced to 86. The United States govern¬ 
ment became interested in his discovery, had 
a font of type cut for his alphabet, and a news¬ 
paper, The Cherokee Phoenix, was printed 
partly in Cherokee and partly in English. 

Alphon'so XIII. See Alfonso XIII. 

Alps, the highest and most extensive mountain 
chain in Europe, forming the water-shed between 
the river systems of the Mediterranean Sea and 
the Atlantic Ocean. It covers parts of five 
countries: portions of northern Italy, south¬ 
eastern France, southern Germany, western 
Austria-Hungary and most of Switzerland. 
Several important rivers of Europe take their 
rise in the Alpine valleys, the largest being the 
Rhine and the Rhone. The range is about 660 
miles long and from 90 to 180 miles wide. Its 
average height is about 7700 feet, the highest 
peaks being Mont Blanc, 15,781 feet, on the 
Franco-Italian border, and Monte Rosa, 15,217, 
in Switzerland. The system of ranges is now 
commonly grouped under Eastern, Western and 
Central Alps. The general form of the Alps is 
that of a crescent; from the principal chains 
spurs extend to the Apennines, the Vosges, the 
Harz, the Balkans and the Carpathians. The 
higher Alps are covered with perpetual snow 
and from the peaks there descend to the valleys 
below great glaciers, enormous masses of par¬ 
tially melted snow and pulverized ice, constantly 
augmented by the masses from behind, which 
acquire a moving force that nothing can resist. 
Finally they reach a point where the sun melts 
them, and they become the sources of mountain 
rivers. The largest glacier is the Mer de Glace, 
on the northern slope of Mont Blanc, and is 15 
miles long, 3'to 6 miles wide and 80 to 120 feet 
thick. The Rh6ne Glacier is one of the most 
famous. The Helvetian Alps in western Switzer- 




Alsace-Lorraine 


Altai Mountains 


land, on both sides of the Rhone, are the portion 
most visited and afford the most beautiful 
mountain scenery of Europe. Among their 
peaks are the Jungfrau and the Finsteraarhom. 
The dangerous ascent of Mont Blanc was first 
made in 1786 by a Frenchman, Jacques Balmat. 
The Alps were formerly considered well-nigh 
impassable, and many perished in the attempt. 
Hannibal’s famous passage was reckoned one of 
his greatest feats. There are now good roads 
over most of the passes, some of which, however, 
are exceedingly dangerous. The chief passes 
connect Switzerland and France with Italy. One 
of the first famous roads was that built by 
Napoleon, 1803-1810, over Mont Cenis, at a 
height of 6773 feet. The Mont Cenis tunnel, 
connecting France and Italy, is 14 miles from 
this road (See Mont Cenis Tunnel). It was 
built 1861-1870 and is 7f miles long. The cele¬ 
brated Saint Gothard pass is 6935 feet high, 
and has been crossed by a carriage road since 
1823. The great tunnel of Saint Gothard, con¬ 
necting Luzerne and Milan, is near this pass 
(See Saint Gothabd Tunnel). Other famous 
passes are the Col de Balme, celebrated for its 
view of Mont Blanc, the Little Saint Bernard, 
one of the oldest and easiest, and the Great Saint 
Bernard, famed for its inn and dogs. Owing to 
the great height of the Alps, their vegetation is 
remarkably varied. At 6500 feet all the vegeta¬ 
tion of the plains has disappeared, including 
maize, cereals, common fruit, and forest trees. 
Between 7500 and 8500 feet a very rich pastur¬ 
age and the peculiar Alpine flora appear. Animal 
life in many forms is abundant, and peculiar to 
Alpine regions are the chamois and the mountain 
goat. See Mont Blanc; Jungfrau; Rosa, 
Mont; Matterhorn. 

Alsace-Lorraine, al sets' lor rayn', an im¬ 
perial territory of the German Empire, lying e. of 
France and n. of Switzerland. Its length from 
north to south is 123 miles; its width varies from 
22 to 105 miles, and its area is 5580 square miles, 
or about one-eighth more than that of the State 
of Connecticut. 

The eastern portion is a plain sloping toward 
the Rhine and containing occasional marshes 
and swamps, while the western portion is trav¬ 
ersed by the Vosges Mountains, which rise in 
places to a height of 4700 feet. The mountains 
contain valuable depositis of iron and coal, and 
Alsace-Lorraine has become the leading iron 
producing country of the Empire. Fruit culture 
also is extensive in the mountain regions, and 
grapes are largely cultivated. In its manufac¬ 


turing interests, also, Alsace-Lorraine is one 
of the most important territories of the Empire. 
The leading manufactures are cotton, woolen 
and silk goods and iron products, including pig 
iron, machinery and tools. While the manu¬ 
facture of cloth is carried on in large factories 
in the cities, throughout the country much cloth 
is still woven in the homes and on hand looms. 
Good roads, numerous railways and canals and 
telegraph and telephone lines traverse the 
country, making transportation and communi¬ 
cation convenient and cheap. The important 
towns are Strassburg, the capital, Metz, Miil- 
hausen and Kolmar. 

History. In the fourth and fifth centuries 
Alsace-Lorraine was brought under the control 
of the German tribes. Later it passed to the 
Franks, but was regained by the Germans in 
the tenth century. In the sixteenth century it 
again came under the control of the French, and 
at the peace of Westphalia, in 1648, the Haps- 
burgs ceded their territory in Alsace to France. 
Louis XIV seized the free cities Strassburg and 
Kolmar, and his right to them was confirmed by 
the Treaty of Ryswick in 1697. At the close of 
the Franco-German War in 1871 Germany 
demanded as a condition of peace that Alsace 
and about one-third of Lorraine be ceded back 
to her, and France was obliged to yield, although 
the inhabitants of the ceded territory were 
almost universally opposed to becoming German 
subjects. So strong was this opposition that for 
some time local government was almost at a 
standstill, as those who were elected to office 
refused to take the oath of allegiance to the 
German Empire. In 1872 the emperor com¬ 
pelled the inhabitants to declare themselves 
either French or German citizens, and of the 
150,000 who declared for France about one- 
third removed to French territory. After this 
the bitter feeling existing against the German 
government began to subside, and the inhab¬ 
itants generally accepted German rule, under 
which they have prospered and have been well 
governed. Population in 1910, 1,871,702. 

Altai, al'ti, Mountains, The, an important 
Asiatic system on the borders of Siberia and 
Mongolia, are partly in Russian and partly in 
Chinese territory, The highest summit, Bye- 
luka or White Mountain, is 11,000 feet. Geo¬ 
logically the Altai are among the oldest 
mountains of Asia; their summits have been 
worn and rounded; their lower slopes are covered 
with grass and their higher slopes are clothed 
with forests which extend nearly to their summits. 


Altar 


Alto-Rilievo 


The Altai are exceedingly rich in minerals, 
including gold, silver, copper and iron, and 
wi thin the Russian provinces mining has become 
an important industry. 

Altar, awl'tur, a place of worship where 
sacrifices are made, offerings laid or other reli¬ 
gious rites performed. Altars date back to early 
history, the Babylonians, Egyptians and other 
people having used them commonly. The 
Greeks and Romans erected them to different 
gods. They were made of earth and stones at 
first and later of highly sculptured stone, develop¬ 
ing into colossal monuments, of which an 
excellent example is the Altar of Peace, built in 
honor of Augustus at Rome, one of the master¬ 
pieces of art of the Augustan reign. Altars were 
made of various shapes, square,- oblong and 
circular, and were used for incense, for flowers 
or the like, or for bloody sacrifices. The shape 
gradually was reduced to the uniform oblong 
and in the Christian churches only one altar was 
allowed in each church. Within the altar was a 
hollow chamber used for the relics of martyrs 
or saints, at first called the confession and later 
developed into the crypt (See Crypt). In 
some of the Lutheran churches the altar has been 
retained, but as a general rule it is not used in 
Prostestant churches to-day. The term altar 
in the Christian church to-day generally refers 
to the table-like structure at which communion 
is offered. 

Altenburg, ahl'tenboorg, (“old castle”), a 
city of Germany and the capital of Saxe-Alten- 
burg, is situated near the Pleisse River, 24 mi. 
s. of Leipzig. The most noted building is the 
ducal castle, which stands upon a high and 
nearly perpendicular cliff. The town contains 
a number of good educational institutions, a 
theater, a picture gallery and a museum. It also 
has a hospital for the poor. The manufactures 
include cigars, hats, gloves and brushes, and 
there is considerable trade, especially in woolen 
yarn. Population in 1910, 39,976. 

Altgeld, ahlt'geld, John Peter (1847-1902), 
an American politician, bom in Germany. He 
entered the Union army in 1863 and fought until 
the close of the war. Later he began the study 
of law and was admitted to the bar. He was at 
one time judge of the superior court in Chicago 
and from 1893 to 1897 was governor of the State 
of Illinois, gaining notoriety by his pardon of 
several of the anarchists connected with the 
Haymarket riots. He was active in sup¬ 
port of Bryan in his two presidential cam¬ 
paigns and was a popular public speaker and 


the author of several books on social and polit¬ 
ical questions. 

Al'to. See Singing. 

Alton, awl'tun, III., a city in Madison co., 
on the Mississippi River, 10 mi. above the mouth 
of the Missouri River, and on the Chicago & 
Alton, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland & St. 
Louis and Chicago, Peoria & St. Louis rail¬ 
roads. The city is picturesquely located on 
limestone bluffs about 200 feet above the river. 
It has a large trade and extensive manufactures 
of glass, flour, machinery, tools and boxes. Im¬ 
portant institutions are the Cathedral of Saints 
Peter and Paul, Saint Joseph’s Hospital, Ursu- 
line Convent, Jennie D. Hayner Memorial 
Library and an Old Ladies’ Home. Upper 
Alton, 2 miles distant, is connected by an elec¬ 
tric railway and is the seat of Shurtleff College 
and the Western Military Academy. Alton was 
settled in 1783 and was incorporated in 1835. 
The city contains a monument to Elijah P. 
Lovejoy, the abolitionist, who was killed during 
a riot, Nov. 7,1837. Population in 1910,17,528. 

Altona, ahl'to na, an important commercial 
city in the Prussian province of Schleswig-Hol¬ 
stein, adjoining Hamburg, with which it virtually 
forms one city. It is a free port, and its com¬ 
merce, both inland and foreign, is large, being 
identified with that of Hamburg. Population in 
1910, 172,533. 

Altoo'na, Pa., a city in Blair co., 117 mi. e. of 
Pittsburg, on the Pennsylvania and the Altoona, 
Clearfield & Northern railroads. The city is 
picturesquely located 1,180 feet above sea level, 
at the eastern base of the Alleghany Mountains. 
Extensive railroad shops of the Pennsylvania 
Company, employing some 7000 persons, are 
located here. Altoona contains a public library, 
hospital, two convents and Lakemont Park, 
while of special interest near the city is the 
famous Horseshoe Bend. Altoona was founded 
by the Pennsylvania Railroad Company in 1850 
and has developed rapidly. Population in 
1910, 52,127. 

Altorf or Altdorf, ahlt'orf, a small town of 
Switzerland, capital of the canton of Uri, beauti¬ 
fully situated near the Lake of Lucerne, amid 
gardens and orchards, and memorable as the 
place where, according to legend, William Tell 
shot the apple from his son’s head. A colossal 
statue of Tell now stands here. Population, 
about 3000. 

Alto-Rilievo, ahl'to re lya'vo, (high relief), is 
the term applied to sculptured figures to express 
the fact that they stand out boldly from the back- 



Altruism 


Aluminum 


ground. A figure to be in high relief should 
actually stand out more than one-half its thick¬ 
ness from the background without being entirely 
detached. See Bas-Relief; Mezzo-Rilievo. 

Altruism, in ethics, the theory of conduct 
which holds that the individual should sub¬ 
ordinate and sacrifice himself to the welfare of 
society. The word was coined by the French 
philosopher Comte from the Latin word alter, 
meaning the other (of two). The theory as 
stated by Comte was developed by Herbert 
Spencer, who applied the principles of physical 
evolution to society and showed that in a per¬ 
fect society the individual must take part in 
securing the well-being of others. Pure altru¬ 
ism is impossible, because the theory implies 
that the individual secures his own happiness 
in the happiness of others. Thus he is an 
egoist to the extent that he achieves happiness 
for himself. (See Egoism.) In other words, 
altruism is to be considered as a means rather 
than an end. In common speech, altruism re¬ 
fers loosely to any actions which may result in 
the welfare of others, whatever the motives 
may be which have prompted those actions, or 
whatever the consequences to the doer. 

Al'um, as commonly used, is a compound of 
potassium, aluminum and sulphuric acid. It is 
called potash alum and is a clear, colorless solid 
which forms crystals. It dissolves in water, has 
a peculiar puckery taste and is used in dyeing 
and in hardening fats and tallow. When heated, 
it loses water and becomes a powder called 
burnt alum. There are other compounds simi¬ 
larly formed which contain such substances as 
ammonia, sodium or iron in place of potash and 
are called ammonium alum, sodium alum or iron 
alum. These various alums have uses in arts 
and maunfactures. 

Alu'mina, the single oxide of the metal alu¬ 
minum, which, when combined with silica, is one 
of the most widely distributed substances. It 
enters in large quantity into the composition of 
granite, traps, slates, schists, clays, loams and 
other rocks. The porcelain clays and kaolins 
contain about half their weight of this earth, to 
which they owe their most valuable properties. 
It has a strong affinity for coloring matters, which 
causes it to be employed in the preparation of 
the colors called lakes, used in dyeing and calico 
printing. It combines with the acids and forms 
numerous salts, the most important of which 
are the sulphate and acetate, the latter of exten¬ 
sive use as a mordant. In its native state it is 
called corundum. When crystallized it appears 


as ruby or sapphire. See Emery; Corundum; 
Ruby; Sapphire; Topaz. 

Alu'minum or Al umin'ium, a bluish-white 
metal discovered in 1827, and next to silicon 
and oxygen the most widely distributed element 
in the earth’s crust. Aluminum is a little more 
than two and one-half times heavier than water. 
It does not tarnish when exposed to the air, 
is very ductile and malleable and is the most 
sonorous of all metals. It is nowhere found 
native, but is the basis of clay, which is its oxide. 

Because of the difficulty in separating alumi¬ 
num from its compounds it is only recently that 
it has been obtained in such quantities as to 
bring it into practical use. It is now obtained 
from bauxite (See Bauxite) by subjecting this 
mineral to the heat of the electric arc. The 
operation is carried on in furnaces constructed 
specially for the purpose. The furnace is prac¬ 
tically a huge crucible made of blocks of carbon. 
In the bottom of the crucible is a small tap-hole, 
where the melted aluminum may be drawn out. 
The positive electrode is constructed of heavy 
carbon plates so as to form a prism. This is 
attached to a chain and a derrick so it can be 
lowered into the crucible as fast as the end bums 
off. Before the process begins, pieces of copper 
are thrown into the crucible to form the nega¬ 
tive electrode. The bauxite is shoveled in 
through openings made for the purpose. When 
the electric circuit is completed, a terrific heat 
is produced which causes the bauxite to give 
up its aluminum. This runs down to the bot¬ 
tom of the crucible and is drawn off through 
the tap-hole. The bauxite is fed into the 
crucible as fast as it is reduced, and the process 
continues until the carbon electrode has been 
entirely consumed. An ordinary furnace will 
produce about four hundred pounds in twenty- 
four hours. Aluminum smelters are located at 
Niagara Falls and at Pittsburg, Pa. 

The uses of aluminum are rapidly increasing. 

, It is a good conductor of electricity and because 
of its lightness takes the place of copper occa¬ 
sionally in the construction of electric lines. 
One of its most important uses is in the manu¬ 
facture of steel, since the addition of a small 
quantity of aluminum greatly improves the quality 
of the steel. It is also used in the manufacture 
of numerous household utensils, for which it is 
especially suited, since it is light, durable and 
is not easily acted upon by acids. There are 
numerous alloys of aluminum and other metals, 
such as aluminum bronze, an alloy with copper, 
and magnalium, an alloy with magnesium. 


Alum Root 

Most of these alloys take a high polish and are 
valuable for ornamental work. Aluminum gold, 
which is a compound of aluminum and copper 
closely resembling gold, is often used in the 
manufacture of watch cases and cheap jewelry. 
While it is bright when new, it soon tarnishes 
and is almost worthless for ordinary purposes. 
Aluminum melts at 626°C. 

Alum Root, the name given in America to 
two plants on account of the remarkable astrin- 
gency of their roots, which are used for medical 
purposes. 

Alum Stone or Alum Shale, a mineral of a 
grayish or yellowish-white color, containing 
iron pyrite. On exposure to the air and 
rain the pyrite dissolves and the sulphur unites 
with the alumina in the rock, forming a com¬ 
pound from which alum is obtained. The 
process is hastened by roasting the rock and 
leaching it. 

Alva, ahl’vah, or Alba, Ferdinand Alvarez 
de Toledo, Duke of, (1508-1582), a Spanish 
statesman and general under Charles V and 
Philip II. He is remembered chiefly for his 
bloody and tyrannical government of the Neth¬ 
erlands, which had revolted, and which he was 
commissioned by Philip II to reduce to entire 
subjection. Among his first proceedings was the 
establishment of the “Council of Blood,” a 
tribunal which condemned all whose opinions 
were suspected and whose riches were coveted. 
Many merchants and mechanics emigrated to 
England. The counts Egmont and Horn and 
other men of rank were executed, and William 
and Louis of Orange had to flee to Germany 
to save themselves. Resistance was quelled for 
a time, but the provinces of Holland and Zealand 
soon revolted against his tyranny. A fleet which 
was fitted out at his command was annihilated, 
and he was everywhere met with insuperable 
courage. He was recalled, and in 1573 he left 
the country in which, as he boasted, he had 
executed eighteen thousand men. He was 
received with distinction in Madrid. Before 
his death he reduced all Portugal to subjection 
to his sovereign. 

Al'verstone, Lord (formerly Sir Richard 
Webster, 1842-1915), a distinguished English 
jurist. He was formerly attorney general of 
the United Kingdom and British counsel in the 
Venezuela dispute. From 1900 to 1913 he was 
chief justice of England. In 1903Lord Alverstone 
was president of the Alaska bound ary commission, 
and voted with the representatives of the United 
States, in opposition to the claims of Canada. 
7 


Amaranth 

Am'adis of Gaul, the hero of a celebrated 
chivalry romance of the Middle Ages. The 
oldest extant version is one made about 1470, 
but for almost a century and a half before this 
time some form of the romance was current in 
Spain. 

AmaPgam, an alloy or mixture of mercury 
and some other metal. The principal amalgams 
are with gold, silver, tin and copper. These 
alloys are most commonly formed by bringing 
mercury into contact with the other metal. In 
metallurgy mercury is used to extract free gold 
and silver from their ores because of its power 
of uniting with these metals. Tin amalgam is 
used for silvering mirrors. Copper amalgam has 



LORD ALVERSTONE 


the power of softening when worked and becom¬ 
ing hard on standing; consequently it has been 
used for filling teeth. 

Am'ana, a religious community founded in 
1714 by Eberhard Gruber in Germany. The 
members of the community came to the United 
States, and after settling in New York in 1843, 
moved to Amana, Iowa, twelve ye£rs later. 
There are less than two thousand persons in the 
community, but they own 26,000 acres of land, 
much of it well improved. They live in families, 
but the community as a whole engages in manu¬ 
factures, agriculture and other industries. Meals 
are provided by several families in common. 

Am'aranth, the name of certain plants whose 
flowers are composed of dry scales that retain 
their color for a long time and are often 



Amarillo 


Amazons 


called everlastings. Prince’s feather and cox¬ 
comb belong to this family and are common 
in gardens. The globe amaranth is used in 
some countries for decorating Roman Catholic 
churches in winter. The amaranth is a symbol 
of immortality. 

Amarillo, Tex., the county-seat of Potter co., 
situated 300 mi. n. w. of Fort Worth, on the 
Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe and the Denver & 
Fort. Worth railroads. Amarillo lies in the heart 
of the Texas “panhandle,” and has been for 
years a great market and distributing point. 
Ice, brick, flour and concrete are its principal 
manufactures. Population in 1910, 9957. 

Am'aryl'lis Family, an order of plants, gen¬ 
erally bulbous, with a highly colored flower, 
natives of Europe and most of the warmer 
parts of the world. The order includes the 
snowdrop, the snowflake, the daffodil, the 
narcissus and the agave (American aloe), 
many are highly prized in gardens and hot¬ 
houses. The bulbs of some species are poisonous. 

Amasia, a mah’se ah, a town in the north of 
Asia Minor, on the Irmak, 60 mi. from the 
Black Sea, surmounted by a rocky height in 
which is a ruined fortress. It has numerous 
mosques, richly-endowed Mohammedan schools 
and a number of archaic remains. The trade 
in silk, fruits and wines is considerable. Amasia 
was a residence of the ancient kings of Pontus. 
Population, about 30,000. 

Amati, a mah'te, a family of Cremona who 
manufactured violins in the sixteenth and sev¬ 
enteenth centuries. Most of the violins made 
by them are of comparatively small size and 
flat model. Nicolo Amati was a tutor of Strad- 
ivarius. 

Am'auro'sis, a species of blindness in which 
no change shows in the : ppearance of the eye 
and which is caused by a disease of the nerves 
of vision. Milton, whose blindness was of this 
sort, called it the “drop serene.” Long-con¬ 
tinued direction of the eye on minute objects; 
long exposure to a bright light, to the fire of 
a forge, to snow; exposure to irritating gases; 
overfuln&s of blood, and disease of the brain 
are the most frequent causes. 

Am'azon, a river of South America, the 
largest in the world, formed by the confluence 
of a great number of streams which rise in the 
Andes in Peru. It is formed by the union of two 
main branches, the Maranon, or Tunguragua, 
and the Ucayali, or Apurimac. The united 
Amazon, from the mouth of the Rio Negro to 
Tabatinga, is known as the Solimoens. It enters 


the Atlantic by a mouth 150 miles wide. From 
its junction with the Napo in Ecuador the 
Amazon flows due east; it is therefore almost 
wholly in the same latitude, which is not the 
case with any other large river. The total 
length of the river is between 3300 and 4000 
miles. In its upper course navigation is inter¬ 
rupted by rapids, but from its mouth upward 
for a distance of about 3000 miles, mostly in 
Brazil, there is no bstruction. It receives the 
waters of about 200 tributaries, 100 of which 
are navigable, and seventeen of these are from 
1000 to 2300 miles in length, the largest being 
the Madeira. The Amazonian water system 
affords some 15,000 miles of river suitable for 
navigation. The rapidity of the river is con¬ 
siderable, especially during the rainy season, 



from January to June, when it is subject to 
floods; but there is no great fall in its course. 
The tides reach up as far as 400 miles from its 
mouth. About the time of full moon a great 
tidal wave rushes into the mouth of the river 
with such force that it raises the water almost 
thirty feet. This singular phenomenon is called 
the bore, or the pororoca, by the natives. The 
river swarms with alligators, turtles and a great 
variety of fish. Steamers and other craft ply 
on the river, the chief center of trade being Para, 
at its mouth. The Amazon was discovered by 
Yanez Pin 9 on in 1500, but the stream was not 
navigated by any European till 1540, when Orel¬ 
lana descended it from the Andes to the mouth. 

Amazons, according to ancient Greek tradi¬ 
tion, the name of a community of women, who 
permitted no man to reside among them, fought 
under the conduct of a queen, and long consti- 






Ambala 


Ambrose 


tuted a formidable state. They were said to 
bum off the right breast, that it might not 
impede them in the use of the bow. Several 
nations of Amazons are mentioned, the most 
famous being those who dwelt in Pontus, who 
built Ephesus and other cities. They came into 



AMAZON, BERLIN 


contact with the Greeks three times: their 
queen, Hippolyta, was vanquished by Hercules; 
they attacked Attica in the time of Theseus, 
and they came to the assistance of Troy under 
their queen, Penthesilea, who was slain by 
Achilles. 

Ambala, am bah'la, or Umballa, urn bahVla, a 
town of India, in the Punjab, 150 mi. n. w. of 
Delhi. It has a flourishing trade in grain and 
other commodities. The town was founded in 
the 14th century. Population in 1911, 80,131. 

A mbassador, a minister of the highest rank, 
employed by one prince or state at the court of 
another. Ambassadors are ordinary when they 
reside permanently at a foreign court, or extraor¬ 
dinary when they are sent on a special occa¬ 
sion. When ambassadors extraordinary have 
full powers, as of concluding peace, making 
treaties, and the like, they are called plenipo¬ 
tentiaries. Until recently the United States 
sent no ambassadors to foreign countries, but 
were represented by ministers-plenipotentiary, 
appointed by the president with approval of 
the Senate. In 1896 the ministers to Germany, 
France, England and Italy were raised to the 
rank of ambassadors in recognition of similar 
action upon the part of those governments, and 
since that time other ambassadorships have 
been named, including the post at Japan. 


Ambato, am bah'to, or Asiento de Ambato, 

a syayn’to da am bah'to, a town of Ecuador 
situated on the n. w slope of Chimborazo, 78 
mi. s. of Quito. The location is nearly 9,000 
feet above the sea and in the midst of an earth¬ 
quake region. The town has an important 
trade in the products of the neighboring country, 
and in grain, sugar and cochineal. Population 
in 1910, about 10,000. 

Am'ber, a fossilized resin of pale yellowish or 
brown color. It is brittle and translucent and 
possessed of a resinous luster. It bums with a 
yellow flame, emitting a strong odor and con¬ 
siderable smoke, leaving an ash which is used 
as the basis of the finest black varnish. Elec¬ 
tricity was first discovered in this substance 
which becomes highly electric under friction. 
The Greek name for amber is electron, and 
from this the word electricity is derived. It is 
known that amber was once in liquid form, 
as the remains of insects are often found 
imbedded in specimens. These remains tell 
us that amber is a product of a former geo¬ 
logical age, for all the insects preserved in it are 
of extinct species. Amber is found in the largest 
quantities on the Prussian coast of the Baltic 
Sea, where it is sometimes cast up by the waves, 
but it is generally dug from a deposit of car¬ 
bonized wood, which is from forty to fifty feet 
below the surface. It is usually found in small 
pieces, but occasionally lumps weighing twelve 
or fifteen pounds are obtained. Amber is quite 
extensively used in the manufacture of mouth¬ 
pieces for pipes and for cigar holders. 

Ambergris, am'bur grees, a substance derived 
from the intestines of the sperm-whale and 
found floating near the seashore. It is a yellow¬ 
ish or blackish white, fatty substance with a very 
agreeable odor, and is used in perfumes. 

Amboy'na, Amboina or Apon, one of the 
Molucca Islands, in the Indian Archipelago, 
close to the large island of Ceram. It is about 
30 miles long and 10 miles wide. Here is the 
seat of government of the Dutch residency or 
province of Amboyna, which includes also 
Ceram, Banda Isles, Burn and other islands. 
Amboyna affords a variety of useful trees, 
including the cocoanut and sago palms, and 
cloves and nutmegs are the staple productions. 
The capital, also called Amboyna. is situated on 
the Bay of Amboyna, and is well built and 
defended by a citadel. Population, 40,000. 

Ambrose, am'broze, Saint (about 340-397), 
one of the early Fathers of the Church, famed for 
his wisdom and gentleness. When elected bishop 


Ambrosia 


American Association 


of Milan in 374 his modesty prevented him from 
accepting the place at once, though later in that 
position he earned the reverence of every one by 
his excellent character. He was the warm friend 
of Monica, the mother of Augustine, and the 
adviser of the latter. His works, which may 
be had in English translations, are still consid¬ 
ered authoritative by the Church. 

Ambrosia, am bro'zhah, with nectar, the food 
and drink of the gods. The term ambrosia 
was sometimes used to mean both food and 
drink and was regarded as the main cause of 
the gods’ eternal youth. They not only ate it 
and drank it, but bathed in it and anointed 
themselves with it. Sometimes as a punish¬ 
ment they were deprived of it for a time, and 
their power grew perceptibly less. If a mortal, 
on the other hand, was fed on ambrosia, he 
acquired the strength of a god and became 
immortal. 

Am'bulance, a four- or two-wheeled wagon 
fitted up for the conveyance of injured persons. 
In the armies of the world the term is applied 
to movable field hospitals, especially those con¬ 
trolled by the Red Cross Society. Every prin¬ 
cipal city in America has its hospitals and police 
departments equipped with excellent ambulances 
in the charge of qualified surgeons. These vehi¬ 
cles, having the right of way over other vehicles, 
respond to accident calls sent by the police, and 
render most efficient first aid to the injured 
and then convey them to hospitals or homes. 
Ambulances are also provided for the convey¬ 
ance of injured animals. 

Amend'ment, an alteration or change in a 
law or a proposal to change a law or to change 
a resolution already under discussion in a 
public meeting. When amendments are made 
in either house of Congress upon a bill 
which passed the other, the bill, as amended, 
must be sent back to the other house for con¬ 
currence. The Constitution of the United States 
contains a provision for its own amendment as 
follows:— 

“The Congress, whenever two-thirds of both 
houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose 
amendments to this Constitution; or, on the 
application of the legislatures of two-thirds of 
the several states, shall call a convention for 
proposing amendments, which, in either case, 
shall be valid to all intents and purposes, as 
part of this constitution, when ratified by the 
legislatures of three-fourths of the several 
states, or by conventions in three-fourths 
thereof, as the one or the other mode of rati¬ 


fication may be proposed by the Congress; pro¬ 
vided, that no amendment which may be made 
prior to the year 1808 shall in any manner 
affect the first and fourth clauses in the ninth 
section of the first article; and that no state, 
without its consent, shall be deprived of its 
equal suffrage in the Senate.” 

America or The New World, named 
from Americus Vespucius, who discovered a por¬ 
tion of the continent. The American continent 
consists of the grand divisions. North America 
and South America, with their attendant islands. 
Each of these divisions is also called a continent. 
Its greatest extent from north to south is about 
9000 miles, its greatest breadth is 3300 miles, 
and the total area, including islands, is about 
16,000,000 square miles. The coast line meas¬ 
ures 44,000 miles. The continent is bordered 
on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east 
by the Atlantic and on the west by the Pacific, 
while the Antarctic or Southern Ocean touches 
the extreme southern point. The American con¬ 
tinent forms the barrier which divides the 
Atlantic and Pacific oceans for their entire 
length. The grand divisions are connected by 
the Isthmus of Panama, which at its narrowest 
point is only 28 miles in width. In general out¬ 
line and structure, the two grand divisions are 
quite similar, being triangular, with the vertex 
at the southern point. A high mount ain range 
extending nearly the entire length of each grand 
division upon the west, a low mountain range 
approximately parallel to the coast on the east 
and much shorter than the western range, and 
a central plain or plateau between, constitute 
the characteristic features of each grand division. 
In the northwest, the continent approaches 
within about 50 miles of Asia, from which it is 
separated by Bering Strait. For a detailed 
description of the grand divisions, see North 
America; South America: Central America. 

America, the national hymn of the United 
States, beginning with the words, “My Country 
’tis of Thee.” The words were written by the 
Reverend Samuel Smith, and were first used in 
1832 at a children’s Fourth of July celebration 
in Boston. The tune was written by Henry 
Carey about 1742. The English anthem, “God 
Save the King,” and the German patriotic song, 
“Heil dir im Siegerkranz,” are set to this music. 

American Association for the Advance¬ 
ment of Science, The, is one of the most noted 
scientific societies in the United States. It was 
organized as the Association of American 
Geologists and Naturalists, but in 1847 the name 


American Beauty 

was changed to American Association for the 
Advancement of Science. The purpose of the 
organization is to encourage and promote 
scientific work and research and to gain an 
extended influence for all scientific movements. 
The society is divided into nine sections: mathe¬ 
matics and astronomy, physics, chemistry, 
mechanical science and engineering, geology and 
geography, zoology, botany, anthropology, 
economic science and statistics. Among its 
members, which number about 3500, are found 
the most prominent leaders of American science, 
as well as many educators and other noted men 
who are in sympathy with the work. The 
association holds yearly meetings which last one 
week. During this time the sections meet 
separately. An annual volume of proceedings 
is published and constitutes one of the most 
valuable contributions tc scientific literature. 

American Beauty, an elegant cultivated rose 
which was first grown in hothouses of the United 
States. The large, showy flowers, with velvety 
petals of a deep, rich red, grow quite tall on stiff, 
thick, woody stems. Owing to their fragrance 
and beauty the flowers are popular and often 
expensive. 

American Federation of Catholic Societies, 

The, has for its objects “the cementing of the 
bonds of federal union among the Catholic laity 
and the Catholic societies of the United States; the 
fostering and protecting of Catholic interests and 
works of religion, piety, education and charity; 
ihe study of social conditions and the “ncouvage- 
ment of the spread of Catholic literatuiv. and of 
the circulation of the Catholic press.” The head¬ 
quarters of the federation are at Cincinnati, Ohio. 

American Forestry Association, a society 
organized in 1882 for the purpose of promoting 
means for caring for and making a wise use of 
the forest resources within the United States. 
The association was incorporated in 1897. It 
comprises about two thousand members and 
holds annual meetings, usually in those sections 
of the country where it feels that its influence is 
most needed. The work of the association con¬ 
sists in securing legislation favorable to the 
preservation of forests, disseminating knowledge 
of the best methods of forestry and educating in 
a general way those who are interested in forest 
preservation. It publishes Forestry and Irri¬ 
gation, which is its official organ. The office of 
the secretary is at Washington, D. C. 

American Goldfinch, Yellowbird or This¬ 
tle-bird, often incorrectly called the wild 
canary. The male is a bright yellow with black 


Americanisms 

cap, wings and tail, and the female a yellowish 
brown. In spring these birds may be seen in 
small flocks feeding on thistle seeds or hemp 
seeds. They rarely light upon the ground 
except when drinking. The name yellowbird 
is also given to the little American yellow warbler. 
See Birds, color plate, Fig. 3; Nest, color 
plate, Fig. 3. 

American Indians. See Indians, American. 
Amer'icanisms, a term applied to certain 
words and idioms of the English language 
peculiar to the United States. They may be 
words that have originated in America; words 
that are used in America while they have become 
obsolete in Great Britain, or words that are used 
in America in a different sense from that under¬ 
stood in Great Britain. Many Americanisms 
have come into reputable use, but others are 
merely local and may be regarded as barbarisms. 
Following are a few of the more common Ameri¬ 
canisms: 

Around or round, about or near. To hang around is 
to loiter about a place. 

Backwoods, the partially cleared forest regions in the 
western states. 

Baggage, luggage. 

Blizzard, a fierce storm of snow or sleet. 

Bogus, false, counterfeit. 

Boss, an employer or superintendent of laborers, a 
leader. 

Bronco, a native or Mexican horse of small size. 

Bug, a coleopterous insect, that is, a beetle. 

Buggy, a four-wheeled vehicle. 

Bulldoze, to, to intimidate voters. 

Bureau, a chest of drawers, surmounted by a mirror; 

called in England, a dressing-table. 

Calculate, to suppose, to believe, to think. 

Canebrake, a thicket of canes. 

Canyon, a deep gorge between high, steep banks worn 
by water courses. 

Caucus, a meeting of the leading politicians of a party 
to lay the plans for an approaching election or to 
decide upon any course of action. 

Chunk, a short, thick piece of wood or any other 
material. 

Clever, good-natured, obliging. 

Cowboy, a cattle herder or drover on the western plains. 
Cowhide, a whip made of twisted strips of rawhide. 
Creek, a small river or brook; not, as in England, a 
small arm of the sea. 

Creole, a person of French or Spanish descent who is 
a native of Louisiana or one of the adjoining gulf 
states. 

Cunning, small and pretty. 

Dead-heads, people who have free admission to enter¬ 
tainments, or who have the use of public convey¬ 
ances, or the like, free of charge. 

Depot, a railway station. 

Down east, in or into the New England stated , 1 
down-easter is a New Englander. 

Drummer, a commercial traveler. 

Dry goods, a general term for such articles, os are sold 
by linen-drapers, haberdashers and hosiers. 




Americanisms 

Dvde, a dandy, one who dresses in the extreme of 
fashion. 

Fall, autumn. 

Fix, to, to put in order, to prepare, to adjust, to 
repair. 

Gerrymander, to, to arrange political divisions so that 
in an election one party may obtain an advantage 
over its opponent, even though the latter may 
possess a majority of votes in the state; from the 
deviser of such a scheme, Elbridge Gerry, governor 
of Massachusetts. 

Given name, a Christian name. 

Grit, courage, spirit, mettle. 

Guess, to, to believe, to suppose, to think, to fancy. 

Gulch, a deep, abrupt ravine, caused by the action of 
water. 

Help, a servant. 

Highfalutin, inflated speech, bombast. 

Hoe-cake, a cake of Indian meal baked on a hoe or 
before the fire 

Hustle, to, to hurry. 

Jew, to, to haggle, or to "beat down” in price. 

Johnny-cake, a cake made of Indian corn mea’; the 
term is also applied to a New Englander. 

Lasso, to to catch horses or cattle by means of a 
rope or thong of leather with a running noose. 

Likely promising 

Loajer, a lounger a vagabond. 

Lobby to, to solicit members of a legislative body for 
the purpose or influencing their votes. 

Log-rolling, a system or political cooperation or schem¬ 
ing. 

Lot a piece or division of land, an allotment. 

Lumber, timber sawed for use; as beams, joists, planks. 

Lynch law, an irregular species of justice executed by 
the populace or a mob, without legal authority or 
trial. 

Mocassin, a shoe of soft leather, originally worn by the 
American indians. 

Muss, a state of confusion. 

Notions, a term applied to every variety of small wares. 

One-horse; a one-horse thing is a thing of little value 
or importance. 

Pickaninny, a negro child. 

Planks, in a political sense, are the several principles 
which appertain to a party; platform is the col¬ 
lection of such principles. 

Rile, to, to irritate, to drive into a passion. 

Rooster, the common domestic cock. 

Saloon, a tap-room. 

Scalawag, a scamp, a scrapegrace. 

Shanty, a temporary hut. 

Sick, ill. 

Skedaddle, to, to rim away; a word introduced during 
the Civil War. 

Smart, often used in the South in the sense of con¬ 
siderable. 

Span, of horses, two horses as nearly as possible alike, 
harnessed side by side. 

Spread-eagle style, a compound of exaggeration, bom¬ 
bast, mixed metaphor, etc. 

Spry, active. 

Succotash, an Indian dish made of maize and beans 
boiled together. 

Tenderfoot, a newcomer; used especially in the West. 

Truck, the small produce of gardens. 

Trust, an organization for the control of several corpo¬ 
rations. 

Ugly, ill-tempered, vicious. 


Ames 

Vamose, to, to run off. 

Wilt, to, to fade, to decay, to droop, to wither. 

American Party. See Know-Nothings. 
Amer'icus, Ga., the county-seat of Sumter 
co., 70 mi. s. w. of Macon, on the Central of 
Georgia and the Georgia & Alabama railroads. 
The city is in a cotton and sugar-cane district 
and has foundries, machine shops and chemical 
works. Americus was settled in 1832 and incor¬ 
porated in 1855. Population in 1910, 8063. 

Amer'icus Vespucius, ves pu'she us, (1451- 
1512), a maritime discoverer, after whom 
America was named. He waS bom at Florence, 
Italy. In 1499, in the employ of Spain, he 
coasted along the continent of America for 
several hundred leagues; and again in 1503, 
under Portuguese auspices, he explored South 
America from Cape Saint Roque to Cape Frio. 



AMERICUS VESPUCIUS 


From 1505 to his death he was pilot-major of 
Spain, and did much to further exploration and 
discovery. His name was first suggested by a 
map-maker, as a fit name for the New World 
(meaning Brazil), was later applied to South 
America and finally extended to both continents. 

Ames, Oakes (1804—1873), an American 
financier and legislator, born in Easton, Mass. 
He was congressman from 1862 to 1873 from 
Massachusetts, and was interested in contracts 
for building the Union Pacific railroad. His 
connection with the Credit Mobilier led to a 
congressional investigation; he was censured and 
withdrew from political life, though it appeared 
that he did not purposely do wrong. 



Amesbury 

Ames bury, aymz'ber ry . Mass., a town in 
Essex co., 42 mi. n. of Boston, on the Boston & 
Maine railroad. It has a public library and 
contains manufactures of carriages, hats, shoes, 
cotton goods and other articles. John Green- 
leaf Whittier lived here after 1836 until his 
death. The town was separated from Salisbury 
and called New Salisbury in 1654, incorporated 
in 1666 and given its present name the next 
year. Population in 1910, 9894. 

Am'ethyst, a purple variety of quartz, which 
usually occurs in crystals, forming very beautiful 
specimens. The coloring is supposed to be due 
to manganese. Amethyst is found in Siberia, 
India, Ceylon and numerous other places. In 
the United States it occurs in largest quantities 
around Thunder Bay on Lake Superior. The 
oriental amethyst is a beautiful and costly gem, 
and is a variety of corundum. The Greeks 
believed amethyst to be a protection against the 
effects of intoxicating liquors and hence gave 
it its name, which means without wine. Among 
them it is worn by those who were addicted to 
drunkenness. It is needless to say that it has 
never been known to effect a cure. 

Am'herst, Mass., a town in Hampshire co., 
23 mi. n. of Springfield, on the Boston & Maine 
and the Central Vermont railroads. It is the 
seat of Amherst College and of the Massachu¬ 
setts Agricultural College. The location is beau¬ 
tiful, in the Connecticut Valley within sight of 
Mount Holyoke and other mountains. The 
place was probably settled in 1703 and was 
known successively under various names until 
its incorporation in 1759. Population in 1910, 
5112. 

Amherst College, a college located at 
Amherst, Mass. It was established by an 
association of Congregational and Presbyterian 
ministers in 1815, and was the outgrowth of 
Amherst Academy. Six years later it was 
opened as a college and is ranked as one of the 
foremost colleges of New England. It is cele¬ 
brated for its adherence to classical and general 
culture and for never attempting to do univer¬ 
sity work. The faculty numbers about fifty, 
and its average enrollment is over 500. The 
library has over 100,000 volumes, and the annual 
income of the college is about $110,000. 

Amicis, ah me'ches, Edmondo de (1846-1908), 
popular Italian author. His first literary suc¬ 
cess came to him with the publication of Boz- 
zetti, a volume of army sketches, and this was 
followed, after some years of travel, by several 
brilliant volumes describing his journeys in 


Ammonia 

Spain, England, Holland and Turkey. He also 
wrote a number of historical novelettes which 
have been very popular, and afterwards turned 
his attention to educational subjects. A volume 
of sketches called The Heart of a Boy, which 
gives in the words of a boy his school experi¬ 
ences for a year, is perhaps his most popular 
book. 

Amiens, ah'myaN', a city of France, situated 
on the Somme River, 81 mi. n. of Paris. The 
most noted building is the cathedral, which is 
the largest ecclesiastical structure in France 
and is considered one of the finest examples of 
Gothic architecture in Europe. It was begun 
in 1220 and took nearly seventy years for com¬ 
pletion. It has a spire 360 feet high. Amo ng 
the other public buildings are the lyceum, 
theological seminary and municipal library, 
which contains over 100,000 volumes. The 
manufactures include linen, woolen and silk 
goods, plush and shoes. Population in 1911, 
93,207. 

Am'mon, an ancient Egyptian deity, identified 
by the Greeks and Romans with Jupiter, and 
represented as 
a human be¬ 
ing with a 
ram’s head, or 
simply with 
the horns of a 
ram. There 
was a cele¬ 
brated temple 
of Ammon in 
the Oasis of 
Siwah in the 
Libyan desert. 

Ammo'nia, 
an allcalir 
substance, 
which dif- r 


, , AMMON AND MUT 

the other 

alkalies by being gaseous, and is hence some¬ 
times called the volatile alkali. It is a colorless, 
pungent gas, composed of nitrogen and hydro¬ 
gen. It was first procured in that state by 
Priestley, who termed it alkaline air. He obtained 
it from sal-ammoniac by the action of lime, by 
which method it is yet generally prepared. It is 
used for many purposes, both in medicine and 
chemistry, sometimes in the gaseous state, but 
generally in solution in water, under the names of 
liquid ammonia, aqueous ammonia or spirits of 
hartshorn. It may be procured naturally from 




















Ammonite 


decaying animal substances; artificially it is 
chiefly obtained Tom the distillation of coal and 
of refuse animal substances, such as bones, 
clippings and shavings of horn, hoof, etc. It 
may also be obtained from vegetable matter 
when nitrogen is one of its elements. Sal- 
ammoniac is the chloride of ammonium. 

Am'monite, a fossil animal allied to the nauti¬ 
lus, having a many-chambered shell like a 



AMMONITES 


curved ram’s horn. In some forms it is found 
in immense numbers and of great size. 

Ammo'nium, the name given to the supposed 
base of ammonia, similar to a metal, as potassium. 
It has not been separated as such, but it is 
believed to exist in an amalgam with mercury. 

Ammunition, am'mu nish'un, the ball, pow¬ 
der and primer necessary to the firing of a gun. 
For all small arms and usually for small cannon 
the entire charge is put up in cases of brass 
or brass and pasteboard, and is known as -fixed 
ammunition (See Cartridge). In the larger 
gum: the projectile is first put into the breach 
and after it, is packed in the powder, either in 
a brass case or, if too heavy for handling in one 
package, in cloth bags. The primer is used 
to explode the charge. Ammunition for the 
army is largely manufactured in government 
works, and a great variety of powder charges, 
explosives and shells is used. The use of rapid- 
fire and automatic guns has made it necessary 
to have a larger quantity of ammunition with 
an army than has previously been required, and 
this has increased the difficulties of keeping the 
firing line well supplied. 

Amoeba, a me'ba, one of the smallest and 
simplest animals in the world. It can be found 
in almost any pool of stagnant water, and clings 
to weeds, dead leaves and other objects under 
the surface. It cannot be seen with the naked 
eye, and rarely becomes more than l-100th of an 
inch in diameter. It appears like a shapeless 
blob of jelly, and is in reality the substance 
called protoplasm (See Protoplasm). The 
central part of the amoeba is semi-transparent 
and resembles ground glass in appearance. 
Around the outer edge is a border of perfectly 


Amoy 

transparent and colorless substance. Within the 
granular part may be seen a small brown mass 
which is a little darker than the rest and is 
called the nucleus. Another little structure in 
the granular part is a clear, rounded space 
which disappears periodically with a sudden 
contraction and then slowly reappears. Under 
the microscope the amoeba is seen to change its 
form frequently by sending out little finger-like 
processes called pseudopodia. This process 
starts as a little pimple-like elevation which 
grows in size as the body flows toward it. Of 
course the volume of the amoeba is not changed, 
and whatever is protruded from one part of the 
body must be withdrawn from another. When¬ 
ever one of these pseudopodia comes in contact 
with anything digestible, the amoeba flows 
around it and is capable of digesting the h>od 
as though a special stomach had been impro¬ 
vised. When the process of digestion is over, 
the waste matter is pushed through the side 



AMOEBA 

Showing six stages in the process of reproduction. 

opposite to that on which it entered. Amoebas 
are reproduced by simple process of division; a 
line forms through the nucleus and through 
the protoplasm, a single amoeba becoming two. 

Amoor, ah'moor, River. See Amur. 

A'mos, one of the minor Hebrew prophets 
and supposed author of the book which bears 
his name. He was a herdsman and prophesied, 
it is supposed, about 760 b. c. His prophecies 
were, directed against the idolatrous nations 
around him and against the Jews themselves 
for their idolatry. His writings, which are 
marvels of clearness and of vigor, were edited 
at a period long after his death. 

Amoy', a seaport town of China, situated 
nearly opposite the center of the island of For- 



Ampere 

mosa, on the south end of the island of Amoy. 
It is at the mouth of two united rivers, and its 
harbor is one of the best on the Pacific. The 
imports are cotton, opium, metals, clocks, 
indigo and grain, and the exports are tea, cam¬ 
phor, sugar, earthenware and paper. The town 
was captured by the British in 1841, and by the 
Treaty of Nanking in 1842 this port was opened 
to their trade. Population in 1911, 114,000. 

Ampere, ahN pare', Andre Marie (1775- 
1836), a French scientist and mathematician, 
bom at Lyons. In 1801 he became professor 
of physics in the central school of the depart¬ 
ment of Ain at Bourg. Later he went to Paris, 
where he acquired a wide reputation as a teacher 
in the polytechnic school. In 1824 he was 
appointed professor of experimental physics in 
the College de France. Ampere is widely 
known on account of his discoveries in elec¬ 
tricity. He published several scientific works 
and numerous papers, periodicals and reports. 
See Magnetism. 

Amphibians, am fU/e anz, a class of verte¬ 
brate animals which in their early life breathe 
by gills and afterward partly or entirely by 
lungs. They are called amphibians because of 
their ability to live either on land or in water. 
In some species the gills are retained through 
life, although lungs also are developed. There 
are a number of different divisions of this 
class, among which the most noteworthy are 
the batrachians, or tailless amphibians. See 
Blindworm; Frog; Newt; Toad. 

Amphictyonic, am fic'te on'ic, Council, in 
ancient Greece, a confederation of tribes for 
worship and for the protection of sacred lands 
and treasures. It also discussed questions of 
international law and matters affecting the 
political union of the tribes. It was composed 
of the twelve northern tribes and met alter¬ 
nately at Delphi and Thermopylae. The tribes 
sent two deputies each, who quelled the public 
diss ensions and the quarrels of individual cities 
by force or persuasion and punished civil and 
criminal offenses, particularly transgressions of 
the law of nations and violations of the temple 
of Delhpi. 

Amphion, am fi'on, in Greek mythology the 
son of Jupiter and Antiope, and the husband of 
Niobe. He was instructed in music by Mercury 
or, according to others, by Apollo, and his skill 
was so wonderful that when he was set to build 
the walls of Thebes, he simply played on his 
lyre, and the stones moved and arranged them¬ 
selves in their proper positions. 


Amsterdam 

Amphitheater, am'fe the'a tur, an ancient 
Roman edifice of elliptical or circular form, 
without a roof, having a central area, the arena., 
encompassed with rows of seats, rising higher 
as they receded from the center, on which 
people used to sit to view the combats of gladi¬ 
ators and of wild beasts, and other sports. The 
first amphitheater of wood in Rome was erected 
in 46 B. c. by Caesar, and in 30 b. c., under 
Augustus, the first amphitheater partly of stone 
was built. The example of the Romans was 
followed by all the large cities throughout the 
Empire. The Colosseum, or Flavian Amphi¬ 
theater, at Rome is the largest of all the ancient 
amphitheaters, being capable of seating from 
50,000 to 80,000 persons (See Colosseum). 
That at Verona is one of the best examples 
remaining. Its dimensions are 502 feet by 401, 
and 98 feet high. 

AnVputa'tion, in surgery, that operation by 
which a limb or other member is separated 
from the body. Amputations have been prac¬ 
ticed from very early times, but in the larger 
operations death was almost sure to follow 
from bleeding or from blood-poisoning. It was 
not until late in the seventeenth century that 
surgeons learned how to stop bleeding, and 
much later before they could keep out infection 
(See Surgery). In the amputation of a limb 
the flesh is cut in a slanting direction to the 
bone so as to leave one or more flaps of flesh. 
The bloodvessels are tied up, the bone sawed 
off, and the flaps brought smoothly over the 
stump and stitched down. 

Amritsar um rit'sahr, or Amritsir, a flour¬ 
ishing commercial town of Hindustan, capital 
of a district of the same name in the Punjab, 
the principal place of the religious worship of 
the Sikhs. It receives its name from the sacred 
pond constructed by Ram Das, the apostle of 
the Sikhs, in which the Sikhs and other Hindus 
immerse themselves that they may be purified 
from all sin. It has considerable manufactures 
of shawls and silks and exhibits the richest 
products of India. Population in 1911, 152,756. 

Amsterdam (dam of Amstel), one of the chief 
commercial cities of Europe, the chief city of 
Holland. On account of the lowness of the site 
of the city, the greater part of it is built on piles. 
It is divided by numerous canals into about 
ninety islands, which are connected by nearly 
three hundred bridges. The harbor, formed 
by the Y, an arm of the Zuyder Zee, lies along 
the whole of the north side of the city and is 
surrounded by various docks and basins. The 


Amsterdam 


Anabaptists 


trade is facilitated by the great ship canal, 15 
miles long, 22 to 26 feet deep, which was com¬ 
pleted in 1876 and which connects the Y directly 
with the North Sea. Another canal, the North 
Holland Canal, 46 miles long and 20 feet deep, 
connects Amsterdam with the Helder. Among 
the principal buildings in Amsterdam are the 
palace or town hall, the new Stadthuis, the 
Bourse, the Rijks Museum and the New Church, 
founded in 1408. The city is also well supplied 
with hospitals and charitable and educational 
institutions. The chief manufactures are 
tobacco, glass, soap, jewelry, linen, silk and 
machinery. One of the chief industries is 
diamond-cutting, for which Amsterdam is 
especially famous. The commerce is enormous, 
and the city is one of the first centers in the world. 
Amsterdam ranks much higher as a trading 
town than as a manufacturing town. During 
the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries it was 
one of the wealthiest and most flourishing cities 
in the world. Its forced alliance with France 
ruined its trade, but since 1813 its commerce has 
revived. Population in 1910, 573,983. 

Amsterdam, N.Y., a city in Montgomery co., 
33 mi. n. w. of Albany, on the Mohawk River, on 
the Erie Canal and on the New York Central 
and the West Shore railroads. It is in an agri¬ 
cultural district and has many factories producing 
knit goods, carpets, steel springs, paper and other 
articles. The city has a good drainage system 
and water supply, has electric railroads and is 
lighted by electricity. The first settlement was 
made in 1778, and it was known as Viedersburg 
until 1804. Amsterdam was incorporated as 
a city in 1885. Population in 1910, 31,267. 

Amu, ah mao', or Amu-Darya, ah moo'dahr'ya, 
(ancient Oxus), a large river of central Asia that 
rises in the Pamir between Bokhara and India, 
flowing northwesterly into the Sea of Aral. Its 
length is about 1600 miles, 800 of which are 
navigable for light boats. In its course the 
Amu receives a number of tributaries and in 
historic times has frequently changed its course. 
As late as the early part of the sixteenth century 
it flowed into the Caspian Sea. This river is of 
importance because it is the source of water for 
the irrigation of the surrounding country. 

Amundsen, Roald (1870- ), a Norwegian 

navigator and explorer, born in Christiania, 
Norway, and educated in the public schools. 
At 25 he joined a south polar expedition and 
on his return, became acquainted with Dr. 
Nansen, the Arctic explorer. In 1902 Amundsen 
decided to locate the north magnetic pole and 


find the northwest passage. Early in 1903 he 
left Christiania in the ship Goja and in 1905 suc¬ 
ceeded in passing through Bering Strait into the 



Pacific. In 1910 he sailed in the Fram with the 
hope of discovering the south pole, in which en¬ 
terprise he succeeded on December 14,1911, thus 
sharing with Commander Peary the honors of 
polar discoveries. 

Amur or Amoor, ah moor*, a river of eastern 
Asia, formed by the union of the Shilka and 
Argun rivers. Tt flows first in an easterly direc¬ 
tion and then southeast along the northern 
boundary of Manchuria. At the eastern bound¬ 
ary of Manchuria it flows northward until it 
empties into the strait, opposite the island of 
Saghalien, which opens into the Sea of Okhotsk. 
The Amur is about 2680 miles long. For the 
most part it is open for navigation and is valuable 
for commerce. The great steamer station is 
Khaborovsk, which is connected by rail with 
Vladivostok. The river affords an ice-free 
port on the Pacific, the goal long desired by the 
Russians. 

An'abap'tists, a name given to a Christian 
sect because, as they objected to infant baptism, 
they baptized all those who joined them. In 
1520 Switzerland became a center for Anabap¬ 
tists, from which they spread to the Netherlands 
and Westphalia. In 1534 the town of Munster 
in Westphalia was their center of action. Bock- 
hold became leader, assuming the name of John 
of Leyden, king of the New Jerusalem, and the 
city was the scene of much cruelty and fanaticism. 




Anachronism 


Analytical Geometry 


Anachronism, a nak'ro nizm, an error of 
chronology by which things are represented as 
co-existing which did not co-exist. Anachro¬ 
nisms are sometimes made purposely, for the 
sake of effect, as in the old epics the heroes are 
always young, the heroines always beautiful. In 
art some of the most glaring instances have 
occurred in the works of the Dutch school, 
where, for instance, scriptural characters were 
sometimes represented as armed with guns or 
as dressed in the costume of the seventeenth 
century. 

An'acon'da, the popular name of two of the 
largest species of the serpent tribe. The Cey¬ 
lonese species is said to 
reach thirty-three feet 
in length; the other, a 
native of tropical Amer¬ 
ica, the largest of the 
serpents, attains the 
length of forty feet. The 
nam° is often applied 
to any large snake that 
crushes its prey. See 

-p, pi_ HEAD OP THE ANACONDA 

Boa; Python. 

Anaconda, Mont- the county-seat of Deer 
Lodge co., 27 mi. n. w. of Butte, on the Northern 
Pacific, the Great Northern and other railroads. 
The copper smelting works in the city are among 
the largest in the world. There are also rail¬ 
road shops, foundries, machine-shops and brick 
yards. Deposits of graphite and sapphires are 
found in the vicinity. The city has public parks, 
two opera houses and the Hearst Free Library. 
The place was settled in 1884 when the reduction 
works were established, and has developed with 
the copper industry. Population in 1910, 10,134. 

Ana'creon (561-476 b. c.), a Greek lyric poet, 
a native of Teos, in Ionia. Only a few frag¬ 
ments of his works have come down to us; the 
collection of odes that usually passes under the 
name of Anacreon is mostly the production of a 
later time. 

Anaemia, a nee'me ah, a diseased condition 
in which the blood becomes very much weakened 
and, in consequence, weakness, palpitation of 
the heart and shortness of breath afflict the sub¬ 
ject. The more severe form of the disease is 
usually fatal, while the secondary anaemia, which 
is an accompaniment of many diseases, may be 
cured by nourishing food, fresh air and medi¬ 
cines that tend to strengthen the blood. 

An'agram, a word, phrase or sentence formed 
by transposing the letters of another word, phrase 
or sentence so as to make an entirely different 


meaning. Thus, the letters in the name Florence 
Nightingale make “Flit on, cheering angel.” 
The force of an anagram depends on its con¬ 
taining exactly the same letters as the original 
word or phrase and on its having some connec¬ 
tion, eulogistic or humorous, with the original 
name or thought. In former times the making 
of anagrams was a very popular pastime and 
many men of great ability did not find it beneath 
them to use their ingenuity to this end, but at 
present the device has gone out of fashion except 
in the puzzle columns of magazines. 

An'akim, the children of Anak, the son of 
Arba, noted in sacred history for their fierceness 
and their great stature. Their stronghold was 
Kirjath-Arba, or Hebron. They were scattered 
over the hills in Israel and Judah and were 
conquered by Joshua. 

Anal'ysis, the separation of anything into its 
elements. In philosophy it is the mode of resolv¬ 
ing a compound idea into its simple parts, in 
order to consider them more distinctly and arrive 
at a more precise knowledge of the whole. It is 
opposed to synthesis, by which we combine and 
class our perceptions and contrive expressions 
for our thought so as to represent their several 
divisions, classes and relations. 

In chemistry, analysis is the process of taking 
apart a compound substance with a view to 
determine either (a) what elements it contains 
(qualitative analysis ), or (6) how much of each 
element is present {quantitative analysis). Thus 
by the first process we learn that water is a com¬ 
pound of hydrogen and oxygen, and by the 
second that it consists of one part of hydrogen 
by weight to eight parts of oxygen. 

An'alyt'ical Geom'etry, a branch of geom¬ 
etry which investigates the relations of geometric 
figures by means of algebraic symbols and 
methods. It had its origin in the fact that every 
geometric relation is capable of being expressed 
by an algebraic equation, and that this is often 
the most simple and convenient way of express¬ 
ing it. This equation, when solved by algebraic 
methods, may be translated into geometrical 
language, the values of the unknown quantities 
representing the coordinates of successive points 
in the geometrical figures (See Coordinates). 
To illustrate: From the algebraic equation 
5x+6y —15, we may derive the expression 
15—5# 

y =—-—. Substituting different values for x 

in this equation, the value of y may be readily 
found as follows: If x—^, y=2. If x—1, 
y=l§. If #=1^, y=l, etc. These pairs of 




Anam 


Anchor 


values represent pairs of coordinates of different 
points. When plotted with reference to two 
perpendicular lines, these points describe a 
straight line. See Coordinates; Geometry. 

Anam'. See Ann am. 

An'ani'as, the name of three biblical characters: 
1. A disciple at Jerusalem who, with his wife 
Sapphira, kept back a part cf the price of land 
they had sold, and told the disciples they were 
giving all. They were both struck dead for the 
crime {Acts v, 1-10). 2. A high priest at 

Jerusalem (Acts xxiii, 2). 3. A disciple at 
Damascus (Acts x, 10-17). 

Anarchists, an'ahr kists, a revolutionary sect 
or party, setting forth, as the social ideal, the 
extreme form of individual freedom, holding 
that all government is injurious and immoral, 
that the destruction of every social form now 
existing must be the first step to the creation of 
a new and just society. The anarchists first 
assumed independent importance about 1872, 
when they separated from the Social Democrats. 
Their principal journals have been La Revolte 
(Paris), the Freiheit (NewYork), Liberty (Boston) 
and the Anarchist (London). The Anarchists 
in America have accomplished little, though they 
maintain an active propaganda. 

Anat'omy, the science which treats of the 
structure of animals and plants, is divided into 
numerous branches. Animal anatomy treats 
of the structure of animals; vegetable or plant 
anatomy, of the structure of plants; while human 
anatomy pertains to the structure of the human 
system. Comparative anatomy relates to the 
study of animals with a view to comparing their 
structure with that of the human body or with 
that of animals of different orders. Previous 
to the Christian era, little was known of the 
structure of the human system. Most peoples 
held the body sacred after death and dissection 
was not allowed. The earliest dissection was 
among the Greeks, about 450 B. c. At this time 
Hippocrates and his school obtained some knowl¬ 
edge of the skeleton and the larger internal 
organs. Dissection was first practiced in public 
at the Alexandrian School, where considerable 
advance was made in the knowledge of human 
anatomy, but prejudice against the practice was 
so strong that it was given up and nothing 
further was achieved for several hundred years. 
In the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries the 
value of dissection for those studying medicine 
became evident, and the rulers of leading Euro¬ 
pean nations ordered a certain number of dis¬ 
sections in the medical schools each year. From 


this the practice became general in all univer¬ 
sities having medical schools attached to them. 

At the present time the science of anatomy has 
reached a high degree of perfection in all the 
medical colleges of America and Europe, and 
each of the branches of human anatomy has been 
itself divided into numerous subdivisions; so 
that physicians who wish to become specialists, 
after obtaining a general knowledge of the 
human system, confine their investigations to 
one branch, such as histology, or to the eye or 
the brain and nerves. Anatomy is closely 
related to surgery, since the successful surgeon 
must be acquainted with the position and struc¬ 
ture of every organ in the body. See Abdomen; 
Brain; Muscles; Nerves; Skeleton and many 
kindred topics. 

An'axag'oras (500-428 b.c. an ancient 
Greek philosopher of the Ionic school, who 
gathered around him a circle of renowned pupils, 
including Pericles, Euripides and Socrates. 
At the age of fifty he was publicly charged with 
impiety and sentenced to perpetual banishment. 

Anax'iman'der (611-547 b.c.), an an¬ 
cient Greek (Ionic) philosopher, was bom at 
Miletus. According to his philosophy, the 
firmament is composed of heat and cold, the stars 
of air and fire. The sun occupies the highest 
place in the heavens, has a circumference twenty- 
eight times larger than the earth, and resembles 
a cylinder, from which streams of fire issue. The 
moon is likewise a cylinder, nineteen times 
larger than the earth. The earth has the shape 
of a cylinder, and is placed in the midst of the 
universe, where it remains suspended. 

An'axim'enes of Miletus, an ancient Greek 
philosopher, according to whom air was the first 
principle of all things. He flourished about 
550 b. c. 

Anchor, an'kor, an instrument of iron or other 
heavy material used to prevent a ship from 
drifting. The invention of so necessary an 
instrument is to be referred, as may be supposed, 
to the remotest antiquity. The most ancient 
anchors consisted merely of large stones, baskets 
full of stones, sacks filled with sand or logs of 
wood loaded with lead. The ordinary modem 
anchor has two spade-like points or flukes at the 
end of a shank, to which the anchor chain is 
fastened. A crossbar is usually added, so 
arranged that a horizontal pull on the chain will 
drive one of the flukes into the ocean bottom. 
To loosen the anchor, a vertical pull is necessary. 
Patent anchors have two flukes, pointing in the 
same direction and loosely bolted to the & shank. 


Anchovy 

so that they will turn and both take hold of the 
earth at once. 

Ancho'vy, a small fish of the herring family. 
The common anchovy, esteemed for its rich and 
peculiar flavor, is not larger than the middle 
finger. It is caught in vast numbers in the 



ANCHOVY 


Mediterranean and frequently on the coast of 
France, Holland and the south of England. A 
similar species is found on both the Atlantic and 
Pacific coasts of America. 

Anchovy Pear, the fruit of a tree which grows 
about fifty feet in height, a native of Jamaica. 
The tree has large leaves and large white flowers, 
and it bears a fruit somewhat bigger than a hen’s 
egg. This fruit is pickled and eaten like the 
mango, which it strongly resembles in taste. 

Ancient Order of United Workmen, a 
fraternal benevolent organization founded at 
Meadsville, Pa., in 1868. It is governed by a 
“supreme lodge” which has control over the 
“grand” or “state” lodges, which in turn govern 
the subordinate lodges. It pays a benefit of 
$2000 to families of deceased members. In 
1905 the order had 39 grand lodges, 5000 sub¬ 
lodges and 313,000 members. It had disbursed 
since its organization nearly $145,000,000 in 
benefits. 

Ancona, an Iccfna, a seaport of Italy, capital 
of the province of the same name, 185 mi. n. e. 
of Rome. It is built on the slope of a hill and 
is divided into two parts, the old and the new 
city. Among the remarkable structures are a 
triumphal arch of white marble, erected in honor 
of Trajan, and the Cathedral of Saint Cyriac, built 
in the eleventh and twelfth centuries. Ancona 
is a station of the Italian fleet, and the commerce 
is considerable. The town is, next to Venice, the 
principal Italian port on the Adriatic. It is said 
to have been founded about four centuries before 
the Christian era. It fell into the hands 
of the Romans in the first half of the third century 
b. c. and became a Roman colony. Population 
in 1911, 63,000. 

Andalusia, an'da loo’ze ah, a large and fertile 
district in the southern part of Spain. Its area 
is about 33,500 sq. mi., including the modern, 
provinces of Seville, Huelva, Cadiz, Jaen, 
Cordova, Granada, Almeria and Malaga. It 


Andersen 

is traversed by mountains, the loftiest being the 
Sierra Nevada. Minerals abound, especially 
in the province of Huelva, where famous copper 
mines are situated. The principal river is the 
Guadalquivir, in whose valley the grape, myrtle, 
olive, palm, banana and carob grow abundantly. 
Wheat, maize and barley grow almost spon¬ 
taneously, and honey, silk and cochineal are 
largely cultivated. The horses and mules are 
the best in Spain; the bulls are sought for bull¬ 
fighting, and fine sheep are reared in vast num¬ 
bers. Manufactures are not extensive. The 
Andalusians are descended in part from the 
Moors, of whom they still preserve decided 
characteristics. Population in 1911, 3,800,000. 

An'damans, a chain of islands on the east side 
of the Bay of Bengal, 680 mi. s. of the mouth of 
the Ganges. The surface is densely covered 
with forests which yield valuable timber, and the 
soil is very fertile. The inhabitants are small, 
generally much less than five feet, well formed 
and active, skillful archers and canoeists and 
excellent swimmers and divers. These islands 
have been used since 1858 as a penal settlement 
by the Indian government, the settlement being 
at Port Blair, oh South Andaman. Population 
in 1911, 26,500. 

Andersen, ahn'dur s’n, Hans Christian 
(1805-1875), a Danish novelist, poet and writer 



HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN 


of fairy tales, born at Odense. He was put to 
work early, but managed in his leisure moments 
to pick up the beginnings of an education. In 
1819 he went to Copenhagen, determined to 




Anderson 


Andes 


make his fortune as a dramatist, and although 
he wrote nothing of note his abilities brought 
him friends, who procured him free entrance into 
a government school at Slagelse. From this 
school he was transferred to the university, and 
while there he published a volume of poems 
which attracted some notice. He received a 
royal grant to enable him to travel, and in 1833 
he visited Italy, his impressions of which he 
published in The Improvvisatore. The scene of 
his following novel, 0. T., was laid in Denmark, 
and in Only a Fiddler he described his own early 
struggles. In 1835 appeared the first volume 
of Fairy Tales , for which he is most famous. 
Among his other works are the Picture-book 
without Pictures; A Poet's Bazaar; The Two 
Baronesses, written in English, of which he had 
gained command during a trip in England; an 
autobiography, My Life's Romance, and In 
Sweden. Andersen’s genius was fully recog¬ 
nized before his death, and high honors were 
shown him in his old age. While no one has 
ever been able to look at things more completely 
from a child’s point of view, or so to delight 
children, Andersen did not like children, nor 
was he attractive to them. 

An'derson, Ind., the county-seat of Madison 
co., 36 mi. n. e. of Indianapolis, on the west fork 
of the White River and on the Chicago & South¬ 
eastern, the New York Central (C. C. C. & St. 
L.) and other railroads. The city has a hydrau¬ 
lic canal with a fall of almost 50 feet and a good 
supply of natural gas. Its manufactures include 
iron and steel products, glass, strawboard and 
tile. Anderson owns and operates its water¬ 
works, artificial gas and electric-light plants and 
has several parks. It was settled in 1823. Near 
the city are some of the mounds of the pre¬ 
historic Mound Builders. Population in 1910, 
22,476. 

Anderson, S. C., the county-seat of Anderson 
co., 125 mi. n. w. of Columbia, on the Southern 
and other railroads. It is in an agricultural 
region and its manufactures include cotton 
products, wearing apparel, fertilizers, flour and 
machinery. Anderson Female College and 
Patrick Military Institute are located here. A 
private corporation owns an electric power plant 
on the Seneca River, from which* the city and the 
neighborhood secures much of its power and 
light. This same company controls the water 
supply. Anderson was settled in 1827. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 9654. 

Anderson, Marie Antoinette (1859- ), 

commonly known as Mary Anderson, an Ameri¬ 


can actress, born in Sacramento, Cal. She 
studied for the stage under Charlotte Cushman 
and on her first appearance as Juliet, in 1875, 
scored a distinct success. In this r 6 le and in 
that of Rosalind in As You Like It, Meg Merrilies 
in Guy Mannering and Perdita in A Winter's 
Tale, she retained her popularity until her with¬ 
drawal from the stage in 1889. In the following 
year she married Antonio Navarro de Viana. 

Anderson, Robert (1805-1871), an Ameri¬ 
can soldier, born in Kentucky. He served in 
the Black Hawk, Florida and Mexican wars 
and was wounded at Molino del Rey. As major 
cf artillery he was in charge of Forts Moultrie 
and Sumter on the outbreak of the Civil War, and 
bravely defended Sumter. He was promoted 
to the rank of major general. See Fort Sumter. 

An'dersonville, Ga., a village in Sumter co., 
situated 62 mi. s. of Macon, and of historic im¬ 
portance because it was the site of the most noted 
Confederate prison during the Civil War. In 
1863 the Confederate government enclosed I 65 
acres of ground near the village with a stockade 
fifteen feet high. The following June this was 
increased to 26^ acres, but a portion of this was 
useless because of a stream flowing through the 
ground and forming a marsh. Within this 
enclosure at times as many as 33,000 Union 
prisoners were confined. They had no shelter 
and their surroundings were extremely filthy and 
unhealthy. Between Feb. 15, 1864, and May 
1, 1869, nearly 50,000 men were imprisoned at 
Andersonville, of whom about 13,000 died. 
When Sherman’s army marched through Georgia 
the Confederates were obliged to abandon 
Andersonville, and the prisoners were removed 
to Milan, Ga., and then to Florence, S. C., where 
conditions were much more favorable. See 
Civil War in America. 

Andes, an'deez, (Spanish, Cordillera de los 
Andes, or Cordilleras), a range of mountains 
stretching along the whole of the west coast of 
South America, from Cape Horn to the Isthmus 
of Panama and the Caribbean Sea. In abso¬ 
lute length (4500 miles) no single chain of 
mountains approaches the Andes, and only a 
certain number of the higher peaks of the 
Himalayan chain rise higher above the sea 
level. Several main sections .of this huge chain 
are distinguishable. The southern Andes pre¬ 
sent a lofty main chain, with a minor chain 
running parallel to it on the east, from Terra 
del Fuego and the Straits of Magellan north¬ 
ward, rising in Aconcagua to a height of 22,860 
feet. North of this is the double chain of the 


Andorra 


Andree 


central Andes, inclosing the wide and lofty 
plateaus of Bolivia and Peru, which lie at an 
elevation of more than 12,000 feet above the 
sea. The mountain system is here at its broad¬ 
est, being about 500 miles across. Here are 
also several very lofty peaks, as Illampu or 
Sorata '21,484 feet), Sahama (21,054 feet), Ill¬ 
imani (21,024 feet). Farther north the outer 
and inner ranges draw together, and in Ecuador 
there is but one system of elevated masses, 
generally described as forming two parallel 
chains. In this section are crowded together 
a number of lofty peaks, most of them volca¬ 
noes, some extinct and some active. Of the 
latter class are Sangay (17,460 feet) and Coto¬ 
paxi (19,550 feet). The loftiest summit here 
appears to be Chimborazo (20,581 feet); others 
are Antisana (19,260 feet) and Cayambe 
(19,200 feet). Northward of this section the 
Andes break into three distinct ranges, the 
eastmost running northeastward into Venezuela, 
the westmost running northwestward to the 
Isthmus of Panama. In the central range is the 
volcano of Tolima (17,660 feet). The western 
slope of the Andes is generally exceedingly 
steep, the eastern much less so, the mountains 
sinking gradually to the plains. 

There are about thirty volcanoes in a state 
of activity. The loftiest of these .seems to be 
Gualateiri (21,960 feet) in Peru. All the dis¬ 
tricts of the Andes system have suffered severely 
from earthquakes, many towns having been 
entirely destroyed. Peaks crowned with per¬ 
petual snow are seen all along the range, and 
glaciers are also met with, especially from Acon¬ 
cagua southward. The passes are generally at 
a great height, the most important being from 
10,000 to 15,000 feet. Railways have been 
constructed to cross the chain at a similar eleva¬ 
tion. The Andes are extremely rich in the 
precious metals, gold, silver, copper, platinum, 
mercury and tin; lead and iron are also 
found. The animal and plant life of the Andes 
is abundant and varied. In these mountains are 
towns at a greater elevation than anywhere else 
in the world, the highest being the silver mining 
town of Cerro de Pasco (14,270 feet), the next 
being Potosi. 

Andorra or Andorre, a small, nominally 
independent state in the Pyrenees, with an area 
of about 175 sq. mi. and a population of about 
6000. It has been a separate state for six hun¬ 
dred years, is governed by its own civil and 
criminal codes and has its own courts of jus¬ 
tice, the laws being administered by two judges. 


one of whom is chosen by France, the other by 
the Bishop of Urgel, in Spain. The chief indus¬ 
try is the rearing of sheep and cattle. The 
capital is Andorra and has a population of 
about 1000. 

An'dover, Mass., a town in Essex co., 22 
mi. n. of Boston near Lawrence, on the Shaw- 
sheen River and the Boston & Maine railroad. 
The Andover Theological Seminary, Phillips 
Academy for boys and Abbot Academy for girls 
are located here. The town has a public library 
and owns and operates the waterworks. It 
contains manufactures of twine, thread, woolen 
and rubber goods, shoes, ink and other 
articles. The place was settled in 1643 and 
the town incorporated in 1646. It was the 
birthplace of Elizabeth Stuart Phelps Ward 
and Harriet Beecher Stowe also lived here for 
a time. Population, including several villages, 
in 1910, 7301. 

Andrassy, ahn’drah she , Count Julius 
(1823-1890), a Hungarian statesman. He 
took part in the revolution of 1848 and was 
condemned to death, but escaped and went 
into exile. After his return in 1861 he served 
in the Diet, and when self-government was 
restored in Hungary in 1867 he was appointed 
premier. He became imperial minister for 
foreign affairs in 1871, retiring from public life 
in 1879. 

An'dre, John (1751-1780), a major in the 
British army during the Revolutionary War. 
Employed to negotiate the treason of the 
American general, Arnold, and the delivery of 
the works at West Point, he was taken Septem¬ 
ber 23, 1780, within the American lines, declared 
a spy and hanged October 2,1780. His remains 
were taken to England in 1821 and interred in 
Westminster Abbey, where a monument has 
been erected to his memory. Much sympathy 
was felt for him in the patriot army, but military 
jurists are agreed that his punishment was 
merited and necessary. His own letter to 
Washington was so frank an admission of 
guilt as to warrant his conviction, and his one 
chance of escape was destroyed by the British 
refusal to surrender Arnold. Andrd’s personal 
characteristics made him a universal favorite. 

Andree, ahn’dray, Salomon August (1854- 
1897), a distinguished Swedish civil engineer 
and scientific aeronaut, who proposed in 1895 
to make a journey to the North Pole by balloon. 
He constructed a balloon that would hold gas 
for three months, with provision to refill if 
necessary, and buoyant enough to carry three 




Andrew 


Andronicus 


persons, with provisions and apparatus. In 1897 
Andree with two companions left Spitzbergen 
on an expedition to the north polar regions, 
and they have not been heard of since. Several 
expeditions went in search of the unfortunate 
aeronauts, but no trace of them was found. 

An'drew, an apostle, brother of Simon 
Peter, and, like his brother, a fisherman of 
Galilee. He was originally a disciple of John 
the Baptist and is supposed to have been Christ’s 
first disciple. According to tradition, he preached 
in Scythia, Achaia, Colchis and Epirus. There 
is no mention made of him in the Acts of the 
Apostles, but there are four important refer¬ 
ences to him in the gospels. 

Andrew, John Albion (1818-1867), an 
American statesman, bom in Albion, Maine. 
He was graduated at Bowdoin, studied law and 
was admitted to the bar at Boston. He became 
an anti-slavery man and was elected to the 
legislature in 1858. In 1860 he was elected 
governor of Massachusetts on the Republican 
ticket. To this office he was reelected until 
1866. During his whole service he devoted 
himself to the Union cause and did much to 
secure speedy and united action upon the part 
of Northern states in favor of the government. 

An'drews, Elisha Benjamin (1844-1917), 
an American educator, born at Hinsdale, N. H. 



ELISHA BENJAMIN ANDREWS 


He served in the Union army during the Civil 
War and rose to the rank of second lieutenant. 
He completed his education at Brown Univer¬ 
sity and Newton Theological Institution, then 


became professor of history and political econ¬ 
omy at Brown, from which he was appointed 
to the chair of political economy and finance 
in Cornell University. After retaining this 
position for nine years, he was elected president 
of Brown University, and under his adminis¬ 
tration the efficiency and scope of work in this 
institution were largely increased. Later Doctor 
Andrews became superintendent of the public 
schools of Chicago, which position he held for 
two years, when he was appointed chancellor 
of the University of Nebraska. In 1909 he 
resigned his position because of failing health. 
He is the author of Institutes of General History, 
Institutes of Economies and A History of the 
United States in Our Own Times. 

Andrews, Saint, an ancient city in Fife- 
shire, Scotland, 31 mi. n. e. of Edinburgh. 
The trade and manufactures are of no impor¬ 
tance, but the town is in favor as a watering- 
place, and the manufacture of golf balls and 
clubs is extensively carried on. The Univer¬ 
sity of Saint Andrews, founded in 1411, is the 
oldest of the Scotch universities. Population 
in 1911, about 8000. 

Andrews, Stephen Pearl (1812-1886), 
American writer and antislavery leader. He 
studied at Amherst College, removed to New 
Orleans and subsequently lived in Texas, 
Boston and New York City. He was an accom¬ 
plished linguist, a writer on phonography and 
the inventor of a universal language. 

Andromache, an dram'a kee, in Greek myth¬ 
ology, wife of Hector, one of the most attractive 
female characters of Homer’s Iliad. The 
passage describing her parting with Hector 
when he was setting out to his last battle is 
well known and much admired. Euripides and 
Racine have made her the chief character of 
tragedies. 

Androm'eda, in Greek mythology, daughter 
of the Ethiopian king Cepheus and of Cassio¬ 
peia. Cassiopeia boasted that her daughter 
surpassed the Nereids, if not Juno herself, in 
beauty, and the offended goddesses prevailed 
on their father, Neptune, to afflict the country 
with a horrid sea-monster, which threatened 
universal destruction. To appease the offended 
god, Andromeda was chained to a rock, but 
was rescued by Perseus. After death she was 
changed into a constellation. 

Andronicus, Livius, the most ancient of 
the Latin dramatic poets, who flourished about 
the middle of the third century b. c. He 
was by origin a Greek, and long a slave. A 



Andronicus Cyrrhestes Anemoscope 


few fragments of his works have come down 
to us. 

Androni'cus Cyrrhestes, sir res'teez, a 
Greek architect, who flourished about 100 b. c., 
and who constructed at Athens the Tower of 
the Winds, an octagonal building, still standing. 
On the top was a Triton, which indicated the 
direction ot the wind. Each of the sides had 
a sort of dial, and the building formerly con¬ 
tained a clepsydra or water-clock. In medieval 
times this structure was called “The Lantern 
of Demosthenes.” 

An'dros, Sir Edmund (1637-1714), an 
English colonial governor in America. He was 
first made governor of New York in 1674, and 
there made a creditable record for honesty 
and ability, though he finally was removed 
because of political quarrels. He then became 
governor of New England, which had been 
made into one province, and from 1686 to 1689 
he ruled with unprecedented tyranny. It was 
during this administration, when he made his 
famous expedition to Hartford to demand the 
Connecticut charter, that that instrument was 
hidden in the so-called Charter Oak. He was 
finally removed at the revolution in 1688, but 
three years later became governor of Virginia, 
where he served for six years to the satisfaction 
of all. 

An'droscog'gin, a river of Maine, formed by 
the junction of the Magalloway and a small 
stream flowing from Umbagog Lake. It flows 
in an irregular course southward and enters 
the Kennebec. Its length is 160 miles. 

Andros Island, one of the islands of the 
Cyclades in the Grecian Archipelago. It is 
25 miles long and 9 miles wide. Andros, the 
capital, carries on an extensive foreign trade. 
The island was successively in the hands of the 
Athenians, Macedonians and Romans. It forms 
at present a part of Greece. Population, 19,000. 

Anemograph, a nem'o graf, an apparatus 
attached to a wind vane or anemometer to make 
it self-recording. The most common form of 
anemograph consists of a cylinder moved by 
clock-work. The cylinder is covered by a paper 
ruled in squares. The vertical lines indicate 
the hour and minute spaces and the horizontal 
lines the velocity of the wind per hour. As the 
cylinder revolves a pencil registers the velocity 
of the wind. See Anemometer. 

An'emom'eter, an instrument for measuring 
the force and velocity of w r ind. The instrument 
which has yielded the best results and is in most 
general use consists of four hemispherical cups 
8 


attached to the ends of equal horizontal arms 
crossing at right angles and attached at their 
center to a vertical axis which turns freely. 
The lower end of this axis contains an endless 
screw which meshes into a train of wheelwork. 
When the disk revolves it causes a needle to 
move over a cylinder which is turned by clock¬ 
work. T his cylinder is covered with a graduated 
paper divided by vertical lines into hour and 
minute spaces and by horizontal lines into 
spaces indicating the velocity of wind in miles 
per hour. The cylinder is so graduated that 
its rotation corresponds to the movement of 
the hour hand of a clock. By means of this 
apparatus the velocity of the air current can 
be recorded for each hour and minute of the day. 

The velocity of the wind is from two and 
one-half to three and one-half times that of the 
cups in the anemometer. This being known, 
the calculation of the velocity from the readings 
of the instrument is very simple. In city sta¬ 
tions of the weather bureau, anemometers are 
placed on the tallest buildings, where the cur¬ 
rents of air are free from obstruction. For 
this reason the velocity, of wind measured will 
always be a little more than that of the current 
at the surface of the earth, because of the resist¬ 
ance encountered. 

The pressure of wind is determined from its 
velocity according to the following rule, which 
is universally employed by the United States 
weather bureau: Multiply the area of the 
surface, in square feet, by the velocity of wind 
in miles per hour, and this product by .004. 
Thus the pressure rising from an air current 
having a velocity of 25 miles per hour would be 
25 times .004, which equals .1 pound on each 
square foot of surface of any object directly in 
the path of the wind. 

Anem'one or Wind Flower, a name given to 
many species of plants belonging .to the crow¬ 
foot or buttercup family. The wood anemone 
is a common wild flower of the eastern United 
States; the pasque flower in earliest spring 
adorns the wooded hills of the middle states, 
and a large number of beautiful species in 
various countries have been cultivated for a 
long time. Many showing a great variety of 
brilliant colors have been developed to a large 
size, and in some species the petals are very 
numerous, making a solid flower as double as 
the rose. (See illustration on next page.) 

Anem'oscope, any contrivance indicating the; 
direction of the wind. The name is generally 
applied to a vane which turns a spindle descend- 


Anesthetic 

ing through the roof to a chamber, where, by 
means of a compass-card and index, the direc¬ 
tion of the wind is shown. 

An'esthet'ic, anything used for the removal 
of pain, especially in surgical operations, by 
deadening sensibility, either locally or gener¬ 
ally. Various agents have been employed for 
both of these purposes, from the earliest times, 
but the scientific use of anesthetics may be said 
to date from 1800, when Sir Humphrey Davy 
made experiments with nitrous oxide, and 
recommended its use in surgery. In 1818 
Faraday established the anesthetic properties of 
sulphuric ether, but this agent was not used 
practically with success until about thirty years 
later, when two American dentists began to use it 



in the extraction of teeth and in other surgical 
operations. A little later an English physician 
found chloroform to be in some respects superior 
to ether. This agent has since been most 
extensively used, though the use of ether still 
largely prevails in the United States. In then- 
general effects ether and chloroform are very 
similar; but the latter tends to enfeeble the 
action of the heart, while the former weakens 
the lungs. For this reason great caution has 
to be used in administering chloroform where 
there is weak heart action. Local anesthesia 
is produced by isolating the part of the body 
to be operated upon, and producing insensi- 


Angelico 

bility of the nerves in that locality. Dr. Rich¬ 
ardson’s method is to apply a spray of ether, 
which, by its rapid evaporation, chills and 
freezes the tissues and produces complete 
anesthesia. A valuable local anesthetic now 
employed is cocaine, which enables the surgeon 
to perform small operations on such delicate 
organs as the eye or ear. Many drugs taken 
internally will relieve pain, but they should be 
used sparingly and only on the advice of a 
physician. 

Angel, ayn'jel, one of those spiritual intelli¬ 
gences who are regarded as dwelling in heaven 
and employed as the ministers or agents of God. 
Scripture frequently speaks of angels, but with 
great reserve, Michael and Gabriel alone being 
mentioned by name in the canonical books, 
while Raphael is mentioned in the Apocrypha. 

Angel Fish, known in America as the monk 
fish, a fish nearly allied to the sharks, very 
ugly and vo¬ 
racious, prey¬ 
ing on other 
fish. It is 
from three to 
four feet long, 
and takes its 
name from 
its pectoral fins, which are very large, extend¬ 
ing horizontally like wings when spread. This 
fish connects the rays with the sharks, but it 
differs from both in having its mouth placed 
at the extremity of the head. It is found in 
tropical seas, in the Mediterranean and in the 
warmer parts of North America. 

Angelico, anjel'ico, Fra (1387-1455), the 
common name of Fra Giovanni da Fiescle, one 
of the most celebrated of the early Italian 
pointers. He entered the Dominican order in 
1407 and was employed by Cosmo de Medici 
in painting the convent of San Marco and the 
church of Saint Annunziata with frescoes. 
These pictures gained him so much celebrity 
that Nicholas V invited him to Rome to orna¬ 
ment his private chapel in the Vatican and 
offered him the archbishopric of Florence, 
which was declined. Angelico stands as the 
type of the purely religious painter. His works 
were considered unrivaled in finish and in 
sweetness and harmony of color and were made 
the models for religious painters of his own 
and succeeding generations. The best of his 
work is now to be seen at Rome, in the Vatican, 
and in the frescoes at San Marco, in Florence, 
and many of his paintings are found in the 









Angell 


Angio sperms 


galleries of Europe. The Last Judgment, tlie 
Madonna of the Star and the Coronation of the 
Virgin are examples of his art. See Madonna. 

Angell, James Burrill (1829-1916), an 
American educator, born in Scituate, R. I. He 
graduated in 1849 from Brown University, 
traveled and studied for two years in Europe, 
and after his return was appointed to a profes¬ 
sorship at Brown University. From 1860 to the 
close of the Civil War he was editor of the Provi¬ 
dence Joumal, and in 1866 he was elected presi- 



JAMES B. ANGELL 


dent of the University of Vermont. Five years 
later he accepted the presidency of the University 
of Michigan. Under Dr. Angell’s administration 
this institution broadened and developed, until 
now it stands in the front rank of all the uni¬ 
versities of the country. 

In addition to his work as an educator. Dr. 
Angell held various diplomatic positions. From 
1880 to 1881 he was United States minister to 
China; in 1887 he was made a member of the 
Anglo-American International Commission on 
Canadian Fisheries. In 1897 he was appointed 
minister to Turkey, but he returned to the Uni¬ 
versity of Michigan in the following year. He 
wrote a Manual of French Literature, Progress 
of International Law and numerous contribu¬ 
tions to the leading periodicals of the country. 
In October, 1909, Dr. Angell retired from active 
life and became president emeritus. 

Angelus, an'je lus , a prayer recited by the 
Roman Catholics at morning, noon and even¬ 
ing, at the ringing of the angelus bell. The 
name comes from the opening words of the 


prayer, “Angelus Domini nuntiavit Mariae.’” 
The devotion is in memory of the annunciation 
to the Virgin Mary by Gabriel that she should 
be the mother of Christ. The custom at pres¬ 
ent is to say the prayer at 6 a. m. and 6 p. m. 
In a famous picture called The Angelus, J. F. 
Millet (1859) represented two peasants stop¬ 
ping their work in the field at the sound of the 
bell. Millet sold the picture for a small sum. 
The American Art Association purchased it 
for 580,000 francs and exhibited it in the United 
States. M. Chanchard bought it in 1890 for 
$150,000. 

Angers, ahN'zhayf, a town and river port 
of France, 5^ mi. from the Loire, 150 mi. s. w. « 
of Paris. Angers has an old castle built by 
Saint Louis about the middle of the thirteenth 
century, now used as a prison, barracks and 
powder magazine. The manufactures of the 
town are sail cloth, hosiery, leather, chemicals 
and foundry products. In the neighborhood 
are immense slate quarries. Population in 
1911, 83,786. 

Angina, an ji'na, Pec'toris or Heart Spasm, 

a disease characterized by an extremely acute 
pain, felt generally in the lower part of the 
sternum, and extending along the whole side 
of the chest and into the corresponding arm; 
by a sense of suffocation, faintness and appre¬ 
hension of approaching death. The attacks 
rarely occur before middle age, are more fre¬ 
quent in men than in women and generally 
indicate organic heart disease. 

Angiosperms, an'je o spurmz, the greatest 
group of plants, both in numbers and impor¬ 
tance, having about one hundred thousand 
species and forming the most prominent part 
of the vegetation of the earth. They are of all 
sizes, varying from minute water plants to 
gigantic trees. The name is derived from the 
fact that the seeds are enclosed in a seed case, 
in contrast with the exposed seeds of the gym- 
nosperms. Cross fertilization is effected among 
the angiosperms not by the wind, but by vari¬ 
ous insects which carry the pollen from the 
stamens to the pistils. This fact is to a large 
extent the cause of the great variety in the 
structure of the flowers belonging to this group. 
There are two great divisions of the angio¬ 
sperms, the monocotyledons or endogens and 
the dicotyledons or exogens (See Botany). To 
the former division belong such forms as grasses, 
palms, lilies and orchids, and to the latter, 
common trees, buttercups, roses, mints and many 
others. 



Angle 


Angling 


An'gle, a portion of space lying between two 
lines which meet at one point, or between two or 
more plane sui-faces meeting at a common point 
or line. A plane angle is the portion of a plane 
surface that Ues between two straight lines 
meeting at a common point. A curvilinear 
angle is one whose sides consist of two curves 
or of a line and a curve. A spherical angle is 
one whose sides consist of two great circles 
of a sphere (See Circle). A diedral angle is 
the angle formed by two intersecting planes. 
A polyedral angle is the angle formed by the 
junction at a common point of several planes. 
The magnitude of a plane angle depends upon 
the relative direction of its sides; if they are 
widely different in direction it is a large angle. 
The size of the angle is measured in degrees, 
a degree of angular measure corresponding to 
1-360 of the circumference of a circle whose 
center is the vertex of the angle. A right angle 
is an angle of 90°; an acute angle is an angle 
of less than 90°; an obtuse angle is one of more 
than 90° and less than 180°; a reflex angle is an 
angle of more thaft 180°. 

An'gler, Frog Fish or Sea-devil, a remark¬ 
able fish often found on the British coasts. It 
is from three to five feet long; the head is very 
wide, and both jaws have bands of long, pointed 



ANGLER 


teeth inclined inward. Upon its back are spines, 
and around its head are fringed appendages 
resembling seaweed. If is also supplied with 
three long, bright-colored filaments which it 
throws out as bait to its prey. The American 
angler, flshing-jrog or goose-fish, of the Atlantic, 
is from two to three feet long; it is exceedingly 
voracious, and its wide mouth allows it to swal¬ 
low fish about as large as itself. 

An'gles, a low German tribe, who in the 
earliest historical period lived in the district 
about Angeln, in the duchy of Schleswig, and 
who in the fifth century crossed over to Britain 
along with bands of Saxons and Jutes, and colo¬ 
nized a great part of England and a portion of the 
Lowlands of Scotland. The Angles formed the 
largest body among the Germanic settlers in 
Britain, and founded the three kingdoms of 


East Anglia, Mercia and Northumbria. From 
them England takes its name (Angle-land.) 

Anglesey, arigVse, or Anglesea (ancient 
Mona), an island and county of North Wales, 
separated from the mainland by the Menai 
Strait. It is about 20 miles long and 17 miles 
wide. The chief agricultural products are oats 
and barley, wheat, rye, potatoes and turnips. 
Numbers of cattle and sheep are raised. Among 
the minerals the most important are copper, 
lead, silver and ocher. The Menai Strait is 
crossed by a magnificent suspension bridge, 580 
feet between the piers and 100 feet above high- 
water mark, and also by the great Britannia 
Tubular Railway Bridge (See Britannia 
Bridge). The chief market towns are Beau¬ 
maris, Holyhead, Llangefni and Amlwch. 
Population in 1911, 50,943. 

An'glican Church, a term which, strictly, 
embraces the Church of England and the Protes¬ 
tant Episcopal churches in Ireland, Scotland 
and the colonies, but which is sometimes used 
to include also the Episcopal churches of the 
United States. The doctrines of the Anglican 
Church are laid down in the Thirty-nine Arti¬ 
cles, and its ritual is contained in the Book of 
Common Prayer. Within the body there is room 
for considerable latitude of belief and doctrine, 
and three sections, differing upon these grounds, 
are sometimes spoken of by the names of the 
High Church, Low Church and Broad Church. 

Angling, the art of catching fish with a hook, 
or angle, baited with worms, small fish, flies or 
other bait. There are occasional allusions to 
this pursuit among the Greek and Latin classical 
writers. It is mentioned several times in the Old 
Testament, and it was practiced by the ancient 
Egyptians. The oldest work on the subject in 
English is the Treatyse of Fysshynge wyth an 
Angle, printed by Wynkyn de Worde, in 1496, 
along with treatises on hunting and hawking, the 
whole being ascribed to Dame Juliana Berners, or 
Barnes, prioress of a nunnery near Saint Albans, 
England. Walton’s inimitable discourse on 
angling was first printed in 1653. 

The chief appliances required by an angler are 
a rod, line, hooks and baits. Rods are made of 
various materials and of various sizes. The 
cane rods are lightest, and where fishing tackle 
is sold they most commonly have the preference; 
but in country places the rod is often of the 
angler’s own manufacture. Rods are com¬ 
monly made in separate joints, so as to be easily 
taken to pieces and put up again. They are 
made to taper from the butt end to the top, and 



Anglo-Saxons 


Angra 


are usually possessed of considerable elasticity. 
In length they may vary from five feet to more 
than twenty, with a corresponding difference in 
strength—a rod for salmon being necessarily 
much stronger than one suited for ordinary 
brook trout. The reel, an apparatus for winding 
up the line, is attached to the rod near the lower 
end where the hand grasps the rod while fishing. 
The best reels are of simple construction and are 
so made as to wind or unwind freely and rapidly. 
Those of the better class run on jeweled bearings, 
and the cranks are so geared that when they are 
turned once the barrels on which the lines run 
turn four times. The line is usually made of 
firmly, twisted fine silk. To the end of this may 
be tied a piece of fine gut, on which the hook or 
hooks are fixed. For casting heavy bait the line 
is a little heavier and the gut leader is discarded. 
The hook of finely tempered steel should readily 
bend without breaking and yet should retain a 
sharp point. It should be long in the shank and 
deep in the bend and the barb should be long. 
In size and shape the hooks must be adapted to 
the kind of fish that are angled for. In still 
fishing, floats formed of cork, goose and swan 
quills, are often used to buoy up the hook so that 
it may float clear of the bottom. For heavy fish 
or strong streams a cork float is used; in slow 
water and for lighter fish, a quill float. Baits may 
consist of a great variety, natural or artificial. 
The principal natural baits are common garden 
worms, insects or small fish (as minnows). The 
artificial flies so much used in angling for trout 
and salmon are made of hairs, furs and wools 
of every variety, mingled with pieces of feathers 
and secured together by plaited wire, gold and 
silver thread, marking silk or wax. The wings 
may be made of the feathers of domestic fowls, 
or any others of a showy color. Some angling 
authorities recommend that the artificial flies 
should be made to resemble as closely as possible 
the insects on which the fish is wont to feed, but 
experience has shown that the most capricious 
and unnatural combinations of feather and fur 
have been often successful where the most artistic 
imitations have failed. Artificial minnows and 
spoon-shaped pieces of metal are also used by 
way of bait, and are so contrived as to spin 
rapidly when drawn through the water in order 
to attract the notice of the fish. Angling, espe¬ 
cially with the fly, demands a great deal of skill 
and practice. 

Anglo-Sax'ons, the name commonly given 
to the nation or people formed by the amalgama¬ 
tion of the Angles, Saxons, Jutes and other 


German tribes who settled in Britain in the fifth 
and sixth centuries after Christ. These tribes, 
who were thus the ancestors of most of the 
English-speaking nationalities, came from North 
Germany, where they inhabited the regions about 
the mouths of the Elbe and the Weser. Many of 
our modern institutions, customs and habits had 
their origin among these early peoples, whose 
strong character has placed their descendants 
among the leaders of the world. 

Ango'la, a Portuguese territory in western 
Africa, s. of the Kongo; area, 500,000 sq. mi. 
The principal town is the seaport of Loanda, 
which was long the great Portuguese slave 
market. The chief exports of Angola are ivory, 
palm oil, coffee, fish, gum, wax and cotton. 
Population, about 4,000,000. 

Ango'ra, a town in the interior of Asiatic 
Turkey, 215 mi. e. s. e. of Constantinople. It 
has considerable remains of Byzantine archi¬ 
tecture and relics of earlier times, both Greek 
and Roman. All the animals of this region are 
long haired, especially the goats, sheep and cats. 
Goat-hair forms an important export, as does 
the fabric called camlet, which is manufactured 
from it. Other exports are goats’ skins, dye¬ 
stuffs, gums, honey and wax. Population, about 
35,000. 

Angostura, ahn'gos too’rah. See Ciudad 
Bolivar. 

Angostura Bark, the aromatic bitter medi¬ 
cinal bark obtained chiefly from a tree growing 
in the northern regions of South America. The 
bark is valuable as a tonic and in reducing fevers, 
and it is also used in the preparation of a kind 
of bitters. Because this bark is badly adul¬ 
terated, its use as a medicine has been almost 
given up. 

Angouleme, ahN goo lame’, an ancient town 
of western France, capital of the department of 
Charente, 60 mi. n. n. e. of Bordeaux. It has a 
fine old cathedral, a beautiful modern town hall, 
a lyceum, a public library, a theological seminary, 
a natural history museum and a hospital. There 
are manufactures of paper, woolens and linens, 
besides distilleries, sugar works and tanneries. 
Population in 1911, 38,211. 

Angra, ahn’gra, a seaport of Terceira, capital 
of the Azores. It has the only convenient harbor 
in the whole group of islands. The chief trade 
is in wine, honey and fruits. It has a cathedral, 
a military college and arsenal, and is the resi¬ 
dence of the governor general of the Azores 
and of the foreign consuls. Population, about 
11 , 000 . 


Anguilla 


Animal Intelligence 


Anguilla, an gwil’la, or Snake Island, one 

of the British West India islands. Sugar, cotton, 
tobacco and maize are grown, though not to a 
great extent. There is a saline lake in the center, 
which yields a large quantity of salt. Popu¬ 
lation, about 3800. 

Anhalt, airin'halt, a duchy of the German 
Empire, surrounded by Prussia. Its area is 886 
square miles, and it is divided into two large 
and four smaller parts, which are all detached 
from one another. It is one of the oldest duchies 
of Europe and the reigning family has been in 
power for several centuries. Anhalt is an agri¬ 
cultural country, and the chief crops are wheat 
and other grains, flax, potatoes, tobacco, hops 
and fruits. The mountainous regions afford 
a good supply of minerals. There are iron 
works and other manufactures. Population, in 
1910, 331,128. 

Anhy'drite, in mineralogy, a sulphate of 
calcium, a mineral presenting several varieties 
of structure and color. The vulpinite of Italy 
possesses a granular structure, resembling a 
coarse-grained marble, and is used in sculpture. 
Its color is grayish white, intermingled with blue- 

An'iline, a substance which has become of 
great importance, as being the basis of a number 
of brilliant and durable dyes. It is found in 
small quantities in coal-tar, but the aniline of 
commerce is obtained from benzene or benzole, 
a constituent of coal-tar, consisting of hydrogen 
and carbon. Benzene, when acted on by nitric 
acid, produces nitro-benzene; and this substance 
again, when treated with hydrogen at the moment 
the latter is being made, usually by the action 
of acetic acid upon iron-filings or scraps, pro¬ 
duces aniline. It is a colorless, oily liquid, 
somewhat heavier than water, with a peculiar, 
vinous smell and a burning taste. When acted 
on by arsenious acid, bichromate of potassium, 
stannic chloride and other substances, aniline 
produces a great variety of compounds, many 
of which are very beautiful. The manufacture 
of these aniline or coal-tar dyes as a branch of 
industry was introduced in 1856 by Perkin of 
London. Since then the manufacture has 
reached large dimensions. 

An'imal. The simplest forms of animal life 
consist of one cell only, and bear very strong 
resemblances to the lowest orders of plant life. 
This simple cell is sensitive to outside influences 
and has the power to do in itself, without any 
special organs, all things necessary for its life. 
The higher orders of animals are composed of 
many, many cells, and have whole sets of most 


intricate organs, each with its special work to do; 
for instance, one set of organs is employed in the 
collection of food, another in its digestion, others 
in carrying the food through the body, bringing 
air into the system, carrying off waste and dead 
matter, or other functions. In different animals 
these organs vary greatly, but their purposes are 
the same. By form alone no true distinction 
can be made between plants and animals, even 
in many of the higher organisms, nor are their 
chemical characters more distinct. It is impos¬ 
sible to say that the power of motion belongs 
exclusively to animals, for some plants can move 
and many animals are rooted or fixed. The 
great distinction between plants and animals lies 
in the nature and mode in which they assimilate 
food. Plants feed on inorganic matters, and 
can, with few exceptions, take in food which is 
presented in the liquid or gaseous state only. Ani¬ 
mals, on the contrary, require organic matter, and 
so are dependent upon plants or upon other 
animals for food. Again, animals are dependent 
upon a proper supply of oxygen for their life, but 
plants require carbonic acid, which is generally 
poisonous to animals. Animals receive the 
food into the interior of their bodies and assimi¬ 
lation takes place in their internal surfaces; but 
plants receive the food into their external bodies 
and effect assimilation in the external parts, 
for instance, in the leaf-surfaces, under the influ¬ 
ence of sunlight (See Chlorophyll). All 
animals require a certain degree of temper¬ 
ature, which in the birds and mammals is con¬ 
siderably elevated, varying from 96 c to 100° F. 
For classification and for references see article 
Zoology. See, also, Migration of Animals. 

Animal Intelligence. It is generally known 
that many animals possess in a greater or less 
degree the same senses that we ourselves have— 
sight, hearing, smell, touch, temperature and 
so on—and that many of them experience such 
emotions as anger, grief and joy; but it is not 
by any means so certain that they have even the 
elements of reason as we understand that term. 

The sense of touch in man is keenest in the 
finger tips, the lips and the tip of the tongue. 
In the lower animals the regions of greatest 
sensitiveness are often different, and in some 
animals special and very delicate touch organs 
have been developed; as, for example, the 
whiskers of the cat and the long hair on the 
rabbit’s lip, by means of which these animals 
can readily find their way in the densest darkness. 
The wing of the bat is also very sensitive to 
touch. 







ANIMALS SHOWING ORDERS 


Bats 

1, Vampire Bat. 
Four-Handed Animals 

2, Baboon. 

3, Monkey. 


Pouched Animals 

4, Opossum. 

5, Kangaroo. 
Toothless Animals 

6, Giant Ant-Eater 


Thick-Skinned Animals 

7, Rhinoceros. 

8, Elephant. 

Whales 

9, Greenland Whale. 






y 





ANIMALS SHOWING ORDERS 


Dog Family 

1, Dog. 

2, Fox. 

3 , Wolf. 


Cat Family Rodents or Gnawers 

4, Domestic Cat. 6, Squirrel. 

5, Wild Cat. 7, Hare 


Horse Family 

8, Horse. 

9. Zebra. 


Ox Family 

10, Deer 

11, Bison. 

12, Ox. 










Animal Intelligence 


Anna Comnena 


In man the sense of taste is keen and resides 
in the taste bulbs which cover the tongue and 
palate. In birds and reptiles the sense of taste 
is not very well developed. Insects recognize 
the difference between sweet and bitter, but do 
not seem to be affected by other flavors. Many 
animals show an instinctive dislike for certain 
foods, but it may be more from the sense of smell 
than from taste, for the two are very closely 
allied. 

In some animals the sense of smell is exceed¬ 
ingly acute. The dog can track his master 
through the crowded street; the deer recognizes 
the presence of an enemy very quickly. But 
birds have little sense of smell, and reptiles also 
are dull in this respect. Fish differ; it is said 
that the shark is almost entirely dependent on 
his sense of smell for his food. In insects this 
sense is most keenly developed. 

Most of the mammals and the birds have a 
keen sense of hearing. The astonishing manner 
in which some birds w r ill imitate the songs of 
other birds testifies to the accuracy of their 
hearing; but fishes hear little, though it has been 
proved that they can hear to some extent. Cer¬ 
tain insects hear and can distinguish sounds that 
are pitched higher than the human ear is able 
to recognize. 

The keenness of vision possessed by birds is 
most remarkable. The swift, flying high through 
the air, detects on the ground its minute food. 
The eagle sees his prey from long distances 
entirely beyond the range of the human eye. 
Some animals, such as frogs and toads, have keen 
vision only at short range, and fish seem to be 
entirely unable to distinguish prey at any great 
distance from themselves. It is known that 
certain insects distinguish between colors. 

That the higher animals have memory is very 
certain; a puppy, having been stung by a bee, 
will ever after avoid the insect, and may even 
flee at the sound of its humming. Dogs are 
known to have recognized their masters after 
years of absence, and they have been known 
to show strong resentment after many years 
against an individual who mistreated them. 

Animals certainly draw inferences from what 
they see, but apparently in purely instinctive 
manner. The best writers seem to doubt whether 
an animal can put together different facts and 
establish a conclusion. The extent to which 
the intelligence of animals goes'in this direction, 
how’ever, is a subject of dispute. Some writers 
maintain that animals really teach their young; 
others protest that nothing of the sort is ever 


done—that the actions of a bird in throwing her 
young from the nest are purely instinctive, and 
not with any thought of the young birds’ welfare. 
Many modern writers have taken a different stand 
and have written exceedingly interesting accounts 
and imaginative histories of many animals. See 
Wild Animals I Have Known and other stories 
by Ernest Thompson Seton, also the later writ¬ 
ings of John Burroughs. 

Anise, an'is, an annual plant, a native of the 
Levant, much cultivated in Spain, France, Italy 
and other countries, whence the aniseed of com¬ 
merce is obtained. It has an aromatic smell, 



ANISE 


and is largely employed to flavor liquors and 
sweetmeats. Star-anise is the fruit of an ever¬ 
green Asiatic tree and is brought chiefly from 
China. 

Anjou, an'joo, an ancient province of France, 
having an area 'of about 3000 sq. mi. Anjou 
was in the possession of the English kings up 
to 1204, when John lost it to the French. 

Anna Comne'na (1083-1148), daughter of 
Alexius Comnenus I, Byzantine emperor. After 
her father’s death she endeavored to secure 
the imperial power for her husband, Niceph- 
orus Briennius, but was baffled by his want of 
energy and ambition. She wrote a life of 
her father, which, in the midst of much 
fulsome panegyric, contains some valuable and 
interesting information. She forms a charactei 
in Sir Walter Scott’s Count Robert of Paris. 


Anna Ivanovna 


Anne 


Anna Ivanovna, ah'na e vah'nov na (1693- 
1740), empress of Russia, the daughter of Ivan, 
half-brother of Peter the Great. She was mar¬ 
ried in 1710 to the duke of Courland, in the 
following year was left a widow, and in 1730 
ascended the throne on the condition proposed 
by the senate, that she would limit the imperial 
power and do nothing without the advice of 
the council composed of the leading members 
of the Russian aristocracy. But no sooner had 
she ascended the throne than she declared her 
promise null, proclaimed herself autocrat of all 
the Russias and ruled with great severity. 
Several of the leading nobles were executed, 
and many thousand men were exiled to 
Siberia. 

Annam or Anam, an nahmf, the central 
province of French Indo-China, lying on the 
east side of the Indo-Chinese peninsula. It 
has an area of about 52,000 square miles and a 
population of more than 6,000,000. It is 
traversed from north to south by a mountain 
chain, the highest of whose peaks reaches 
nearly 9000 feet. The products of Annam 
include rice and other grains, cinnamon, s gar- 
cane, coffee, tobacco, tea and cotton, besides 
many valuable woods and some sill-. The 
buffalo is used for domestic service, and the 
forests and jungles abound in all the large 
game characteristic of India. The government 
is in theory a monarchy, but it is in reality sub¬ 
ject to French authority, exercised through 
resident agents at the capital. The Annamese 
are of Mongolian stock, but are smaller and less 
robust than most kindred peoples. Their lan¬ 
guage is similar to that of the Chinese, and their 
religion is Buddhism, though the educated 
classes have in large measure adopted Confu¬ 
cianism. The French began to interfere in the 
affairs of Annam in 1847 on the plea of protect¬ 
ing the native Christians, and by 1884 it had 
come fully under French dominion. The chief 
city is Hue, which has a population of more 
than 50,000. 

Annap'olis, Md., the capital of the state 
and the county-seat of Anne Arundel co., 26 
mi. s. of Baltimore and 37 mi. e. of Washington, 
on the Severn River, 2 mi. from Chesapeake 
Bay. The city is on the Annapolis & Baltimore 
Short Line and the Annapolis, Washington & 
Baltimore railroad, has a good harbor and is 
connected by boat with other points on the bay. 
It is situated in a fruit and berry-growing dis¬ 
trict and has an extensive oyster-packing indus¬ 
try. Saint John’s College and the United 


States Naval Academy are located here (See 
Naval Academy, United States). Other 
interesting features are the statues of Chief 
Justice Taney and General De Kalb, the sev¬ 
eral state buildings, a convent and a house of 
the Redemptorist Fathers. The first settle¬ 
ment, called Providence, was made in 1649 by 
a company of Puritans from Virginia. It 
received a charter in 1708 and was renamed in 
honor of Queen Anne. The first federal con¬ 
stitutional convention was held here in 1786. 
On December 23, 1783, Washington surrendered 
his co mm ission as commander-in-chief to Con¬ 
gress, then sitting temporarily at Annapolis, in 
the senate room of the state house. Population 
in 1910, 8609. 

Annapolis (formerly Port Royal), a small 
town in Nova Scotia, on an inlet of the Bay of 
Fundy, with an important herring fishery. It 
is one of the oldest European settlements in 
America, dating from 1604. It was occupied 
by the British in the time of Queen Anne, 
whence the name. Population in 1911, 1019. 

Ann Arbor, Mich., the county-seat of Wash¬ 
tenaw co., 38 mi. w. of Detroit, on the Huron 
River and on the Michigan Central and the 
Ann Arbor railroads. The city is in a farming 
region, and its manufactures include agricul¬ 
tural implements, woolen goods, carriages and 
organs. It has an excellent high school, housed 
in a fine, modern building. Among the other 
prominent buildings are the courthouse, post- 
office and railroad station. The place is best 
known as the seat of the state university (See 
Michigan, University of). Ann Arbor was 
settled in 1834 and incorporated in 1851. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 14,817. 

Annatto, an naht'to, or Arnotto, an orange- 
red coloring matter, obtained from the pulp 
surrounding the seeds of a shrub native to 
tropical America, and cultivated in Guiana, 
Santo Domingo and the East Indies. It is 
sometimes used as a dye for silk and cotton 
goods, though it does not produce a very durable 
color, but it is much used in medicine for 
tingeing plasters and ointments, and to a con¬ 
siderable extent by farmers for giving a rich 
color to cheese. (See illustration on next page.) 

Anne (1665-1714), queen of Great Britain 
and Ireland, was born at Twickenham, near 
London. She was the second daughter of 
James II, then duke of York, and Anne, the 
daughter of the earl of Clarendon. With her 
father’s permission she was educated in the 
beliefs of the English Church. In 1683 she 


Anne 


Annuity 


was married to Prince George, brother to 
Christian V of Denmark. On the arrival of the 
Prince of Orange in 1688, Anne wished to remain 
with her father; but she was prevailed upon by 
Lord Churchill (afterward duke of Marl¬ 
borough) and his wife to join the triumphant 
party. After the death of William III in 1702 
she ascended the English throne. Her character 
was essentially weak, and she was governed first 
by Marlborough and his wife and afterwards by 
Mrs. Masham. Most of the principal events 
of her reign are connected with the War of 
Spanish Succession. The only important acqui- 



ANNATTO 


sition that England made by it was Gibraltar, 
which was captured in 1704. Another very 
important event of this reign was the union of 
England and Scotland, under the name of 
Great Britain, which was accomplished in 1707. 
The reign of Anne was noteworthy not only for 
the. brilliant successes of the British arms, but 
also for the number of brilliant writers who 
flourished at this time, among whom were Pope, 
Swift and Addison. Anne was the mother of 
many children, all of whom died in infancy 
except one son, the duke of Gloucester, who 
died at the age of eleven. See England, sub¬ 
head History. 


Anneal'ing, a process to which many articles 
of metal and glass are subjected after making, 
in order to render them more tenacious. Anneal¬ 
ing consists of heating the articles and allowing 
them to cool slow’v. When the metals are 
worked by the hammer, rolled into plates or 
drawn into wire, they acquire a certain amount 
of brittleness, which c astroys their usefulness 
and has to be remedied ^y annealing. Anneal¬ 
ing is particularly employ d in glass works, and 
consists in putting the gla s vessels, as soon as 
they are formed, and while hey are yet hot into 
a furnace or oven, in which hey are suffered to 
cool gradually. The toug. ness is greatly 
increased by cooling the art cles in oil. See 
Iron; Steel; Tempering. 

An'niston, Ala., the county-seat of Calhoun 
co., 63 mi. e. of Birmingham, on the Louisville 
& Nashville, the Southern and other railroads. 
The city is beautifully located among the Blue 
Ridge Mountains, in a region producing coal, 
iron, lumber and cotton. It has extensive found¬ 
ries, machine shops, rolling mills, locomotive 
and boiler works and manufactures of lumber, 
cotton and clay goods. Anniston College for 
Young Ladies, the Noble Institute for both 
sexes and the Barber Memorial Seminal ' for 
colored girls are located here. Other fea ures 
of interest are the fair grounds, a public park 
and the fine church of Saint Michael and All 
Angels. Anniston was founded in 1873 by the 
Woodstock Iron Company. Population in 1910, 
12,794. 

Annu'ity, a sum of money paid annually. 
An annuity is usually raised by the present 
payment of a certain sum as a consideration, 
whereby the party making the payment, or 
some other person named by him, becomes 
entitled to an annuity. The rules and princi¬ 
ples by which this present value is to be com¬ 
puted have been the subjects of careful inves¬ 
tigation. This value, which is evidently a sum 
of money that will yield interest equal to the 
proposed annuity, depends upon several factors. 
If the annuity is to be perpetual, the present 
value will evidently depend upon the rate of 
interest on money; if the annuity is to be for 
life, the present value, obviously, is dependent 
upon not only the rate of interest, but the num¬ 
ber of years the beneficiary will live, which in 
turn depends upon age, sex, climate and other 
influences. Tables of mortality (See Mor¬ 
tality, Law of) are therefore compiled for 
each district of a country, from which the 
average present value of different annuities at 




Anode 


Ant 


different ages can be found. In England and 
some countries on the Continent, the granting 
of annuities is conducted by the government, 
while in other European countries such a busi¬ 
ness is commonly managed by private enter¬ 
prises. In the United States the granting of 
annuities is not commonly engaged in, being 
supplanted by life insurance, which, obviously, 
is exactly opposite in character, the difference 
being that small annual payments are made, 
with the agreement that at a certain time a 
lump sum will be paid to a designated bene¬ 
ficiary. See Insurance. 

An'ode, the positive pole of an electric cur¬ 
rent, being that part of the surface of a decom¬ 
posing body which the electric current enters; 
opposed to cathode, the way by which it departs. 

Anom'alis'tic Year. In the accompanying 
diagram, suppose that when last nearest the sun 
a planet was at B' and that now it is at D; 



then if C represents the sun, the angle B' C D 
is the anomaly, that is, the angle made at the 
center of the sun by a line drawn from the 
planet when it was last in perihelion and the 
line to its present position. The time which 
elapses between the sun at perihelion and the 
next time it reaches that point is called the 
anomalistic year; and as the point of perihelion 
moves forward a little each year, the anoma¬ 
listic year is a little longer than the sidereal 
year, or time required for the earth to pass 
from one point in the heavens to this same point 
again. By referring to the diagram again, and 
supposing that the ellipse represents the orbit 
of the earth, AB its longer axis, and C the sun, 
we may suppose that the earth after leaving B 
returns to that point in the sidereal year, but 
the point of perihelion has moved forward to 
B' so that the earth must travel the 11.8" 
farther to make up the anomah'stic year, a 
distance which it covers in 4 minutes and 39 
seconds. 

An'selm, Saint (1033-1109), a distinguished 
philosopher and churchman, who in 1093 was 


appointed archbishop of Canterbury to succeed 
the celebrated Lanfranc, whose pupil he was. 
Anselm, who is considered second only to 
Augustine, after leading a dissipated life 
embraced the doctrines of the Church and 
became one of the most powerful writers in 
her defense. He was a resolute man and his 
unbending character led him into frequent dis¬ 
putes with the kings William Rufus and Henry I, 
through all of which he exhibited such remark¬ 
able intelligence and skill as to place him far 
ahead of the men of his age. The day of his 
death is observed by Roman Catholics. 

Anso'nia, Conn., a city in New Haven co., 
12 mi. n. w. of the city of New Haven, on the 
Naugatuck River and on the Berkshire and 
Naugatuck divisions of the New York, New 
Haven & Hartford railroad. It has important 
manufactures, including machinery, brass and 
copper goods, clocks and electrical appliances. 
Prominent features are the public library, 
Y. M. C. A. building, opera house, and Burton 
and Recreation parks. The place was a part 
of Derby until 1899 and was chartered in 1893. 
The city takes its name from Anson G. Phelps. 
Population in 1910, 15,152. 

Ant, the common name of various genera of 
winged insects, some of which are common in 
most temperate and tropical regions. Like the 
bees and wasps, they live in communities regu¬ 
lated by definite laws, each member of the 
society doing a well defined and separate part 
of the work of the colony. Each community 
consists of males, of females much larger than 
the males, and of neuters, or workers. The 
males have wings, do no work, and most of them 
die in the fall. The females lay the eggs and 
have wings, which are used only a short time in 
the autumn, when some of them leave their col¬ 
onies to establish new ones. The workers are 
wingless. They excavate the galleries of the ant 
hill, procure food and feed the larvae or young 
ants, which are unable to move. In fine weather 
they carry these larvae and pupae to the surface, 
for the warmth of the sun, and as attentively 
carry them back to a place of safety when bad 
weather is threatened or the ant hill is disturbed. 
In some communities there are special workers 
known as soldiers, because of the duties they 
perform and because of their powerful biting 
jaws. 

There is great variety in the material, size 
and form of ant hills, or nests, according to the 
nature of the species. Most American ants 
build their nests in woods, fields or gardens, 





Ant 


Ant-eater 


usually in the form of small mounds raised 
above the surface of the ground and containing 
numerous galleries and compartments. -Some, 
however, excavate nests in old tree trunks. 
Some ants live on animal food, very quickly 
picking quite clean the skeleton of any dead 
animal they may find. In southern Europe 
there are ants which 
feed on grain and store 
it up in their nests for 
use. During the winter 
time ants rest in a state 
of torpor and so require 
no food. Some species 
live on sweet substances, 
especially the honey-dew 
which exudes from the 
bodies of some plant 
lice or aphides. Some¬ 
times the ants herd the 
lice on plants, much as 
human beings herd cat¬ 
tle, and from time to 
time, by stroking with 
their antennae, draw the 
sweet fluid from the 
aphides as a cow is 
milked. Other insects ants 1 

are kept in the nests of a > worker; b, male; c, 
ants and looked after emae., 

in a similar manner, and certain species of 
ants will attack the nests of other ants, carry 
off their workers and compel them to serve as 
slaves. The marvelous intelligence of ants, and 
the wonderful things which they do, seem to 
be beyond belief. They tunnel under rivers, 
build bridges, unite to rescue a companion in 
danger, and rejoice and play like kittens. 

Some species are armed with stings, others 
with powerful mandibles or with an acrid 
stinging fluid which they can throw out. The 
umbrella or parasol ant cuts off a leaf, seizes it 
by the stem and carries it to his nest with the 
blade extending over his back like an umbrella. 
It is said that when an ant of a certain species 
dies, all the members of its community turn 
out together, and in solemn march carry the 
dead member to a suitable place, where they 
dig a grave and bury the dead. After these 
ceremonies are over the ants return in pairs to 
their house. The honey ant secretes a peculiar 
honey and stores it away in its abdomen until 
the latter becomes so swollen as to be unman¬ 
ageable; then the other ants carry the honey 
maker into the nest and feed it carefully. In 


time of need they devour the honey and its 
maker as well. The so-called white ants are 
not true ants. See Termites; also. Nature 
Study, Lessons on the Ant , Vol. V. 

Antaeus, an tee'us, the giant son of Neptune 
and Ge (the Earth), who was invincible as 
long as he was in contact with the earth. Her¬ 
cules, challenged to combat, grasped him in 
his arms and stifled him suspended in the air. 

Antananarivo, alm'ta nah'na re'vo, the capi¬ 
tal of Madagascar, is situated in the center of 
the island on a plateau having an elevation of 
over 4000 feet. The streets are very irregular 
and the buildings are constructed almost entirely 
of wood. The only building of note is the 
royal palace. The inhabitants are engaged in 
the manufacture of coarse textile fabrics and in 
other industries, but the inland position of the 
city, combined with poor facilities for trans¬ 
portation, restrict the commerce to that which 
is absolutely necessary. Population, 94,000. 

Antarctic Circle is an imaginary circle, 
parallel to the equator and distant from the 
south pole 23° 28', marking the area within 
which the sun does not set when on the Tropic 
of Capricorn. The Antarctic Circle is about the 
average northern limit of the pack ice, and 
consequently is recognized by geographers as 
the northern limit of the Antarctic Ocean. 

Antarctic Ocean or Southern Ocean, a 
large body of water around the South Pole, 
included within the Antarctic Circle. The term 
is also employed to denote the vast sea south of 
the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. This 
ocean has not been as thoroughly explored as 
the Arctic Ocean, and for a long time it was 
considered impenetrable for ships on account 
of the ice, which extends farther from the pole 
than in the Arctic Ocean. The life of the 
Antarctic waters is very abundant, extending 
from the surface to the bottom. The deep-sea 
fauna is richer than the corresponding fauna 
of the other oceans. See South Polar Explora¬ 
tion. 

Ant'-eat'er, a name given to various mam¬ 
mals that prey on ants, though the name is 
usually confined to one genus of the toothless 
order. In this genus the head is long, the jaws 
destitute of teeth, and the moutL furnished with 
a long extensile tongue covered with glutinous 
saliva, by the aid of which the animals secure 
their insect prey. The eyes are particularly 
small, the ears short and round, and the legs, 
especially the anterior, very robust and fur¬ 
nished with long, compressed, acute nails. 






Antelope 

admirably adapted for breaking into the ant 
hills. The most remarkable species is the ant- 
bear, a native of the warmer parts of South 
America. It is from four to five feet in length 
from the tip of the muzzle to the base of the 



GEEAT ANT-EATER OR ANT-BEAR 


black, bushy tail, which is about two feet long. 
The body is covered with long hair, particularly 
along the neck and back. It is a harmless and 
solitary animal, and it spends most of its time in 
sleep. All are natives of South America. The 
name ant-eater is also given to the pangolins 
and to the aard=vark. The echidna of Australia 
is sometimes called 'porcupine ant-eater. See 
Aard-vark; Armadillo; Echidna. 

An'telope, a name given to the members of 
a large family of mammals closely resembling the 
deer in general appearance, but very different 
in nature from the latter animals. The horns 
of antelopes, unlike those of the deer, are not 
shed annually, but are permanent and may be 
borne by both sexes. Antelopes, the fleetest 
and most graceful of animals, are shy and timid. 
They vary from a foot in height to the size of a 
horse, and in manner of life differ greatly, some 
living in forests and shady nooks, others in 
mountainous regions and others around water. 
At present, antelopes inhabit Asia and Africa in 
great numbers and are of great variety, although 
everywhere they are being hunted out of exist¬ 
ence. Certain species have colors so closely 
resembling their surroundings that it is hard 
to see them. The flesh of most antelopes is 
considered very good, and the hides of the larger 
animals make excellent leather. 

Among the more important species are the 
following: the bushbuck, the smallest and one 
of the most beautiful, called also the harness 
antelope, because of a peculiar white stripe on 
the body resembling a harness; the steinbok, a 
small and alert antelope, common in South 
Africa, reddish in color and having short ringed 
horns curving forward the guevi or bluebuck, 
a native of Africa, -rarely exceeding a foot in 
height; the koodoo or kudu, one of the largest 


Anthology 

species, having long twisted horns and vertical 
stripes on the sides of its body; the saiga of 
southern Russia, having a white nose, tufts of 
hair beneath its eyes and ears, and a fleecy coat; 
the sable antelope of South Africa, remarkable 
for its shiny black coat and for the beauty of its 
form, and the white oryx of Africa, with large 
sword-like horns curving backward. See Add ax ; 
Gazelle; Gnu; Pronghorn; Chamois. 

Anten'nae, the feelers or first appendages 
upon insects, crustaceans and other animals 
belonging to the branch Arthropoda. The 
lobster has two pairs, while insects have but 
one. The antennae consist usually of long 
series of joints, sometimes more than one hun¬ 
dred in number, supplied with nerve branches 
and used by the animals for feeling their way, 
for testing surrounding objects and appar¬ 
ently for communicating with one another. 



VARIOUS FORMS OF ANTENNAE 


Deprived of their antennae, some animals are 
peculiarly helpless. The antennae of moths 
look like feathers. On butterflies they are 
slender and delicate, and are tipped with little 
knobs. In other insects they are long and 
tapering, or vary widely in shape and size, as 
they do among the beetles. 

Anthol'ogy, a collection of poems, epigrams 
or choice thoughts from various authors. The 
name, which means a flower-gathering, was 
given to early books of this sort compiled by 
the Greeks, and so came in time to be applied 
to all such works. The first Greek anthology 
was compiled by Meleager, a Syrian, about 80 
B. c., and consisted largely of his own epigrams, 
although selections from other poets were intro¬ 
duced. There seems to have been no anthology 






Anthony 


Anticosti 


of Latin writings in ancient times; at least none 
remains. But the various peoples of Asia, the 
Arabs, the Persians, the Turks, the Chinese, 
the Japanese and the people of India, have 
numerous anthologies, some of which are of 
a very early date. 

Anthony, Susan Brownell (1820-1906), 
an American reformer, born at Adams, Mass., 
of Quaker parents. She taught school for fifteen 



SUSAN B. ANTHONY 


years, meanwhile becoming active in the tem¬ 
perance and anti-slavery movements, and in 
1852 she organized the first state Women’s 
Temperance Society. In 1868 she founded The 
Revolution, a periodical devoted to the advance¬ 
ment of women’s rights, and in 1869 organized, 
with Mrs. Elizabeth Cady Stanton, the National 
Woman’s Suffrage Association, of which she 
was president for many years prior to 1900. 
Miss Anthony was arrested, tried and fined in 
1872 for attempting to vote, under the Fifteenth 
Amendment, in New York. As a lecturer and 
advocate she spoke to vast audiences in all 
parts of England and the United States. 

Anthracite, an’ihra site. See Coal, subhead 
Anthracite. 

An'thrax, a fatal disease to which cattle, 
horses, sheep and other animals are subject, 
always associated with the presence of an 
extremely minute micro-organism in the blood. 
It frequently assumes an epizootic form, and 
extends over large districts, affecting all classes 
of animals which are exposed to the exciting 
causes. It is also called splenic fever, and is 
communicable to man, appearing as carbuncle. 


malignant pustule or wool-sorter’s disease. 
Thorough disinfection should follow every case. 
If the bodies of animals dying by anthrax are 
not burned, water and soil are liable to be 
contaminated, the poison to be carried by birds 
or flies, and the terrible disease communicated 
to human beings. 

Anthropol'ogy, the science of man and 
mankind, including the study of man’s place 
in nature. It treats of him as animal, as a 
being endowed with a soul and of his relations 
to the rest of mankind. See Anatomy; Physi¬ 
ology; Psychology; Ethnology. 

Anthropom'etry, a system of measurement 
applied to human beings, of aid in classifica¬ 
tion and in the consideration of social, educa¬ 
tional and physiological stifles. During recent 
years anthropometry has come to be recognized 
as of great importance, and accurate systems have 
been devised w’hich have become recognized 
throughout the country. 

An'tichrist, a term of biblical origin appear¬ 
ing in the Epistles of Saint John and referring 
to some person or institution standing in oppo¬ 
sition to Christianity. The term means an 
opposer or adversary of Christ (See I John it, 
18-22; rv, 1-3). Many Protestant writers have 
made the pope or papacy antichrist, while 
other writers, both Catholic and Protestant, 
have regarded one or another of the persecuting 
emperors as antichrist. 

Anti-Cigarette League of America, an or¬ 
ganization devoted to the work of lessening the 
use of tobacco in any form, and especially of 
cigarettes. In 1897, Miss Lucy Page Gaston 
started an organization in Chicago for the pur¬ 
pose of lessening smoking among the school 
children, and as an outgrowth of this local society 
has come the present Anti-Cigarette League, 
with more than 500,000 members pledged to 
abstain from smoking. The members are mostly 
boys, but a large number of adults is also en¬ 
rolled. The League has branches in cities 
throughout the United States and Canada, and 
also in the Panama Canal Zone. “Boy Maga¬ 
zine” and a great variety of literature is pub¬ 
lished by the League in its work. Besides its 
work among boys, the League is prominent 
in promoting legislation against the sale of 
tobacco to minors and in creating a public 
opinion which shall demand the rigid enforce¬ 
ment of laws. 

Anti'cos'ti, an island of Canada, in the 
mouth of the Saint Lawrence, 135 miles long 
by 40 miles broad. The interior is mountainous 



Antidote 


Antidote 


and wooded, but there is much good land, and 
it is well adapted for agriculture. The fisheries, 
including trout, cod and herring, are valuable. 
The population is scanty. 

An'tidote, a substance which will neutralize 
the effect of a poison. Acids are chemical anti¬ 
dotes to alkalis and alkalis to acids. Morphine 
and atropine are antidotes each for the other, 
because their actions upon the body are opposite. 
There are poisons for which no antidote is 
known. Many things besides the administering 
of an antidote should be done to relieve persons 
suffering from poisons (See the article Poison), 
but in the following list are given the names of 
many of the ordinary poisons, with the names 
of their antidotes and some means of counteract¬ 
ing injurious effects. 

Alcohol: Use an emetic or stomach pump as 
quickly as possible; then give aromatic spirits 
of ammonia till the pulse is rapid and full; then 
apply heat to the extremities and cold to the 
head. 

Ammonia: See Caustic Potash. 

Arsenic: Give to the patient every half-hour 
for four doses, a tablespoonful of dialyzed iron, 
a substance which may be obtained at any drug 
store. Follow this treatment by a strong dose 
of castor oil. 

Bedbug Poison: See Corrosive Sublimate. 

Carbolic Acid,: Give Epsom salts, the chem¬ 
ical name of which is magnesium sulphate, or any 
other soluble sulphate. At the same time give 
large amounts of sweet oil, whites of eggs and 
stimulants. 

Carbonic Acid Gas: Give plenty of fresh air 
at once. If necessary, induce respiration arti¬ 
ficially, as described in the article Drowning. 
Give thirty drops of aromatic spirits of ammonia 
for three doses; and then every three hours for 
three doses, give an ounce of well diluted whisky. 

Carbonic Oxide: See Carbonic Acid Gas. 

Caustic Potash: Give diluted lemon juice, 
or mix two parts of vinegar with one of water 
and give with freedom; then give large amounts 
of sweet oil. 

Chloral: Give the patient an emetic con¬ 
sisting of thirty grains of ipecac in water, and 
inject under the skin one-twentieth of a grain of 
strychnine. Apply warmth, induce artificial 
respiration (See Drowning) and rub the body 
thoroughly to stimulate circulation. 

Coal Gas: See Carbonic Acid Gas. 

Cocaine: Lay the patient on his back and 
give whisky, with hypodermic injections of one- 
fortieth of a grain each of strychnine. 


Corrosive Sublimate: Give an emetic of thirty 
grains of powdered ipecac in w r arm water at once; 
then give the whites of a dozen eggs and a hypo¬ 
dermic injection of morphine. 

Knock-out Drops: See Choral. 

Lye: See Caustic Potash. 

Matches: See Phosphorus. 

Morphine: See Opium. 

Nicotine: Use emetics; give strong tea and 
stimulants, and then lay the patient flat on his 
back. 

Nux Vomica: See Strychnine. 

Opium: Empty the stomach as quickly as 
possible; cause the patient to inhale ammonia, 
and give him every hour a half grain of perman¬ 
ganate of potash. Induce artificial respiration 
(See Drowning) and keep the patient awake; 
if necessary, shake him or even whip him severely 
about the body and the calves of the legs. Atro¬ 
pine injected under the skin, or tincture of bella¬ 
donna given by the mouth, has a powerful effect 
in stimulating breathing. 

Oxalic Acid: Chalk, whiting or even white¬ 
wash scraped from the wall should be given in 
quantities of water. Follow this by a dose of 
castor oil or Epsom salts. 

Paris Green: See Arsenic. 

Phenacetin: Give whisky and digitalis. 

Phosphorus: Give an emetic promptly, and 
follow with a large quantity of mucilage from 
gum arabic; then give a strong dose of Epsom 
salts. Do not give fats or oils. 

Rough-on-Rats: See Phosphorus. 

Strychnine: Employ the Stomach pump at 
once; give twenty grains of zinc sulphate or 
thirty grains of powdered ipecac as an emetic; 
then twenty grains of chloral and thirty grains of 
bromide of sodium dissolved together in two 
ounces of hot water should be injected into the 
rectum. Convulsions may be stopped by the 
use of chloroform. Twenty grains of sodium 
bromide should be given by the mouth every 
hour. 

Sulphonal: Empty the stomach and use 
artificial respiration (See Drowning). Give 
plenty of hot coffee as soon as possible. 

Tansy: Give an emetic of thirty grains of 
ipecac in warm water, and follow with a dose of 
castor oil. 

Turpentine: Give an emetic; then give 
plenty of mucilage from gum arabic, Epsom 
salts and finally a hypodermic injection of 
morphine. 

Unknown Poison: Of course there can be 
no very intelligent treatment when the nature of 


Antietam 

the poison is unknown (See Poison). If the 
poison has been introduced by way of the mouth, 
use the stomach pump or an emetic. Induce 
artificial respiration if necessary (See Drown¬ 
ing). Give two teaspoonfuls of chalk in water, 
four eggs beaten up with a glass of milk and 
some whisky. 

Washing Soda: See Caustic Potash. 

White Precipitate: See Corrosive Sublimate. 

Antietam, an tee'tam, Battle of, a battle in 
the Civil War, fought near Antietam Creek, a 
small stream in Maryland, fifty miles n. w. of 
Washington, September 16 and 17,1862, between 
a Federal force of 75,000 under McClellan and 
a Confederate force of 40,000 under Lee. It 
was the crucial battle in Lee’s first invasion of 
the North and, though technically a victory for 
neither party, compelled the Confederates to 
retreat. McClellan’s principal lieutenants were 
Hooker, Sumner, Burnside, Sedgwick and 
Slocum; Lee’s were A. P. Hill, D. H. Hill, 
“Stonewall” Jackson, Early, Stuart, Hood and 
Longstreet. More men u r ere killed on the second 
day of the battle than on any other single day of 
the war. Military critics are agreed that Lee 
displayed generalship of a higher order during 
this battle than upon any other occasion, while 
McClellan made many tactical blunders. The 
result of the battle made possible the announce¬ 
ment of the Emancipation Proclamation and is 
considered by many, for that reason, the turning- 
point of the war. 

An'ti-Fed'eralists, the name given to a 
political party in the United States at the begin¬ 
ning of the government, favoring the strict con¬ 
struction of the Constitution, states’ rights and 
a weak central government. Its principal leader 
was Thomas Jefferson. The name of the party 
was later changed to Republican, Democratic- 
Republican, and finally Democratic. See Dem¬ 
ocratic Party. 

An'tigo, Wis., the county-seat of Langlade co., 
on the Chicago & Northwestern railroad, 96 
mi. n. n. w. of Oshkosh. It has railroad shops, 
breweries, foundries and manufactures of wood 
and iron. Population in 1910, 7196. 

Antig'one, in Greek mythology, the daughter 
of Oedipus and Jocasta, celebrated for her 
devotion to her father and to her brother Poly- 
nices, for burying whom, against the decree of 
King Creon, she suffered death. She is the 
heroine of Sophocles’s Oedipus at Colonus and 
of his Antigone. 

Antigua, an tPgwah, one of the British West 
Indies, the most important of the Leeward 


Antinomianism 

group. It was discovered by Columbus in 1493 
and was settled by the British in 1632. Its shores 
are high and rocky; the surface is varied and 
fertile. The capital, Saint John, the residence 
of the governor of the Leeward Islands, stands 
on the shore of a well-sheltered harbor, in the 
northwest part of the island. The staple articles 
of export are sugar, molasses and rum. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 38,899. 

Antilles, an til'leez, a name often applied to 
the West India Islands as a whole. They com¬ 
prise two groups, known as the Greater Antilles 
and the Lesser Antilles. The Greater Antilles 
include Cuba, Jamaica, Haiti, Porto Rico and 
some small islands near their coasts. The 
Lesser Antilles are made up of small islands. 
Among the best-known of these are Trinidad, 
Barbadoes, Martinique, Antigua and Saint 
Thomas. See West Indies. 

An'timo'ny, a brittle metal of a bluish-white 
or silver-white color. It melts at 842° F., and 
burns with a bluish-white flame. A mineral 
called stibnite or gray antimony is the chief ore. 
from which the metal is obtained. It is found 
in many places, including Mexico, France, Spain, 
Hungary, Italy, Canada, Australia and Borneo. 
The metal does not rust or tarnish when exposed 
to the air. When alloyed with other metals it 
hardens them, and is therefore used in the 
manufacture of such things as Britannia-metal, 
type metal and pewter. It renders the sound of 
bells more clear; it makes tin more white and 
sonorous, as well as harder, and makes the types 
for printing firmer and smoother. The salts of 
antimony are very poisonous. Protoxide of 
antimony is the active base of tartar emetic and 
is regarded as a valuable remedy. Yellow anti¬ 
mony is a preparation of antimony of a deep 
yellow color, used in enamel and porcelain 
painting. It is of various tints and the bril¬ 
liancy of the lighter hues is not affected by foul 
air. 

Antino'mianism (opposition to the law), the 
name given by Luther to the thought drawn by 
John Agricola from the doctrine of justification 
by faith, that the moral law is not binding on 
Christians as a rule of life. The term antino- 
mian has since been applied to all doctrines and 
practices which seem to condemn or discoun¬ 
tenance strict moral obligations. The Lutherans, 
on account of their doctrine of justification by 
faith, and the Calvinists, both on this ground and 
that of the doctrine of predestination, have been 
charged with antinomianism, but the charge is, 
of course, vigorously repelled by both. 


.antinous 


Ant-lion 


Antinous, an tin’o us, a young Bithynian, 
favorite of the emperor Hadrian. He was 
drowned in the Nile in 122 A. D. Hadrian set 
no bounds to his grief. He gave Antinous’s 
name to a newly discovered star, erected temples 
in his honor, called a city after him and caused 
him to be adored as a god throughout the empire. 
Statues, busts and bas-reliefs of him are numerous. 

Antioch, ariti ok, a famous city of ancient 
times, the capital of the Greek kings of Syria, 
on the left bank of the Orontes, about 21 mi. 
from the sea, in a beautiful and fertile plain. It 
was founded by Seleucus Nicator in 300 B. c., 
and named after his father Antiochus. In 
Roman times it was the seat of the Syrian gov¬ 
ernors and the center of a widely-extended com¬ 
merce. It was called the “Queen of the East” 
and “The Beautiful” and was a center of Greek 
culture for a long period. Its population at the 
height of its power was estimated at 400,000. 
Antioch is frequently mentioned in the New 
Testament, and it was here that the disciples of 
.Jesus Christ were first called Christians (Acts 
xi, 26). In the first half of the seventh century 
it was taken by the Saracens, and in 1098 by the 
Crusaders. In 1516 it passed into the hands of 
the Turks. The modem Antioch, or Antakiyeh, 
occupies but a small portion of the ancient site. 
Population, about 28,000. 

Antioquia, ahn'te o'keah, a town of South 
America, in Colombia, in the State of Antioquia, 
on the River Cauca. It was founded in 1542. 
The town has considerable trade in maize and 
sugar. Population, about 9000. 

Antipodes, an tip'o deez, a group of small, 
uninha bited islands in the South Pacific Ocean, 
s. e. of New Zealand. They receive their name 
from their position, which is nearly opposite to 
Great Britain. 

An'tipope, the name applied to those who at 
different periods have produced a schism in the 
Catholic Church by opposing the authority of the 
pope, under the pretense that they were them¬ 
selves popes. The first antipope is reputed to 
be Laurentius, elected in 498 in opposition to 
Symmachus. Several emperors of Germany set 
up antipopes. After the death of Gregory XI, 
the French cardinals objected to the election of 
Urban VI and, withdrawing to Provence, set up 
Clement VII as antipope, thus creating in the 
Church what was known as the “great schism 
of the West.” The last antipope was Felix V, a 
duke of Savoy (1439-1449). 

Antipy'rene, a white soluble powder, given 
often as a medicine to relieve pain. As it acts 


unfavorably upon the heart, it should not be 
taken except upon the advice of a physician, 
especially if the patient has a tendency to heart 
disease. Individuals vary in their susceptibility 
to the drug. 

An'tisep'tic, an agent that prevents or stops 
decay. There are a great number of substances 
having this preservative property, among which 
are salt, alcohol, vegetable charcoal, creosote, 
corrosive sublimate, tannic acid, sulphurous 
acid, sulphuric ether, chloroform, arsenic, cam¬ 
phor, niter and aniline. Alcohol is used ex¬ 
tensively in preserving specimens for museums 
and laboratories, and many of the poisonous 
substances mentioned above are satisfactory 
when the substance to be kept is not a food 
stuff. The packing of fish in ice and the curing 
of herring and other fish with salt are familiar 
antiseptic processes. The term is applied in a 
specific manner to that mode of treatment in 
surgery by which air is excluded from wounds, 
or allowed access only through substances 
capable of destroying the germs in the atmos¬ 
phere. See Bacteria and Bacteriology; 
Surgery. 

An titox'in, a substance formed by natural 
processes in the blood of persons suffering from 
bacterial diseases. It possesses the power of 
neutralizing the poisons or toxins developed by 
the bacteria. It is the presence of antitoxins 
in the serum of the blood that frequently 
makes inoculation a preventive in bacterial 
diseases. See Serum Therapy; Bacteria and 
Bacteriology. 

Ant'-li on, the larva of an insect which in 
its perfect state resembles a small dragon fly 


ANT-LION 

Perfect insect and larva. 

It is remarkable on account of the ingenious 
method by which it catches the ants and other 
insects on which it feeds. The ant-lion digs a 
funnel-shaped hole in the dryest, finest sand it 
can find and makes the sides smooth and 
sloping. Then it buries itself at the bottom of 
the hole with only its strong jaws visible. When 
some luckless ant stumbles over the edge of the 
hole, it rolls down the sloping sides, to be 




Antofagasta 


Antwerp 


seized by the voracious larva in waiting. As 
soon as the juices are sucked from the body of 
the prey, the ant-lion jerks it out of the hole, 
repairs the sides of the pit and is ready for 
another insect. If at any time the prey seems 
liable to escape up the sloping sides, the ant- 
lion washes it back by throwing sand over it. 

Antofagasta, ahn'to fa gah'sta, a seaport of 
Chile, situated on the Pacific coast, about 500 
mi. n. of Valparaiso. It is an important ship¬ 
ping port for saltpeter, large deposits of which 
are near-by, and is connected by railroad with 
valuable silver mines. This city and the prov¬ 
ince of which it is the capital were ceded to 
Chile by Bolivia in 1882. Population in 1907, 
32,496. 

Antonelli, ahn'to nel'le, Giacomo (1808- 
1876), an Italian cardinal, born at Sonnino. 
He early became conspicuous for his intellectual 
ability, and was for a time attached to the suite 
of Pope Gregory. In 1841 he was made under¬ 
secretary of the ministry of the interior, and 
four years later became minister of finance. He 
acquired a great influence during the reign of 
Pius IX, and in 1847 was made cardinal and 
also a member of the ministerial council. The 
following year he became prime minister. He 
exerted his influence to maintain the national 
supremacy of Italy and at first disagreed with 
the pope concerning a war with Austria. After 
the pope was returned to power through the 
influence of France, Antonelli took a leading 
part in reorganizing the government. He was 
opposed to all advances from other powers and 
to the desire of the Italians for a national organi¬ 
zation. He died while holding the position of 
prime minister to the pope. 

An'toni'nus Pius, (86-161 a. d.), Roman 
emperor, selected by Hadrian as his successor. 
The persecutions of the Christians he speedily 
abolished. In Britain he extended the Roman 
dominion, and by raising a new wall put a stop 
to the invasions of the Piets and Scots. He 
was succeeded by Marcus Aurelius, his adopted 
son. 

An'tony, Mark (Marcus Antonius) (83-30 
B . c.), a Roman triumvir. He served in Gaul 
under Caesar and in 50 b. c. returned to Rome 
to support Caesar’s interests against Pompey. 
When the war broke out between these two, 
Antony led reenforcements to Caesar in Greece 
and took an important part in the battle of 
Pharsalia. In 4-i. '* C„, a:J GOQUQS’s colleague 
in the consulship, he tried Co have Caesar 
made emperor (See Caesar, Caius Julius). 

9 



MARK ANTONY 


After Caesar’s assassination, Antony, by he 
oration which he delivered over the bo ly, 
excited the people to anger and revenge and 
compelled the assassins to flee. Antony quar¬ 
reled with Octavianus, 
but became reconciled 
to him and departed to 
Cisalpine Gaul, which 
had been conferred upon 
him against the will of 
the senate. While he 
was absent he was 
declared a public en¬ 
emy, was defeated by 
the army of the senate 
and was compelled to; 
flee over the Alps. 

Later, through the in¬ 
fluence of Lepidus, Antony and Octavianus were 
again reconciled, and it was agreed that the three 
conspirators, who were called triumvirs, should 
divide the Roman world among them. Antony 
received Gaul; Lepidus, Spain, and Octavianus, 
Africa and Sicily. 

In 42 b. c. Antony and Octavianus defeated 
Brutus and Cassius at Philippi, and Antony 
then went to Asia. Here Cleopatra appeared 
before him to apologize for her insolent behavior 
to the triumvirs. Antony fell a victim to her 
charms and followed her to Alexandria. Hos¬ 
tilities which broke out in Italy between his own 
relatives and Octavianus recalled him to Italy, 
but the struggle was decided before he reached 
Rome. A new division of the Roman world 
was now made, by which Antony obtained the 
East and Octavianus the West. Antony returned 
again to Cleopatra, and some time later war 
was declared by Octavianus, ostensibly against 
Cleopatra, but really against Antony. At the 
battle of Actium, Antony was defeated (See 
Actium). He returned to Alexandria and, 
deceived by a false report of Cleopatra’s death, 
fell upon his own sword. 

Ant'werp, the chief port of Belgium and 
the capital of the province of Antwerp, on the 
Scheldt, about 50 mi. from the open sea. It is 
strongly fortified, being completely surrounded 
on the land side by a semi-circular inner line of 
fortifications, the defenses being completed by 
an outer line of forts and outworks. The cathe¬ 
dral, with a spire 400 feet high, one of the 
largest and most beautiful specimens of Gothic 
architecture in Belgium, contains Rubens’s cele¬ 
brated masterpieces—the Descent from the 
Cross, the Elevation of the Cross and The 


Anubis 


Ape 


Assumption. The other churches of note are 
Saint James’s, Saint Andrew’s and Saint Paul’s, 
all enriched with paintings by Rubens, Vandyck 
and other masters. 'The harbor is large and 
one of the finest in the world. The shipping 
trade has greatly advanced in recent years, and 
is now very large. There are numerous and 
varied industries, among which are sugar refin¬ 
ing, distilling, lace-making and ship-building. 
The foreign trade is extensive, and through this 
port nearly all the commerce of Belgium passes. 

In 1914 Antwerp was taken by the Germans 
after a ten-days’ siege. The outer defenses 
were attacked on September 29, and the city, 
supposed to be almost impregnable, surrendered 
on October 9. The chief credit for the capture 
belongs to the great Krupp siege guns, but both 
armies fought valiantly. The city was little 
damaged by the bombardment, because the 
Germans agreed not to shell the prominent 
buildings, provided these were not used for mili¬ 
tary purposes. Population in 1910, 301,766. 

Anu'bis, one of the deities of the ancient 
Egyptians, the son of Osiris by Isis. His office 
was to conduct the souls of 
the dead from this world to 
the next. 

An'vil, an iron or steel 
block on which pieces of 
metal are laid for the pur¬ 
pose of being hammered. 

The common smith’s anvil 
is generally of seven parts, 
namely, the core or body; 
the four corners for the pur¬ 
pose of enlarging its base; 
the projecting end, which 
contains a square hole for 
the reception of a set or 
chisel to cut off pieces of 
iron; and the beak or conical end, used for turn¬ 
ing pieces of iron into a circular form. These 
parts are each separately welded to the core 
and hammered so as to form a regular surface 
with the whole. When the anvil has received 
its final form, it is faced with steel, and is then 
tempered in cold water. 

Aor'ta, the great artery, the trunk of the 
arterial system. It rises from the left ventricle 
of the heart toward the top of the breast-bone; 
then makes a curve, called the arch of the aorta, 
whence it gives off branches to the head and 
upper extremities; then going downward through 
the chest, it gives off branches to the trunk, 
thence it passes through the diaphragm and 


finally divides into the two iliacs, which supply 
the pelvis and lower extremities. See Arteries; 
Circulation; Heart. 

Apache, a pah’cha, a warlike tribe of indians 
inhabiting Arizona, New Mexico and the 
northern states of Mexico. Ages ago they 
migrated from the vicinity of the Great Slave 
Lake in Canada, 
and are now the 
veritable Ishmaels 
of the West. For 
years they carried 
on a guerrilla war¬ 
fare with settlers 
and troops. Their 
leader, Geronimo, 
was captured- by 
General Miles and, 
with other hostile 
indians, kept as a 
prisoner. Civiliza¬ 
tion is slowly bene¬ 
fiting the Apache on 
the San Carlos and 
White Mountain 
reservations in Arizona. One highly edu¬ 
cated indian, Antonio Apache, was one of the 
officials of the department of anthropology at 
the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago, 
1893. They are skilful in the manufacture of 
baskets and pottery. The number of Apaches, 
most of whom live on reservations, is now 5,000. 

Ap'atite, a translucent but seldom trans¬ 
parent mineral, a compound of phosphate of 
lime with fluoride and chloride of calcium. It 
occurs principally in the oldest rocks and in 
veins, extensive deposits being found in all 
parts of the world. It is now largely utilized 
as a source of artificial phosphate for fertilizers. 

Ape, a name commonly given to any of the 
family of mammals to which the monkey 
belongs. The term is limited, stnctly, to the 
anthropoid, or man-like monkeys. This family 
includes the chimpanzee, the gorilla, the orang¬ 
outang and the gibbon, some of which are larger 
and stronger than man. The skeleton closely 
resembles that in man, the difference being mostly 
in the proportion of the limbs, the shape of the 
cranial and facial bones and the spinal column. 
The legs are shorter than in man, the arms 
longer, the skull thicker, the jaws square 
rather than rounded and the spinal column 
not curved at the base. The feet are 
similar to those of man, though the big toe 
is somewhat like a thumb, and the foot 








Apelles 

can clasp things like a hand. The brain is 
only half as large as man’s, but is similar in 
almost all other respects. In muscles, nerves 
and all the bodily organs, man and the apes are 
practically the same. But the bodies of the 
apes, excepting the face, the palms of the hands 
and the soles of the feet, are covered with coarse 
black or brown hair. The food of the ape is 
vegetable, largely fruits, and its home is built 
on a rude platform constructed in the trees of 
the tropical forests. See Chimpanzee ; Gorilla ; 
Orang-outang; Gibbon; Baboon; Monkey. 

Apelles, a pel'leez, the most famous of the 
painters of ancient Greece and of antiquity, 
was born in the fourth century B. c., probably 
at Colophon. Ephorus of Ephesus was his 
first teacher, but, attracted by the renown of the 
Sicyonian school, Apelles later went to Sicyon 
to study. In the time of Philip he went to 
Macedonia and there a close friendship between 
him and Alexander the Great was established. 
His portrait of Alexander with a thunderbolt in 
his hand was one of his most celebrated paint¬ 
ings. His drawings are especially noted for 
accuracy in detail and delicacy of coloring. 
Lucian’s detailed description of Apelles’s works 
gave inspiration to the Italian Botticelli, the 
German Durer and many other artists. 

Ap'ennines, The, a prolongation of the Alps, 
forming the "backbone of Italy,” are perhaps 
the most recently formed mountains in Italy. 
The average height of the mountains composing 
the range is about 4000 feet, and nowhere do 
they reach the limits of perpetual snow, though 
some summits exceed 9000 feet in height. 
Monte Corno, the highest peak, has an altitude 
of 9580 feet. On the highest summit of the 
Northern Apennines, Monte Cimone (7110 
feet) is a meteorological observatory. These 
mountains consist almost entirely of limestone 
rocks, and are exceedingly rich in the finest 
marbles. On the south slopes volcanic masses 
are not uncommon, Mount Vesuvius, the only 
active volcano on the continent of Europe, being 
an instance. The lower slopes are well clothed 
with vegetation; the summits are sterile and 
bare. Thirteen passes pierce the Apennines. 

Aphasia, a fa’zhe a, a symptom of certain 
diseases of the nervous system, in which the 
patient loses the power of expressing ideas by 
means of words, or loses the appropriate use of 
words, the vocal organs the while remaining 
intact and the intelligence sound. There is 
sometimes an entire loss of words as connected 
with ideas, and sometimes the loss of a few only. 


Apis 

In one form of the disease, called aphemia, the 
patient can think and write but cannot speak; 
in another, called agraphia, he can think and 
speak, but cannot express his ideas in writing. 
In a great majority of cases, where post-mortem 
examinations have been made, morbid changes 
have been found in the left frontal convolution 
of the brain. 

Aphides, afi deez, very small greenish or 
brown bugs, commonly known as plant lice, 
that live on the tender shoots of plants, sucking 
the sap through long, sharp beaks. Some of 
them have two minute tubes on their backs 
from which they ^xcrete a sweet substance 
that ants and othef insects like (See Ant). 
Aphides are injurious to plants and often become 
great pests. 

Aphrodite, afro di'tc, the goddess of love 
among the Greeks. See Venus. 

Aphthae, of the, a disease. See Thrush. 

A'pia, the chief place and trading center of 
the Samoan Islands, on the north side of the 
island of Upolu. It w r as the scene of a terrible 
disaster to the American and German navies 
during a hurricane in March, 1889. Popula¬ 
tion, about 3750. See Samoa. 

A'piaxy, a place for keeping bees. The 
apiary should be well sheltered from strong 
winds, moisture, and the extremes of heat and 
cold. The hives should face the south or south¬ 
east, and should be placed on shelves two feet 
above the ground and about the same distance 
from each other As to the form of the hives, 
and the materials of which they should be con¬ 
structed, there are great differences of opinion. 
Wooden hives of square, box-like form are now 
gaining general favor among bee keepers. They 
usually consist of a large breeding chamber 
below, and two sliding removable boxes called 
supers above, for the withdrawal of honey with¬ 
out disturbing the contents of the main chamber 
It is of great importance that the apiary should 
be situated in the neighborhood of good feeding 
grounds, such as gardens, clover fields, or heath- 
covered hills. When their stores of honey are 
removed the bees must be fed during the winter 
and part of spring with syrup or with a solution 
consisting of two pounds of loaf sugar to a pint 
of water. See Bee. 

A'pis, a bull to which divine honors were paid 
by the ancient Egyptians, who regarded him as 
a symbol of Osiris. He was not suffered to live be¬ 
yond twenty-five years, but was secretly drowned 
by the priests in a sacred well. Another bull 
with the sacred marks was selected in his place. 


Apocalypse 


Apostles 


often only after a long search. His birthday 
was annually celebrated, and his death was 
followed by a season of public mourning. 

Apoc'alypse, the name frequently given to the 
last book of the New Testament, in the English 
version called the Revelation of Saint John the 
Divine. It is generally believed that the Apoc¬ 
alypse was written by the apostle John in his 
old age (95-97 a. d.), in the Isle of Patmos, 
whither he had been banished by the Roman 
emperor Domitian. 

Apocrypha, a pok'rifah, a term applied in 
the earliest churches to various sacred or pro¬ 
fessedly inspired writings. The term is specially 
applied to the following books, which were 
written during the two centuries preceding the 
birth of Christ: The first and second books of 
Esdras, Tobit, Judith, the rest of the book of 
Esther, the Wisdom of Solomon, the Wisdom 



of Jesus the son of Sirach, or Ecclesiasticus, 
Baruch the Prophet, the Song of the Three 
Children, Susanna and the Elders, Bel and the 


Dragon, the Prayer of Manasses and the first 
and second books of Maccabees. 

Apol'lo, son of Jupiter and Leto, and twin 
brother of Diana. He slew the serpent Python 
on the fifth day after his birth and afterward, 
with Diana, he killed the children of Niobe. He 
also destroyed the Cyclops, because they forged 
the thunderbolts with which Jupiter killed 
Aesculapius, Apollo’s son. Apollo was originally 
the sun god, and in later times the view was 
almost universal that Apollo and Helios were 
identical. From being the god of light and 
purity in a physical sense, he gradually became 
the god of spiritual light and purity and of 
political progress. He came to be regarded as 
the god of song and prophecy, the institutor and 
guardian of civil and political order and the 
founder of cities. His worship was introduced 
at Rome, probably in the time of the Tarquins. 
Among the ancient statues of Apollo that have 
come down to us the most remarkable is the one 
called the Apollo Belvedere, from the Belvedere 
Gallery in the Vatican at Rome. 

Ap ollo'nius of Tyre, the hero of a tale of 
adventure which had an immense popularity 
in the Middle Ages and which furnished the plot 
of Shakespeare’s Pericles, Prince of Tyre. 

Ap'oplexy, the sudden loss of consciousness 
and voluntary motion caused by pressure upon 
the brain resulting from congestion or rupture 
of the blood vessels in that organ. In a com¬ 
plete apoplexy the person falls suddenly, is 
unable to move his limbs or to speak, and gives 
no evidence of seeing, hearing or feeling. His 
breathing is stertorous, much like that of a 
person in deep sleep. Among the premonitory 
symptoms of this disease are drowsiness, giddi¬ 
ness, dullness of hearing, frequent yawning, dis¬ 
ordered vision, noise in the ears and vertigo. 
It is most frequent between the ages of fifty and 
seventy. People with large heads, short necks, 
full chests and corpulent frames are generally 
considered to be more liable to apoplexy than 
persons of thin habit. Among the common 
predisposing causes are long and intense thought, 
continued anxiety, habitual indulgence of the 
temper and passions, sedentary and luxurious 
living, intoxication. More or less complete 
recovery from a first and second attack is com¬ 
mon, but a third is almost invariably fatal. 

Apos'tles, twelve men whom Jesus selected 
to attend him during his ministry and to pro¬ 
mulgate his religion. They were Simon Peter, 
and Andrew, his brother; James, and John, his 
brother, sons of Zebedee; Philip; Bartholomew; 









Apostles’ Creed 

Thomas; Matthew; James, the son of Alpheus; 
Lebeus, his brother, called Judas ; Simon, the 
Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot. All were labor¬ 
ing men except Matthew, who was a tax collector. 
To these were subsequently added Matthias, 
(chosen by lot in place of Judas Iscariot) and 
Paul. The Bible gives the name of apostle to 
Barnabas also, who accompanied Paul on his 
missions (Acts xiv, 14). In a wider sense the 
term apostles is applied to those preachers who 
first taught Christianity in heathen countries, for 
example. Saint Denis, the apostle of the Gauls; 
Saint Boniface, the apostle of Germany; Saint 
Augustine, the apostle of England. 

Apostles’ Creed. See Creed. 

Ap'ostol'ic Succession, the doctrine accord¬ 
ing to which bishops, priests, deacons and other 
similar officers of the Church are believed to 
have received consecration from those who trace 
their right back to Christ’s Apostles, in direct 
line of succession. This system is strictly 
observed by the Roman Catholic, the Eastern 
and the Anglican churches, who consider no 
minister legitimate unless he has been ordained 
by a bishop claiming this succession from the 
Apostles. See Bishop. 

Apoth'ecaries’ Weight, the weight used in 
dispensing drugs, in which the pound is divided 
into 12 ounces, the ounce into 8 drams, the dram 
into 3 scruples and the scruple into 20 grains, 
the grain being equivalent to that in avoirdupois 
weight. 

Apoth'ecary, Druggist or Pharmacist, in a 

general sense, one who keeps a shop or laboratory 
for preparing, compounding and selling medi¬ 
cines, and for the making up of medical pre¬ 
scriptions. It was in Africa that physicians 
first began to give- up to ingenious [men the 
preparation of medicines from prescriptions. It 
is probable, therefore, that many Arabic terms of 
the art were by these means introduced in phar¬ 
macy and chemistry, and have been still retained 
and adopted. In the United States one who 
keeps a drugstore is usually called a druggist, 
while the term 'pharmacist is applied to one who 
has completed a course in pharmacy and is 
licensed to compound medicines from physicians’ 
prescriptions. 

Ap'otheo'sis (deification), a solemnity among 
the ancients by which a mortal was raised to the 
rank of the gods. The custom of placing among 
the gods those mortals who had rendered their 
countrymen important services was very ancient 
among the Greeks. The Romans, for several 
centuries, deified none but Romulus, and first 


Appendicitis 

imitated the Greeks in the fashion of frequent 
apotheosis after the time of Caesar. From this 
period apotheosis was regulated by the decrees 
of the senate and accompanied with great 
solemnities. Many of the Roman emperors 
were deified. 

Appalachian Mountains, also called Alle- 
ghanies, a vast mountain range in North America 
extending for 1300 miles from Cape Gaspe, on 
the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, southwest to Ala¬ 
bama. The system has been divided into three 
great sections: the northern, including the 
Adirondacks, the Green Mountains and the 
White Mountains, from Cape Gaspe to New 
York; the central, including a large portion of 
the Blue Ridge, the Alleghanies proper and 
numerous lesser ranges, from New York to the 
valley of the New River; and the southern, 
including the continuation of the Blue Ridge, 
the Black Mountains and the Smoky Mountains, 
from the New River southward. The chain 
consists of several ranges generally parallel to 
one another, the altitude of the individual moun¬ 
tains increasing on approaching the south. The 
highest points are Mount Mitchell, 6711 feet, 
and Clingman’s Dome, 6619 feet high, both in 
North Carolina. Lake Champlain is the only 
lake of great importance in the system, but 
numerous rivers of considerable size take their 
rise here. Magnetite, hematite and other iron 
ores occur in great abundance, and the coal de¬ 
posits are among the most extensive in the 
world. Marble, limestone, fire-clay, gypsum 
and salt abound. The forests covering many 
of the ranges yield large quantities of valuable 
timber. See Adirondack Mountains; Blue 
Ridge; Cumberland Mountains. 

Ap'palach ico'la or Apalachicola, a river 
of the United States, formed by the Chatta¬ 
hoochee and Flint rivers, which unite near the 
northern border of Florida. It flows south 
through Florida for 100 miles, emptying into 
Appalachicola Bay in the Gulf of Mexico. It 
is navigable throughout. 

Appeal, in law, the removal of a suit from a 
lower to a higher court for rehearing, or for a 
reversal of the decision. Each system of courts 
has particular rules upon which appeals may be 
granted, usually requiring the presentation of 
additional material evidence, or the certification 
of an error in the conduct of the trial by the court. 
See Procedure. 

Appendicitis, ap pen'di si'tis, an inflamma¬ 
tion of the vermiform appendix, formerly thought 
to be an inflammation of the large intestine. The 




Apperception 

vermiform appendix is an organ about three 
inches long and a quarter of an inch in diameter 
in its normal condition, and is located on the 
right side of the abdomen midway between the 
crest of the ilium and the navel, though* its posi¬ 
tion varies somewhat in different individuals. 
The organ seems now to be useless, though the 
more highly developed corresponding organ in 
some of the lower animals is of value in digestion. 
More than half of the cases of appendicitis appear 
between the ages of twenty and fifty, and about 
eighty per cent of the patients are males. 

Appendicitis may arise from a variety of causes, 
such as wounds, strains or violent injury, or the 
presence of some foreign body in the appendix. 
The last mentioned cause, once thought to be 
the most important, is now considered to be 
rarely the exciting cause. It is probable that 
in a majority of cases the prime factors are 
bacteria acting upon an injured or weakened 
mucous membrane. Among the symptoms of 
appendicitis are sharp, colic-like pains, varied 
by dull aches, which gradually localize themselves 
in the region of the appendix. Fever follows 
rapidly, and is usually accompanied by nausea 
and vomiting. A large proportion of all cases 
recover, but in severe cases the tissue of the 
appendix ulcerates and becomes perforated, 
causing inflammation of the whole abdominal 
cavity. In cases of perforation death is almost 
certain to follow, unless prompt surgical meas¬ 
ures are taken. In fact, the surgical operation 
has come to be considered the only certain cure 
for the disease, and so well known are the 
method of operation and the subsequent treat¬ 
ment of the wound, that the operation is not 
regarded in the least as a difficult or dangerous 
one. 

Ap percep'tion, in psychology, the term 
employed to denote the assimilation of ideas. 
When a new idea is presented to us, we attempt 
to relate it to our store of knowledge. In this 
attempt the mind reacts upon the idea pre¬ 
sented to it; therefore apperception is a reaction 
of our mental activities upon external stimuli. 
The degree of effort accompanying the reaction 
depends upon the nature of the idea. If it is 
of little importance and closely related to some¬ 
thing already well understood, the effort of 
apperception is so slight that we scarcely recog¬ 
nize it, or we may be entirely unconscious of it, 
as in the apperception of an apple or a ball; but 
if the idea is new, we bring to bear upon it all our 
mental powers. All similar ideas are brought 
into consciousness and compared with the new 


Apperception 

one, which is then classified, and if found to agree 
with the ideas already in the mind, is accepted. 
If found to disagree, it may be rejected or held 
in abeyance for further examination. Before 
a new idea can be apperceived, we must obtain 
knowledge concerning it. If it is a new sort 
of fruit, we bring to bear upon it all the 
senses, such as sight, touch, taste, smell. We 
then attempt to learn of its manner of growth, 
whether the plant is annual, biennial or perennial; 
whether it is an herb, shrub or tree, and whether 
it thrives in a warm or temperate climate. 
When these items of information are obtained, 
we are prepared to -classify properly the new 
specimen and add it to our idea of fruit. 

Those ideas which affect our notions of life, 
such as political, social and religious truths and 
principles, are received with greater difficulty 
than ideas of material objects. This is because 
their reception tends to modify our settled 
beliefs or accustomed practices, and when they 
are first presented we array against them all of 
our habits and customs which they affect. Be¬ 
cause of their wide influence we are often a 
long time in apperceiving new truths of this sort. 
However, this is not wholly to our disadvantage, 
since ideas that are apperceived slowly become 
thoroughly assimilated and exert a strong influ¬ 
ence upon life. 

Apperception is a fundamental educational 
doctrine and is generally accepted by the edu¬ 
cators of Germany and the United States. It 
lies at the foundation of the following truths 
which should be remembered in connection with 
all teaching. 

(1) When ideas are presented, the memory of 
past similar ideas will exert a modifying influ¬ 
ence, and the tendency is to interpret the new 
idea by the old ideas which first come into con¬ 
sciousness. Each one interprets new ideas in 
the light of his experience. The artist sees in a 
landscape material for a beautiful picture, while 
the farmer sees in the same landscape so much 
fertile soil suitable for cultivation. 

(2) The teacher needs to know the child’s 
previous history before she can tell how he will 
receive certain ideas, especially those affecting 
his moral and social life. 

(3) The tendency of the mind to grow into 
fixed attitudes makes apperception of new truths 
more difficult as one becomes older. 

(4) For the above reason the habits and views 
of life formed in childhood and youth are very 
important, because they influence one for all 
future time. 


Appian Way 

See Association of Ideas; Interest; 
Perception. Consult Rooper’s Apperception, 
or a Pot of Green Feathers; De Garmo’s Essen¬ 
tials of Method, and Lange’s Apperception. 

Ap'pian Way, called the Queen of Roads, the 
oldest and most renowned Roman road, was 
constructed during the censorship of Appius 
Claudius Caecus, 313 b. c. It was built with 
large square stones on a raised platform and 
led direct from the gates of Rome to Capua, in 
Campania. It was afterward extended through 



APPIAN WAY AS IT APPEARS TODAY 


Samnium and Apulia to Brundusium, the modern 
Brindisi. In 1850-1853, in the reign of Pius IX, 
it was excavated as far as the eleventh milestone 
from Rome. Even at the present day the road 
is in excellent condition. It commands a beauti¬ 
ful prospect, embracing the Campagna, the ruins 
of the aqueducts and the mountains, while on 
both sides of the road are numerous ancient 
tombs. 

Ap'pius Claud'ius Cras'sus, one of the 
Roman decemvirs appointed in 451 b. c. to draw 
up a new code of laws. He and his colleagues 
plotted to retain their power permanently, and 
at the expiration of their year of office they 
refused to give up their authority. The people 
were incensed against them, and the following 
circumstances led to their overthrow: Appius 
Claudius had conceived a passion for Virginia, 
the daughter of Lucius Virginius, then absent 
with the army. At the instigation of Appius, 
Marcus Claudius, one of his clients, claimed 
Virginia, an the daughter of one of his own slaves, 
and the decemvir, ordered that until the ques¬ 
tion was decided she should remain in the custody 
of the claimant. Virginius, hastily summoned 
from the army, appeared with his daughter next 
day in the Forum and appealed to the people: 
but Appius Claudius again adjudged her to 


Apple 

Marcus Claudius. Unable to rescue his daughter, 
the father stabbed her to the heart. The decem¬ 
virs were deposed by the indignant people, 449 
b. c., and Appius Claudius died in prison or was 
strangled. 

Ap'ple, the fruit of a well-known tree of the 
rose family; also the tree itself. The apple 
belongs to the temperate regions, over which it 
is almost universally cultivated. It reaches a 
moderate height and has spreading branches. 
The leaves are nearly oval, and the flowers are 
pinkish white yid produced from very short 
shoots or spurs, which are usually of two years’ 
growth. The apple is probably a native of 
southwestern Asia and southern Europe. It 
was known to the Romans, by whom it was 
introduced into England. From England it 
was introduced into the United States and Can¬ 
ada, now North America leads the world in the 
production of apples. 

All of the numerous varieties have been derived 
from two species, the wild crab and the common 
apple. The fruit is a rather hard, juicy pulp 
that is formed around a core, which consists of 
five cells bearing two seeds each. The pulp is 
white or slightly pinkish. Most apples are 
nearly round, though some are elongated. In 
color there are nearly as many shades as there 
are varieties, though these shades are limited to 
red, green and yellow. Several thousand vari¬ 
eties of cultivated apples are known and about* 
1000 are grown in the United States, though of 
this number not more than 100 are profitable, 
and not over twenty varieties are successful in 
any one locality. The numerous varieties are 
adapted to the soil and climate of widely different 
sections, and if removed from their native 
locality will seldom succeed. For instance, those 
most profitable in Canada and the northern 
part of the United States, as .New England, 
New York and Michigan, will not thrive as far 
south as the Ohio River, while the varieties 
accustomed to the warmer climate of southern 
Illinois and Missouri fail when removed to 
Michigan or New England. In general, the 
warmer apple-growing regions succeed best with 
the .early fruit, while the colder regions, such as 
New England, Michigan and northern New 
York, produce the best late fruit, or those 
varieties known as winter apples. 

Apples are used in many ways. The choicest 
fruit is eaten raw, or it may be cooked by 
a dozen methods. Inferior grades are canned, 
evaporated or made into cider, which in turn 
is made into vinegar (See Cider; Vinegar). 










Apple of Discord 

By placing winter apples in cold storage or even 
in cool cellars, the fruit can be kept in good 
condition through the winter months and until 
the earliest varieties which are raised in the 
•warmer regions are on the market, so that it is 
possible to have apples the entire year. The 
apple is the most valuable fruit of the temperate 
climates and is generally considered the most 
valuable in the world. 

New varieties are obtained by planting the 
seed, but a desirable variety is seldom secured 
in this way, because the seeds do not reproduce 
the fruit from which they were taken; therefore 
orchard trees are prepared by grafting (See 
Grafting). In setting trees, the ground should 
be carefully prepared. The best results are 
secured by setting the trees in rows about thirty 
feet apart each way. To insure a good crop the 
land should be tilled until about the middle of 
July, then sown with some cover crop, like clover 
or cowpeas. This stops the growth of the trees 
and enables the fruit to mature more satis¬ 
factorily. Trees vary greatly in production, but 
under the best of conditions one has been known 
to produce from eighteen to twenty barrels of 
fruit in a season. The states having the largest 
number of trees in 1910, in the order of then- 
importance, were Missouri, New York, Illinois, 
Arkansas, Ohio and Pennsylvania. In the 
order of production the leading states were New 
York, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Missouri and 
Kentucky, thus showing that the states having 
the largest number of trees do not necessarily 
produce the largest quantity of fruit. This dif¬ 
ference is due to the fact that in many states the 
orchards were young and not bearing. There are 
in the United States upwards of 200,000,000 
apple trees, and the yearly crop of apples amounts 
to about 100,000,000 barrels. Most of these are 
•used at home, although considerable quantities 
are exported to other countries. Canada Dro- 
duces about 50,000,000 bushels a year. 

Apple of Discord, according to the story in 
Greek mythology, the golden apple thrown into 
an assembly of the gods by the goddess of dis¬ 
cord. It bore the inscription “For the fairest/’ 
and Juno, Venus and Minerva all claimed it at 
once. Paris, chosen as judge, gave the apple 
to Venus, and this decision so inflamed the 
jealousy and hatred of Juno toward all of the 
Trojan race, that she did not cease her plots 
against it until Troy was destroyed. See Paris. 

Apples, Seedless, one of the latest achieve¬ 
ments in the cultivation of this common fruit. 
After several years of experimenting, Mr. John 


Apricot 

F. Spencer of Grand Junction, Col., succeeded 
in growing several trees that bore seedless and 
coreless apples. The fruit from these trees had 
a beautiful dark red color, with yellow, straw¬ 
berry-like dots. It was of goodly size and had a 
flavor somewhat resembling a wine-sap. The 
meat was solid, with a slight hardened substance 
near the blossom end, like the navel in the seed¬ 
less orange. The trees were quite hardy and 
had a smooth bark. An important feature of 
this seedless variety is the blossomless tree. 
There is a stamen and a very small quantity of 
pollen, but the rest of the flower is missing. 
This absence of the blossom leaves no place for 
the codling moth to lay its eggs, so that wormless 
apples are practically assured. The lack of the 
flower also removes the danger from late frosts. 
Many trees were at once grafted from the 
original few. The desirable features of the 
seedless apple would seem to indicate that it 
may in time displace all the old seed-bearing 
varieties. 

Ap'pleton, Wis., the county-seat of Outa¬ 
gamie co., 100 mi. xi w. of Milwaukee, on the 
Fox River and on the Chicago & Northwestern 
and the Chicago, Milwaukee & Saint Paul 
railroads. The city lies on a plateau 70 feet 
above the river and near the Grand Chute falls, 
which furnish water power for various manu¬ 
factures. The principal products include paper, 
farm implements, furniture, flour and woolen 
and knit goods. It is the seat of Appleton 
Collegiate Institute and Lawrence University 
(Methodist Episcopal). The place was settled 
in 1840 and incorporated as a city in 1857. 
Population in 1910, 16,773. 

Appomat'tox Court House, a village in 
Virginia, situated 25 mi. e. of Lynchburg. It 
was at this point that General Lee surrendered 
the army of Northern Virginia to General Grant 
on April 9, 1865. This surrender virtually 
ended the Civil War. The articles of capitu¬ 
lation were signed in the McLean house, a large 
residence near the village. See Civil War in 
the United States. 

A'pricot, a fruit of the plum genus, closely 
resembling the peach in appearance. It is a 
native of Armenia and other parts of Asia, and 
also of Africa. The apricot is a low tree, of 
rather crooked growth, with somewhat heart- 
shaped leaves. The fruic is sweet, more or less 
juicy, of a yellowish color, about two-thirds the 
size of the peach and resembling it in delicacy 
of flavor. It is one of the most highly esteemed 
fruits of the temperate climates. Apricots are 


April 


Aquarium 


raised in great quantities in southern Europe 
and in California, which state has more than 
4,500,000 trees. A portion of the crop is canned 
for market. 

A'pril> the fourth month of the year. A curi¬ 
ous custom prevails of playing jokes, or “making 
fools’’ of people, on the first day of this month. 
In the United States the person so imposed upon 
is called an “April fool ’; in France, an “April 
fish.” The custom has been connected with 
the miracle plays of the Middle Ages, in 
which Christ was represented as having been 
sent at this season of the year from Annas 
to Caiaphas and from Pilate to Herod. 

A Prio'ri and A Poste'rio'ri, in logic, Latin 
words which are applied, respectively, to innate 
ideas, or knowledge that the mind possesses 
independently of experience, and to those ideas 
which are obtained from observation and experi¬ 
ment. A priori knowledge is often referred to 
as intuitive knowledge. For instance, the propo¬ 
sition, “Infinity comprises all that is,” expresses 
a self-evident truth and is therefore a priori 
knowledge; whereas the proposition, “Happi¬ 
ness depends on virtuous living”, is estab¬ 
lished by inference from many examples of 
virtuous lives, and is an a posteriori truth. 

In logic, a priori arguments are those in which 
a conclusion is drawn from general principles 
that are necessary truths, while an a posteriori 
argument is an inference of a law or fact from 
effects which the law or fact has produced. 
These two forms of reasoning are explained 
respectively under Deductive Method and 
Inductive Method. 

Apse, in architecture, the term applied to the 
projecting semicircular portion of a building, 
roofed over separately by an arched vault or 
semidome, which most commonly appears at 
the eastern end. of the choir or chancel of a 
church. As the apse was considered the most 
holy part of the early church, rich decorations 
were lavished upon it. The exterior was some¬ 
times square or octagonal, but even then the 
interior was semicircular. In later churches the 
central apse was flanked by smaller ones, called 
apsidoles, which terminated the aisles. 

Apsides, ap'si deez (singular, apsis), in 
astronomy the two points of the orbit of a 
heavenly body, situated at the extremities of 
the major axis of the ellipse formed by the 
orbit, one of the points being that at which 
the body is at its greatest, the other that at 
which it is at its least, distance from the body 
about which it revolves. In the accompanying 


diagram, i i show the apsides. The earth and 
the other planets, as they revolve about the sun 
and reach these two points respectively, are 
said to be in aphelion and perihelion; and the 
moon in revolving about the earth is in apogee 



and perigee. The line connecting the apsides, 
which is really the major axis of the orbit, is 
called the line of the apsides, and this has a 
slow, angular motion in the plane of the planet’s 
orbit. In all the planets excepting Venus, this 
motion is forward. See Anomalistic Yeah. 

Ap'teryx, a small bird belonging to the same 
family as the ostrich and living in New Zealand, 



APTERYX 


It is a shy, nocturnal bird, feeding on worms, 
insects and seeds, and is totally wingless and tail¬ 
less. But few of such birds remain in existence. 

A'qua For'tis, (strong water), a common 
name for nitric acid. See Nitric Acid. 

Aquamarine, a'qua ma reen ', a name given 
to some of the finest varieties of beryl, of a sea 
green or blue color. The name is also applied 
to varieties of topaz. The aquamarine is of less 
value than the ruby or sapphire. 

Aqua Re'gia. See Nitric Acid. 

Aqua'rium, a vessel constructed wholly or 
partly of glass, and containing salt or fresh 
water, in which are kept living specimens of 
marine or fresh-water animals, along with 
aquatic plants. In principle the aquarium 
depends* on the relations of animal and vege- 






Aquarius 

table life; animals consuming oxygen and exhal¬ 
ing carbonic acid, plants reversing the process 
by absorbing carbonic acid and giving out 
oxygen. The aquarium must consequently be 
stocked both with plants and animals, and for 
the welfare of both, something like a proper 
proportion should exist between them. The sim¬ 
plest form of aquarium is that of a glass vase; 
but aquariums on a larger scale consist of a 
tank or a number of tanks with plate-glass sides 
and stone floors, and contain sand and gravel, 
rocks and seaweed. By improved arrange¬ 
ments, light is admitted from above, passing 
through the water in the tanks and illuminating 
their contents. Aquariums on a large scale 
have been constructed in connection with public 
parks or gardens, and the name is also given to 
places of public entertainment in which large 
aquariums are exhibited. The largest aquarium 
in the world is at Castle Garden, N Y. It 
contains 150 tanks for smaller fish, and a num¬ 
ber of gigantic tanks for sharks and other large 
and dangerous fish. The aquarium of the 
American Fish Commission at Washington is 
also important, since it contains many speci¬ 
mens of our best food fishes. Among foreign 
aquariums, those at the Naples Marine Station, 
Paris, Hamburg, Saint Petersburg and Brighton, 
Eng., are the most important. 

Aqua'rius (the water bearer), the name of a 
constellation, and the eleventh sign of the 
zodiac. The symbol was ZZ (running w T ater), 
and the name Aquarius was given because of 
the rains that fell so plentifully in Italy during 
that season. The sun moves in this sign during 
parts of January and February. 

Aquat'ic Plants, a general name applied to 
any plants which live either wholly or partly in 
water. Some of these plants are rooted in the 
ground and grow through the water, raising 
their leaves and blossoms above the surface. 
The leaves of some of these are very large, and 
the flowers beautiful. Other plants remain 
almost wholly submerged, the leaves in that 
case becoming small and more or less thread¬ 
like, while the flowers may be either submerged 
or floating on the surface. Many of the sea¬ 
weeds and some plants in the inland waters are 
buoyed up by bladders that form on the leaves, 
and in a few species the plants break loose 
entirely from the earth and float about in the 
waters, from which they obtain their subsistence 
by means of their roots. There are represent¬ 
atives of aquatic plants in many different fami¬ 
lies, of which the common water lily, the pond 


Aqueduct 

weed, the cat-tail and the water hyacinth are 
notable examples. 

A'quatint, a method of engraving on copper. 
The outline of the picture is first etched on the 
plate, which is then thoroughly cleaned and 
re-covered with a thin layer of etching ground. 
When dry, the parts to be aquatinted are care¬ 
fully painted over with a mixture of olive oil, 
lamp black and turpentine, which is laid on with 
a hair pencil. This mixture dissolves the etch¬ 
ing ground over the parts of the plate to which 
it has been applied. The plate is then wiped 
dry and a light coating of finely powdered resin 
or mastic is sprinkled over it. When the surface 
is evenly covered the superfluous resin is shaken 
off, and the plate is gently heated until the resin 
melts and adheres to the cleaned metal. In 
melting, the grains of resin run into small gran¬ 
ules, leaving minute portions of the plate uncov¬ 
ered. A weak solution of nitric acid is then 
poured over the plate and corrodes the portions 
between the granules of resin. When corroded 
sufficiently to form light shadows, the process 
is stopped and the plate is cleaned and re-covered, 
when the process is repeated for the next deeper 
shades. By continuing the process, any number 
of shades desired can be brought out. See 
Engraving; Etching. 

Aq'ueduct, an artificial channel or conduit 
for the conveyance of water from one place to 
another. The name is more particularly applied 
to structures for conveying water from distant 



AQUEDUCT OF CLAUDIUS, ROME 


sources for the supply of large cities. Aqueducts 
were extensively used by the Romans, and many 
of them still remain in different places on the 
continent of Europe, some being still in use. 
The Pont du Gard in the south of France, 14 
miles from Nimes, is still nearly perfect, and 
is a grand monument of the Roman occupation 
of that country. The ancient aqueducts were 
constructed of stone or brick, sometimes tun¬ 
neled through hills and carried over valleys 


































Aquinas 


Arabia 


and rivers on arches. The Pont du Gard is 
built of great blocks of stone; its height is 160 
feet, and the length of the highest arcade is 882 
feet. The aqueduct at Segovia, originally built 
by the Romans, has in some parts two tiers of 



HOMAN AQUEDUCT, NEAR NIME8, FRANCE 


arcades 100 feet high, is 2921 feet in length, 
and is one of the most admired works of antiq¬ 
uity. One of the most remarkable aqueducts 
of modern times is that constructed by Louis 
XIV for conveying the waters of the Eure to 
Versailles. The aqueduct of Marseilles, 40 
miles in length, is also a remarkable structure. 

The extensive application of metal pipes has 
rendered the construction of aqueducts of the 
old type unnecessary; but what may be called 
aqueduct bridges are still frequently constructed 
in connection with waterworks for the supply 
of towns. Where canals'exist, canal aqueducts 
are common since the water in a canal must 
be kept on a level. In the United States there 
are some important aqueducts, as the Croton, 
about 40£ miles long, bringing water to New 
York (See Croton Aqueduct). 

The aqueduct or flume which conveys the 
water from the mountains to the reservoir at 
San Diego, Cal., is 35 miles long and is built 
almost wholly of redwood. It crosses 315 
streams and canyons, on trestles, the longest of 
which is 1700 feet and has a height of 85 feet. 
The timbers used in these trestles were put 
together on the ground and raised to their 
position by horse power. This aqueduct passes 
also through eight tunnels, the longest being 
2100 feet. 

Aqui'nas, Saint Thomas (1227-1274), a 
celebrated divine, who taught at Cologne, 
Rome, Bologna and Pisa. His scholars called 
him “The Angelic Doctor.” The most impor¬ 
tant of his numerous works, which were all 
written in Latin, is the Summa Theologiae, the 


standard authority in the Roman Church. 
Aquinas was canonized by John XXII in 
1323. 

Arabesque ar a besJc', a term originally 
applied to the fantastic ornamentation which 
was used in the architecture of the Arabs and 
Moors in Spain. The term, however, is new 
generally used to designate any kind of orna¬ 
mentation of a fanciful character. In the 
arabesques of the Mohammedans the figures 
of men and animals were entirely excluded, ir. 
accordance with il religious law in the Koran, 
and architects and artists confined themselves 
to geometric devices, foliage, fruit, floral forms 
and the like, which were arranged in elaborate 



ARABESQUE 


designs. The most beautiful Moorish ara¬ 
besques are found in the Alhambra, Spain, and 
the best examples of Roman work in this same 
style are the works of Raphael in the Vatican, 
imitated from earlier friezes. 

Ara'bia, a vast peninsula in the southwest 
of Asia, with an area of over 1.000,000 sq. mi. 
and a population of not more than 5,000,000. 
Roughly described, it exhibits a central table¬ 
land surrounded by a series of deserts with 
numerous scattered oases, while around this 
is a line of mountains parallel to and approach¬ 
ing the coasts. A narrow rim of low ground 
lies between the mountains and the sea. In its 
general features Arabia resembles the Sahara, 
of which it may be considered a continuation. 
Arabia does not constitute a single state. The 
Sinai Peninsula belongs to Egypt; the provinces 
of Hedjaz and Yemen and the region of El «Hasa 
are more or less under the suzerainty of Turkey, 
while Aden is under the protectorate of Great 
Britain. The rest of the country is ruled by 
independent chiefs with the title of emir, sheik 
or imam. The chief towns are Mecca, the 
birthplace of Mohammed; Medina, the place 
to which he fled from Mecca, and where he is 
buried; Mocha, a seaport celebrated for ifs 
coffee; Aden, a strongly fortified garrison 
belonging to Britain; and Muscat, the capital 
of Oman, a busy port with a safe anchorage. 
See Aden; Mecca; Medina. 











Arabia 


Arabia 


The climate of Arabia is in general marked 
by extreme heat and dryness. Aridity and 
barrenness characterize both high and low 
grounds, and the date-palm is often the only sign 
of vegetable life. There are districts which in 
the course of the year are scarcely refreshed by 
a single shower of rain. The area of forest land 
is small. Instead of pastures there are steppe¬ 
like tracts, covered for a short season with 
aromatic herbs, which serve as food for the 
cattle. The date-palm furnishes the staple 
article of food; the cereals are wheat, barley, 
maize and millet; various sorts of fruit flourish, 
and coffee and many aromatic plants and sub¬ 
stances. such as gum-arabic, benzoin, mastic, 
balsam, aloes, myrrh and frankincense, are pro¬ 
duced. There are also cultivated in different 
parts of the peninsula, according to the soil 
and climate, beans, rice, lentils, tobacco, melons, 
saffron, poppies and olives. Sheep, goats, oxen, 
the horse, the camel, the ass and the mule are 
the chief domestic animals. Among the wild 
animals are gazelles, lions, panthers, hyenas 
and jackals, while in the oases ostriches are 
numerous. Among mineral products are salt¬ 
peter, mineral pitch, petroleum, salt, sulphur 
and several precious stones, as the carnelian, 
the agate and the onyx. 

The Arabs, as a race, are of middle stature, 
of powerful though slender build, have a skin 
of a more or Jess brownish color and well-cut 
features. They are naturally active, intelligent 
and courteous, and are noted for their 
hospitality. Education is so wide-spread that 
illiteracy is unknown. The mode of life of 
the Arabs is either nomadic or settled. The 
nomadic tribes are called Bedouins , and among 
them are Arabs of the purest blood. Commerce 
is largely in the hands of foreigners, among whom 
the Jews and Banians are the most numerous. 

The first religion of the Arabs, the worship 
of the stars, was supplanted by the doctrines 
of Mohammedanism, which succeeded rapidly 
in establishing itself throughout Arabia. Besides 
the two principal sects of Islam, the Sunnites 
and the Shiites, there also exists, in considerable 
numbers, a third Mohammedan sect, the Waha¬ 
bis, which arose in the latter half of the eigh¬ 
teenth century and for a time possessed great 
political importance in the peninsula. 

The i history of the Arab peoples previous to 
the time of Mohammed is obscure. The earli¬ 
est inhabitants are believed to have been of 
the Semitic race. Jews in great numbers 
migrated into Arabia after the destruction of 


Jerusalem, and, making numerous proselytes, 
indirectly favored the introduction of the doc¬ 
trines of Mohammed. With his advent the 
Arabians united for the purpose of extendmg 
the new creed; and- under the caliphs, the suc¬ 
cessors of Mohammed, they attained great 
power and founded large and powerful king¬ 
doms in three continents (See Mohammed; 
Mohammedanism). 

On the fall of the caliphate of Bagdad in 1258 
the decline set in, and on the expulsion of the 
Moors from Spain, the foreign rule of the Arabs 
came to an end. In the sixteenth century Tur¬ 
key subjected Hedjaz and Yemen and received 
the nominal submission of the tribes inhabiting 
the rest of Arabia. The subjection of Hedjaz 
has continued down to the present day, but 
Yemen achieved its independence in the seven¬ 
teenth century and maintained it till 1871, 
when the territory again fell into the hands of 
the Turks. In 1839 Aden was occupied by the 
British. Oman early became virtually inde¬ 
pendent of the caliphs and grew into a well- 
organized kingdom. In 1507 its capital, Mus¬ 
cat, was occupied by the Portuguese, who were 
not driven out till 1659. The Wahabis appeared 
toward the end of the eighteenth century and 
took an important part in the political affairs 
of Arabia, but their progress was interrupted by 
Mohammed Ali, pasha of Egypt, and they were 
completely defeated by Ibrahim Pasha. He 
extended his power over most of the country, 
but the events of 1840' in Syria compelled him 
to renounce all claims to Arabia. The Hedjaz 
thus again became subject to Turkish sway. 
Turkey has since extended its rule not only 
over Yemen but also over the district of El-Hasa, 
on the Persian Gulf. 

The Arabic language is one of the two living 
dialects of Semitic speech, and it is distinguished 
among Semitic tongues for its richness, soft¬ 
ness and high degree of development. By the 
spread of Islam it became the sole written 
language and the prevailing speech in all south¬ 
western Asia and eastern and northern Africa, 
and for a time in southern Spain, in Malta and 
in Sicily; and it is still used as a learned and 
sacred language wherever Islam is spread. 

Mohammed gave a new direction to Arab 
literature. The rules of faith and life which 
he laid down were collected by Abu-bekr, the first 
caliph after his death, and published by Othman, 
the third caliph, as the Koran —the Moham¬ 
medan Bible. Most of the geography in the 
Middle Ages is the work of the Arabians, and 


Arabian Nights 


Aragon 


their historians since the eighth century have 
been very numerous. In medicine they excelled 
all other nations in the Middle Ages, and they 
are commonly regarded as the earliest experi¬ 
menters in chemistry. Their mathematics and 
astronomy were based on the works of Greek 
writers, but the former they enriched, simplified 
and extended. It was by them that algebra 
was introduced to the western peoples. Astron¬ 
omy they especially cultivated, and observa¬ 
tories were erected at Bagdad and Cordova. 
Tales and romances in prose and verse were 
written. Tales of fairies, genii, enchanters 
and sorcerers in particular, passed from the 
Arabians to the western nations, as in The 
Arabian Nights. 

Ara'bian Nights or The Thousand and One 
Nights, a celebrated collection of Eastern tales, 
supposed to have been derived by the Arabians 
from India, through the medium of Persia. 
They were first introduced into Europe in the 
beginning of the eighteenth century by means of 
the French translation of Antoine Galland. 
The story which connects the tales of The 
Thousand and One Nights is as follows: The 
sultan Shahriyar made a law that every one of 
his future wives should be put to death the 
morning after marriage. At length one of them, 
Shahrazad, the generous daughter of the grand 
vizier, succeeded by a strategem in abolishing 
the cruel custom. By breaking off each night 
in the middle of an interesting tale, she led the 
sultan to delay her execution day after day, 
until he had fallen in love with her and decided 
to let her live. The tales have been translated 
into almost all languages and have attained a 
wider circulation than any other book except the 
Bible. 

Arabian Sea, the part of the Indian Ocean 
between Arabia, India and Beloochistan. The 
Red Sea and the shallow Persian Gulf are prop¬ 
erly arms of the Arabian Sea. Its former com¬ 
mercial importance has been somewhat restored 
since the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. 

Ar'abic Nu'merals. See Arithmetic. 

Arabi Pasha, a rah'be pa shah' (1841-1911), 
Egyptian soldier and revolutionary leader. In 
September, 1881, he headed a military revolt, 
and was for a time virtually dictator of Egypt. 
England interfered, and after a short campaign, 
Arabi surrendered and was banished to Ceylon. 
In 1901 he was allowed to return to Egypt. 

Arachnida, a rak'ni dali, a class of air- 
breathing animals which include the spiders, 
scorpions, mites and ticks. A few live on plants, 


but most of them are carnivorous. As a whole, 
they are beneficial to agriculture, as they prey 
on other insects; but some parasitic forms are 
destructive to both plants and animals. Many 
have glands which secrete poisons, and the 
spiders have attached to their abdomens spin¬ 
nerets, from which are secreted the threads of 
which webs are formed. They are a subdivision 
of the Arthropoda. See Arthropoda; Spider. 

Arafat ahraftfaht’, or Jebel Errahm 
(mountain of mercy), a granite hill in Arabia, 
15 mi. s. e. of Mecca. It is about 200 feet high 
and has stone steps reaching to the summit. 
It is one of the principal objects o' pilgrimage 
among Mohammedans, who say that it was the 
place where Adam first received his wife. Eve, 
after they had been expelled from Paradise and 
separated from each other 120 years. A ser¬ 
mon delivered on the mount constitutes the 
main ceremony of the Hadj, or pilgrimage to 
Mecca, and entitles the hearer to the name and 
privileges of a Hadji, or pilgrim. 

Arago, ah'ra go, Dominique Francois (1786- 
1853), a celebrated French scientist and states¬ 
man who gained especial fame as an inves¬ 
tigator in physics and astronomy. He made 
important discoveries in magnetism and optics 
and was a popular writer on these subjects. 
He graduated .from the polytechnic school and 
was appointed to a commission which was 
making certain measurements of longitude that 
were to serve as the basis of a decimal metric 
system. While engaged in this work he was 
taken prisoner as a spy by the Spaniards, 
underwent hardships and narrow escapes, but 
finally reached Marseilles. On returning to 
Paris he was at once elected a member of the 
Institute. In 1830 be became perpetual secre¬ 
tary of the Academy of Sciences and director 
of the observatory. He was elected a member 
of the Chamber of Deputies in 1831, and there 
made many famous speeches in behalf of educa¬ 
tion, science, and, especially, the rights of the 
people. Arago was president of the Council 
General of the Seine until 1849 and was the 
chief instrument in the emancipation of slaves. 
After the revolution of 1848 he was appointed 
minister of war and marine. He favored liberal 
institutions as exemplified in the United States. 
Arago was the author of about sixty scientific 
works and memoirs. 

Aragon, ah ra gon ', a former province or 
kingdom in the northeastern part of Spain, 
now divided into the three provinces of Teruel, 
Huesca and Saragossa. It was governed by its 


Araguay 

own monarchs until the union with Castile on 
the marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella in 1469. 
The real union of the countries, however, did 
not come until some ten years later. See Fer¬ 
dinand V. 

Araguay, ah rah gwi ’, or Araguaya, ah'ra- 
gwa yah ', a Brazilian river, rising in the Serra 
Cayapo. It flows north and joins the Tocan¬ 
tins at Sao Joao. About the middle of its 
course it divides into two arms, enclosing the 
island of Bananal. The length of the Araguay 
is 1300 miles, of which 750 are navigable. 
The lower course has numerous rapids. 

Ar'al, a salt-water lake in Asia, in Russian 
territory, about 150 mi. w. of the Caspian Sea. 
Of the numerous rivers which formerly emptied 
into it, two alone now reach it—the Amu- 
Darya or Oxus, and the Syr-Darya or Jaxartes. 
The lake contains an abundance of sturgeon 
and other fish. It has a large number of islands. 
Navigation on it is difficult because of the 
shallowness of the waters and the fierce and 
sudden storms from the northeast. 

Ar ama'ic, a branch of the Semitic language, 
nearly allied to the Hebrew and Phoenician, 
anciently spoken in Syria and Palestine, and 
eastward to the Euphrates and Tigris. It was 
the official language .of this region under the 
Persian domination. In Palestine it supplanted 
Hebrew, and it was the tongue of the Jews in 
the time of Christ. Parts of Daniel and Ezra 
are written in Aramaic, or, as this form of it is 
often named, Chaldee. An important Aramaic 
dialect is the Syriac, in which there is an exten¬ 
sive Christian literature. See Chaldee Lan¬ 
guage; Hebrew Language and Literature. 

Arap'ahoe, a tribe of American indians once 
located near the head-waters of the Arkansas 
and Platte rivers, but now of no importance. 
The survivors live in Oklahoma, where they 
are peaceable and teachable. 

Ar'arat, Mount, a celebrated mountain of 
Armenia, in western Asia, on which, tradition 
says, Noah’s ark rested. It rises in two volcanic 
cones, the higher one of which is 17,260 feet 
above sea level. Frightful earthquakes visit 
the region. In 1840, masses from the mountain 
were thrown into the plain, destroying the gar¬ 
dens, convent and chapel of the village of 
Arguri, and burying many people. Here Russian, 
Turkish and Persian territories meet, the sum¬ 
mit of the mountain being Russian territory. 

Araucanian, ah'row kah’ne an, a native race 
living in the southern part of Chile. They are 
warlike and more civilized than many of the 


Arbitration 

native races of South America, and maintained 
almost unceasing war with the Spaniards from 
1537 to 1773, when their independence was 
recognized by Spain, though their territory was 
much curtailed. In 1882 they submitted to 
Chile. The Chilean province of Arauco receives 
its name from them. 

Ax' auca'ria, a genus of cone-bearing trees 
belonging to the southern hemisphere. They 
are lofty evergreen trees, with large, stiff, flat¬ 
tened leaves, generally overlapping along the 
branches, like the shingles on a roof. The 
spreading branches are in whorls around the 
trunk and bear large cones, each scale covering 
a single large seed, which is edible when roasted. 
The Moreton Bay pine of New South Wales 
supplies a valuable timber used in house and 
boat building, in making furniture and in other 
carpenter work. Another species, the Norfolk 
Island pine, abounds in several of the South 
Sea Islands, where it attains a height of 220 
feet, with a circumference of thirty feet. It is 
described as one of the most beautiful of trees. 
Its foliage is light and graceful, quite unlike 
that of the Chile pine, which is stiff and 
formal in appearance. Its timber is of some 
value, being white, tough and close-grained. 

Ar'balest. See Crossbow. 

Arbe'la (now Erbil), a place in the Turkish 
province of Bagdad which gave its name to the 
decisive battle fought by Alexander the Great 
against Dhrius, at Gaugamela, about twenty 
miles distant from it, 331 B. c. Population, 
about 4000. 

Arbitration, the hearing and determina¬ 
tion of a cause between parties in controversy, 
by a person or persons chosen by the parties. 
This may be done by one person, but it is 
common to choose more than one. Frequently 
two are nominated, one by each party, with a 
third, the umpire, often chosen by these two, 
to decide in case of the primary arbitrators 
differing. The determination of arbitrators is 
called the award. The disputes of nations were 
in ancient times settled only by war, but from 
the Middle Ages on, arbitration has constantly 
gained a stronger hold among nations, until 
to-day it is the recognized means of settling 
controversies. In this regard the United States 
has set a high example by repeatedly inviting 
arbitration in her own affairs and urging it upon 
other nations. Her notable triumphs in this 
respect include the Alabama, Bering Sea and 
Venezuela boundary disputes. See Peace Con¬ 
ference, International. 


Arch 


Arbor Day 


Industrial arbitration is also gaining ground, 
the most notable instance in recent years being 
the settlement of the coal strike in 1902. 

Ar'bor Day, a day designated by legislative 
enactment in many states for the voluntary 
planting of trees by the people. It was inaugu¬ 
rated in 1874 by the Nebraska state board of 
agriculture, at the suggestion of J. Sterling 
Morton, afterwards secretary of agriculture in 
President Cleveland’s second administration. 
Nearly every one of the states has since estab¬ 
lished an annual Arbor Day and observes it as 
a legal holiday, the school children being gen¬ 
erally prepared for a special observance of the 
occasion. Bird Day is also now associated 
with Arbor Day, its purpose being to instruct 
children in the care and protection of birds. 
Several states publish manuals of exercises and 
instructions for the day’s observance in the 
schools. 

Ar'bor Vi'tae (tree of life), the name of 
several cone-bearing trees, allied to the cypress, 
with flattened branchlets, and small or scale¬ 
like leaves, overlapping like the shingles on a 
roof. The common arbor vitae is a native of 
North America, where it grows to the height 
of forty or fifty feet. The young twigs have an 
agreeable balsamic smell. The Chinese arbor 
vitae, common in Britain, yields a resin which 
was formerly thought to have medicinal virtues. 

Arbutus, ahr'bu tus, a genus of plants belong¬ 
ing to the heath 'family and comprising a num¬ 
ber of small trees and shrubs, natives chiefly of 
Europe and North America. The trailing 
arbutus or May-flower of North America, a 
choice plant with fragrant and beautiful blos¬ 
soms, is of the same natural order. 

Arcade, ahr kade', a series of arches sup¬ 
ported by columns either attached to a wall or 
having an open space behind them. The word 
is used in contradistinction to colonnade, which 
is a series of columns supporting a straight 
entablature instead of arches. The arcade is 
found both in the inside and outside decoration 
of medieval buildings. In street architecture, 
it is a covered way or passage, either open at the 
side with a row of columns or entirely covered 
over and lined with shops and stalls. The 
finest arcades of this description are to be found 
in Paris, though Bologna, Padua and Berne 
also have fine examples. 

Arca'dia, the central and most mountainous 
portion of the Peloponnesus (Morea), the inhab¬ 
itants of which in ancient times were celebrated 
for simplicity of character and manners. Their 


occupation was almost entirely pastoral, and thus 
the name Arcadia has come to be regarded as 
typical of rural simplicity and happiness. 
See Greece; Sparta. 

Arc de Triomphe de l’Etoile, ahrk de'tre'- 
oNfl de la twahV , the largest triumphal arch in 
the world, located at Paris, begun by Napoleon 
in 1806 to commemorate his victories. The 



ABO DE TBIOMPHE 


whole structure is 160 feet high and nearly 150 
feet long. The arch is inscribed with the names 
of Napoleon’s greatest victories. 

Arch, in architecture, a portion of mason work 
in the form of a curved structure used to span 
an opening, and in buildings to support heavy 
weights. It is composed of wedge-shaped 
pieces, the middle stone being called the key¬ 
stone and the lowest stone on either side the 
springer. The highest part is the crown : the 
sides, haunches', the inner curve, the intrados; 
the exterior or upper curve, the extrados; the 
base which supports the lowest stone on each 
side, the impost. The simplest and oldest 
means of supporting a structure over a door¬ 
way was the use of a single stone, or lintel, of 
sufficient length. This expedient for the most 
part met the needs of the early Egyptians, 
Assyrians, Etruscans and Greeks, who were 
acquainted with the arch but used it only occa¬ 
sionally. The Romans employed the arch 
extensively and developed it to its highest type 
of usefulness, introducing it not only in their 









Archaean System 

buildings but also in the drains, aqueducts and 
bridges. The curved arch continued in use 
everywhere till the Middle Ages, when the 
pointed or Gothic form was introduced. Out 
of this arch there developed a variety of forms. 

The longest stone span in the United States, 
and one of the two longest in the world, is the 
Cabin John Bridge, near Washington, D. C., 
with a span 220 feet long, a rise of 57 feet and a 
width of 20 feet (See Bridge). An arch 251 
feet in span, the largest stone arch ever made, 
was built over the river Adda in northern Italy 
in the latter part of the fourteenth century. 

Arches are used not only for constructive but 
also for decorative purposes. Sometimes a 
floral or light arch is built across a street on the 
occasion of some public event, and, again, 
single arches are erected for gateways or as 
memorials. The latter form, or triumphal arch, 
was originally a simple, decorated arch under 
which a victorious Roman general and army 
passed in triumph; but, at a later period, for 
the simplicity was substituted elaborate decora¬ 
tion. During the Middle Ages the triumphal 
arch fell into disuse, but since the Renaissance 
many memorial arches have been built, and 
today they are generally popular. See Arc de 
Triomphe de l’Etoile; Constantine, Arch 
of; Septimius Severus, Arch of; Titus, 
Arch of; Trajan, Arch of. 

Archaean, ahr ke'an, System or Archaean 
Period, also sometimes called the Azoic Era, 
the name of the oldest division of geologic time. 
The rocks of this period underlie the oldest 
sedimentary and fossiliferous formations. They 
are of igneous origin (See Igneous Rocks) and 
are generally supposed to form the oldest por¬ 
tion of the earth’s crust. They are represented 
by granites, gneisses and schists, and most of 
them have been subjected to many disturb¬ 
ances, which have entirely changed their 
original character so that it is impossible to 
work out any order of succession of strata that 
will apply to all parts of the world. As a rule 
the Archaean rocks form the cores of the great 
mountain systems and are the original source 
from which the mountains rise. In North 
America they are found covering a large portion 
of the region between the Arctic Ocean and the 
Great Lakes, in the Adirondacks, along the 
Appalachians and in the Rocky Mountains. 
In Europe they are prominent in the Scandi¬ 
navian Peninsula, France, Germany and Austria. 
They also occur in eastern Asia and central 
Africa. See Algonkian System; Cambrian 


Archbishop 

System. See also. Geology, Volume VI. 

Archaeology, ahr'Jce ol'o jy, the science which 
deals with the history of nations and peoples, 
as shown by the remains which belong to an 
earlier epoch of their existence. In a more 
extended sense the term embraces every branch 
of knowledge which bears on the origin, religion, 
laws, language, science, arts and literature of 
ancient peoples. It is to a great extent the 
same as prehistoric annals, as a large, if not the 
principal, part of its field of study extends over 
those periods in the history of the human race, 
in regard to which we possess almost no infor¬ 
mation derivable from written records Archae¬ 
ology divides the primeval period of the 
human race, more especially as exhibited by 
remains found in Europe, into the Stone, the 
Bronze and the Iron ages, according to the 
chief material employed for weapons and imple¬ 
ments during the particular period. See Age. 

Ar chaeopteryx, ahr'he op'te rix, the name 
given to a fossil bird found in the stones of 
Bavaria. From these remains it was evident 
that the bird was about the size of a crow and 
possessed a long, cumbersome tail, supported by 
twenty vertebrae. It was evidently of little 
assistance in flying. Most strange of all, it had, 
in both mandibles of its rather blunt bill, a 
number of teeth, each set in a separate socket. 
This is the oldest known species of bird and is 
exceedingly interesting, as showing the possible 
relationship between the reptiles and the birds. 

Archangel, ahrkahn'jel, or Archangelsk, 
a seaport, capital of the Russian government of 
the same name, on the right bank of the northern 
Dvina, about 740 mi. n. e. of Petrograd. The 
place has some manufactures and an important 
trade, exporting linseed, flax, tow, tallow, train- 
oil, mats, timber, pitch and tar. The port is 
closed for six months of the year by ice. Arch¬ 
angel, founded in 1584, was long the only port 
which Russia possessed. It is the largest town 
in the world situated so far north. Population 
in 1910, estimated 35,000. 

Arch'bald, Pa., a borough in Lackawanna 
co., 10 mi. n. e. of Scranton, on the Lackawanna 
River and on the Delaware & Hudson and the 
New York, Ontario & Western railroads. 
Coal-mining is the principal industry, but 
there are also two silk mills. About one- 
third of the inhabitants are of foreign birth, 
chiefly Irish and German. Population in 1910, 
7194. 

Archbish'op, the chief bishop of an eccle¬ 
siastical province, which is usually termed a 


Archer-fish 


Archimedes 


see. The title originated sometime in the 
fourth century, and the office is recognized in 
the Anglican, Roman Catholic and Greek 
churches. The archbishop of Rome is the 
pope, and the patriarch of Moscow holds a 
similar position in the Greek Church. England 
has two archbishops, one at Canterbury and 
the other at York. The archbishop of Canter¬ 
bury is styled primate of all England, and has 
supreme ecclesiastical authority over the Angli¬ 
can Church of the United Kingdom. The 
Roman Catholic is the only church maintaining 
the office of archbishop in the United States, 
which is divided into fourteen provinces or sees. 
See Bishop. 

Arch'er-fish, a name given to a small, spiny 
fish about six inches long, inhabiting the seas 
around Java, which has the faculty of shoo ting 
drops of water to the distance of three or four 




ARCHER-FISH 


feet at insects, thereby causing them to fall into 
the water, where they are seized and devoured. 
The soft and even the spiny portion of their 
dorsal fins are so covered with scales as to be 
scarcely distinguishable from the rest of the 
body. 

Arch'ery, the art of shooting with a bow 
and arrow. The use of these weapons in war 
and the chase dates from the earliest antiquity. 
Ishmael, we learn from Genesis xxi, “became 
an archer.” The Egyptians, Assyrians, Per¬ 
sians and Parthians excelled in the use of the 
bow, and while the Greeks and Romans them¬ 
selves made little use of it they employed foreign 
archers as mercenaries. The English victories 
of Crticy, Poitiers and Agincourt may be 
ascribed to the bowmen. Archery disappeared 
gradually as firearms came into use, and as an 
instrument of war or the chase the bow is now 
confined to the savage tribes of both hemi- 
10 


spheres. But though the bow has been long 
abandoned among civilized nations as a military 
weapon, it is still cherished as an instrument of 
healthful recreation. In recent years a number 
of archery clubs for shooting at bull’s-eye targets 
have been formed in the United States; and 
interest in the sport is increased by the fact 
that it is an open air sport for women as well as 
for men. 

Archimedean, ahr'ici me de'an, Screw, a 
device for raising water, consisting of a spiral 



TUBULAR ARCHIMEDEAN SCREW 


blade attached to an axis and enclosed in a 
tightly fitting cylinder. The device is fixed to 
an incline and has the lower end immersed in 
the water. By turning the crank the water is 
raised and flows out of the upper end of the 
cylinder. A simpler pattern is made by wind¬ 
ing a tube like a piece of lead pipe spirally 
round an axis. The Archimedean screw can 
be used successfully to raise water from twelve 
to fifteen feet. It is sometimes employed 
where it is desired to raise a large quantity of 
water with comparatively little power. 

Archimedes, ahr'ki mee'deez (287-212 b. c.), 
the greatest mathematician of antiquity, a 
native of Syracuse in Sicily. The most impor¬ 
tant among his extant works are three on plane 
geometry, three on solid geometry, three on 
mechanics and one on arithmetic. He discov¬ 
ered the principle of the lever and of specific 
gravity; constructed a machine for raising water, 
called the Archimedean Screw, and invented 
burning mirrors and hurling engines that made 
effective siege artillery. After the siege of 
Syracuse, where with his burning glasses Archi¬ 
medes had fired the Roman fleet, a Roman 
soldier, rushing into the philosopher’s study, 
found him calmly drawing geometrical figures. 
Not noticing the soldier’s drawn sword, the old 
man cried, “ Don’t disturb my circles.” Enraged, 
the soldier slew him on the spot. 












Archipelago 


Architecture 


Archipelago, ahr'ki pel'a go. See Island. 

Architecture, ahr'ki tek'ture, in a general 
sense, the art of designing and constructing 
houses, bridges and other buildings; or that 
branch of the fine arts which has for its object 
the production of edifices, not only convenient, 
but characterized by unity, beauty and grandeur. 
A knowledge of the different styles of architecture 
may be gained by considering their development 
among the different nations. 

Egyptian Architecture. The Egyptians 
are the most ancient nation known to us among 
whom architecture had attained the character of 
a fine art. Their first permanent buildings 
were excavated tombs, massive pyramids and 
primitive temples. The belief of the Egyptians 
that the present life was but a moment in com¬ 
parison with eternity and that the body must be 
preserved for the soul to inhabit, was responsible 
for the architecture of the tombs, which were 
supposed to be built so strong that time could not 
destroy them nor an enemy rifle them. The 
Egyptian temples had walls of great thickness 
that sloped on the outside from bottom to top; 
the roofs were flat and composed of blocks of 
stone reaching from one wall or column to 
another, for the principle of the arch was not 
employed. Statues of enormous size, sphinxes 
carved in stone, and the outlines of deities and 
animals sculptured on the walls,with innumerable 
hieroglyphics, are the decorative objects which 
belong to this style. Architecture was the one 
supreme art in Egypt—painting and sculpture 
always were subordinate to it (See Pyramids; 
Sphinx). 

Chaldean-Assyrian Architecture. The 
Chaldeans built with sun-dried brick, as there 
was no good stone in their country, and the 
Assyrians followed their example, covering the 
bricks with beautifully carved stones and stucco. 
Magnificence and beauty, rather than per¬ 
manence, was their special aim. Vaults and 
arches were used, and as a result large rooms were 
possible. Their temples were in the shape of 
pyramids and were composed of terraces rising 
in tiers to a great height. 

Other Ancient Architecture. The Hit- 
tites and Phoenicians followed the Assyrians in 
general style. They built heavy fortresses, great 
palaces, and temples which were small and 
inferior as compared with those of other nations. 
Their buildings have not stood the test of time. 
The Hebrews had no national architecture and 
what is known is derived only from historical 
Recounts (See Temple), Oriental architecture 


developed by itself, and lacks the permanency of 
the West. Although many widely differing styles 
are to be found in India, the oldest and only true 
native style of Indian ecclesiastical architecture 
is the Buddhist, the earliest specimens dating to 
250 B. C. Among the chief objects of Buddhist 
art are stupas or topes, built in the form of large 
towers and employed to contain relics of Buddha 
or of some noted saint. Other works of Buddhist 
art are temples or monasteries, excavated from 
the solid rock and supported by pillars of the 
natural rock left in place. The most remarkable 
Hindu or Brahmanical temples are in southern 
India. They are pyramidal in form, rising in a 
series of stories. The Chinese have made the 
tent the elementary feature of their architecture, 
and roofs are concave on the upper side, as if 
made of canvas instead of wood (See Pagoda). 

Greek Architecture. In historic times the 
Greeks developed an architecture of noble 
simplicity and dignity, in part derived from the 
Egyptian. The earliest Greek architecture was 
rough and coarse, immense bowlders, piled one 
upon another, having been used for walls, as 
shown in the city of Tiryns. Architecture is 
considered to have attained its greatest perfec¬ 
tion in the age of Pericles, or about 460-430 b. c. 
The great masters of this period were Phidias, 
Ictinus and Callicrates. The style is character¬ 
ized by beauty, harmony and simplicity in the 
highest degree. The Greeks had three orders, 
called, respectively, the Doric , Ionic and Corin¬ 
thian (See Column). Greek buildings were 
abundantly adorned with sculptures, and paint¬ 
ing was extensively used, the details of the 
structures being enriched by different colors or 
tints. Lowness of roofs and the absence of 
arches were distinctive features of Greek archi¬ 
tecture. The most remarkable public edifices 
of the Greeks were temples, of which the most 
famous is the Parthenon at Athens. They were 
at first very simple structures, but they were 
characterized by grace and simplicity, and they 
later reached the highest perfection of architec¬ 
tural beauty. These temples were usually built 
on a base of three low terraces. The shape was 
rectangular, and outside were rows of columns, 
the outer of which supported an entablature. 
The large room in the center was the sacred 
shrine (See Erectheum; Parthenon; The- 
seum). Their theaters were semicircular on one 
side and square on the other, the semicircular 
part being usually excavated in the side of some 
convenient hill. This part, the auditorium, was 
filled with seats arranged in concentric circles. 





LEADING TYPES OF ARCHITECTURE 


1. Egyptian—Pylon of the Temple at Karnak. 5. Gothic—Sir Walter Scott’s Monument, Edinburgh Scotland 

2. Greek—Theseum. 6. Early Gothic—Notre Dame, Paris. ’ 

3. Itaha-n Penai««ance. 7. Modern—Triumphal Arch, Milan, • 

4 . Gothic—Cathedral at Milan s Modern Steel Construction. 













































* 


























Architecture 


Architecture 


and could contain 20,000 spectators. A number 
exist in Greece, Sicily. Asia Minor and elsewhere 
(See Theater). 

Roman Architecture. The Romans early 
took the foremost place in the construction of 
such works as aqueducts and sewers, the arch 
being extensively used (See Cloaca Maxima). 
As a fine art, Roman architecture had its origin 
in copies of the Greek models, but it added two 
new orders—the Tuscan and the Composite 
(See Column). Rome attained under Augustus 
its greatest perfection in architecture. Among 
the great works erected were temples, aqueducts, 
amphitheaters, magnificent villas, triumphal 
arches and monumental pillars. The amphi¬ 
theater differed from the theater in being a com¬ 
pletely circular or rather elliptical building, 
filled on all sides with ascending seats for specta¬ 
tors and leaving only the central space, called 
the arena, for the combatants and public shows 
(See Colosseum). The thermae, or baths, were 
vast structures in which multitudes of people 
could bathe at once. The excavations at 
Pompeii in particular have thrown great light 
on the internal arrangements of the Roman 
dwelling-house. After the period of Hadrian 
(117-138 A. d.) Roman architecture is considered 
to have been on the decline (See Pantheon). 

Byzantine Architecture. In Constanti¬ 
nople, after its virtual separation from the 
Western Empire, arose a style of art and archi¬ 
tecture which was practiced by the Greek Church 
during the whole of the Middle Ages. This is 
called the Byzantine style. The church of Saint 
Sophia at Constantinople, built by Justinian, 
who reigned from 527 to 565, offers the typical 
specimen of the style. Saint Mark’s in Venice 
is one of the most striking examples of the 
later phase of the same form. In the typical 
examples the dome or cupola rests on four pen- 
dentives (See Pendentive; Sophia, Church op 
Saint). After the dismemberment of the 
Roman Empire the beautiful works of ancient 
architecture were almost entirely destroyed by 
the Goths, Vandals and other barbarians; or 
what was spared by them was ruined by the 
fanaticism of the Christians. 

Romanesque Architecture. A new style 
of architecture then arose, of which the semi¬ 
circular arch is the characteristic feature. 
Towers, porches, crypts, ornamented fa 9 ades 
in stone, the vault in the form of a tunnel, the 
groin and ribbed-groin were other notable 
features of this type. Examples of this style are 
the Church of San Ambroglio, Milan; the 


Abbey of Vezelay in Central France, and the 
cathedrals at Speyer and Worms and along the 
Rhine border. 

Gothic Architecture. This term is applied 
to the various styles of pointed architecture prev¬ 
alent in western Europe from the middle of the 
twelfth century to the revival of classic archi¬ 
tecture in the sixteenth. The style grew out of 
the attempts on the part of the architects of the 
eleventh and twelfth centuries to perfect a system 
of vaulting. The Gothic type made use of the 
pointed or ribbed groin-vault, which substituted 
a more nearly vertical pressure than had been 
exerted in any of the forms used up to this time, 
and thus allowed the supporting piers to be made 
smaller, leaving large spaces for the windows. 
The chief characteristics of Gothic architecture 
are the predominance of the pointed arch and 
the subserviency and subordination of all the 
other parts to this chief feature; the tendency 
through the whole composition to the predomi¬ 
nance and prolongation of vertical lines by the 
use of large windows filled with costly stained 
glass; the absence of the column and entablature 
of classic architecture; the absence of square 
edges and rectangular surfaces and the sub¬ 
stitution of clustered shafts and contrasted 
surfaces This style originated in France and 
spread very rapidly to England, Germany, Italy, 
Spain and the Scandinavian countries. It is in 
the cathedrals and churches that we find the 
highest development of Gothic architecture. 
Amiens, Cologne, Rheims. Notre Dame at 
Paris, and Chartres all furnish excellent examples 
of Gothic cathedrals. In the rich decoration, 
the characteristic feature is the recourse to models 
of nature, animals and flowers of every variety 
being used. No other art has so beautifully 
reproduced flowers and foliage in stone. The 
several periods of Gothic architecture are clearly 
marked by the form and general treatment of the 
windows (See Cathedral; Window). 

Renaissance Architecture. The Gothic 
style was introduced into Italy, but it was never 
thoroughly naturalized. The Renaissance style 
soon superseded it. This was a revival of the 
classic style, based on the study of the ancient 
models, which commenced in Florence about the 
beginning of the fifteenth century, spread with 
great rapidity over Italy, and gradually over the 
greater part of Europe. The great aim was to 
make ornamental rather than useful buildings. 
The most illustrious architects of this early 
period of the style were Brunelleschi, who built 
at Florence the dome of the cathedral and the 



Arctic Region 


Arc Light 

Pitti Palace, besides many edifices at Milan, 
Pisa, Pesaro and Mantua; Alberti, who wrote 
an important work on architecture and erected 
many admired churches; Bramante, who began 
the building of Saint Peter’s, Rome, and Michel¬ 
angelo, who erected its magnificent dome. On 
Saint Peter’s were also employed Raphael, 
Peruzzi and San Gallo. The period began 
early in the fifteenth century and continued 
through to the nineteenth, never producing a 
distinct style of its own, but modifying the forms 
which existed. The noted examples of this 
style, outside of those already mentioned, are the 
Louvre, the Tuileries, the Luxembourg and 
Versailles in France; the Heidelberg Schloss in 
Germany and Saint Paul’s and Blenheim in 
England. 

Recent Architecture. Since the Renais¬ 
sance period there has been no architectural 
development requiring special note. In edifices 
erected at the present day some one of the various 
styles of architecture is employed, according to 
taste. Modern dwelling-houses have necessarily 
a style of their own as far as stories, apartments, 
windows and chimneys can give them one. In 
general the Grecian style, as handed down by 
Rome and modified by the Italian architects of 
the Renaissance, from its right angles and 
straight entablatures, is more convenient and 
fits better with the distribution of our common 
edifices than the pointed and irregular Gothic. 
But the occasional introduction of the Gothic 
outline and the partial employment of its orna¬ 
ments has undoubtedly an agreeable effect, both 
in public and private edifices; and we are 
indebted to it, among other things, for the spire, 
a structure exclusively Gothic, which, though 
often misplaced, has become an object of general 
approbation and a pleasing landmark in cities 
and villages. The works most characteristic of 
the present day are the grand bridges, viaducts 
and similar structures, in many of which iron is 
the sole or chief portion of the material. In 
America the increase in the number of handsome 
buildings has been very noteworthy since the 
termination of the Civil War, and the archi¬ 
tectural accomplishments of the World’s Colum¬ 
bian Exposition at Chicago, in 1893, have never 
been excelled in any country. The methods of 
iron and steel construction in use in modern 
times is described in the article Building. See 
Mohammedan Architecture. 

Arc Light, that kind of electric light in 
which the illuminating source is the current of 
electricity passing between two sticks of carbon 


kept a short distance apart, one of them being in 
connection with the positive, the other with the 
negative terminal of a battery or dynamo. See 
Electric Light. 

Arcole, ahr’ko la, a village in north Italy, 15 
mi. s. e. of Verona, celebrated for the battles of 
November 15, 16 and 17, 1796, fought between 
the French under Bonaparte, and the Austrians, 
in which the latter were defeated with great 
slaughter. Population, about 1250. 

Arc'tic Circle, an imaginary circle on the 
globe, parallel to the equator and 23° 28' distant 
from the north pole. Its location marks the 
southern limit of the sun’s rays shining over the 
north pole in the summer time. The name 
Arctic comes from Arktos, the Greek name of 
the constellation Bear. 

Arctic Ocean, an ocean which surrounds the 
north pole and washes the northern shores of 
Europe, Asia and America, its southern boundary 
roughly coinciding with the Arctic Circle. It 
communicates with the Pacific by Bering’s 
Strait and with the Atlantic by a wide passage 
between Greenland and Norway. The great 
rivers Obi, Yenisei and Lena, in Asia, .and the 
Mackenzie in Canada, empty into this ocean. 
The Arctic Ocean encloses many large islands 
and has a number of bays and gulfs which deeply 
indent the adjacent continents, as Baffin’s Bay, 
the White Sea and the Gulf of Obi. The water 
region around the pole is covered with great 
fields of ice. which are frozen together in winter, 
but become separated in summer. Animal life 
is very abundant in the Arctic, the lower forms 
being numerous as well in the deepest as in the 
surface waters. Of the fishes the most common 
are the cod and the polar shark. Mammals are 
more highly developed here than in any other 
part of the oceanic waters, and include the whale, 
the narwhal, the seal and the walrus. See 
North Polar Exploration. 

Arctic Region or Arctica, the region around 
the north pole, extending from the pole on all 
sides to the Arctic Circle. The Arctic or North 
Polar Circle just touches the northern headlands 
of Iceland, cuts off the southern and narrowest 
portion of Greenland, crosses Fox’s Strait north 
of Hudson’s Bay, whence it goes over the Ameri¬ 
can continent to Bering’s Strait. Thence it runs 
to Obdorsk at the mouth of the Obi, then crossing 
northern Russia, the White Sea and the Scandi¬ 
navian Peninsula, returns to Iceland. The 
mean annual temperature within the Arctic Circle 
is below 32* F., and the plants and animals are 
such as are adapted to a cold climate. The 


Arcturus 

polar bear, walrus and- some species of seals are 
found and the reindeer and Eskimo dog have 
been domesticated. The inhabitants are Eski¬ 
mos, Lapps and Finns, for a description of which 
see articles under their respective titles. Valu¬ 
able minerals and fossils have been discovered 
within the Arctic regions. In the archipelago 
north of the American continent excellent coal 
frequently occurs. The mineral cryolite is 
mined in Greenland. Fossil ivory is obtained 
in the islands at the mouth of the Lena. In 
Scandinavia, parts of Siberia and northwest 
America, the forest region extends within the 
Arctic Circle. See North Polar Expeditions. 

Arctu'ms. a fixed star of the first magni¬ 
tude in the constellation of Bootes, thought 
by some to be the nearest to our system of any 
of the fixed stars. It is one of the stars observed 
to have a motion of its own, and is a noticeable 
object in the northern heavens. 

Ard'more, a town of the Chickasaw nation, 
Oklahoma, on the Gulf, Colorado & Santa Fd 
railroad, 98 mi. n. of Fort Worth, Tex. There 
are extensive coal mines and asphalt deposits 
in the neighborhood. Population in 1910, 
8618. 

Are'ca, a genus of lofty palms which have 
feather-shaped leaves, and bear a one-sided berry 
or nut enclosed in a fibrous rind. One species 
of the Ccromandel and Malabar coasts is the 
common areca palm, which yields areca or betel 
nuts, and also the astringent juice catechu. 
See Betel; Cabbage Palm. 

Arecibo, ah'ra se'bo, a town of Porto Rico, 
situated on the n. coast, 50 mi. w. of San Juan. 
The town is arranged around a central plaza 
or square, which is surrounded by a church and 
other public buildings. The buildings are of 
wood or brick. Arecibo is of some commercial 
importance, but its harbor is poor and can be 
entered only by vessels of light draft. Popula¬ 
tion in 1910, 9612. 

Arendal, ah'ren dal, a town on the southeast 
coast of Norway, at the mouth of Nid-Elv. It 
is built partly on rock and has many canals, 
which are responsible for its popular name, 
“The Little Venice.” The chief exports are 
iron from the neighboring mines, and wooden 
articles. Population in 1910, 10,684. 

Ar'eop'agus, the oldest of the Athenian 
courts of justice. It obtained its name from 
its place of meeting, on the Hill of Ares (Mars), 
near the citadel. It existed from very remote 
times, and the crimes tried before it were willful 
jnurder, poisoning, robbeiy, arson, dissoluteness 


Argentina 

of morals and innovations in the State and in 
religion. 

Arequipa, ah ra he*pa, a city of Peru, situated 
on the Chile River, 100 mi. n. e. of Mollendo, 
with which it is connected by railroad. The 
town is located on a plateau 7000 feet above 
the sea, and has an exceedingly dry climate. 
It is well laid out, has good streets, a cathe¬ 
dral, two national schools and a university. 
The leading industries are the manufacture 
of jewelry and the cutting of precious stones. 
The city has some commercial importance, as 
it is the center of trade for the interior of Peru. 
It was founded by Pizarro in 1540. In 1868 
it was nearly destroyed by earthquakes. Popu* 
lation in 1910, 35,000. 

Arezzo, a ret’so, a city of central Italy, capital 
of a province of the same name in Tuscany. 
It was one of the twelve chief Etruscan towns, 
and in later times fought long against the Flor¬ 
entines, to whom it had finally to succumb. 
It is the birth place of Maecenas and of Petrarch. 
The chief manufactures are cloth, silk and 
leather, and a considerable trade is carried on 
in grain, wine, oil and fruit. Population in 1910, 
including suburbs, 16,000. 

Ar'gand Lamp, a lamp named after its in¬ 
ventor, Aime Argand, a Swiss chemist and physi¬ 
cian. The distinctive feature of the lamp is a 
burner, in the form of a ring or hollow cylinder, 
covered by a chimney, so that the flame receives 
a current of air both on the inside and on the 
outside. This causes complete combustion and 
produces a hot flame. Many kerosene lamps 
have burners constructed on this plan. 

Argenta, Ark., a city of Pulaski co., on the 
north side of the Arkansas River and directly 
opposite Little Rock. The city has about 
twenty manufacturing plants, whose total an¬ 
nual output is worth over $5,000,000; large rail¬ 
road shops, cotton compresses and cottonseed- 
oil mills are the principal industrial plants. Just 
outside the city i3 Fort Logan H. Roots. 
Population in 1911, 11,138. 

Argentina, ahr jen t^na, or Argentine- 
Republic, next to Brazil the largest country of 
South America, extends from the 22nd degree 
to the 55th degree of south latitude, and from 
the 34th degree to the 58th degree of west 
longitude. Its length is about 2100 miles, its 
width varies from 200 miles in the south to 1000 
miles in the north, and its area is 1,114,000 
square miles, or about equal to that portion of 
the United States lying east of a line drawn 
south from the boundary separating North 


Argentina 


Argentina 


Dakota from Minnesota. It is bounded on the 
north by Bolivia and Paraguay, on the east by 
Paraguay, Brazil, Uruguay and the Atlantic 
Ocean, and on the west it is separated from 
Chile by the high crest of the Andes. 

Surface and Drainage. The larger part 
of Argentina is a low or rolling plain, rising 
gradually from the coast to the mountains in 
the west. In many respects this plain resem- 
ples in its surface, climate and vegetation the 
great central plain of the United States. In the 
northeastern portion of the country considerable 
areas are covered by the extension of the Bra¬ 
zilian highlands. A section between the Parana 
and Uruguay rivers is low, with the exception 
of the extreme northeastern portion, into which 
some of the Brazilian mountains extend. The 
surface of the western portion of the country 
is hilly or mountainous, containing peaks that 
exceed 17,000 feet in altitude. The highest of 
these, Aconcagua, lies just west of the dividing 
line between Argentina and Chile. 

Argentina has about 1500 miles of coast line. 
It is drained in the north by the La Plata river 
system, which consists of the Parana and its 
tributaries and the Uruguay. The most impor¬ 
tant tributaries are the Parana from the north, 
the Pileomayo, the Vermejo and the Salado. 
The central part of the country is drained by the 
Rio Colorado and Rio Negro, which flow into 
the Atlantic. The southern portion is traversed 
by the Chubut, the Chico and the Santa Cruz. 
Among the foothills of the Andes are numerous 
lakes, some of which are remarkable for their 
beauty, and in the plains are a few lakes which 
have no outlet and are surrounded by soft 
marshes. 

Climate. In location, Argentina corresponds 
in the southern hemisphere to that portion of 
North America extending from the latitude of 
Cuba to that of Hudson Bay, and it has in the 
lower lands a climate similar to those regions, 
with the exception that the warm regions are 
in the north and the cold in the south. The 
lowlands are divided into three climatic belts. 
The first, extending from the northern bound¬ 
ary to the latitude of Rosario, has a tropical 
or semitropical climate. The middle belt, 
extending from Rosario to about the 42nd 
parallel of latitude, has a temperate climate 
similar in nearly all respects to that found in 
the middle Atlantic and central states of the 
United States. South of this is the colder belt, 
having a climate resembling that of the north 
central states and certain portions of Canada, 


with the exception that in neither of the regions 
are found the extremes of heat and cold which 
characterize the interior of North America. 

The rainfall in the northern portion varies 
from 50 to 70 inches annually. South of this, 
in the temperate belt, it is somewhat less, and 
it diminishes rapidly as it advances inland. 
The southern belt is dry. In the northern and 
central portions of the country there is ample 
rainfall for all agricultural purposes, and in the 
southern portion the precipitation is sufficient 
for grazing. 

Mineral Resources. In the mountainous 
regions are found extensive deposits of iron, 
copper, lead and silver, and gold has been found 
both in the mountainous regions and on some 
of the rivers. There are also valuable deposits 
of soda and borax, and coal occurs in the 
southern provinces. Petroleum has also been 
found in a few localities. As yet none of these 
deposits has been worked to a great extent. 

Agriculture. The country is favorably 
situated for agriculture, and this is by far the 
most important industry. The northern belt 
is given to the growth of grains and tropical 
fruits, sugar cane and cotton, while the central 
belt is especially adapted to the growth of 
wheat, oats, barley, potatoes, flax and all other 
agricultural products suited to the temperate 
regions. Wheat is by far the most important 
crop, and the annual yield averages in value 
about $95,000,000. Stock-raising is also an 
important industry. The central belt is espe¬ 
cially suited for this, since it contains many 
square miles of excellent grazing land. It is 
estimated that Argentina contains over 25,000,000 
cattle and 100,000,000 sheep, and it has become 
one of the leading countries in the production 
of wool. 

Manufactures. The manufacturing indus¬ 
tries are still limited. In general they are along 
those lines which work up the raw material of 
the country into finished or partially finished 
products. Among the important manufactories 
are flour mills, meat-packing establishments, 
breweries, sugar refineries and tanneries. There 
are also important manufactures of other food 
products, and the manufacture of clothing, 
boots and shoes and small wares is assuming 
some prominence. 

Transportation. The La Plata river sys¬ 
tem and its tributaries afford the northern por¬ 
tion of the country ready access to the sea. 
Large steamers ascend the Parana for 1200 
miles, and the river is navigable for lighter 


Argentina 

boats its entire length. Many of its larger 
tributaries are also navigable. The country 
contains over 25,000 miles of railway, and the 
lines are so constructed as to join together all 
the important cities and towns in the northern 
and central portions. Lines are also constructed 
in the southern territories, and a transconti¬ 
nental line connects Buenos Ayres with San¬ 
tiago in Chile. Electric railways are found in 
all of the large cities and important towns, and 
excellent telegraph and telephone systems are 
owned and operated by the government. 

Commerce. The commerce of Argentina is 
more extensive than that of any other South 
American country. Its annual average is about 
$450,000,000. The imports consist of manu¬ 
factured products of all kinds, especially tex¬ 
tiles, agricultural implements and railway sup¬ 
plies The important exports are wheat, flour, 
dressed meat, hides and tallow. Great Britain 
has the largest share of foreign trade, followed, 
in the order of their importance, by Geimany, 
France and the United States. 

Inhabitants and Language. The early 
inhabitants were indians who resembled in their 
civilization the Incas of Peru. When the Span¬ 
iards conquered the country and settled there, 
many of them intermarried with the indians, 
and the inhabitants of the interior consist of a 
mixed race descended from these early marriages. 
Since the middle of the nineteenth century immi¬ 
gration has been encouraged, and now more 
than half of the population are immigrants or 
their descendants. Among these, Italians and 
Spaniards predominate. Next in order are the 
French, English and Germans. Spanish is the 
prevailing language. 

Education. The country has a good sys¬ 
tem of public schools, which is organized and 
supervised by the department of public instruc¬ 
tion. Each province is held responsible for the 
public schools within its own boundaries, and 
these are managed on a plan somewhat similar 
to that in vogue in the different states of the 
United States. Education is compulsory for all 
children between six and sixteen years of age, 
though in the outlying provinces this require¬ 
ment is not well enforced. The government 
maintains normal schools, a national university 
and technical schools. 

Government and Religion. The govern¬ 
ment of Argentine closely resembles that of the 
United States. The national legislature consists 
of two branches, a senate and a house of repre¬ 
sentatives. The senate consists of 30 members, 


Argon 

and is made up of two senators from each of 
the provinces. These are elected by the legis¬ 
latures for the term of nine years, and the terms 
of one-third of the senate expire every three 
years. The number of members in the house 
of representatives is based upon population. 
In 1913 it was 120. The members are elected 
for four years by the people. The terms of 
one-half the members expire every two years. 
The president is elected by electors chosen in 
the different prov’ices. His term is for six 
years, and he is not eligible for reelection. For 
local administration the country is divided into 
fourteen provinces and ten territories. Each 
province has its local legislatures, and the 
executive is independent in the management of 
its own affairs. The Roman Catholic Church 
is recognized as the State church and this faith 
is embraced by more than nine-tenths of the 
inhabitants, though other religions are tolerated 
without objection. 

Cities. The important cities are Buenos 
Ayres, the capital, Rosario, La Plata and Cor¬ 
dova, each of which is described under its title. 

Histort. Argentina was first visited in 1515 
by Juan Diaz de Solis. Twelve years later 
Sebastian Cabot ascended the Parana and gave 
to the La Plata its name. He founded a colony 
on the river, but it was soon destroyed, and no 
permanent settlement was established until 1580. 
For nearly two centuries the settlements in 
Argentine were attached to the vice-royalty of 
Peru, but in 1776 the basin of the La Plata was 
made an independent vice-royalty. Later the 
provinces came under the rule of Spain, where 
they remained until 1816, when Argentina 
gained its independence. For the next fifty 
years the history of the country was one of 
internal strife, in which rebellions, revolutions 
and wars with neighboring states were so fre¬ 
quent that the development of the country’s 
resources was impossible. The present consti¬ 
tution was adopted in 1853, and under it the 
country has gained its present prosperous con¬ 
dition. Argentina has had numerous boundary 
disputes with its neighbors, especially serious 
being those with Chile, which were finally arbi¬ 
trated in 1902. Another important event was ' 
the adoption of the gold standard in 1900, the 
value of the paper dollar being fixed at 44 cents 
gold. Population in 1911, 7, 171,910. Consult 
Child’s Spanish American Republics. 

Ar'gon, a gas forming less than one per cent 
of the atmosphere. It was discovered in 1894 
bv Lord Rayleigh and Professor Ramsey. It 


Argonaut 


Ariadne 


resembles nitrogen very closely, but is some¬ 
what heavier. Its most marked property is its 
extreme inactivity. 

Ar'gonaut, a name given to a species of 
cuttlefishes known also as the paper nautilus or 
paper sailor. This is the animal so cele- 



PAPER NAUTILUS 


brated in poetry, which was falsely supposed 
to sail on the surface of the sea, using its two 
extended arms as sails and its other arms as oars. 

Argonauts, the fabled heroes of Greece who 
made the voyage in search of the golden fleece. 
According to tradition, long before the Trojan 
War, Aenos, king of Thessaly, became tired of 
ruling and conferred the crown on his brother, 
Pelias, on condition that he should rule only 
until Jason, the son of Aenos, became of age. 
When Jason reached the required age and 
demanded the crown of his uncle, Pelias seem¬ 
ingly complied, but suggested that Jason and 
his companions could gain great renown by 
going in search of the golden fleece, which was 
known to be in the distant land of Colchis, on 
the shores of the Euxine (Black) Sea. 

In accordance with the suggestion, the young 
heroes planned for the voyage, the ship Argo 
was constructed for their service, and Jason and 
his companions, among whom weie Orpheus, 
Castor and Pollux, Hercules and Theseus, 
started on their journey. After many adven¬ 
tures they reached Colchis, where they learned 
that the golden fleece was kept suspended from 
the branches of a tree and guarded by a dragon 
that never slept. Through the assistance of 
Medea, the daughter of the king of Colchis, a 
powerful sorceress, a deep sleep was made to 
fall upon the dragon. Jason captured the golden 
fleece and departed for Thessaly, taking Medea 
with him. This legend probably had its origin 
in some early voyage of discovery. See Jason. 


Ar'gos, a town of Greece, in the northeast of 
the Peloponnesus, between the gulfs of Aegina 
and Nauplia, or Argos. The town and the sur¬ 
rounding territory of Argolis were famous from 
the legendary period of Greek history onward, 
the territory containing, besides Argos, Mycenae, 
where Agamemnon ruled, with a kind of sov¬ 
ereignty, over all the Peloponnesus. The patron 
deity of Argos was Hera or Juno, in whose 
shrine stood a statue of the goddess in ivory 
and gold. Some of the remains of this shrine 
have recently been excavated, and important 
works of art have been brought to light. Argolis 
and Corinth form a nomarchy of the kingdom of 
Greece. Population in 1910, about 9000. 

Ar'gus, in Greek mythology, a fabulous being 
said to have had a hundred eyes. This monster 
was placed by Juno to guard Io, whom she 
hated. Hence, the term “argus-eyed ” is applied 
to one who is exceedingly watchful. 

Argyll, ahr gile' George John Douglas 
Campbell- eighth duke of ; (1823-1900), states¬ 
man and author. As a Parliamentary orator he 
attained high rank, and some of his waitings are 
important. Chief among them is The Reign of 
Law. His eldest son, the marquis of Lome, 
married Queen Victoria’s daughter, the Princess 
Louise, in 1871. 

Argyll, John Campbell, second duke of 
. (1678-1743), Scotch statesman and general. 
He served at the battles of Ramillies. Oudenarde 
and Malplaquet and assisted at the sieges of 
Lille and Ghent. He was long a supporter of 
Walpole, but his political career was full of 
intrigue. He is the duke of Argyll in Scott’s 
Heart of Midlothian. 

Argyll, John Douglas Sutherland Camp¬ 
bell, ninth duke of (1845-1914), formerly 
marquis of Lome, English statesman and author. 
From 1868 to 1878 and again from 1895 to 
1900 he served in the House of Commons. 
He married in 1871 the princess Louise, 
daughter of Queen Victoria. In 1878 he was 
made governor general of Canada and his five- 
year administration was exceedingly popular. 
He became duke of Argyll in 1900. Among his 
writings are The United States after the War, 
Imperial Federation, Psalms in English Verse 
and Life and Times of Queen Victoria. 

Ariad'ne, in Greek mythology, a daughter 
of Minos, king of Crete. She gave Theseus a 
clue ot thread to conduct him out of the laby¬ 
rinth after his defeat of the Minotaur, and when 
he left the country he took her with him. He 
abandoned her, however, on the Isle of Naxos. 





Arid Region 

where she was found by Bacchus, who married 
her. See Theseus. 

Ar'id Re'gion, a region that does not have 
sufficient rainfall to sustain a good growth of 
vegetation. The name applies particularly to 
that portion of the United States which does not 
receive sufficient rainfall to admit of the 
successful raising of crops. This region 
includes Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, 

Utah, Nevada, Arizona and New Mex¬ 
ico, the western portion of the Dakotas, 
Nebraska, Kansas, the northern part of 
Texas west of the hundredth meridian 
and a portion of 
southern Cali¬ 
fornia. Another 



THE SLEEPING ARIADNE 

Vatican, Rome. 

smaller region is found in Oregon and the 
southeastern part of Washington, extending 
into Idaho. The area of the arid region of the 
United States is about one and a half million 
square miles. Large portions of this region 
receive sufficient rainfall to support a growth of 
grass and are successful grazing regions. In all 
of them the soil is fertile and, when supplied with 
water, produces abundant crops. See Irrigation. 

Aries, a'ri eez, (the ram), the first sign of the 
zodiac, measured from the vernal equinox. 
About 2000 years ago, the sun was passing 
through this constellation in the spring, but now 
the sun is due the twenty-first of March in the 
constellation of Pisces, about 20° west. The 
symbol is T, the horns of a ram, or the nose 
and eyebrows of the human face. 

Ari'on, an ancient Greek poet and musician 
who was born at Methymna, in Lesbos, and 
flourished about 625 B. c. A fragment of a 
hymn to Poseidon, ascribed to Arion, is extant. 
The legend regarding him states that while he 
was on shipboard returning from Tarentum to 
Corinth, the sailors decided to put him to death 
for his wealth. After trying in vain to move 
them by his exquisite music, Arion threw him¬ 
self into the sea, but he was saved by dolphins 


Aristides 

who had been attracted by his music and was 
carried to land. 

Ariosto, ahr yos'to, Ludovico (1474-1533), 
a celebrated poet of Italy, born at Reggio, in 
Lombardy. His lyric poems in the Italian and 
Latin languages^ distinguished for ease and 
elegance of style, introduced 
him to the notice of the Car¬ 
dinal Ippolito d’Este, whose 
service he entered. The pub¬ 
lication in 1515 of his im¬ 
mortal poem, the Orlando 
Furioso (Orlando Mad), made 
him at once highly popular. 
This poem details the chiv¬ 
alrous adventures of the pal¬ 
adins of the age of Charle¬ 
magne. Ariosto’s other work 
includes severe satires in the 
spirit of Horace. 

Arista, a rees'ta, Mariano 
(1802-1855), a Mexican gen¬ 
eral. He took part in the war 
that established Mexican in¬ 
dependence, and in 1836 was 
second in command to Gen¬ 
eral Santa Anna. He com¬ 
manded at Palo Alto and 
Resaca de la Palma, in the war between Mex¬ 
ico and the United States. In 1850 he became 
president of Mexico, but soon after his resigna¬ 
tion in 1853 he was banished, and died in exile. 

Aristides, ar is ti'deez, (sumamed The Just) 
(about 550-467 b. c.), a celebrated Athenian 
statesman and military commander. At the 
time of the Persian invasion under Darius, 
Aristides was one of the leaders of the Athenians. 
Owing to his influence and persuasion the chief 
command was given to Miltiades, instead of 
being changed daily among the ten generals, as 
had been customary. To this fact was due in 
great measure the important victory at Marathon 
(490). Shortly after this Aristides was appointed 
archon, but his rival, Themistocles, managed to 
secure his ostracism on the pretext that he was 
becoming dangerous to the democracy (484). 
In connection with this incident is told the famil¬ 
iar story of Aristides’s writing his own name on 
the shell for an illiterate citizen who wanted to 
vote for his ostracism, and gave as his only rea¬ 
son that he was tired of hearing Aristides called 
The Just. Such was his unselfish patriotism that 
during his exile he sought to unite the Grecian 
cities against the coming Persian invasion, and 
before the Battle of Salamis (480) went to 












Aristippus 

Themistocles and gave him his hearty support. He 
assisted in planning the engagement and himself 
took part in it and afterward commanded the 
Athenian forces. When the Delian League was 
formed, he took the chief part in its organization. 
Aristides was so poor at his death that he was 
buried at public cost, but from a grateful country 
his children received dowries and a landed estate. 

Ar'istip'pus, a disciple of Socrates, the 
founder of a philosophical school which was called 
the Cyrenaic school, from Cyrene, the native 
town of Aristippus. He flourished in 380 B. c. 
His fundamental principle was that all human sen¬ 
sations may be reduced to two, pleasure and pain. 

Ar istoc'racy. See Government. 

Aristophanes, ar'is to}'a neez, (444-380 b.c.), 
the greatest comic poet of ancient Greece, bom 
at Athens. He appeared as a poet in 427 B. c., 
and having indulged in some sarcasms on the 
powerful demagogue Cleon, was ineffectually 
accused by the latter of having unlawfully 
assumed the title of an Athenian citizen. He 
afterward revenged himself on Cleon in his 
comedy of The Knights, in which he himself acted 
the part of Cleon. His most important extant 
plays are The Knights, The Clouds, in which 
Socrates is ridiculed, The Wasps, The Birds and 
The Frogs, a satire on Euripides. 

Ar'istotle (384-322 b.c.), the greatest of 
ancient philosophers and the founder of the. 
Peripatetic School of Philosophy. At the age 
of seventeen Aristotle went to study at Athens, 
where he remained for twenty years. He was a 
favorite pupil of Plato, who called him “the 
intellect of his school.” About 343 Aristotle 
became the teacher of Alexander the Great. 
After the conquest of Persia, Alexander pre¬ 
sented him with nearly a million dollars and 
aided Aristotle’s scientific researches greatly by 
sending him a specimen of any plant or animal 
unknown in Greece that was found on his 
expeditions. This friendship led the Athenians 
to accuse Aristotle of favoring Macedonia, and 
he was forced to flee to Chalcis, on the island of 
Euboea, where he died. 

While at Athens Aristotle taught in the Lyceum, 
a gymnasium near the city, and his school is 
sometimes referred to by this name. The name 
Peripatetic is due to the fact that he walked up 
and down in his garden while teaching. It was 
his custom to instruct his more intimate pupils 
in the problems of philosophy during the fore¬ 
noon, and in the evening he gave public lectures 
to the people on less weighty subjects. Aristotle 
was the creator of natural science. He was the 


Arithmetic 

first to divide the animal kingdom into classes, 
and came near discovering the circulation of 
the blood. His moral ai)d political philosophy 
is based on the peculiarities of the human 
organism. To him is due the syllogism, the 
simplest form that an argument may assume. 
He was the first to distinguish the substance of 
things from their accidental characteristics; 
that is, matter and form. He established the 
so-called “cosmological argument” for the exist¬ 
ence of God. This is, in substance, that every¬ 
thing in the world has a finite cause, and back 
of the long succession of finite causes there must 
be an infinite being, a first something, absolute 
reason, God. Before the eleventh century 
Aristotle was but little known to the Christian 
world, although prized by the Arabians for three 
centuries prior to this. For four centuries he 
remained the authority of the Christian thinkers, 
but gradually his teachings became distorted 
and misunderstood. With the revival of learn¬ 
ing his works were carefully studied and cor¬ 
rectly interpreted, and their effect is felt in all 
subsequent philosophy, notably in Bacon, Kant, 
Spinoza and Descartes. Only a portion of 
Aristotle’s writings have come down to us. Of 
his preserved works the most important are 
Logic, Rhetoric, Poetics, Physics, Metaphysics, 
Ethics, Psychology, Politics, History of Animals, 
Meteorology. See Peripatetic School of 
Philosophy; Philosophy; Plato. 

Arith'metic is that branch of mathematics 
which treats of the nature and properties of 
numbers and of computation by means of them. 
Arithmetic is the simplest branch of mathe¬ 
matics and the one most widely used. The 
number idea is an idea of relation and is there¬ 
fore called abstract. It does not apply to 
objects themselves, but to the relation of magni¬ 
tude which these objects sustain to one another, 
as the number idea in 3 blocks does not apply 
to the individual blocks but to the size of the 
group (See Number). The idea of number 
is inborn and universal, though among uncivil¬ 
ized peoples it has been developed only to a 
limited extent, probably because their habits of 
life do not require any great use of numbers. 
In children this idea is manifest at an early age. 
The infant in its mother’s arms learns the differ¬ 
ence between one and two, and as soon as the 
child can move about he begins to count and 
measure, though as yet he knows nothing of 
numbers as used by older persons. Even with¬ 
out any attention from others, by the time he 
has reached school age the child has acquired 


Arithmetic 


Arithmetic 


some knowledge of numbers, and if he has 
been assisted this knowledge is very helpful to 
him as he begins the systematic study of the 
subject (See Number, Methods of Teaching). 

Notation and Numeration. There are 
two systems of writing and reading numbers in 
general use, known as the Roman and the 
Arabic. The first makes use of certain letters 
of the alphabet to indicate the numbers, as 
I, 1; V, 5; X, 10; L, 50; C, 100; D, 500, and 
M, 1000. In this system of notation a letter 
of less value placed before one of greater indi¬ 
cates that the value of the first letter is to be 
subtracted from the one following, as I before 
V for 4; X before L for 40. The multiplication 
of the quantity indicated is shown by repeating 
the letters, as XX for 20; CC for 200. Numbers 
between 1 and 10 are indicated by using the 
letters for addition, as VI, 6; VII, 7, or by 
subtraction as already mentioned. The Roman 
system is in use for numbering chapters in 
books, the orders of kings, as Edward VII, 
Christian IX, for indicating the larger divisions 
in a system of subdivisions or headings, and for 
a few other purposes. 

The so-called Arabic system of notation is the 
one in general use throughout the world. It is 
supposed to have originated among the Hindus, 
by whom it was developed. This uses ten arbi¬ 
trary symbols or figures w T hich represent num¬ 
bers from 0 to 9, inclusive. When standing alone, 
each of these symbols represents a definite value, 
as 4, 5; but when placed in combination with 
other figures its value depends upon the position 
which it occupies, as in two figures placed side 
by side, as two 5’s, the left-hand figure has ten 
times the value of the right, and the number 
indicated is 55. This law is used throughout 
the Arabic notation; hence the system is written 
and read on the decimal scale. According to this 
scale, each place to the left of the point known 
as the decimal point has ten times the value of 
the number to its right, and each place to the 
right of the decimal point has one-tenth the value 
of the place to the left. This is shown in the 
following diagram, in which the double vertical 
line indicates the position of the decimal point. 



In the oral reading of numbers the names of 
the first nine figures, from 0 to 9, inclusive, are 
given. Then the numbers are named in the 
order of the tens and units which they contain, 
as 11, 12, 13, and so on until 20, or two tens, is 
reached. The successive numbers from 20 to 
the next ten are indicated by the combination 
of the two tens with the necessary unit of figures, 
as 21, 22, and so on; hence, when one has 
learned the reading of numbers as far as 30, 
the only additional names to be learned between 
that number and 100 are those of the tens, 40, 
50,60, and so on. The same law holds in read¬ 
ing larger numbers, as hundreds, thousands, 
ten thousands, hundred thousands and millions, 
while on the right of the decimal point similar 
terms with the termination th or ths are used, 
as tenths, hundredths, thousandths; thus, the 
system is very simple and easily learned. 

Operations. All operations in arithmetic 
rest upon one or more of the four so-called 
fundamental operations or rules—addition, sub¬ 
traction, multiplication and division, one phase 
of the last including fractions. These opera¬ 
tions are employed to answer the following 
questions: 

1. How many single things (units) in two 
or more groups ? (Addition.) 

2. How many units are left from the number 
in the original group when a number has been 
taken away? (Subtraction.) 

3. How many individuals are there in a 
given number of groups, each containing the 
same number of units, as, 3 groups of 5 or 4 
groups of 6 ? (Multiplication.) 

4. How many groups of a given number of 
units are there in the entire number of units, 
as, How many groups of 5 in 30 ? (Division, a.) 

5. What part of the whole number of units 
is the number in a given group, as. What part 
of 20 is 5? (Division, b: Fractions.) 

Common and decimal fractions deal with 
parts of wholes or units, and the operations 
with them are for the purpose of answering the 
same questions as in whole numbers; hence 
the same operations—addition, subtraction, 
multiplication and division—occur with fractions 
as with whole numbers, as, How much is \ 
and (Addition.) What is left after taking 
£ from l ? (Subtraction.) What is J of | ? 
(Multiplication.) How many §’s in f? (Divi¬ 
sion.) 

The reduction of fractions to equivalent frac¬ 
tions having a common denominator is for the 
purpose of reducing them to units of the same 


















Arithmetic 


Arithmetic 


kind, and in no wise affects the operations 
described above, and short methods of opera¬ 
tion, such as inverting the divisor in division, 
in no wise affect the fundamental rules and 
principles involved. Such operations simply 
lessen the labor necessary to obtain the result. 
In general they should not be used until the 
student thoroughly understands the principles 
and processes involved; that is, the student should 
not perform the operation in division of frac¬ 
tions by inverting the divisor until he under¬ 
stands that there is no difference in principle 
between dividing £ by \ and dividing 6 by 4. 
Decimals differ from common fractions only in 
form; since their denominators are 10 or some 
multiple of 10, the denominator is expressed 
by the decimal point (See diagram under 
Notation and Numeration, above). 

The child who thoroughly masters the pri¬ 
mary combinations of number, that is, all the 
additions from 1 to 9, inclusive, and all the 
multiplications from 1 to 12, inclusive, and 
also understands the use of the fundamental 
operations in answer to the five questions given 
above, has laid a good foundation for mastering 
the science of arithmetic. 

However complicated an arithmetical prob¬ 
lem may appear, its solution involves the answer¬ 
ing of one or more of the five questions already 
explained, and when viewed from the point of 
these underlying principles, arithmetic is seen 
to be a comparatively simple science. The 
solution of problems lies in discovering the 
relations which the given numbers or quan¬ 
tities bear to one another, and these relations 
are readily found if only two numbers or quan¬ 
tities are considered at a time. The student of 
aVithmetic should bear in mind that comparison 
can be made between two quantities only, and 
that the result derived from this comparison 
forms one of the quantities with which to make 
the next comparison, and the quantity thus 
obtained affords a means for making a third 
comparison, and so on until the desired result 
is obtained. Every problem presents three 
questions: What is given? What is required? 
How is the required quantity to be obtained? 
In the solution of the problem these questions 
should be considered in the order given. 

Course of Study. In addition to the fun¬ 
damental rules and principles already discussed, 
a course of study in arithmetic in elementary 
schools should contain the following divisions 
of the subject, and each should be pursued as 
far as it is used in common business: 


1. Common weights and measures, including 
United States money. 

2. Percentage and its elementary applications 
to interest, discount, profit and loss and insurance. 

3. Simple proportion. 

4. Measurements of surfaces and solids. 

5. Practical estimates used by farmers, car¬ 
penters and jobbers. 

The above divisions include nothing new 
except the number facts contained in the tables 
of weights and measures. The development of 
each division involves simply the application of 
the fundamental rules and processes to the 
conditions to which that branch of arithmetic 
particularly applies. All problems involving 
the use of large numbers and complex fractions 
and problems which partake of the nature of 
mathematical puzzles should be strictly excluded. 
The unreasonableness of the use of such num¬ 
bers and problems is seen by a glance at the 
following table, which contains all the common 
fractions and their equivalent decimals used in 
ordinary business computations. To these 
should be added the decimals .06, .055 and .07, 
which have no equivalent common fractions of 
simple denominations: 


COMMON 

FRACTION 


EQUIVALENT 

DECIMAL 


COMMON 

FRACTION 


EQUIVALENT 

DECIMAL 


Results. A mastery of arithmetic should 
secure the following results: 

1. Accuracy in computation. This is the 
first and most essential result to be obtained, 
for without it the others are of but little service. 

2. Readiness in the use of numbers. 

3. Ability to see relations clearly. 

4. Ability to apply the principles and rules 
of arithmetic to the practical problems of life. 

Importance. Arithmetic has always been 
considered one of the most important branches 
of study, and from the earliest times it has taken 
rank with reading and writing or language 
study. While without doubt in some instances 
too much time has been devoted to the subject,' 
and phases of it which were entirely unnecessary 
have been pursued at the expense of more 
valuable information, yet too high an estimate 
can scarcely be placed upon the essentials of 
arithmetic. It is necessary for the self-protec- 










Arizona 

tion of every one who mingles in society. With¬ 
out it, computations necessary to enable one to 
know when he receives his just dues and to 
place the proper value upon services and prop¬ 
erty cannot be made. It is of importance to the 
young man or young woman who wishes to 
engage in business in any form, for without it 
success is impossible. It is also one of the 
best subjects to afford a mental training which 
includes careful and quick observation and 
systematic development of the reasoning pow¬ 
ers. For methods of instruction, see Number, 
Method of Teaching. 

Ar 'izo'na, a state in the southwestern part of 
the United States, bounded on the n. by Utah, 
on the e. by New Mexico, on the s. by Mexico 
and on the w. by California and Nevada. The 
Colorado River forms most of the western 
boundary. The length and breadth are each 
about 350 miles The total area is 113,956 sq. 
mi. Population in 1910, 204,354. 

Surface. Detached mountains pass through 
Arizona from the southeast to the northwest and 
divide it into two parts, which are nearly equal 
in area. The northeastern portion consists of a 
high plateau, upon which rise isolated ranges and 
detached buttes and mesas (See Butte; Mesa). 
The plateau is studded with hills and cut by 
deep canyons, through which in former ages 
streams of considerable magnitude flowed. The 
present streams are superficially dry a good por¬ 
tion of the year. Many of them have considerable 
and regular underflow available by pumping for 
irrigation. The Grand Canyon of the Colorado 
River, which is the most remarkable gorge in 
the world (See Colorado River, the), runs 
across the northwestern part of Arizona and along 
its western boundary. The southwestern part 
slopes from the central mountain ranges toward 
the Gila River, which flows across the southern 
portion. Its general elevation is lower than that 
of the northern and northeastern portions, and 
it is marked by occasional buttes and mesas, 
which rise abruptly from the plains. Most of 
the southern half is noted for its desert-like 
appearance. The Gila has a few shallow tribu¬ 
taries, but they are dry, save for underflow a 
large part of the year. 

Climate. The climate is unusually dry and 
healthful. The elevation of the northern half 
of the territory gives a mean annual temperature 
of about 45°. The southern half is intensely 
hot during the summer and has a mean annual 
temperature of about 70°. Throughout the 
country the rainfall is light. In the northern 


Arizona 

half it averages about 20 inches annually 
and in the southern half only 8 or 10* 
inches. For this reason vegetation is scant and 
consists largely of bunch g^ass, various species 
of cactus, mesquite greasewood and other forms 
which are common to arid regions. In the 
regions above 5000 feet, in the northern and 
southern sections, are valuable pine forests. 

Mineral Resources. Arizona is rich in 
minerals, and for many years has been the seat 
of mining occupations. Gold, silver, copper, 
coal, lead and a number of varieties of stone 
valuable for building and ornamental purposes 
exist in large quantities, but as yet mining opera¬ 
tions have been confined to gold, silver, lead 
and copper. The copper industry is by far the 
largest, and Arizona ranks as the first state in 
the production of this metal, being approached 
only by Montana, the production of 1914 being 
over 400,000,000 pounds. The output of gold 
averages $4,000,000 a year, and the output of 
silver about $2,000,000. Some of the mines in 
this region have been worked since the time of 
the early Spanish occupation of Mexico. In the 
northeastern part, near Holbrook, is found a 
remarkable collection of petrified trees, known 
as the petrified forest. The rock thus formed 
takes a high polish, presents a beautiful varie¬ 
gated appearance and is highly valued for 
ornamental purposes. Precious stones, including 
the opal, the garnet and the sapphire, are also 
found, and there are valuable quarries of onyx 
and marble, though these have not yet been 
worked to any extent. 

Agriculture. Lack of moisture has restricted 
agriculture to stock raising in those regions where 
grazing is possible and to intensified farming in 
the irrigated districts. Sheep and cattle are 
raised in large numbers, and Arizona is one of 
the leading states in the production of wool. 
Along the valley of the Gila River and on some 
of its tributaries irrigation has been practiced 
with great success. Here citrus fruits, olives, 
grapes and other products common to a semi- 
tropical region are raised with little effort. 
Alfalfa is also an important crop. Irrigation is 
also practiced around Phoenix with especial 
success, and the Roosevelt Dam, constructed by 
the government and completed in 1911, im¬ 
pounds water sufficient to irrigate more than 
200,000 acres (see Irrigation). It is estimated 
that Arizona has between 1,000,000 and 2,000,- 
000 acres which can be irrigated with profit. 
Manufacturing is confined chiefly to lumber, 
beet sugar and dairy products. 


Arizona 


Arkansas 


Transportation. The Colorado river is 
navigable. The Southern Pacific Railroad 
crosses Arizona from east to west in the southern 
part, with important branches to Globe. Nogales 
(connecting with the great West Coast system in 
Mexico), and to Phoenix and Winkelman; the 
Santa F6 system crosses the northern part, with 
branch lines to the Grand Canyon from Williams, 
to Prescott and Phoenix from Ashfcrk, and 
westward from Phoenix to the Colorado at 
Parker and to Los Angeles; and the El Paso & 
Southwestern system extends from Benscn on the 
Southern Pacific southeast to Bisbee Douglas 
and El Paso, with connections into Mexico. The 
settled portions of Arizona are along these rail¬ 
roads, which furnish excellent direct connections 
with the Pacific Coast and with the centers of 
trade in the east and northeast. 

Education. Arizona maintains a thoroughly 
organized system of public schools, including 
twelve high schools. The University or Arizona 
at Tucson, normal schools at Tempe and Flag¬ 
staff and the industrial (reform) school at Benson 
are the chief educational institutions. The 
enrollment in the public schools is more than 
29,000, and the expenditures for maintenance 
about $700,000 per year. The Roman Catholic 
Church maintains schools at Tucson, Phoenix, 
Prescott and Bisbee. 

Institutions. The asyliim for the insane is 
located at Phoenix; the prison, at Florence, 
where new and modem buildings have just been 
completed; the Home for Aged and Infirm Ari¬ 
zona Pioneers, at Prescott; the Arizona Fair, 
with extensive grounds and permanent buildings 
owned by the commonwealth, at Phoenix. 

Cities. The chief cities and towns are Phoe¬ 
nix, the capital, Tucson and Prescott, described 
by title; Bisbee, Douglas, Globe, Jerome, Clifton 
and Morenci, important mining towns; Yuma, 
Tempe and Mesa, in the fertile irrigated dis¬ 
tricts. 

History. Arizona was first visited by the 
Spaniards in 1539, but it had long been the 
seat of a race of natives whose ruins of villages 
and fortifications still remain. The hostility of 
the Indians retarded settlement, and revolution¬ 
ary disorders in Mexico in the first half of the 
19th century led to the abandonment of most 
of the mines and settlements except Tucson and 
Tubac. The territory was acquired at the close 
of the Mexican War by the treaty of 1848, and 
by the later treaty of 1853 (See Gadsden Pur¬ 
chase). It was governed as a part of New 
Mexico until 1863, when it became an inde¬ 


pendent territory. Frequent Indian uprisings, 
especially of the Apaches, greatly interfered with 
development, the last one occurring in 1896. 
With the extension of railroads into Arizona, the 
growth of great mining centers and the opening 
up of irrigated lands, progress has been rapid. 
As a consequence, demands for the admission of 
the territory as a state have been insistent, and 
in 1910 an enabling act was passed by Congress. 
The state was admitted February 14, 1912. 

Arizona, University of, the only institution 
of college rank in Arizona, is a co-educational 
university, established by an act of the legislature 
in 1885, and is located at Tucson. It has about 
300 students. The departments include the 
School of Mines, the Agricultural and Mechan¬ 
ical College, the Agricultural Experiment Station 
and a preparatory department. The library con¬ 
tains 20,000 bound volumes. The income of the 
university amounts to about $130,000 per year. 

Ark, a word applied in the Bible to three 
objects: (1) The vessel in which Noah, his fam¬ 
ily and various animals were preserved during 
the flood (Gen. vi). (2) The basket of bul¬ 
rushes which the mother of Moses made to pre¬ 
serve her infant son from death ( Exod . ii). (3) 
The ark of the covenant, an article in the taber¬ 
nacle and afterward in Solomon’s temple at 
Jerusalem (Exod. xxv, 10-22; xxvn, 1-9). 

Arkansas, ahr'kan saw, the Bear State, in the 
south central part of the United States, bounded 
on the n. by Missouri, on the e. by Missouri, 
Tennessee and Mississippi, from which it is 
separated by the Mississippi River; on the s. 
by Louisiana and on the w. by Oklahoma. The 
length is about 250 miles and the average width 
is 225 miles. The total area is 53,335 square 
miles. Population in 1910, 1,574,449. 

Surface and Drainage. The eastern part of 
the state bordering on the Mississippi is low and 
marshy, with occasional high bluffs. The sur¬ 
face rises to the westward in the central portion 
of the state, where undulating features are found. 
Beyond these to the west and northwest is a 
region crossed by numerous ranges of hills and 
low mountains, having a general trend from east 
to west. Spurs of the Ozark Mountains occur 
in the northwestern part of the state. The most 
important ranges are the Black Hills on the 
north, the Ouachita Hills on the south and the 
Cane Hills in the northwest. All these ranges 
are low, the highest point not exceeding 2800 feet. 
They are a continuation of the elevation in 
Oklahoma on the west and Missouri on the 
north. 


Arkansas 


Arkansas 


The Arkansas River divides the state into two 
nearly equal divisions, and with the exception of 
two ranges of hills extending south and west 
through the central and western portion, all that 
part of the state south of this river* consists of 
lowland. The other important streams are the 
White, flowing southward through the north¬ 
eastern part of the state and entering the Missis¬ 
sippi just above the Arkansas; the Black and 
Cache, which are important northern tributaries 
of the White; the Salina, which drains the 
northwestern portion and the Ouachita, which 
drains the south central portion. There are 
numerous marshes and bayous along the Missis¬ 
sippi, but the state contains no lakes of import¬ 
ance. The fertile lowlands along the Mississippi 
are protected by an extensive system of dykes or 
levees. (See Levee.) But notwithstanding this 
protection, some of these lowlands are subject to 
occasional overflow during periods of high water. 
This, however, does not prevent their occupa¬ 
tion for agricultural purposes. 

Climate. The lowlands have a hot and in a 
few sections unhealthful climate, but the north¬ 
ern and northwestern part, especially in the 
mountainous and hilly region, has a very mild 
and pleasant climate. This region is not sub¬ 
jected to severe north winds or long drought. 
Because of this, the Ozark region of Arkansas 
has attained a wide reputation as being bene¬ 
ficial to persons afflicted with lung diseases. 
The annual rainfall ranges from 40 inches in the 
north to 55 inches in the south. 

Mineral Resources. Extensive beds of 
coal are found in the counties lying along both 
sides of the Arkansas River. These deposits 
furnish bituminous coal of an excellent quality 
and also a harder variety sometimes known as 
semi-anthracite. In other locations in the 
eastern part of the state lignite is found. In 
the mountainous regions are rich deposits 
of lead ore, also of the ores of zinc, cop¬ 
per and manganese. Marble is found in the 
north, and slate, granite, kaolin, novaculite, a 
valuable hone-stone, and schists suitable for 
grindstones are also present. There kre, also 
extensive deposits of bauxite or aluminum ore. 
This is now being mined in large quantities. 

Agriculture. Arkansas is almost exclu¬ 
sively an agricultural state, and more than half 
of its area is in farms. North of the Arkansas 
River and in the higher altitudes grains, including 
wheat and com, and fruits common to the 
temperate latitudes are grown. The north¬ 
western portion of the state has attained a wide 


reputation for the excellent quality of its apples, 
peaches and strawberries. In the northeastern 
portion the soil is light and sandy and not very 
productive. Along the lowlands of the Missis¬ 
sippi and in the bottom lands south of the 
Arkansas lies the cotton belt, which yields the 
largest crops of any section of the state under 
tillage. Cotton is the most important crop and 
Arkansas now ranks as the sixth state in the 
production of this staple. Livestock is raised in 
considerable quantities in the northern and north¬ 
western portion of the state, but stock raising 
is not one of the leading industries. 

Manufactures. The forests of Arkansas 
exceed in area the entire State of Indiana. They 
contain a large variety of both hard and soft 
woods valuable for lumber; consequently, the 
manufacture of lumber and lumber products, 
such as door and window casings, sash, blinds 
and other interior finishings, exceeds in extent 
and value any other manufacturing industry. 
There are numerous flour mills, and the manu¬ 
facture of cotton-seed oil and cake is quite 
extensive. 

Transportation. The Mississippi gives the • 
eastern portion of the state ready access to the 
sea and to all states with which the Mississippi 
is connected by navigable tributaries. The 
Arkansas is navigable across the entire state, and 
the Ouachita, in its lower course, for about two- 
thirds of the year. During high water the Saint 
Francis, Black and White rivers are also navi¬ 
gable. These streams greatly facilitate transpor¬ 
tation and assist commerce. Important railway 
lines extend across the state from northwest 
to southwest and from east to west. While rail¬ 
road building in Arkansas has not been as 
extensive as in some other states, there are now 
enough lines to connect all of the important 
towns. The railroads are under the super¬ 
vision of a state railroad commission, which has 
the authority to regulate rates. The commerce 
of the state finds an outlet through Memphis 
and New Orleans. The exports are cotton, 
lumber and the products of the various mines 
and quarries, while the imports are manufactured 
articles and such food products as are not 
grown within the state, 

Government. The right of suffrage is 
restricted to those who have resided in the state 
a year, the county six months in and the precinct 
or ward one month, and who have paid poll 
tax. Elections are held every other year. The 
legislative department consists of a senate of 
35 'members and a house of representatives 


Arkansas 


Arkwright 


which cannot exceed 100 in number. The 
members of the house are elected for two years, 
and the senators serve four years. The gov¬ 
ernor, secretary of state, treasurer, auditor and 
attorney general constitute the executive depart¬ 
ment of government, and each is elected for a 
term of two years. The judiciary system con¬ 
sists of a supreme court, a number of circuit 
courts and a probate and county court 
for each county. Justice courts are also es¬ 
tablished in the townships. The local gov¬ 
ernment is in the hands of county and township 
officers. 

Education. The school property in the state 
is valued at $12,000,000 and the yearly expendi¬ 
tures for educational purposes average more than 
$4,000,000. Because of the large rural popu¬ 
lation, graded schools are confined to the larger 
towns, and all schools are more or less dependent 
upon local taxation for support. The state uni¬ 
versity is located at Fayetteville, the state 
normal school at Conway. There are also a 
number of sectarian colleges and schools of 
secondary grade for both white and colored 
.pupils, and the instruction given in some of 
these includes manual training and household 
arts. Since 1900 there has been marked progress 
in educational matters, both among the white 
and the colored population. 

Institutions. The state penitentiary and 
the state institutions for the blind and deaf are 
located at Little Rock. The state also maintains 
a hospital for the insane and a penitentiary in 
Pulaski County. 

History. The first settlement in the territory 
of Arkansas was by the French, at Arkansas 
Post, in 1685, and little advance was made until 
the territory came into the possession of the 
United States by the Louisiana Purchase in 
1803. It was governed as a part of the Territory 
of Louisiana until 1812; as a part of the Territory 
of Missouri until 1819; as an independent ter¬ 
ritory, including Indian Territory, until 1836, 
when the present state was formed. At the out¬ 
break of the Civil War the state was about evenly 
divided on the question of secession, but an 
influx from the Southern states led the state 
to secede on May 6, 1861. It adopted a 
new constitution, prohibiting slavery, in 1864, 
but was not admitted until 1868, delay being 
caused by the Congressional policy of recon¬ 
struction. Another constitution was adopted 
in 1874. Since 1876 the state has made rapid 
progress, especially in the development of its 
mining industries. 


Arkansas, a river of the United States, ris ing 
in Colorado and flowing through Kansas and 
Oklahoma and across Arkansas into the Mis¬ 
sissippi River. It is the largest tributary of 
the Mississippi excepting the Missouri. Its 
length is 2170 miles, it is navigable for about 
650 miles, and it drains an area of 188,000 
square miles. In its upper course in Colorado, 
it flows through the Royal Gorge, one of the 
most remarkable canyons in the country. 

Arkansas, an indian tribe. See Quapaw. 

Arkansas, University of, a state institution 
established in 1872. The academic and tech¬ 
nical departments are located in Fayetteville; 
the law and medical departments in Little Rock, 
and the Normal School, which is for colored 
students, at Pine Bluff. The combined schools 
number about 150 professors and instructors, and 
about 1800 students. 

Arkansas City, Kan., a city of Cowley co., 
55 mi. s. e. of Wichita, on the Atchison, Topeka 
& Santa F£, the Missouri Pacific and other rail¬ 
roads. It is near the junction of the Arkansas 
and Walnut rivers. A canal connecting the two 
streams furnishes power for manufacturing, 
which is the principal industry. The products 
include flour, lumber, windmills, carriages and 
ice. A United States Indian School is located 
here, and the city has two parks. The place 
was settled in 1870 and incorporated the 
following year. The municipality owns and 
operates the waterworks. Population in 1910, 
7508. , 

Ark'wright, Sir Richard (1732-1792), an 
English inventor, bom at Preston, Lancashire. 
His early education was very meager, and at 
the age of thirteen he was apprenticed to a 
barber. From living in a place where cotton¬ 
spinning was the chief industry, he early became 
interested in the processes used in cotton manu¬ 
facture. At that time cloth was made with a 
linen warp, as no way had been found to spin 
cotton fit for a warp. Arkwright invented a spin¬ 
ning jenny that transformed the cotton rolls 
from the carding machine into fine, hard- 
twisted thread, suitable for warp. His first 
machine was set up at Preston, but he was 
obliged to leave this place on account of the 
prejudice of the spinners against such a labor- 
saving machine, and he moved to Nottingham. 
In 1769 he set up his first mill and later built a 
larger factory. Arkwright may be called the 
founder of the modern factory system. See 
Spinning; Cotton; Factory and Factory 
Legislation. 


Arlington 

Arlington, Mass., a town in Middlesex co., 
6 mi. n. w. of Boston, on the Boston & Maine 
railroad. It is a residence suburb and has a 
fine public library. Market gardening and the 
manufacturing of ice-cutting tools are the chief 
industries. The place was settled in 1650, was 
incorporated as West Cambridge in 1807 and 
was given its present name in 1867. Population 
in 1910, 11,187. 

Arlington, a small village of Alexandria 
co., Va., on the Alexandria & Mount Ver¬ 
non electric railway, 5 mi. n. w. of Alex¬ 
andria and 3 mi. from Washington. The vil- 


THE LEE MANSION AT ARLINGTON 

lage is noted for the national cemetery, which 
occupies the site of the former estate of 
Robert E. Lee, seized during the Civil War. 

Arma'da, the Spanish name for any large 
naval force, usually applied to the fleet desig¬ 
nated the Invincible Armada, intended to act 
against England in 1588. It was fitted out by 
Philip II, partially to avenge the death of Mary 
Queen of Scots, and consisted of 130 great war 
vessels, with over nineteen thousand soldiers 
and eight thousand sailors, all under the com¬ 
mand of the duke of Medina Sidonia. The 
fleet had scarcely quitted Lisbon on May 29, 
1588, when it was shattered by a storm, and had 
to be refitted in Corunna. It was to cooperate 
with a land force collected in Flanders under 
the prince of Parma, and, to unite with this, it 
proceeded through the English Channel toward 
Calais. In its progress it was attacked by the 
English fleet under Howard, Drake, Hawkins 
and Frobisher, and the great lumbering Spanish 
'11 


Armature 

vessels suffered severely from their smaller oppo¬ 
nents, which eluded most of the Spanish fire. 
Driven close to Gravelines, the armada was 
becalmed and was thrown into confusion by fire¬ 
ships. The duke of Medina Sidonia, owing to 
his severe losses, at last resolved to abandon 
the enterprise, and conceived the idea of recon¬ 
veying his fleet to Spain by a voyage round the 
north of Great Britain; but storm after storm 
assailed his ships, scattering them in all direc¬ 
tions and sinking many. Some went down on 
the cliffs of Norway, others in the open sea, 
others on the Scottish coast. Only about fifty 
vessels arrived in Spain. 

Ar'madil'lo, a toothless mammal, found in 
South America. Armadillos are covered with 
a hard, bony shell, divided into belts, composed 
of small separate plates like those of a coat 
of mail, flexible except on the forehead, 
shoulders and haunches, where it is not mova- 



ARMADILLO 


ble. The belts are connected by a membrane, 
which enables the animal to roll itself up like 
a hedgehog. These animals burrow in the 
earth, where they lie during the daytime, seldom 
going abroad except at night. They are of 
different sizes, the largest being three feet in 
length, not including the tail, and the smallest 
only ten inches. They subsist chiefly on fruits 
and roots, sometimes on insects and flesh. 
They are inoffensive and their flesh is esteemed 
as food. Armadillos are sometimes known as 
ant-eaters (See Ant-eater). 

Ar'mature, a term applied to the piece of 
soft iron which is placed across the poles of 
permanent or electro-magnets for the purpose 
of receiving and concentrating the attractive 
force. In the case of permanent magnets, it is 
also important for preserving their magnetism 
when not in use, and hence is sometimes termed 
the keeper. It produces this effect in virtue of 
the well-known law of induction, by which the 
armature, when placed near or across the poles 
of the magnet, is itself converted into a tempo¬ 
rary magnet with reversed poles, and these, 
reacting upon the permanent magnet, keep its 
particles in a state of constant magnetic tension 
















Armenia 


Armenia 


A horseshoe magnet should therefore never be 
laid aside without its armature; and, in the case 
of -.traight-bar magnets, two should be placed 
parallel to each other, with their poles reversed, 
anc a keeper or armature across them at both 
ends. The term is also applied to the core and 
coil of the electro-magnet, which revolves before 
the poles of the permanent magnet in the mag¬ 
neto-electric machine. See Magnet; Electro¬ 
magnetism. 

Arme'nia, an ancient kingdom of western 
Asia which formerly occupied the region trom 
the Caucasus Mountains on the n. to Cappa¬ 
docia on the w. and s. w. and extended e. as 
far as the Caspian Sea The boundaries varied 
widely at different periods of its history. The 
greater part of the region is a mountainous 
plateau, partially surrounded by the Taurus 
and Anti-Taurus mountains, and containing 
other mountains, chief of which is Ararat, a 
volcanic peak over 17,000 feet high (See Ararat). 
The country was divided into Armenia Major 
and Armenia Minor, the former occupying the 
eastern part and the latter the western part of 
the territory. Armenia Minor is drained by 
the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, and the Aras 
or Araxes flows across the northern part of 
Armenia Major into the Caspian Sea, while 
the Halys flows northward into the Black Sea. 

Armenia is in every way well adapted to agri¬ 
culture. It has fertile corn lands and broad 
pastures, and its valleys produce cotton, rice, 
tobacco, grapes and dates. In the forests are 
found the ash, maple oak, walnut, chestnut 
and pine. There are no manufactures of great 
importance. The country is rich in minerals, 
which include silver, lead, iron and copper. 

The greater portion of the inhabitants are 
of the ancient Armenian stock, a branch of the 
Aryan or Indo-European race, but there are 
also found many Turks, Kurds and other 
nationalities, owing to the repeated subjugation 
of the country by these nations. The Arme¬ 
nians call themselves Haiks, from Haig or 
Haicus, the founder of the kingdom, whom they 
consider to be the grandson of Noah. In all they 
number about 2,000,000, one-half of whom are 
in Armenia, and the remainder of whom are, 
like the Jews, scattered over the earth. Wher¬ 
ever they go the Armenians maintain their 
language, domestic and social customs and 
religion. They have keen intellects, but, owing 
to the oppressive government under which they 
live and the lack of schools, most of them are 
grossly ignorant. 


History. Armenia was the Ararat of the 
Scriptures, and the Urartu of the Assyrians, by 
whom it was conquered as early as the eighth 
century. It was conquered by Alexander the 
Great in 325 B. c., and for the next one hun¬ 
dred and fifty years was subject to the Mace¬ 
donians or Syrian-Greeks. It regained its inde¬ 
pendence about 190 b. c., when it was divided 
into Armenia Major and Armenia Minor, each 
administered under a separate government. 
Under Tigranes the Great, son-in-lav/ of Mith- 
ridates, the country was conquered by the 
Romans in 69 b. c. and was made a tributary 
province. In the latter part of the fourth cen¬ 
tury, it was partitioned between Persia and the 
Byzantine Empire. 

The old religion of the country was Zoroas¬ 
trianism. Christianity was introduced in 285 
by Gregory the Illuminator. The new creed 
rapidly gained ground, and the Armenians are 
accredited with establishing the first Christian 
church in the world. The attempt of the Per¬ 
sian rulers to overthrow Christianity plunged 
the country into war and anarchy, but the 
Armenians held to their faith. Three hundred 
fifty years later the Arabs secured control 
of the country, and the next two and a half 
centuries were marked by conflicts between the 
Christians and Mohammedans. After the latter 
half of the ninth century, the country enjoyed 
a period of tranquillity which lasted for one 
hundred years. Armenia was invaded in suc¬ 
cession by the Byzantines, Mongols and Seljuk 
Turks, and it was finally divided between the 
Byzantines and Timur. In 1472 it was conquered 
by the Persians, and in 1828 a portion of that 
under Persian control was seized by Russia. 
The ancient kingdom is now divided between 
Turkey, Russia and Persia. By the treaty of 
1878 (See Berlin,' Congress of), the powers 
of Europe guaranteed the integrity of the Turk¬ 
ish Empire, and since that time the conditions of 
Armenia have remained unchanged. 

In 1885 the Armenians attempted a revolu¬ 
tionary movement, but were put down by the 
Kurds, or Turkish soldiers, with the greatest 
cruelty. Frequent massacres have occurred 
since that time, and in 1895-1896 the suffering 
of the people aroused the nations of Europe, 
as well as the United States. A joint commis¬ 
sion was sent to Constantinople to remonstrate 
with the Turkish government. Reforms were 
promised, but they have never been carried out, 
though the indiscriminate massacres have been 
less frequent. 


Arminius 

Annin'ius (18 b. c.-about 20 a. d.), a Ger¬ 
man hero, celebrated as the deliverer of his 
country from the Roman yoke. He completely 
annihilated the army of Varus, consisting of 
three legions, in a three days’ battle fought in 
the Teutoburg forest After many years’ resist¬ 
ance to the power of the empire, he drew upon 
himself the hatred of his countrymen by aiming 
at the regal authority, and was assassinated. 

Armistice, ahr'mis tis, a mutual agreement 
to suspend hostilities, between two armies or 
nations at war. It is generally proposed when 
an endeavor to form a treaty of peace is being 
made, and sometimes when both parties are 
exhausted. The desire for an armistice for a 
temporary purpose—such as to bury the dead 
after a battle—is indicated by the hoisting of 
a white flag. 

Armored Ship. See War Ship. 

Ar'mor Plate, strong sheets of iron or steel 
with which war ships are covered as a protection 
against torpedoes and cannon. The real begin¬ 
ning of the use of armor plate in naval battles 
was seen in the famous combat between the 
Monitor and the Merrimac in Hampton Roads 
in 1862. From that time to the present it has 
been a constant struggle between inventors of 
guns and armor as to which should excel. 
Wrought iron plates were soon proved vulnerable 
to the chilled steel projectiles of rifled cannon, 
and combined plates welded or separated by 
layers of wood were tried. Now different vari¬ 
eties of steel are combined in one plate, in such a 
way that a hard surface is presented to break 
or injure the projectile, and a tough composition 
which will not seriously crack or break loose 
forms the inner part of the plate. In the 
United States the principal manufacturers of 
armor plate are the Carnegie Steel Company 
at Pittsburg and the Bethlehem Steel Com¬ 
pany at South Bethlehem, Pa. The process of 
manufacture is a complicated one. and 
requires constant work for about nine months 
on a single plate, the cost of which exceeds $400 
per ton. A finished plate is rarely more than 
9 by 18 feet in extent or more than a foot thick. 
Teakwood of considerable thickness is placed 
between the iron frame of the ship and the armor 
plate to lessen concussion. It is no longer 
thought possible to make a ship that is invulner¬ 
able to all kinds of cannon shot, for a modem 
steel-capped projectile will pierce the strongest 
Krupp armor to a depth of from one to one and 
a half times the diameter of the shot (See Can¬ 
non); but the effort is to prevent explosive 


Arms and Armor 

shells from entering the ship and to protect the 
vital parts. 

Ar'mour, Philip D. (1832-1901), an American 
merchant and philanthropist, one of the foundei s 
and long the head of the firm of Armour & Co., 
the largest pork-packing and dressed-ment 
establishment in the world. He founded in 
Chicago the Armour Mission, Armour Flats and 
Armour Institute (which see). 

Armour Institute of Technology, a technical 
institution of collegiate rank, established in 
Chicago, by Philip D. Armour in 1893. Its 
entrance requirements are as high as those of the 
best American universities and colleges, and it 
offers courses leading to the degrees in general 
science, architecture, mechanical, mining, elec¬ 
trical, chemical and civil engineering. Its 
faculty numbers about 60, and it has 1500 stu¬ 
dents, including those in the preparatory school. 

Arms and Armor. Arms. This term is 
applied to weapons of offense. The first were 
probably wooden clubs, and these were followed 
by wooden weapons made more deadly by means 
of stone or bone, stone axes, slings, bows and 
arrows with heads of flint or bone, and afterward 
various weapons of bronze. Subsequently, 
iron and steel arms of various kinds were intro¬ 
duced, comprising the sword, javelin, pike, spear 
or lance, dagger, axe, mace, chariot scythe, and 
with a rude artillery consisting of catapults and 
battering-rams. From the descriptions of Homer 
we know that almost all the Grecian armor, 
defensive and offensive, in his time was of bronze, 
though iron was sometimes used. The lance, 
spear and javelin were the principal weapons of 
this age among the Greeks. The bow is not often 
mentioned. Among ancient nations the Egyp¬ 
tians seem to have been most accustomed to the 
use of the bow, which was the principal weapon 
of their infantry. Peculiar to them was a defen¬ 
sive weapon intended to catch and break the 
sword of the enemy. With the Assyrians the 
bow was a favorite weapon; but with them 
lances, spears and javelins were in more common 
use than with the Egyptians. Most of the large 
engines of war seem to have been of Assyrian 
origin. During the historic age of Greece the 
characteristic weapon was a heavy spear from 
21 to 24 feet in length. The sword used by the 
Greeks was short and was worn on the right side. 
The Roman sword was from 22 to 24 inches in 
length, straight, two-edged, and obtusely pointed, 
and, as by the Greeks, was worn on the right side. 
It was used principally as a stabbing weapon. 
It was originally of bronze. The most char- 


Arms and Armor 


Arms and Armor 


acteristic weapon of the Roman legionary soldier, 
however, was the pilum, which was a kind of 
pike or javelin, 6 feet or more in length. The 
pilum was sometimes used at close quarters, but 
more commonly it was thrown. The favorite 
weapons of the ancient Germanic races were the 
battle-axe, the lance or dart and the sword. The 
weapons of the Anglo-Saxons were spears, axes, 
swords, knives and maces or clubs. The Nor¬ 
mans had similar weapons, and were well fur¬ 
nished with archers and cavalry. The cross¬ 
bow was a comparatively late invention, intro¬ 
duced by the Normans. Gunpowder was not 
used in Europe to discharge projectiles till the 
beginning of the fourteenth century. Cannon 
are first mentioned in England in 1338, and 
there seems to be no doubt that they were used 
by the English at the siege of Cambrai in 1339. 
Hand firearms date from the fifteenth century. 
The only important weapon not a firearm that 
has been invented since the introduction of gun¬ 
powder is the bayonet, which is believed to 
have been invented about 1550. (See Can¬ 
non; Musket; Rifle, and articles on other 
weapons.) 

Armor. Some kind of defensive covering 
was probably of almost as early invention as 



* 

ARMOR 


1, 2, Early Greek; 3, Greek; 4, 5, Roman; 6, Bar¬ 
barian. 

weapons of offense. The principal pieces of 
defensive armor used by the ancients were 
shields, helmets, cuirasses and greaves. In the 
earliest ages of Greece the shield is described as 
of immense size, but in the time of the Pelo¬ 


ponnesian War (about 420 b. c.) it was much 
smaller. The Romans had two sorts of shields; 
the scutum, a large, oblong, rectangular, highly 
convex shield, carried by the legionaries; and the 
parma, a small, round, or oval, flat shield, 
carried by the light-armed troops and the cavalry. 
In the declining days of Rome the shields became 
larger and more varied in form. The helmet 
was a characteristic piece of armor among the 
Assyrians, Greeks, Etruscans and Romans. 
Like all other body armor, it was usually made of 
bronze. The helmet of the historical age of 
Greece was distinguished by its lofty crest. The 
Roman helmet in the time of the early emperors 
fitted close to the head, and had a neck-guard, 
hinged cheek-pieces fastened under the chin, and 
a small bar across the face for a visor. Both 
Greeks and Romans wore cuirasses, at one time 
of bronze, but latterly of flexible materials. 
Greaves for the legs were worn by both, but 
among the Romans usually on one leg only. The 
ancient Germans had large shields of plaited osier 
covered with leather; afterward their shields were 
small, bound with iron and studded with bosses. 
The Anglo-Saxons had round or oval shields of 
wood, covered with leather, with a boss in 
the center; and they had also corselets, or coats 
of mail, strengthened with iron rings. The 
Normans were well protected by mail; their 
shields were somewhat triangular in shape, their 
helmets conical. In Europe generally, metal 
armor was used from the tenth to the eighteenth 
century, and at first consisted of a tunic made of 
iron rings firmly sewed flat upon strong cloth or 
leather. The rings were afterward interlinked 
one with another so as to form a garment of 
themselves, called chain-mail. Great variety is 
found in the pattern of the armor, and in some 
cases small pieces of metal were used instead of 
rings, forming what is called scale-armor. Larger 
pieces of metal were fastened together to make 
plate-armor, which gradually superseded the 
other forms and continued to be worn until long 
after the introduction of firearms and field 
artillery. A complete suit of. armor was an 
elaborate and costly equipment, consisting of a 
number of different pieces, each with its dis¬ 
tinctive name. In modern European armies 
the metal cuirass is still to some extent in use, 
the cuirassiers being heavy cavalry; and it is said 
that this piece of armor proves a useful defense 
against rifle bullets. During all the time that 
the use of heavy armor prevailed, the horsemen, 
who alone were fully armed, formed the prin¬ 
cipal strength of armies, and infantry, except in 








Armstrong 

England, was generally regarded as of little 
account. 

Armstrong, John (1758-1843), an American 
soldier, born in Carlisle, Pa. He served in the 
colonial army in various positions, but is chiefly 
remembered as the author of the Newburgh 
Addresses, which were circulated among the 
colonial officers in March, 1783, urging the 
troops not to lay down their arms until they had 
been paid by Congress. At its appearance this 
notice was anonymous, but Armstrong afterward 
confessed that he wrote it. He served later in 
various diplomatic and military offices. 

Armstrong, Samuel Chapman (1839-1893), 
an American educator, born at Wailuku, Hawai¬ 
ian Islands. He was a son of an American 
missionary, and was educated at Oahu College, 
Honolulu, and Williams College, Massachusetts. 
He entered the Union army, served during the 
Civil War and was mustered out with the rank 
of brigadier general of volunteers. On leaving 
the army, he was associated with General O. O. 
Howard in the Freedmen’s Bureau, and during 
the two years in which he was engaged in this 
work matured a careful plan for educating 
negroes. He then enlisted the aid of the Amer¬ 
ican Missionary Association and numerous 
friends in the North and founded Hampton 
Normal and Agricultural Institute. To the 
establishment and work of this school he devoted 
the remainder of his life. See Hampton Normal 
and Agricultural Institute. 

Armstrong, William George (1810-1900), 
an English mechanical engineer and inventor. 
He began the study of law, but a strong interest 
in scientific work led him to devote himself to 
that field. Among his early inventions were the 
hydro-electric machine and the hydraulic crane. 
In 1846 he founded the Elswick works for the 
construction of this machinery, and these works 
are now among the most extensive of their kind. 
In 1854 he invented the rifled ordnance gun 
(See Armstrong Gun), which bears his name, 
and on presenting his patents to the British 
government he was knighted and appointed engi-. 
neer of rifled ordnance. Cambridge and Oxford 
conferred honorary degrees upon him, and in 
1887 he was made a peer. 

Armstrong Gun, a kind of cannon, so-called 
from its inventor, made of wrought-iron, prin¬ 
cipally of spirally-coiled bars, so disposed as 
to bring the metal into the most favorable posi¬ 
tion for the strain to which it is to be exposed, 
and occasionally having an inner tube or core 
of steel, rifled with numerous shallow grooves. 


Army 

The size of these guns ranges from the smallest 
field-piece to pieces of the largest caliber, and 
both breech-loading and muzzle-loading guns 
are made. The projectile is coated with lead, 
which, compressing its soft coating into the 
grooves, gives the bullet a swift rotary motion. 
See Armstrong, William George. 

Ar'my, a body of armed men, so organized 
and disciplined as to act together, be mutually 
reliant and perform in unison the evolutions of 
the march and battlefield, according to the 
absolute will of one man. 

The great world war, which began in Europe 
in 1914, changed every conception of armies of 
nearly all the nations. Previously, an army of 
a million men was so vast a fighting strength 
as to be a marvel. In the world war the great 
nations mobilized armies ranging from three to 
nearly eleven millions each; by the middle of 
1918 even the great peace-loving United States 
had in Europe or in training preparatory to 
shipment to France a million and a half of her 
sons, and was prepared, in the event of necessity, 
to provide many millions more. 

The gigantic struggle eclipsed every previous 
effort in army organization and maintenance in 
the history of the world. Great battles of the 
past, themselves terrible and decisive incidents, 
dwarf into comparative insignificance when 
compared to single engagements of three, four 
and six months’ duration after 1914, in which 
millions of men hurled themselves against each 
other, equipped with more horrible death-dealing 
machinery than the mind of man had ever 
before conceived. 

Every war has developed improvements in 
methods of fighting and in equipment. Though 
there were many lessons learned from the 
South African, the Russo-Japanese and the 
Spanish-American wars, the nations, with the 
exception of Germany, had failed to profit by 
them immediately, with the result that in 1914, 
when the great war burst upon an astonished 
world, there was lamentable unpreparedness to 
meet a well-organized foe. England^ peace¬ 
time home army contained fewer than 250,000 
men, with equipment little better than it 
possessed at the close of the South African 
struggle. France, alarmed at the strength of 
its great eastern neighbor, had adopted universal 
military training and could call to the colors 
about three million men at once, but its artillery 
strength was inferior. Russia had almost un¬ 
counted army strength, but dishonesty in high 
military commands reduced its fighting strength. 


Army 


Army 


The use of long-range, rapid-fire cannon, 
rifles of great power, deadly machine guns 
capable of 400 to 600 shots per minute, a net¬ 
work of railroads for rapid assembling of troops, 
field telephones, and, strangest and newest of 
all, vast groups of flying machines in place of 
the spy on the battle line and the mounted 
dispatch bearer—all these, added to hitherto 
unknown masses of fighting men, made possible 
a much longer battle line. So the hundred-mile 
line of troops of the Russo-Japanese War seems 
slight when compared to the 1100-mile line on 
the Russian front in 1914 or the 490-mile front 
from the North Sea to Switzerland. 

Modern Armies. Until peace shall come 
again statistics on standing armies are of no 
permanent value. It is well, therefore, to 
record below the peace-time army basis of the 
nations. 

United States Army. By the Constitution of 
the United States, the president is made com¬ 
mander in chief of the army and navy of the 
Union, and Congress has power to raise and 
support armies, to regulate them and to provide 
for executing the laws of the Union, suppressing 
insurrections and repelling invasions. The mili¬ 
tary history of the United States begins with the 
army of Washington, and the growth has been 
spasmodic.. The colonies in the Revolution 
enrolled 300,000 men in all. In 1790 the army 
as fixed by act of Congress consisted of 1216 
men. In 1861, at the commencement of the 
Civil War, the regular force amounted to only 
14,000 men. In April of that year President 
Lincoln called out 75,000 volunteers for three 
months. The total number of men in the army 
between April, 1861, and April, 1865, amounted 
to 2,759,050. The Southern States during this 
time raised an army of about 1,100,000 men, 
and thus in the whole United States was raised 
the enormous army of nearly 4,000,000 men. 
The army reorganization bill passed by Congress 
in 1901 provided for a standing army of 58,000 
men as the minimum, but the president is 
empowered to raise it to 100,000 if necessary. 
The army previously was limited to 25,000 men. 
The United States is divided into the following 
military departments: Department of the East, 
headquarters, Long Island, New York harbor; 
Department of the Lakes, headquarters, Chi¬ 
cago; Department of the Gulf, headquarters, 
Atlanta, Ga.; Department of Dakota, headquar¬ 
ters, St. Paul; Department of the Missouri, head¬ 
quarters, Omaha; Department of the Colorado, 
headquarters, Denver; Department of the Colum¬ 


bia, headquarters, Vancouver’s Barracks, Wash¬ 
ington; Department of California, headquarters, 
San Francisco. The Hawaiian Islands are 
included in the Department of California; the 
Island of Porto Rico constitutes the Department 
of Porto Rico, headquarters, San Juan. The 
Philippine Islands constitute the Department of 
the Pacific, headquarters, Manila. In addition 
to the regular army, nearly every state and ter¬ 
ritory has a militia, organized and governed in 
each state by special laws. On Jan. 1,1913, the 
authorized standing army comprised 86,000 men, 
including troops stationed in colonial posses¬ 
sions; the militia comprised 1.19,000 men. 

The army consists of two branches, the line 
and the staff. The former includes officers and 
men doing field or garrison duty; the latter is a 
board, composed of experienced officers, whose 
duty it is to keep the line supplied with all 
things necessary for the successful prosecution 
of its work. The various departments, such as 
those of the quartermaster and inspector, were 
formerly separated by a bill approved Feb. 14, 
1903, these departments were abolished, also 
the office of commanding general; in the latter’s 
place is a chief of staff, who has complete direc¬ 
tion of all movements and departments of the 
army, insuring at least system and cooperation 
among the various branches of administration. 
General Miles, first chief under the act,was retired 
Aug. 8, 1903. As the chief of staff is retired the 
next officer in rank is expected to succeed h im , 
though this order may be set aside. All officers 
of the staff must return after five years to the 
line, where they must serve at least two years. 
Closer relations have also been established by 
this act between the national guard and the 
military department. The United States has 
always been reluctant to demand that her citi¬ 
zens should spend the best years of their lives 
in the army, and the immense cost of keeping 
a standing army in time of peace has made this 
country favor a small army with a large militia 
force, doubtless, however, to the disadvantage 
of a strict military system. See Militia; Mili¬ 
tary Academy, United States; Pension, 
and numerous other articles relating to the 
organization of the army. 

British Army. In England the Bill of 
Rights of 1689 forbade the king to maintain a 
standing army without the consent of Parlia¬ 
ment, and it is still the custom of that body to 
authorize, from -time to time, the present stand¬ 
ing force. In 1874 the military system was 
carefully reorganized, only those things being 


Army 

i 

retained which had been proved of most value; 
but during the stubborn contests with the Boers, 
defects were found in the organization. So, in 
1904, plans were laid for a complete change 
which should throw the army into harmony 
with the navy. Under this plan a small but 
efficient army is maintained for the colonies, 
and a powerful, trained militia is established 
for home defense. The ranks of the army are 
to be filled by voluntary enlistment and without 
recourse to conscription, in this respect being 
entirely different from the Continental armies. 
A committee on imperial defense has charge of 
the land and sea forces to such an extent as to 
secure unity of action. The administrative 
duties are separated from those of the actual 
command of the troops in the field, and oppor¬ 
tunities are given for trained and ambitious 
officers to rise in the service and take the places 
of those who intend the army as a mere step¬ 
ping stone to some better paid profession. 
The authorized standing army comprises 740,000 
men, but in 1912 the actual number of men in 
service was 724,340, of whom 270,000 were in 
the territorial army and available only for 
home defence; of the remainder, about 136,000 
formed the army reserve and 65,000 the special 
reserve corresponding to the militia in the 
United States. Enlistment in the army is for 
twelve years, seven of which are usually spent 
in service and five in the army reserve. The 
militia, which enlists for six years, is liable for 
three weeks’ drill each year. The regular army 
includes 31 cavalry regiments, 26 batteries of 
field, horse and mountain artillery, 84 companies 
of engineers and 148 battalions of infantry. All 
regiments except the cavalry have certain dis¬ 
tricts which they regard as their home station. 
On foreign service a cavalry division is composed 
of 9775 officers and men, divided into 4 brigades 
of 3 regiments each, besides the artillery and 
engineers. An infantry division comprises 12 
battalions, grouped into 3 brigades, and several 
artillery batteries, 2 companies of engineers, etc., 
a total of 19,650 officers and men. A battalion 
of infantry has 529 officers and 995 men, divided 
into eight companies, and a cavalry regiment 
has 553 men. A battery has 6 guns, except a 
heavy battery, which has only 4 guns. In 
India the army has a war strength of about 
352,000 men, of whom 75,800 are British regu¬ 
lars, 160,000 native regulars, and the remainder 
volunteers, military police and irregulars in the 
service of Indian princes. Canada holds all 
her male citizens between IS and 60 years 


Army 

of age liable for military service, and has a 
standing militia of 64,000 men, only 3500of whom 
are in active service. Other British colonies 
maintain small forces, often under the direction 
of British officers. 

German Army. By the constitution of' 
1871, the Prussian obligation to serve in the 
army is extended to the whole Empire. Every 
German capable of bearing arms must serve in 
the army or navy for 12 years- -7 in the standing 
army (3 with the colors, and 4 in the reserve), 
and 5 in the landwehr; or corresponding periods 
in the fleet and seewehr. Afterward he is 
enrolled in the landsturm until 42 years of age. 
In the infantry, however, many of the more 
intelligent men are subjected to only 2 years’ 
training; and “one-year volunteers” are passed 
into the reserve at the end of their first year, 
on condition of passing certain examinations 
and bearing the expense of their clothing 
and equipment for the year. In the German 
organization the territorial system is carried out 
thoroughly. The army consists of 23 army 
corps, 14 of which are Prussian; each of these 
is raised, recruited and stationed within a par¬ 
ticular district. These corps districts are 
divided into divisional and brigade districts, 
which are subdivided into landwehr battalion 
districts, and these in turn into company dis¬ 
tricts, so that every unit in the army has its 
definite place. Each line regiment (3 battal¬ 
ions) draws its recruits from an allotted district, 
and passes its time-expired men into the land¬ 
wehr regiment (2 battalions) of the same dis¬ 
trict. After the exemptions common to all 
countries have been granted, the ballot allows 
a margin of about 10 per cent; those who draw 
the fortunate numbers passing at once into the 
Ersatz reserve, which receive no training, but 
may be called upon to replace casualties in the 
field. The total peace strength of the German 
army is 515,000 men, but over 1,000,000 trained 
men are held as reserves. 

French Army. A law passed in 1872 enacted 
that every Frenchman, with a few excep¬ 
tions, unless serving in the navy, was liable to 
personal service in the army, and forbade sub¬ 
stitution. The period of liability extended to 
20 years, of which 5 were spent in the active 
army, 4 in the reserve of the active army, 5 in 
the territorial army, and 6 in the reserve of the 
territorial army. The expense of keeping up 
such an establishment in peace, however, led to 
the division of the recruits by ballot into two 
classes, one of which served the full 5 years in 


Army 


Army 


the active army, while the other was sent home 
after 6 months’ or a year’s training. One-year 
volunteers were also accepted; but so many men 
joined in that capacity, that, in 1887, a bill was 
brought before the French legislature abolishing 
the privilege. In 1913 an Army Reorganization 
Bill was passed, proposing a large addition to 
the establishment. The period of service with 
the colors, which had been two years since 1905, 
was increased to three years. The object of the 
changes was to add materially to the number of 
efficients. In 1912 there were about 563,000 men 
actually in service and about 25,000 in the 
police department. The war footing of the 
entire army is estimated at 2,500,000 trained 
soldiers. From time to time great reviews are 
held, which result in better discipline and or¬ 
ganization and in a marked increase in the 
enlistment. French troops, though they are 
rather small in stature, are capable of great 
activity and endurance, and are noted for the 
impetuosity of their attack. 

Austro-Hungarian Army. The forces of the 
empire are divided into the standing army and the 
landwehr and landsturm, as in Germany. All 
subjects are liable to service, and those exempted 
on physicial grounds pay a fine proportionate to 
their means. In principle, every qualified man 
must corve 3 years with the colors, 4 in the 
reserve. 5 in the landwehr, and, by a law passed 
in 1886, 12 in the landsturm , from which, in 
time of war, men may be drafted into the land- 
wchr. Men who have passed through the regu¬ 
lar army will be liable for service in the landsturm 
as officers or non-commissioned officers till the 
age of sixty. In practice, however, financial 
considerations cause the division of recruits into 
three classes: about 95,000 annually form the 
first class, trained as above; nearly 10,000 are 
drawn to supply the Ersatz reserve and all the 
remainder are passed at once into the landwehr, 
there to serve their 12 years. The regiments 
of the standing army are under the control of the 
minister of war of the Empire, while the landwehr 
is controlled by the Austrian and Hungarian 
ministers of national defense. There is no 
permanent corps organization, the division 
being the principal unit; but in war, 3 
infantry divisions, with a proportion of 
cavalry and a regiment of artillery, would be 
joined to form a corps. On a peace footing there 
are 395,000 men, and in war time, by including 
the militia, about 3,000,000 troops could be 
raised. The general discipline is excellent and 
the officers receive technical training of a very 


high order. The cavalry is said to be the best in 
Europe. 

Russian Army. Since 1874 the Russian 
government has required military service from 
all men between the ages of 21 and 43 years. 
But though over 1,000,000 men annually 
become of age, only about 300,000 are enrolled 
in the standing army. So vast is the population 
of Russia, however, that though she supports the 
largest standing army in the world, yet the 
burden has not been regarded as heavy. Her 
military system is practically that of Germany. 
It is very difficult to make an accurate estimate 
of the size of the Russian army, because of the 
changes since the war with Japan and the 
secrecy always maintained as to the movements 
of the forces. It is thought certain, however, 
that in peace strength it is considerably over 
1,000,000 men, and that in war strength fully 
4,000,000 trained men might be thrown into 
active warfare. Of the peace army about 
710,000 are infantry; 130,000, including the 
Cossacks, are cavalry; 153,000 are artillery, and 
the remainder, engineers and other auxiliaries. 
The soldiers of Russia, excepting the royal 
guards, are rather below the average, both in 
physique and general intelligence. 

Italian Army. The Sardinian law of con¬ 
scription forms the basis of the Italian system, 
and all are liable from eighteen to forty. Sub¬ 
stitution is allowed in the case of brothers, and 
one-year volunteers are accepted. The soldiers 
are divided by lot into two classes, one enjoying 
unlimited furlough, and the other serving 8 years 
in the army, 4 in the active militia, and the rest 
of their time in the local militia. In infantry 
regiments 3, in cavalry regiments 5 years only, 
are served with the colors; the remainder, as a 
rule, being spent on furlough. The kingdom is 
divided into five “zones,” and, in direct opposi¬ 
tion to the Prussian principle, recruits are drawn 
from all zones for each regiment. 

Other European Nations. Of the other military 
forces of Europe, the standing army of Belgium, 
including the staff and all arms, rank and file,' 
numbers about 50,000 men, besides the garde 
civique, 40,000; Denmark, 50,000, including the 
extra reserve of 14,000; Netherlands, 23,000 in 
Europe and 35,000 in the East Indies; Spain, 
145,000, with 20,000 in the colonies; Sweden, 
80,000, besides a reserve of 275,000; in Norway 
the troops of the line are about 20,000 in peace, 
and in time of war not more than 80,000, witli 
about 30,000 in the reserve; Switzerland, 
140,000, and the landwehr, 70,000; the 


Army Organization 


Arndt 


army of Turkey can be raised by mobilization 
to 1,250,000. 

Japanese Army. The Japanese army has 
come into being in the last century and was 
organized by German officers. At present it is 
remarkably efficient, and possibly one of the best 
organized and managed forces in the world. 
From the age of 17 to 40 every male must give 
military service, 3 years in the active army and 
4 Vz in the reserve; 10 years in the territorial army 
and the remainder in the home guard militia. 
On peace footing the active army numbers about 
225,000 men, and the territorial army about 
121,000. Reserves and militia have been levied 
in large numbers, and it is probable that there 
are not less than 800,000 fully trained soldiers 
in the Empire. The Mikado is chief in com¬ 
mand, and rules through a general staff. The 
noncombatant corps, such as the hospital, en¬ 
gineer, transport and supply corps, in the recent 
war with Russia showed remarkable efficiency. 

Chinese Army. Until recently it may be said 
that the Chinese had no well disciplined or well 
equipped army; though, as the Chinese are 
strong, fearless and possessed of great power of 
endurance, there is no reason why they should 
not have a powerful and efficient army. Since 
1910 the army has been undergoing reform, and 
officers are being taught to drill it in accordance 
with modern methods. The actual strength 
of the army is unknown, but at the end of 
1912 it was estimated to include 430,000 men. 

Army Organization, a term used to describe 
all those arrangements which tend to increase the 
strength and efficiency of an army. Unless every 
soldier knows his duty and obeys his superior 
implicitly, confusion will result. On the other 
hand, every soldier must bo provided with sup¬ 
plies and must be protected in his rights. The 
work required of an army determines its size 
and organization (See Army). In every branch 
the unit is the largest body which one man can 
efficiently command. Above this unit of private 
soldiers all command is through officers or sub¬ 
ordinates, but in the beginning it originates from 
a commander in chief (See Rank). In the 
United States the army corps is the smallest 
complete unit in which all the branches of the 
army are brought together. An army corps of 
this character consists of 3 divisions of more 
than 10 regiments of artillery and infantry each, 
together with at least 1 regiment of cavalry. An 
army corps* is so stationed that it can be con¬ 
centrated on any one part of itself within a day. 
Under ordinary conditions the proportion of men 


is about 12 infantrymen to 1 cavalryman and 
about 4 cannon to every thousand men. Of 
course, in a campaign this proportion may vary 
decidedly, according to the nature of the work 
required. A wagon train for the transportation 
of provisions is a necessary adjunct to an army, 
and at the beginning of the Civil War about 49 
wagons were required for every thousand men, 
but later experience proved that less than 25 were 
really necessary. 

Army Worm, a striped caterpillar about an 
inch and a quarter long, so called from its habit 
of marching in compact bodies of 
enormous numbers, overrunning fields 
and devouring every green thing it 
meets. The outbreaks usually occur 
in midsummer and are most destruc- 
'? five in North America, to which the 
insect is native, though now widely 
distributed over the world. The cat¬ 
erpillar continues its growth three or 
four weeks after hatching, and then 
goes into the ground for its pupa stage. 
The perfect insect is a yellowish- 
brown moth, marked on each fore 
wing with a white spot. Its eggs, 
which are very small and white, are 
laid in strings of from two to twenty, 
beneath the sheaths of grass stems, 
where they hatch in eight or ten days. 



ARMY WORM 

Worm, pupa, moth and eggs. 


Arndt, ahmt, Ernst Moritz (1769-1860), a 
German patriot and poet. He was appointed 
professor of history at Greifswald in 1806, and in 
the next year he stirred up the national feeling 
against Napoleon in his Spirit of the Times. 
In 1812-1813, while helping Baron von Stein in 
Russia to organize the opposition to Napoleon, 
he zealously promoted the war of independence 
by a number of pamphlets, poems and spirited 



Arnhem 


Arnold 


Songs, among which it is sufficient to refer to 
What is the German's Fatherland? and Song of 
the Field Marshal. These were caught up and 
sung from one end of Germany to the other. 

Am'hem, a town in Holland, in the province 
of Gelderland, on the right bank of the Rhine, 
35 mi. s. e. of Utrecht. It manufactures cabinet 
wares, mirrors, carriages and mathematical 
instruments, and the trade is chiefly in grain and 
tobacco. In 1795 it was stormed by the French, 
who were driven from it by the Prussians in 1813. 
Population in 1910, 64,168. 

Arnica, a genus of plants, consisting of some 
twelve species, 
one of which is 
found in Central 
Europe and in the 
Western states of 
the Union. It has 
a perennial root, 
a stem about two 
feet high, bearing 
on the summit 
heads of a dark 
golden yellow. In 
every part of the 
plant there is an 
acrid resin and a 
volatile oil, and 
in the flowers an 
acrid bitter prin¬ 
ciple called ami- 
cin. The root con¬ 
tains also a con¬ 
siderable quantity 
of tannin. A tinc¬ 
ture of arnica is 
employed as an 
external applica¬ 
tion to wounds and bruises, as it drives away 
the blood that collects around the injury. 

Arnim, ahr'nim, Elizabeth or Bettina von 
(1785-1859), a German author, a sister of 
Clemens Brentano. She is known chiefly for her 
Correspondence of Goethe with a Child, which 
she also translated into English. These letters, 
while most graphic and fresh, are for the most 
part fictitious, although she did in her youth 
have a correspondence with Goethe, whom she 
passionately admired. 

Ar'no, one of the largest rivers of Italy, rising 
in the Etruscan Apennines, at an elevation of 
4430 feet above the sea. It flows at first south, 
then trends westward, divides Florence into two 
parts, washes Pisa and falls four miles below' it 


into the Tuscan Sea. Its length with its windings 
is about 150 miles. The river is navigable from 
the sea to Florence. The famous valley, Val 
d’Arno, is one of the richest and most beautiful 
in Italy. 

Arnold, Benedict (1741-1801), an Ameri¬ 
can general, bom in Norwich, Conn. He 
received a common school education, went to 
New Haven and there conducted a book and 
drug store. At the outbreak of the Revolution 
he entered the army, and after the Battle of Lex¬ 
ington he was sent to lead an expedition for the 
capture of Crown Point and Ticonderoga. On his 
way thither he met Ethan Allen with a company 
of soldiers devoted to the same purpose. Allen 
took the lead and captured Ticonderoga, and four 
days later Arnold captured Saint John’s. In the 
autumn of the same year Washington dispatched 
Arnold with one thousand men to assist in cap¬ 
turing Quebec, and after his juncture with 
General Montgomery a combined attack was 
made. The American army was defeated, 
Montgomery was killed, and Arnold’s leg w r as 
fractured. Congress promoted him to the rank 
of brigadier general for his bravery in this 
campaign. In 1776 he fought a naval battle 
on Lake Champlain, during which he ran his 
own vessel ashore, burnt her, and with his other 
ships retreated to Ticonderoga. 

In 1777 Congress appointed five major generals 
for the army, all of whom were Arnold’s juniors. 
He was stung by this injustice, and Washington 
wrote to assure him that he w'ould endeavor to 
remedy “the error;” but when his claims were 
presented Congress voted him thanks, but did 
not promote him. In the same year Washington 
urged Congress to send Arnold north to head 
off General Burgoyne. Arnold consented to 
serve, and he fulfilled his part in the campaign 
faithfully. He joined General Schuyler and 
led an expedition to relieve Fort Stanwix, which 
was besieged by a force of British and indians, 
and he then returned to the main army and took 
part in the first Battle of Bemis Heights (See 
Saratoga, Battles of). Soon afterward Con¬ 
gress sent him his commission as major general. 

In 1778 he was appointed to the command 
of Philadelphia. He became involved in quarrels 
with the authorities of Pennsylvania and was 
tried by court-martial, but was acquitted of 
intentional wrong-doing, though in some respects 
his conduct was declared improper. The sen¬ 
tence was that he should receive a reprimand 
from the commander in chief. Washington dis¬ 
charged this duty with considerable reluctance, 



Arnold 

and assured Arnold of his continued esteem and 
of the high estimate he placed on his services, 
Arnold’s first wife had died, and he married Miss 
Margaret Shippen, a daughter of Chief Justice 
Shippen of Pennsylvania. Through this mar¬ 
riage he was brought into connection with several 
Tory families, and a correspondence was opened 
with Sir Henry Clinton. In 1780 he was given 
the command at West Point, and he began at 
once to plan to surrender it to Clinton. His 
treachery became manifest through the capture 
of Major Andre, and Arnold escaped to New 
York City. He was compensated with a British 
brigadier general’s commission and a sum of 
money, but he was despised and shunned even 
by the British, and died in obscurity. 

Arnold, Edwin, Sir (1832-1904), a British 
poet, scholar and journalist. In 1861 he joined 
the editorial staff of the Daily Telegraph, with 
which he was connected for many years. He 
was the author of poems, narrative and lyrical; 
of numerous translations from the Greek and 
Sanskrit; of The Light of Asia, a poem presenting 
the life and teaching of Gautama, the founder 
of Buddhism; of Pearls of the Faith, The Voyage 
of Ithobal, East and West, and various other works. 

Arnold, Matthew (1822-1888), an English 
critic, essayist and poet, a son of Dr. Thomas 
Arnold of Rugby. He was for many years a 
British school inspector and was for a time 
professor of poetry at Oxford. As both poet 
and critic, Arnold was highly esteemed in his 
own day, and his reputation has grown steadily, 
so that while he does not appeal to as wide an 
audience as Tennyson or Browning, he may 
almost be ranked with them as one of the great 
poets of his age. Besides Sohrab and Rustum, 
his most popular poem. Balder Dead and Tris¬ 
tram and Iseult, he wrote many beautiful shorter 
poems, among which are The Forsaken Mer¬ 
man, Dover Beach, Faded Leaves, A Summer 
Night and The Youth of Man. His Thyrsis 
stands with Lycidas and Adonais as one of the 
finest elegies in English. The bulk of his poetry 
is relatively small. As a critic Arnold has no 
superior in English literature, and his influence 
on criticism is still great. His best-known 
critical essays are contained in the two series 
of Essays in Criticism. Among his other prose 
writings are Culture and Anarchy, On Trans¬ 
lating Homer and Literature and Dogma. 

Arnold, Thomas (1795-1842), a celebrated 
English scholar, clerygman and teacher, born 
at Cowes, Isle of Wight. While a student at 
Oxford, he became known for the boldness and 


Arrest 

independence of his views and his excellent 
scholarship. Arnold’s life work began when he 
was elected head master of Rugby School, which 
position he held until his death. During his 
administration he completely revolutionized the 
methods of instruction and discipline and made 
such a strong impression upon other schools of 
England that many of them adopted his plan, 
and he is considered to have been the means of 
completely changing the system of education in 
the English public schools. Arnold accom¬ 
plished his work not so much by his direct 
methods of teaching as through his influence 
upon the pupils and the ideals which he set 
before them. His main purpose was the devel¬ 
opment of character, and this he secured through 
his strong persaonlity, thorough trust in his 
pupils and the blameless life which he led. 
Consult Fitch’s Thomas and Matthew Arnold, 
and Their Influence cm English Education; also 
. Tom Brown’s School Days. 

Ar'pad (?-907), a hero of Hungarian ballad 
and romance, and the real founder of the king¬ 
dom of Hungary. The Arpad dynasty reigned 
till 1301. 

Ar’quebus, an early form of firearm resem¬ 
bling a musket. It was fired from a forked rest, 
was sometimes cocked by a wheel and carried a 
ball that weighed nearly two ounces. A larger 
kind, used in fortresses, carried a heavier shot. 

Ar'rah, a town of British India, in Shahabad 
district, Bengal, rendered famous during the 
mutiny of 1857 by the heroic resistance of a 
body of twenty civilians and fifty Sikhs to a 
force of 3000 sepoys, who were ultimately 
routed and overthrown by the arrival of a small 
European reinforcement. Population, about 
50,000. 

Ar'ran, a small mountainous island of Scot¬ 
land, in the Firth of Clyde, noted among 
geologists because of its remarkable formation, 
and among botanists because of the variety and 
rarity of its plants. Population, about 5000. 

Arras, ahr'ras, a town of France, capital of 
the department of Pas-de-Calais, 30 mi. n. e. of 
Amiens and 100 mi. n. n. e. of Paris. Arras 
has several handsome squares and a citadel, 
cathedral, public library, botanic garden, museum 
and numerous flourishing industries. In the 
Middle Ages it was famous for the manufacture 
of tapestry, to which the English applied the 
name of the town itself. The grain market here 
is a very important one in northern France. 
Population in 1911, 24,921. 

Arrest'. See Procedure. 


Arrow 


Arson 


Arrow, a pointed shaft now thought of 
chiefly in its connection with the bow, as used 
in archery. It is one of the earliest of savage 
implements and was at first identical with the 
' spear and javelin, but later was thrown by a 
sling or crossbow. See Bow. 

Ar'rowroot', an edible starch obtained from 
the root-stocks of several different species of 
plants. It is not known exactly how the name 
originated, but it may be due to the fact that 
the scales on the roots of some plants are shaped 



ARROWROOT 


like an arrowhead. Large quantities of arrow- 
root are imported every year into the United 
States and Europe. It is a delicate starch 
and is used as a food, especially for inva¬ 
lids and infants. The arrowroot of the stores 
is very apt to have been adulterated with rice- 
starch or even the starch of common white flour. 

Arru, a too’ , Islands, a group of islands 
south of western New Guinea. The largest, 
Tanah Bessar, is 80 miles long and 45 miles 
wide. These islands are composed of coralline 
limestone. They nowhere exceed 200 feet above 
the sea and they are well wooded and tolerably 
fertile. The chief exports are trepang, tortoise¬ 
shell, pearls, mother-of-pearl and edible birds’- 
nests. Dobo is the chief commercial center. 
Population, about 15,000. 

Ar'senal, an establishment where guns, arms 
or other munitions of war are repaired and 
stored. Those which deal with the ships and 
their armament are called naval arsenals , or, 
in the United States and England, navy yards. 
Naval arsenals in the United States are merely 
storehouses for army explosives generally. 


Explosives are usually manufactured at places 
removed from the general arsenals and out of 
the way of the public. In 1777 at Springfield, 
Mass., was established the first arsenal, and 
since 1787 the manufacture of small arms has 
been continued at this place. Harper’s Ferry 
arsenal was built in 1795. In 1901 there were 
in the United States seventeen other arsenals, 
armories or ordnance depots. 

Ar'senic, a metallic element of very com¬ 
mon occurrence, found in combination with 
many of the metals in a variety of minerals. 
It is of a dark-gray color and readily tarnishes 
on exposure to the air, changing first to yellow 
and finally to black. In hardness it equals 
copper; it is extremely brittle and evaporates 
quickly, beginning to waste away before it melts. 
It bums with a blue flame, and emits a smell 
of garlic. It forms alloys with most of the 
metals. Combined with oxygen, arsenic forms 
two compounds, the more important of which 
is the white arsenic, or simply arsenic of the 
shops. It is usually seen in white, glassy, trans¬ 
lucent masses,*and is obtained by sublimation 
from several ores containing arsenic in combi¬ 
nation with metals, particularly from arsenical 
pyrites. Of all substances arsenic is that which 
.has most frequently occasioned death by poison¬ 
ing, both by accident and design (See Antidote). 
Like many other virulent poisons, it is a safe 
and useful medicine, especially in skin diseases, 
when judiciously employed. It is used as a 
flux for glass, and also for forming pigments. 
The arsenite of copper and a double arsenite 
and acetate of copper (emerald green) are largely 
used by painters; they are also used to color 
paper-hangings for rooms, a practice not unac¬ 
companied with considerable danger, especially 
if flock-papers are used or if the room is not 
well ventilated. Arsenic has been too frequently 
used to give the bright green often seen in 
colored confectionery, and to produce a green 
dye for articles of dress and artificial flowers. 

Arsin'oe (called now, Medinet el-Fayum), a 
city of ancient Egypt on Lake Moeris, said to 
have been founded about 2300 b. c. It was 
renamed after Arsinoe, wife and sister of 
Ptolemy II of Egypt, and was called also Croco- 
dilopolis, from the sacred crocodiles kept there. 

Ar'son, in common law; the malicious burn¬ 
ing of a dwelling-house or outhouse of another 
man; also, the willful setting fire to any church, 
warehouse, mill, barn, agricultural produce, 
ship, coal-mine and the like. By the common 
law it is a crime, and if homicide result, it is 



Artaxerxes 


Artevelde 


murder. In the United States and Great 
Britain the punishment is increased if the burn¬ 
ing is to defraud insurers. See Crime. 

Artaxerxes, ahr'taks urks'eez, the name of 
several Persian kings, most important of whom 
was Artaxerxes, surnamed Mnemon, who suc¬ 
ceeded his father, Darius II, in 404 b. c. After 
having vanquished his brother Cyrus in the 
Battle of Cunaxa, he made war on the Spartans, 
who had assisted Cyrus, and forced them to 
abandon the Greek cities and islands of Asia 
to the Persians. 

Ar'temis. See Diana. 

Artemisium, ahr'te mish'e um, a promontory 
in Euboea, an island of the Aegean, near which 
a naval battle between the Greeks and Persians 
was fought in 480 b. c. 

Ar'teries, the system of vessels or tubes 
which convey the blood from the heart to all 
parts of the body. 

As they proceed 
from the heart, 
they divide and 
subdivide, dimin¬ 
ishing in size, and 
finally terminat¬ 
ing in minute ca¬ 
pillaries that unite 
the ends of the 
arteries with the 
beginnings of the 
veins. The arter¬ 
ies are made up of three coats: an outer elastic 
one which is readily distended; a middle or mus¬ 
cular one which by its contraction helps to 
force the blood onward; an inner one, smooth, 
in order that the blood may move easily. 
The coats gradually disappear as the arteries 
decrease in size; when the muscular coat has 
gone, the artery has became a capillary with 
but one thin coat. The life of any part of the 
body being dependent on the supply of arterial 
blood, the tiny arteries anastomose, or join with 
one another in the form of a network, so that if 
the supply is cut off from one it may go through 
another. The blood flowing from a wounded 
artery is bright red in color and comes out in 
spurts in an uneven stream. To check the flow, 
press on the artery between the wound and the 
heart. Cording the limb is effective. See Cir¬ 
culation; Veins; Wounds. 

Artesian, ahrte’zhan, Well, a well formed 
by boring or drilling to a considerable depth. 
These wells were named from the province of 
Artois in France, where they appear to have 


been first used on an extensive* scale. At first 
the name was restricted to flowing wells, but 
now it is applied to all wells formed by boring. 
In the cut, B represents a layer of porous sand 
and gravel between two impervious layers, C 
and D. If a well is sunk through C, the water 
will rise in it and flow at A, because the highest 
point of B is above the level of C at the point 
where the well is bored. When the land is 
nearly level the well will not flow and pumping 
must be resorted to. The layer B is supplied 
with water from rain which falls upon it where 
it appears at the surface. This perlocates 
down through the sand and gravel until the 
entire layer is saturated. If the area covered 
by this layer is large, the volume of water thus 
stored is very great, and many wells may be bored 
in the region which it underlies. 

The water in most artesian wells is pure and 



suitable for domestic purposes and for stock, 
though it occasionally contains minerals. Arte¬ 
sian wells are very common in all regions where 
surface water of good quality is not easily 
obtained. In the southwestern part of the 
United States, as well as in some other parts of 
the world, they are also used for obtaining 
water for irrigation. For the method of sinking 
artesian wells, see Well Boring. 

Artevelde, ahr'te vel’de, Jacob van (about 
1290-1345), a brewer of Ghent, selected by his 
fellow townsmen to lead them in their struggles 
against Count Louis of Flanders. In 1338 he 
was appointed captain of the forces of Ghent, 
and for several years exercised a sort of sover¬ 
eign power. A proposal to make the Black 
Prince, son of Edward III of England, governor 
of Flanders, led to an insurrection, in which 
Artevelde lost his life. 

Artevelde, Philip van (1340-1382), son of 
Jacob van Artevelde, was placed by the Flem¬ 
ings at the head of their revolt against the 
count of Flanders. He gained a great victory 



















Arthropods 


Arthur 


and for a time Assumed the state of a sovereign 
prince; but in 1382 he fell, with thousands of 
the Flemings, at Rooseboeke. in a battle against 
a French army sent by Charles VI. 

Arthrop'oda or Articulata, the sixth 
family of the animal kingdom, so named because 
the bodies of its members are in joints or 
segments. Each segment, in typical form, car¬ 
ries two appendages which are jointed and 
which perform special functions. Some are 
suckers; some are used in swimming, and 
others are jaws, organs of sense or savage, 
defensive weapons. There is an organ which 
resembles a heart, but the blood returns to it 
through the tissues of the body and not through 
the veins. The Arthropoda possess a well- 
organized nervous system, and usually have 
either simple or compound eyes. Many species 
of Arthropoda are parasitic in their life, and in 
this case they lose the use of many of their 
organs, some of which disappear entirely. The 
Arthropoda compose a large and important 
branch, chief among them the insects, the spiders 
and the crustaceans. The reader should con¬ 
sult the articles Crustacea, Arachnida, 
Myriapod a; Insects, and the numerous arti¬ 
cles therein referred to. 

Ar'thur, Chester Alan (1830-1886), an 
American statesman, twenty-first president of 
the United States, bom at Fairfield, Vt.. of 
Scotch-Irish parents, his father being pastor of 
Baptist churches in Vermont and New York. 
He graduated from Union College in 1848, 
studied law and practiced successfully in New 
York, becoming conspicuous as counsel in the 
famous Lennon case, which resulted in giving 
negroes equal rights with whites in New York 
City street cars During the Civil War he was 
commendably energetic, as quartermaster gen¬ 
eral of New York, in the raising and equipping 
of troops. 

For his activity in Republican politics, he 
was afterward made collector of customs for 
the port of New York, and was reappointed in 
1875. He thereafter identified himself with the 
Conkling or “Stalwart” faction in the State of 
New York, and with the Conkling-Grant wing 
of the party in their 1880 campaign (See Conk¬ 
ling, Roscoe). In that year, as a concession 
to this faction, which was defeated, he was 
nominated for vice-president, and upon the 
death of President Garfield in 1881 became 
president. His somewhat questionable activity 
in partisan politics, which had continued during 
his term as vice-president, suddenly ceased, and 


his administration was creditable to his hon¬ 
esty and fearlessness. The chief events were 
the appointment and report of a tariff commis¬ 
sion, action against polygamy and Chinese 



CHESTER ALAN ARTHUR 


immigration and in favor of an increased navy 
and civil service reform. He was a candidate 
for the presidential nomination in 1884, but was 
defeated by James G. Blaine and died in New 
York City two years later. 

Arthur, King, a hero said to have reigned 
as king of the Britons in the sixth century. 
He married Guinevere, and established the 
famous Round Table at his court at Caerleon- 
on-Usk. On all sides the invaders of his coun¬ 
try were defeated, the land was reduced to order 
and his knights rode abroad redressing wrongs. 
Despite his example and precepts, some of his 
knights remained evil and treacherous, and 
while he was absent on an expedition to Rome, 
Modred, his nephew, stirred up a rebellion. 
In his contest with the rebellious knights on his 
return, Arthur was mortally wounded. He was 
carried away to the island of Avalon to be 
healed, and for a long time the Britons in the 
generations which followed him believed that 
he would return and reestablish his righteous 
rule. This story of Arthur is supposed to have 
some foundation in fact. It has been used as 
a basis for many poems, notably Tennyson’s 
Idylls of the King. 

Arthur, Timothy Shay (1809-1885), Ameri¬ 
can story-writer. He wrote many popular 



Arthur’s Seat 

domestic tales, and founded Arthur's Home 
Magazine. Best-known of his writings was 
Ten Nights in a Bar-room. 

Arthur’s Seat, a picturesque hill near 
Edinburgh, Scotland. It is 822 feet high and 
is composed of a number of different kinds of 
rocks. It derives its name from the legendary 
King Arthur. 

Ar'tichoke, a well-known plant somewhat 
resembling the thistle, with large, divided, 
prickly leaves. The erect flower-stem termi¬ 
nates in a large, round head of numerous 



ARTICHOKE 


imbricated oval, spiny scales, which surround 
the flowers. The fleshy bases of the scales, 
with the large receptacle, are the parts that 
are eaten. The Jerusalem artichoke is a species 
of sunflower, whose roots are used like potatoes. 

Article, in grammar, a name given to two 
words used as limiting adjectives. They are 
the definite article, the, and the indefinite article, 
a or an. See Adjective. 

Articles, The Thirty-nine, of the Church 
of England; a statement of the particular points 
of doctrine, thirty-nine in number, maintained 
by the English Church. They were first pro¬ 
mulgated by a convocation held in London in 
1562-1563 and were confirmed by royal author¬ 
ity. The original articles, forty-two in number, 
w r ere drawn up by a commission of eight bishops, 
eight divines, eight civilians and eight lawyers 
appointed in 1551, Ridley, Cranmer and Cover- 
dale being among the number, and were issued 
in the reign of Edward VI. Queen Mary would 
not acknowledge them, but, under Elizabeth, 
Archbishop Parker revised them, reducing them 
to thirty-nine. They were ratified anew in 1604 
and 1628, They are a formula, not a creed, 


Artificial Limbs 

of the Church. By the Clerical Subscription Act 
of 1866, the clergy do not have to subscribe to 
these articles, but declare an assent to them 
and the Prayer Book. Since 1871 members of 
Oxford and Cambridge Universities are not 
obliged to sign them. This formula is now 
accepted by the Episcopalian churches of Scot¬ 
land, Ireland and America. 

Articles of Confederation. See Confed¬ 
eration, Articles of. 

Artic ula'ta, the third of the great divisions 
of the animal kingdom, according to the arrange¬ 
ment of Cuvier, including all the invertebrates 
whose external skeletons are in the form of a 
series of rings, united at joints and covering 
the body. The name is going out of use now. 
See Arthropoda. 

Artificial, ahr ti fish'al, Limbs. Accident 
and disease have resulted in loss of limbs since 
the earliest times, and rude substitutes for them 
were early designed. Buried with a skeleton 
in a tomb dating before the Christian era was 
a rude leg of bronze and wood. But it was not 
until the nineteenth century that substitutes 
were made so successfully as partially to conceal 
the wearer’s loss. Now, especially in the United 
States, there are hundreds of very ingenious 
patents covering a great variety of artificial 
substitutes. During the Civil War in the 
United States so many limbs were lost that the 
government passed a law giving artificial limbs 
to crippled soldiers and sailors of the war, and 
once every five years the limbs are renewed. 

Limbs are made principally of the fine, close- 
grained wood of the English weeping willow r , 
though recently aluminum is used to a consid¬ 
erable extent because of its lightness and strength. 
If the limb is to be made of wood, the piece is 
first turned in the lathe to the general shape of 
a leg or aim and then hollowed out until the 
shell is from one-fourth to five-eighths of an 
inch thick. It is then whittled down to the 
general shape required, when the proper angles 
and depression in the top of the inside portion 
are cut so that it will exactly fit the stump for 
which it is intended. Upon the accuracy of 
this fit depends the comfort which the wearer 
will take with the limb. The foot is whittled 
out entirely by hand, and is fastened to the leg 
by means of a hinge; the more expensive pieces 
have another hinge fitted up for the toes. When 
the amputation is above the knee, another 
hinge is prepared for the knee-joint, so that the 
leg will swing readily in walking. After the 
wooden pieces have been completed and pol- 


Artillery 


Artillery 


ished, a fine piece of rawhide is shrunk over 
them and fastened by means of glue. As the 
skin dries it shrinks and adds much strength, 
but does not increase the weight materially. 
The bottom of the foot is made of soft rubber, 
for the purpose of giving a natural spring in 
walking. Limbs are attached usually by means 
of leather bands which may be laced tight, or 
are held up by straps running over the shoul¬ 
ders like suspenders. Arms are often so fitted 
that the hand may be unscrewed, and a knife 
or fork or hair brush, made especially for the 
purpose, put in its place. Deformed feet are 
often pieced out with blocks of wood whittled 
to the proper shape. 

Artificial substitutes are also made for other 
members of the body. A nose, for instance, is 
first molded into proper shape from papier- 
mache. It is then tinted, waxed and var¬ 
nished to match the complexion of the noseless 
person, and is fastened on by means of a pair 
of spectacles or by clamping it to the remaining 
stump. Ears are made in the same way, but 
they are more difficult to attach. In making 
artificial eyes, the first step is to blow a bulb 
from molten glass; then one side is broken out, 
the edges of the remaining shell are blunted, 
and the shell itself is worked into the proper size 
and shape, which have been determined pre¬ 
viously by measurement. By very delicate and 
skillful handling, pieces of colored glass are 
worked in by heat until a perfect imitation of 
the person’s remaining eye is secured. The 
coloring of the iris is the most difficult step in 
the process. 

Artil'lery, the name given to the land troops 
who use large guns which require to be fastened 
upon platforms and cannot be fired by hand. 
In this sense artillery is a third branch of the 
army, whether in the field or at fixed posts 
(See Infantry; Cavalry). The word artillery 
is also applied to the great guns themselves— 
cannon, mortars, howitzers and, in fact, all 
that are fired from fixed rests, together with all 
the apparatus and stores that go with the great 
guns (See Cannon). Field artillery is the most 
expensive branch of the modern army, and it is 
considered of great importance. Such artillery 
must be light enough to be handled rapidly 
when drawn by six horses, and at the same time 
must have sufficient weight and strength to give 
rapid, accurate and destructive fire, as it must 
accompany the army. Such artillery mu$t be 
able to conceal itself in detached positions, to 
prepare the way for an infantry charge, to 


follow the charge rapidly and support it, or to 
cover a retreat and then be able to draw away 
without being captured. The howitzer, for 
dislodging an intrenched foe, and another gun 
capable of rapid horizontal fire to destroy the 
troops after their intrenchments have been cut 
down, are considered necessary. Of the latter 
class, the French at present seem to have the 
most effective gun, a rifle cannon, capable of fir¬ 
ing 750 shots a minute and operated by two 
men under the protection of a steel shield. In 
the United States a similar arm has been inde¬ 
pendently invented. It has a three-inch caliber, 
fires a shot accurately a distance of 6000 yards 
and has a total range of 7500 yards. In all 
armies similar light guns, sometimes called 
horse artillery, are taken with the cavalry to open 
the way for their charges and protect them during 
retreat. Siege artillery consists of heavy guns 
which are mounted on carriages and are moved 
with considerable difficulty. The five-inch siege 
gun weighs 3660 pounds and is over 12 feet long. 
It fires a shot that weighs 45 pounds, and at a 
distance of two miles will pierce 2\ inches of 
steel. The greatest siege-guns now in use were 
made by the German firm of Krupp, and were 
used by the German armies in the War of the 
Nations. These great guns have a caliber or 
bore of 42 centimeters, or 16.5 inches. The most 
powerful steel and concrete fortifications are 
helpless when attacked with these weapons. 
(See Howitzer.) The 16.5-inch gun, is not a 
field gun; it is difficult to transport and it must be 
mounted on specially prepared concrete bases. 
The 11-inch gun is also used in position in the 
field, but the five-inch gun is the only siege gun 
used where rapid movement is required. Coast 
and fortress artillery is mounted on fixed carriages 
and has no motion except that which is neces¬ 
sary for firing from the embrasures and for 
the lowering of the gun so that it may be 
loaded while the gunners are under protection 
(See Gun Carriage). The most powerful gun 
ever constructed and the largest planned by 
man to the year 1918, is a mammoth cannon 
made by the Germans, with which they shelled 
Paris from a distance of 76 miles. This gun is 
supposed to be about 95 feet long. Exactly 
what its projectile is remains a German secret, 
but its course through the air sends it 15 H 
miles above the earth. How many such great 
guns the Germans possessed that year is not 
known—probably not more than three. Such a 
gun, however, is not considered by military ex¬ 
perts to be as valuable as a lighter one, because it 


Arts 


Aryan 


is slow in firing and difficult to handle. 
Eight, ten and twelve-inch rifles are those 
in most common use in the United States. 
Naval guns are used in all sizes and 
have the same general characteristics pos¬ 
sessed by other artillery, but are made as 
light as possible. Their length in proportion to 
caliber is generally several times greater than 
that of field guns. See Warship. 

Arts. Art is the use of knowledge to accom¬ 
plish results, or the rules by which these results 
are accomplished. In a broad sense the term 
art refers to anything which is not an immediate 
product of nature, but is artificial and done by 
the aid of human skill. The term is commonly 
used to designate skill in performing some 
special kind of work, either mental or physical. 
The arts may be classified into useful or mechan¬ 
ical arts, those which are intended to produce 
material results, and fine arts, those which are 
intended to give pleasure. The mechanical or 
industrial arts may be practiced by any one who 
has acquired skill, but the fine arts may be 
successfully practiced only by those who have 
real genius or talent, as well as skill. Such 
studies as philosophy, science and history are 
called liberal arts. See Fine Arts; Archi¬ 
tecture; Painting; Sculpture; Music. 

Arts and Crafts, a phrase which includes the 
arts of design and handicraft—all those arts 
which go to “the making of the house beautiful.” 
The phrase is now generally applied to the ar¬ 
tistic revival in handicrafts which began about 
1875. Especially in England, the growth of the 
factory system, with its specialized functions 
for each workman, seemed to have destroyed all 
artistic impulses or feelings among workmen. 
As early as the forties and fifties public interest 
in wood-carving, metal work, spinning and 
weaving, pottery and other arts was steadily 
growing, but it was not until 1888 that the 
Arts and Crafts movement was recognized as a 
distinct break with the past. To rescue public 
taste from the cheap imitations of foreign models, 
to encourage sound workmanship, and to raise 
the handicrafts to their rightful position as arts, 
these were the aims of the leaders. The success 
of the movement was due chiefly to the artistic 
and practical skill of William Morris. Empha¬ 
sis on the personality of the workman, regard 
for the material and purpose of an object as con¬ 
trolling factors in determining artistic expression, 
and a certain simplicity of design and reserve in 
the use of ornament are characteristic of this 
school. 

12 


A'mm, a genus of plants more commonly 
known as calla, closely related to the Jack-in-the- 
pulpit and the skunk cabbage. The flowers are 
small and inconspicuous, being closely massed 
in a short spike, or spadix, enclosed and over¬ 
hung by a vari-colored leaf, or spathe. Many 
varieties are cultivated in hot-houses on account 
of the beauty of their spathes. The stems and 
leaves contain a bitter juice, and the bulbs from 
which the plants spring have a starch which may 
be used for food. See Calla; Jack-in-the- 

PULPIT. 

Aruwimi, ah'roo we'me, a large river of 
equatorial Africa, a main tributary of the Kongo, 
rising west of Lake Albert Nyanza. It flows in 
a westerly course through a dense and almost 
impenetrable forest. It has many rapids and is 
navigable only to Yambuya. Stanley was the 
first person thoroughly to explore the Aruwimi. 

Aryan, ahr'yan, the name given to a branch of 
the human family, living originally, it is believed, 
in the steppes of Southern Russia. As they 



DRAGON ARUM 


came to be the ruling race of India, of Persia and 
finally of Europe, all modem European languages 
have developed from the Aryan. The tendency 
now is to restrict the use of the term Aryan to 
that branch of the human race whose ancient 
language was Sanskrit, and to use the name 
Indo-European or Indo-Germanic in the wider 
sense. 


Asa 

A'sa, a great-grandson of Solomon and the 
third king of Judah. He died after a prosper¬ 
ous reign of forty-one years (917-873 B. c.) 
(See I Kings vm, 15-24). 

Asafet'ida, a vile-smelling gum. It is used 
in medicine to prevent spasms and to calm 
hysteria and other nervous attacks. It is the 
dried sap of a large Asiatic plant of the parsnip 
family. Notwithstanding its very disagreeable 
odor, it is used as a seasoning in the East, and 
sometimes in Europe. Some superstitious people 
wear it in bags about the neck to prevent 
disease, but the custom is declining. 

Asaph, a'saf, a Levite and psalmist appointed 
by David as leading chorister in the divine serv¬ 
ices. He founded a school of poets and 
musicians which were called, after him, '‘the sons 
of Asaph.” He is supposed to be the author of 
Psalms L, lxxiii—lxxxiii. 

Asbes'tos, a remarkable and highly useful 
mineral, a fibrous variety of several mem¬ 
bers of the hornblende family, composed of 
separable fibers, with a silky luster. The fibers 
are sometimes delicate, flexible and elastic; at 
other times they are stiff and brittle. Asbestos 
is incombustible and anciently was wrought into 
a soft, flexible cloth, which was used as a shroud 
for dead bodies. Some varieties are compact and 
take a fine polish; others are loose, like flax or 
silky wool M ountain-wood is a variety present¬ 
ing an irregular, filamentous structure, like wood. 
Rock-cork, mountain-leather, fossil-paper and 
fossil-flax, are other varieties. 

Asbestos has been known for ages, but its 
geological history and formation are still matters 
of conjecture. Its attributes, too, have been 
known; but until about twenty years ago, very 
little practical use was ever made of the sub¬ 
stance. To-day it forms one of the giant indus¬ 
tries of the United States. The uses of asbestos 
are many and varied. Ground fine and com¬ 
bined with colors and oils in a certain manner, 
it makes a paint. Roofs are made by treating 
strong canvas with a combination of asbestos 
and felt, and backing it with manila paper. This 
substance is extensively used for factories, railroad 
shops, bridges and other places where there is 
danger of fire. Steam-pipes are covered with 
asbestos, and asbestos cement is used for hot- 
blast pipes and fire-heated surfaces. It is used 
for locomotive pistons, valve-stems and oil 
pumps. It is made into ropes and mill-boards, 
and in some states theaters are required to use 
an asbestos drop curtain to protect the audience 
in case of a fire in the scenery. Iron and glass 


Ascension 

workers use mittens knit from asbestos yam. 
Asbestos soldering blocks are used by goldsmiths. 
Asbestos, in combination with rubber, is much 
used as an electrical insulator. Asbestos cloth 
is used for acid filters in all sorts of chemical 
processes, for the reason that no acid will eat it. 
Asbestos is found in Italy and Canada, and rich 
deposits have recently been found in Wyoming, 
California and Montana. At present mines near 
Thetford, Quebec, are the principal source of 
supply. 

Asbjomsen, as byum’sen, Peter Christen 
(1812-1885). a distinguished Norwegian natu¬ 
ralist and folk-lore student. The popular tales, 
legends and fairy stories of his native country 
he collected and published as Norwegian Folk 
Tales and Norwegian Fairy Tales and Folk 
Legends. He also wrote works on zoological 
and other scientific subjects. 

Asbury, az'bur y, Francis (1745-1816), the 
first bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
ordained in this country, born in Handsworth, 
England. He came as a missionary from 
England in 1771 and was made general assistant 
to John Wesley. In 1777 the ministers of his 
Church, at a conference in Maryland, decided 
that they should return to Europe; Asbury, alone, 
chose to remain. He was unanimously elected 
bishop and consecrated by Doctor Coke in 1784, 
with a fixed salary of $64 per year. His annual 
travels extended from Canada to the Mississippi 
River, and in his biography it is stated that he 
traveled 270,000 miles during his life, mostly 
on horseback. 

Asbury Park, N. J., a town of Monmouth co., 
situated on the Atlantic coast, and on the Central 
of New Jersey and the Pennsylvania railroads, 
6 mi. s. of Long Branch and about 80 mi. from 
Philadelphia. It is a noted summer resort, 
having, during an average season, from 20,000 
to 25,000 guests. Population in 1910, 10,150. 

As'calon, a ruined town of Palestine, situated 
on the sea coast, 36 mi. w. s. w. of Jerusalem. 
Formerly it was a very important place, being 
the seat of the Philistine worship of Astarte, 
whose temple was destroyed by the Scythians, 
625 B. c. In the seventh century A. D., the 
Saracens got possession of the city. In 1099 
it was taken from the Egyptians by the Crusaders 
under Godfrey of Bouillon, and later it was 
destroyed by the Saracens, but was rebuilt by 
Richard Coeur de Lion. Finally, in 1270, Sultan 
Bibars destroyed it. 

Ascension, as sen'shun, an island of volcanic 
origin belonging to Great Britain, near the 


Ascension 


Ashanti 


middle of the South Atlantic Ocean, 750 mi. n. w. 
of Saint Helena. It is retained by Great Britain 
mainly as a station at which ships may touch for 
stores. It has a naval yard, a victualing station, 
hospitals and a coal depot. It was discovered 
in 1501 on Ascension Day. Population, about 
400. 

Ascension. Right, of a star, in astronomy, 
one of the factors in determining the location of 
a heavenly body. It corresponds nearly to 
longitude on the earth. The celestial equator 
divides the celestial sphere into northern and 
southern hemispheres. A certain point, the ver¬ 
nal equinox or first point in Aries, is established 
as a starting point. The right declination of any 
star is then found by measuring the angular dis¬ 
tance on the celestial equator, from the fixed 
point to the foot of a circular perpendicular let 
fall from the star to the celestial equator. See 
Declination. 

Ascension Day, the day on which the ascen¬ 
sion of Christ is commemorated, often called 
Holy Thursday. It is a movable feast, always 
falling on the Thursday but one before Whit¬ 
suntide. 

Asceticism, as set'e sizm, signified among 
ancient philosophers the mastery of the desires 
and passions. It exercised a great influence over 
the early Christians, who practiced fasting and 
self-denial. Later, among the monks, it took the 
form of self-torture, penance and vows of poverty 
and celibacy; and even a disregard of personal 
cleanliness was considered as an aid to a holy life. 
Among the Protestants of to-day the objection 
to card-playing, the theater and dancing, as well 
as the teaching of total abstinence, vegetarianism 
and other restrictions, may be the result of ascetic 
tendencies. The Reformation, in its teaching 
that salvation was acquired through faith and 
not works, produced a great change in ascetic 
practices. Even among the Mohammedans and 
Catholics, fastings and self-sacrifice are growing 
less rigorous. See Monachism. 

Ascham, ays'kam, Roger (1515-1568), an 
English scholar and teacher, who rose to promi¬ 
nence during the reigns of Henry VIII, Mary and 
Elizabeth. He was educated at Saint John’s 
College, Oxford, and became a college tutor. 
Later he was appointed teacher of the 
learned languages to Lady Elizabeth (afterwards 
Queen Elizabeth). Following this he became 
Latin Secretary to Queen Mary, and when 
Elizabeth acceded to tfie throne, was continued 
in the position. He is best known by his work, 
The School Master, a “plain and perfect way of 


teaching children to understand, write and speak 
the Latin tongue. ” This book was a radical de¬ 
parture from the methods then in vogue and 
greatly simplified the work and made it more 
interesting. 

Ascidian, as sid'ian. See Sea Squirts. 

As'gard, in Scandinavian mythology, the 
home of the gods, corresponding to Olympus 
among the Greeks. 

Ash, a genus of trees that shed the leaves in 
the winter, have imperfect flowers, and a seed- 
vessel prolonged into a thin wing at the apex. 
There are many species, chiefly indigenous to 
Europe and North America. The ash is one of 
the most useful trees, on account of its hard, tough 
wood and the rapidity of its growth. There are 
many varieties of it, as the weeping ash, the 
curled-leaved ash and the entire-leaved ash. 
The flowering, or manna-ash, is a native of the 
south of Europe and Palestine. It yields the 
substance called manna, which is obtained by 
making incisions in the bark, when the juice 
exudes and hardens. Among the American 
species are the valuable white ash, with lighter 
bark and leaves; the red or black ash, with a 
brown bark; the black ash, and the blue ash. 
Several species not properly of this genus are 
popularly called ash. See Mountain Ash; 
Prickly Ash. 

Ash or Ashes, what remains after a substance 
is burned. The term is usually applied to the 
mineral residue obtained on burning wood, 
coal, plants and the like. From the ashes of 
seaweeds are extracted bromine and iodine. 
Wood ashes are a source of potash, which is 
used as a fertilizer. 

Ashanti, a shahn'te, a kingdom of West 
Africa, inland from the Gold Coast. Gold is 
abundant, being found both in the form of dust 
and in nuggets. The natives are warlike and 
ferocious negroes, but cultivate crops of yams, 
com, rice and tobacco. The chief town is 
Kumassi, which has about 30,000 inhabitants. 
The government was formerly a despotic mon¬ 
archy, but the country is now governed prac¬ 
tically by the English, who first came in contact 
with the Ashantis in 1807. Hostilities con¬ 
tinued, off and on, till 1826. Immediately after 
the transfer of the Dutch settlements on the 
Gold Coast to Britain in 1872 the Ashantis inter¬ 
fered and brought on a sanguinary war, leading 
to a British expedition in 1874, in which Kumassi 
was captured and British supremacy estab¬ 
lished along the Gold Coast. In 1896 another 
expedition was made, King Prempeh was 


Ashburton 


Ash Wednesday 


deposed and imprisoned and the country was 
annexed. Another rebellion was put down in 
1900. 

Ash'burton, Alexander Baring, Lord, 
(1774-1848), a prominent English financier and 
diplomat. For many years before the death of 
his father he was in the firm of Baring Brothers, 
and on his father’s death be became its head. 
While on a trip to the United States he met 
and married Anne Bingham, the daughter of 
a United States senator; and when, in 1842, the 
disagreement between the United States and 
Great Britain in regard to the northeast and 
northwest boundary lines had reached a crisis, 
Ashburton, by reason of his American marriage 
and his familiarity with American ideas, was 
appointed to attempt the readjustment of the 
difficulty. The Webster-Ashburton Treaty 
which was negotiated averted the possibility 
of war. See Webster-Ashburton Treaty; 
Webster, Daniel. 

Ashe'ville, N. C., the county-seat of Bun¬ 
combe co., 140 mi. e. of Knoxville, on the 
Southern railroad and near the junction of the 
French, Broad and Swannanoa rivers. The 
city is located in a mountainous region at an 
altitude of about 2300 feet, and, with its many 
hotels and boarding houses, has become, a 
popular resort for both summer and winter. 
Points of special interest are Overlook Park, 
Richmond Hill, Mount Beaumont, Swannanoa 
drive along the river, the great Vanderbilt 
estate of Biltmore, and Pisgale forest, which is 
a hunting preserve of 84,000 acres. Asheville 
College for Young Women, Bingham Military 
Academy, Normal College and several indus¬ 
trial schools are located here. The region has 
valuable timber and some mineral wealth and 
produces live stock, fruits and vegetables. The 
city is an important tobacco market and does 
considerable manufacturing. It was settled in 
1792. The waterworks are now owned and 
operated by the municipality. Population in 
1910, 18,762. 

Ash'land, Ky., a city in Boyd co., 144 mi. 
s. e. of Cincinnati, on the Ohio River and on 
the Chesapeake & Ohio and the Norfolk and 
Western railroads. Its manufactures include 
nails, sheet steel and steel billets, brick, leather 
and furniture, and it has an important trade in 
coal, iron ore and lumber. The place was 
settled in 1854 and became a city in 1870. 
Population in 1910, 8688. 

Ashland, Ore., a city of Jackson co., on 
Ashland Creek and on the Southern Pacific 


railroad. It is the center of a fruit-growing 
and coal-mining region and has railroad shops, 
flour mills and lumber yards. There are min¬ 
eral springs with medicinal properties in the 
neighborhood. Population in 1910, 5020. 

Ashland, Pa., a borough of Schuylkill co., 12 
mi. n. w. of Pottsville, on the Philadelphia & 
Reading and the Lehigh Valley railroads. It 
is in the anthracite coal field, and coal mining 
is the chief industry, but there are also machine 
shops, foundries and factories. The State 
Miners’ Hospital is here. The municipality 
owns and operates its waterworks. Ashland 
was settled in 1850 and incorporated in 1857. 
Population in 1910, 6855. 

Ashland, Wis., the county-seat of Ashland 
co., 80 mi. e. of Duluth, on the Chequamegon 
Bay of Lake Superior, and on the Chicago & 
Northwestern, the Northern Pacific, the Wiscon¬ 
sin Central and other railroads. The city has 
one of the best harbors on the lake and ships 
large quantities of ore and considerable lumber 
and brown stone. The industrial establishments 
include lumber mills, charcoal blast furnaces, a 
steel plant, foundries, railroad and machine 
shops. Among the important institutions and 
public buildings are the North Wisconsin Acad¬ 
emy, Sisters’ and Rhinehart hospitals, the 
Vaughn Public Library and the Knight Hotel. 
The beautiful Apostle Islands in the bay are 
of historic interest. They were occupied by the 
French missionaries as early as 1680. The 
place was settled in 1854, incorporated in 1863 
and has grown rapidly since the development 
of the iron industry about 1876. Population 
in 1910, 11,594. 

Ashtabu'la, Ohio, a city in Ashtabula co., 
54 mi. n. e. of Cleveland, on the Ashtabula 
River, 3 mi. from Lake Erie, and on the Lake 
Shore & Michigan Southern, the New York, 
Chicago & St. Louis and other railroads. It 
is in an agricultural and dairy region and has 
shaft factories, tanneries, woolen mills and farm 
implement works. There is an excellent har¬ 
bor, and the city does a large business in the 
trans-shipment of coal and iron ore. The place 
was first settled in 1805. Population in 1910, 
18,266. 

Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, so 
called from a custom in the Western Church 
of sprinkling ashes on the heads of penitents 
admitted to penance that day. The custom is 
said to have originated with Gregory the Great. 
In the Roman Catholic Church the ashes are 
consecrated on the altar, sprinkled with holy 


Asia 


Asia 


water and then cast on the heads of the clergy 
and people, the priest saying in Latin, “Remem¬ 
ber that thou art dust and to dust thou shalt 
return.” 

Asia, a'she a, the largest of the grand divi¬ 
sions of the earth, is situated between 1° 15' 
and 77° 37' north latitude, and 26° and 130° 
east longitude. Its greatest length from east 
to west is 5500 miles, and from north to south, 
5100 miles, and its area, exclusive of islands, is 
16,000,000 square miles, and including the 
islands, about 17,000,000 square miles. The 
continent is bounded on the north by the 
Arctic Ocean, on the east by the Pacific, on the 
south by the Indian Ocean and on the west by 
the Red and Mediterranean seas. The eastern 
and southern coasts have a number of promi¬ 
nent indentations. These are Bering Sea, the 
Sea of Okhotsk, Sea of Japan, Yellow Sea and 
South China Sea on the east, the Bay of Bengal 
and the Arabian Sea with its extension, the 
Persian Gulf, on the south, while to the north 
of the western extremity is the Black Sea, 
joined to the Mediterranean by'the Bosporus, 
Sea of Marmora and Dardanelles. 

The adjoining islands include the Japan 
Islands, the Philippines and the large group 
usually known as the East Indies, in which are 
Sumatra, New Guinea and Borneo, among the 
largest islands of the world. This archipelago 
is. subdivided into numerous smaller groups. 
The important isolated islands are Formosa 
and Hongkong, off the coast of China, and 
Ceylon, at the southern extremity of India. 
The continent is separated from Europe by a 
mere depression, extending from the Caspian 
Sea northward to the Ural Mountains, which 
complete the boundary. During the Tertiary 
Period this portion of the continent was sub¬ 
merged, and Europe and Asia formed two 
separate continents (See Tertiary Period). 
Asia is separated from a portion of Africa by 
the Red Sea and the Strait of Bab-el-Mandeb 
and is joined to it by the Isthmus of Suez, 
which is about one hundred miles wide. 

Surface and Drainage. Asia is the land 
of the most extensive plains, the greatest pla¬ 
teaus and the highest mountains in the world. 
The continent consists of a vast plateau in the 
interior, surrounded by lowlands. From this 
plateau numerous mountain ranges rise and 
extend in nearly all directions, though the pre¬ 
vailing trend is east and west. Most of the 
ranges are upon the edges of the plateau; hence 
they have a short and somewhat gentle slope 


upon the side facing the interior of the conti¬ 
nent and a long, steep slope upon the opposite side. 

The great plateau reaches its greatest eleva¬ 
tion in Tibet, where its mean altitude is about 
15,000 feet. It is bounded on the south by the 
Himalayas, having an extent of 1500 miles and 
a mean elevation of 18,000 feet, with peaks 
ranging from 18,000 to 29,000 feet. These are 
the loftiest mountains in the world. On their 
southern slope they descend abruptly to the 
plains of the Indus and the Ganges. The 
Plateau of Pamir forms the western boundary 
of the Plateau of Tibet. Pamir, though situated 
1000 miles southwest of the center of the con¬ 
tinent, seems to be the center from which the 
great mountain systems radiate, and it is often 
called by the natives “the roof of the world.” 
From it the Himalayas extend to the southwest 
and the Hindu Kush to the northw T est, and the 
Thian-Shan on the north have an east and west 
trend. These mountains are highest at the 
western extremity, where they attain an altitude 
of about 18,000 feet. Their mean elevation is 
from 10,000 to 12,000 feet. The system con¬ 
sists of a number of broken ranges whose extent 
is about 1500 miles. Near the eastern extremity 
and between two of these ranges is a small 
valley known as the Turfan depression. This 
little valley descends to sea level and is about 
three hundred miles long by one hundred miles 
wide. It is surrounded upon all sides by higher 
lands, and the reason for its formation is not 
easily determined. To the northeast of the 
Thian-Shan are the Altai and their extensions, 
the Yablonoi and Stanovoi, the last extending 
to the extreme northeastern point of the conti¬ 
nent, and the combined ranges forming the 
boundary between the great central plateau 
and the Siberian plain. The extent of these 
mountains is about 3000 miles, and they dimin¬ 
ish in altitude from the west toward the north¬ 
east. Between the Altai and Yablonoi on the 
north and the Kingan on the east, which extend 
north and south, is the Desert of Gobi. 

North of the Himalaya and traversing the 
Plateau of Tibet are the Ivuen-Lun and other 
mountain ranges, and to the east of the plateau 
are a number of nearly parallel ranges whose 
general trend is from northwest to southeast. 
The prolongation of some of these ranges forms 
Indo-China and the Malay Peninsula. Kamt- 
chatka and Korea are also formed by the pro¬ 
jection of coast ranges, a number of which are 
approximately parallel to the northern portion 
of the coast. 


Asia 


Asia 


West of Pamir is the Plateau of Iran, bounded 
on the north by the Hindu Kush and the Elburz 
Mountains, which have an altitude of from 
25,000 feet in the Hindu Kush to 18,500 in the 
Elburz. On the south of the plateau are the 
Zagros, a low range scarcely exceeding 6000 
feet and trending to the northwest until they 
meet the Elburz in the region between the 
Caspian and Black seas. Mount Ararat, famous 
in Bible history, is one of the prominent peaks 
in this region. To the west of these ranges is 
the plateau of Asia Minor, which has an altitude 
of about 6000 feet and upon which the Taurus 
Mountains rest. North of the Caspian Sea are 
the Urals, a range of low mountains extending 
north and south and forming a portion of the 
boundary between Asia and Europe. The low¬ 
lands consist of the great depression which forms 
a part of the division between Asia and Europe, 
and in which are found the Caspian and Aral 
seas and a few smaller salt lakes; the great 
Siberian plain, extending from the Altai to the 
Arctic coast and having an area which exceeds 
that of all Europe, and the lowlands along the 
eastern and southern coasts and the flood plains 
of the great rivers, such as the Yang-tse-Kiang, 
Hoang-ho, Ganges and Indus. 

Some of the largest rivers of Asia flow north¬ 
ward to the Arctic Ocean—the Obi, the Yeni¬ 
sei and the Lena. The Hoang-ho, the Yang- 
tse and the Amur are the chief of those which 
flow into the Pacific. The Ganges, Brahma¬ 
putra, Irawaddy and Indus empty into the 
Indian Ocean. The Persian Gulf receives the 
united waters of the Euphrates and the Tigris. 
There are several systems of inland drainage, 
large rivers falling into lakes which have no 
outlet. The flood plains of the rivers flowing 
into the Pacific and Indian oceans are among 
the most fertile regions in the world. 

The largest lake of Asia is the Caspian Sea, 
which receives the Kur from the Caucasus 
(with its tributary, the Aras, from Armenia), 
and the Sefid Rud and other streams from Persia 
(besides the Volga, from European Russia, and 
the Ural). The Caspian lies in the center of a 
great depression, being 83 feet below the level 
of the Sea of Azov. East from the Caspian is 
the Sea of Aral, which, like the Caspian, has no 
outlet, and is fed by the rivers Amu-Darya 
(Oxus) and Syr-Darya. Still farther east, to 
the north of the Thian-Shan Mountains, and 
fed by the Ili and other streams, is Lake Bal- 
kash, also without an outlet and very salt. 
Other lakes having no communication with the 


ocean are Lob-Nor, in the Desert of Gobi, receiv¬ 
ing the river Tarim and the Dead Sea, far 
below the level of the Mediterranean, and fed 
by the Jordan. The chief fresh-water lake is 
Lake Baikal, in the southern part of Siberia, a 
mountain lake from which the Yenesei draws 
a portion of its waters. 

Mineral Resources. The mineral resources 
of Asia are very extensive, though the most 
valuable of them have not yet been developed. 
The southern portion of the continent has for 
centuries been famous for its precious stones, 
such as the diamonds of Golconda, the sapphires 
of Ceylon, the rubies of Burma and the jade of 
Turkestan. In the Malay Peninsula and adjoin¬ 
ing islands are found the richest tin mines of the 
world. Copper and mercury occur in Japan, 
coal is found in large quantities in China, and 
to some extent in Japan, while throughout 
the interior are numerous deposits of iron ore 
which appear to be of great value. In the 
eastern portion of Siberia are valuable gold mines, 
and the Ural Mountains contain considerable 
gold and are the most important source of 
platinum in the world. Around the Caspian 
Sea, and in Burma and Sumatra, are regions from 
which petroleum is obtained. The vicinity of 
the Caspian Sea yields more than the oil fields 
of the United States. In general, the lowlands 
near the coast and along the rivers are covered 
with a rich soil, as is a large portion of the great 
Siberian plain; but much of the interior is 
unfertile, either because of its high altitude and 
consequently cold climate, or for lack of suffi¬ 
cient moisture. 

Climate. Every variety of climate may be 
experienced in Asia, but as a whole the continent 
is marked by extremes of heat and cold and by 
great dryness, this in particular being the case 
with vast regions in the center of the continent 
and distant from the sea. The great lowland 
region of Siberia has a short but very hot summer, 
and a long, intensely cold winter, the rivers and 
their estuaries being-fast bound with ice, and 
at a certain depth the soil being frozen all the 
year round. The northern part of China, to the 
east of Central Asia, has a temperate climate 
with a warm summer, and in the extreme north 
a severe winter. The districts lying to the south 
of the central region, comprising the Indian and 
Indo-Chinese peninsulas, southern China and 
the adjacent islands, present the characteristic 
climate and vegetation of the southern temperate 
and tropical regions, modified by the effects of 
altitude. Some localities in southeastern Asia 


















































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Hammond* • 8 x 11 Map of Asia. 
Copyright, 1910, by C.S. Haujmond St Co. 














































































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RELIEF MAP OF ASIA 











Asia 


Asia 


have the heaviest rainfall anywhere known. As 
the equator is approached, the extremes of 
temperature diminish till at the southern extrem¬ 
ity of the continent they are such as may be 
experienced in any tropical country. Among 
climatic features are the monsoons of the Indian 
Ocean and the eastern seas and the cyclones or 
typhoons, which are often very destructive. See 
Climate; Wind. 

Vegetation. The plants and animals of 
northern and western Asia generally resemble 
those of similar latitudes in Europe, differing 
more in species than in classes. The principal 
mountain trees are the pine, larch and birch; 
the willow, alder and poplar are found in lower 
grounds. In the central region European species 
reach as far as the western and central Himalayas, 
but are rare in the eastern. They are here met 
by Chinese and Japanese forms. The lower 
slopes of the Himalayas are clothed almost 
exclusively with tropical forms. Higher up, 
between 4000 and 10,000 feet, are found all the 
types of trees and plants that belong to the 
temperate zone, including extensive forests of 
cone bearing trees. The southeastern region 
including India, the Eastern Peninsula and China, 
with the islands, contains a vast variety of plants 
useful to man and having here their original 
habitat, such as sugar-cane, rice, cotton, indigo, 
pepper, cinnamon, cassia, clove, nutmeg, banana, 
cocoanut, areca and sago palm, the mango and 
many other fruits, with plants producing a vast 
number of drugs, besides caoutchouc and gutta¬ 
percha. The forests of India and the Malay 
Peninsula contain oak, teak, sal and other timber 
woods, besides bamboos, palms and sandal-wood. 
The palmyra palm is characteristic of southern 
India, while the talipot palm flourishes on the 
western coast of Hindustan, Ceylon and the 
Malay Peninsula. 

The cultivated plants of India and China 
include wheat, barley, rice, maize, millet, sor¬ 
ghum, tea, coffee, indigo, cotton, jute, opium 
and tobacco. In North China and the Japanese 
Islands occur large numbers of trees that shed 
their leaves annually, such as oaks, maples, 
limes, walnuts, poplars and willows. In Arabia 
and the warmer valleys of Persia, Afghanistan 
and Beluchistan, aromatic shrubs are abundant. 
Over large parts of these regions the date-palm 
flourishes and affords a valuable article of food. 
Gum-producing acacias are, with the date-palm, 
the commonest trees in Arabia. 

Animal Life. Nearly all the mammals of 
Europe occur in northern Asia, with numerous 


additions. Central Asia is the native land of the 
horse, the ass, the ox, the sheep and the goat. 
Both varieties of the camel, the single and the 
double humped, are Asiatic. To the inhabit¬ 
ants of Tibet and the higher plateaus of the 
Himalayas, the yak is what the reindeer is to the 
tribes of the Siberian plain, almost their sole 
wealth and support. The elephant, of a different 
species from that of Africa, is a native of tropical 
Asia. The Asiatic lion, which inhabits Arabia, 
Persia, Asia Minor and some parts of India, is 
smaller than the African species. Bears are 
found in all parts, the white bear in the far north, 
and other species in the more temperate and 
tropical parts. The tiger is the most character¬ 
istic of the larger Asiatic carnivora. Its habitat 
extends from Armenia across the entire continent, 
excepting, however, the greater portion of Siberia 
and the high table-land of Tibet. In south¬ 
eastern Asia and the islands the rhinoceros, 
buffalo, ox, deer, squirrels and porcupines are 
found. 

In birds, nearly every order is represented. 
Among the most interesting forms are the horn- 
bill, the peacock, the Impey pheasant, the 
tragopan, or horned pheasant, and others of this 
family. It was from Asia that the common 
domestic fowl was introduced into Europe. The 
tropical parts of Asia abound in monkeys, of 
which the species are numerous. Some are 
tailed, others, such as the orang, are tailless, but 
none has a grasping tail like that of the American 
monkey. In the Malay Archipelago the animals 
which bear their young in an external pouch, so 
characteristic of Australia, first occur in the 
Moluccas and Celebes, while various mammals 
common in the western part of the Archipelago 
are absent. A similar transition toward the 
Australian type takes place in the species of birds. 
Of marine mammals the dugong is peculiar to the 
Indian Ocean; in the Ganges is found a peculiar 
species of dolphin. At the head of the reptiles 
stands the Gangetic crocodile, frequenting the 
Ganges and other large rivers. Among the ser¬ 
pents is the cobra de capello, one of the* most 
deadly snakes in existence, and there are also large 
boas and pythons, besides sea and fresh-water 
snakes. The seas and rivers produce a great 
variety of fish. 

Inhabitants. Asia is mainly peopled by the 
Caucasian and Mongolian races. To the former 
belong the Aryan, or Indo-European, and the 
Semitic races, both of which mainly inhabit the 
southwest of the continent; to the latter belong 
the Malays and Indo-Chinese in the southeast, 



Mango 


Banana 


Cocoanut Palm and Fruit 


Sago Palm 


Palmyra Palm 


Ginger Plant 




PLANTS OF ASIA 









Asia 


Asia 


as well as the Mongolians proper, Chinese and 
Japanese, occupying nearly all the rest of the 
continent. To these may be added certain races 
of doubtful affinities, as the Dravidians of 
southern India, the Cingalese of Ceylon, the 
Ainos of Yesso and some negro-like tribes called 
Negritos, which inhabit Malacca and the interior 
of several of the islands of the Eastern Archi¬ 
pelago. The total population was estimated in 
1912 at about 900,000,000, or t ore than half 
that of the whole world. 

Political Divisions. A large proportion of 
Asia is under the control of European govern¬ 
ments. 

Asiatic Russia comprises Siberia, Turkestan 
and Trans-Caucasia. Area, 6,395,000 sq. mi.; 
population, 25,000,000. 

Indian Empire, including the British posses¬ 
sions, comprises India, the Strait Settlements 
and Ceylon. Area, 1,800,000 sq. mi.; popu¬ 
lation, 300,000,000. 

Asiatic Turkey includes Asia Minor, Armenia, 
Kurdistan, Mesopotamia, Syria and the Arabian 
countries Hedjaz and Yemen. Area, 654,000 
sq. mi.; population, 17,000,000. 

The French Possessions include Oman, Ton- 
king, Cambodia and Cochin-China, all within 
the peninsula generally known as Indo-China. 
Area, 25,000 sq. mi.; population, 15,000,000. 

Independent Countries. The important inde¬ 
pendent countries are the Chinese Empire, 
including China proper, Mongolia, Manchuria, 
Tibet, Eastern Turkestan and Sungaria, with an 
area of 4,250,000 sq. mi. and a population esti¬ 
mated at 400,000,000; Japan, with an area of 
160,000 sq. mi. and a population, including 
Formosa, of about 50,000,000, Siam, area, 200,- 
000 sq. mi.; population, 9,000,000; Persia, area, 
650,000 sq. mi., population, 8,000,000. Besides 
these there are a few small Arabian countries 
and the minor independent states in the Hima¬ 
layas. Afghanistan and Beluchistan are quasi¬ 
independent countries, under the control of 
Great Britain, and Korea is under the control of 
Japan. Most of the large islands of the Indian 
Archipelago belong to the Netherlands. The 
remainder are divided between Great Britain, 
Germany and the United States. 

History. Asia is generally regarded as the 
cradle of the human race. It possesses the 
oldest historical documents, and, next to Egypt, 
the oldest historical monuments in the .world. 
The Old Testament contains the earliest records 
of any nation which we have in the form of a 
distinct narrative. The period at which these 


were written is supposed to be about 1500 years 
before the Christian era; but in Babylonia and 
Assyria, as well as in Egypt, civilization had 
made great advances long before this time (See 
Assyria; Babylonia). 

The earliest seat of the Aryan race was prob¬ 
ably in the valley of the Tigris and Euphrates 
rivers, whence they emigrated to the southeast 
and southwest, finally occupying northern 
India, Persia and other parts of western Asia, 
and spreading into Europe. China possesses 
an authentic history extending back to about 
1000 b c. and legends covering a long period 
preceding this date. Cyrus (559 b. c.) extended 
the Persian Empire westward to the Mediter¬ 
ranean, while his son Cambyses added to this 
Egypt and Libya. In 330 b. c. Alexander con¬ 
quered Persia and brought it under his sway, 
but upon his death the Empire was divided into 
a number of separate kingdoms, which in time 
were dissolved by the Roman Empire. At the 
time the Roman power was at its greatest 
height, the birth of Christ occurred. 

In the seventh century A. D. occurred the 
rise of the Mohammedans. This people soon 
obtained control of Persia and Syria and extended 
their sway into Egypt. In 1000 A. D. Mahmud 
conquered India and established his rule. About 
the same time the dynasty of the Seljuk Tartars 
w r as established in western Asia, embracing 
Aleppo, Damascus and Iconium, and was dis¬ 
tinguished for its struggle with the Crusaders. 
The Ottoman Empire was founded in 1300. A 
little before this Genghis Khan, an independent 
Mongol chief, made himself master of central 
Asia, conquered northern China and overran 
Turkestan. From this beginning the Mongols 
and Mongol Tartars practically overran all of 
northern and western Asia, but the Ottoman 
Empire soon recovered from the catastrophe, 
and the Mongols were expelled from the West 
in 1453. 

The Russian Cossacks conquered Siberia in 
the latter part of the sixteenth century, and 
about one hundred years later the Russians 
began settlements in the Caucasus. These 
regions have ever since remained under Russian 
control. In 1498 occurred the voyage of Vasco 
da Gama to India, and following this the Span¬ 
ish, Dutch, French, Portuguese and British 
nations established trading posts and began 
settlements in different sections along the coast 
or on the neighboring islands. During the 
nineteenth century Great Britain controlled all 
India and subjected all of that region to the 





Bactrian Camel 


Polar Bear 


Sable 


Orang-utan 


Peacock 


Indian Rhinoceros 


,]/ Indian Elephant 


ANIMALS OF ASIA 



















Asia Minor 

influence of western government and civiliza¬ 
tion. She was followed by France in Indo- 
China. Germany has attempted to gain foot¬ 
hold in the Chinese Empire and other localities, 
though without much success; but Russia has 
gained possession of a rich territory in Siberia 
and adjacent lands at the south. 

For a detailed history of these movements, 
see the articles on the various countries, sub¬ 
head History. See, also, articles under the 
title of each of the political divisions and the 
principal rivers and mountain ranges of the 
continent. 

Asia Mi'nor. the most westerly portion of Asia, 
the peninsula lying west of the upper Euphrates 
and forming part of Asiatic Turkey. In ancient 
times its chief divisions were Pontus, Paphla- 
gonia, Bithynia, Mysia, Lydia, Caria, Lycia, 
Pisidia, Pamphylia, Cilicia, Isauria, Cappa¬ 
docia, Galatia, Phrygia and Lycaonia. The 
Greeks had numerous colonies in Asia Minor, 
and it was the assistance which Greece rendered 
to some of the cities of Asia Minor m their 
attempt to throw off Persian dominion which 
led to the invasion of Greece. The modem 
name of Asia Minor is Anatolia. 

Asiento de Ambato, a syayn'to da am bah'to. 
See Ambato. 

Asp, a species of viper found in Egypt, resem¬ 
bling the cobra de capello or spectacle-serpent 
of the East Indies, and having a very venomous 
bite. When approached or disturbed, it elevates 
its head and body, swells out its neck and 
appears to stand erect to attack the aggressor. 
The balancing motions made by it in the endeavor 
to maintain the erect attitude have led to the 
employment of the asp as a dancing serpent 
by the African jugglers. Cleopatra is said to 
have committed suicide by means of an asp’s 
bite. The name asp is also given to a viper 
common on the continent of Europe, and to the 
puff-adder of South America. 

Aspar'agus, a plant, the young shoots of 
whichy cut soon after they come from the ground, 
are a favorite vegetable. In Greece, and espe¬ 
cially in the southern steppes of Russia and 
Poland, it is found growing wild in large quan¬ 
tities. The plants should be allowed to grow 
three years from the seed before they are cut; 
after that, for ten or twelve years, they will 
continue to afford a regular annual supply. 
The beds are protected by straw or litter in 
winter. The full-grown plant has a beautiful 
feathery top, shaped like a miniature tree, and 
it bears small flowers and bright red fruits. 


Asphalt 

Some varieties are cultivated for ornament and 
are incorrectly known as ferns. 

Aspasia, as pa'she a , a celebrated woman of 
ancient Greece. She was born at Miletus, in 
Ionia, but passed a great part of her life at 
Athens, where her house was the general resort 
of the most distinguished men in Greece. She 
won the affection of Pericles, who united him¬ 
self to her as closely as he was permitted by the 
Athenian law, which declared marriage with a 
foreign woman illegal. She had a son by Peri¬ 
cles, who was legitimated by a special decree of 
the people. 

As'pen, or trembling poplar, a species of pop¬ 
lar indigenous to Britain and to most mountain¬ 
ous regions throughout Europe and Asia. It 
is a beautiful tree, grows rapidly and is extremely 
hardy, and has nearly circular toothed leaves, 
smooth on both sides and attached to footstalks 
so long and slender as to be shaken by the 
slightest wind. The light, porous, soft, white 
wood is useful for various purposes. 

Asphalt, as'falt, or Asphal'tum, the most 
common variety of bitumen, also called mineral 
pitch. Asphalt is a compact, glossy, brittle, 
black or brown mineral, which melts easily 
when heated, giving off a strong, pitchy odor, 
and which burns, when pure without leaving 
any ashes. The largest natural deposit of 
asphalt is on the island of Trinidad, in the 
so-called Pitch Lake. Another asphalt lake 
occurs in Venezuela, and the product is known 
as the Bermudez asphalt. Another famous body 
of asphalt is found in Utah known as Gilsonite, 
which, unlike Trinidad, is 99.5% pure hydro¬ 
carbon and is mined somewhat similar to anthra¬ 
cite coal. T his material and the two asphalts 
mentioned are recognized as the standard crude 
asphalts for the making of paving cements and 
other asphaltic products. Trinidad asphalt, 
however, contains only about 55% bitumen. 
Asphalt is also found mixed with sand, or in 
sandstone or limestone in Cuba, California, 
Utah and various localities in Europe. It 
occurs in a liquid state in large quantity on the 
surface of the Dead Sea, and a fluid form, 
known as mineral tar, is also found in California. 

The most common use of asphalt is as a 
material for paving streets. The Trinidad 
asphalt is dug when brittle by means of picks ; 
gathered in buckets and taken directly to the 
vessel for shipment. Crude asphaltum cannot 
be used in paving streets, but must be put 
through a refining process, which consists prin¬ 
cipally of a slow application of heat and pre- 



— 1 ^%. 
A Street in Canton 


Harvesting in Southern Siberia 


Arab Encampment 


Taj Mahal 


B ur rmefeWoman, 
with Fashionable Neck Rings 


SOME TTPES OP CIVILIZATION IN ASIA 



















Asquith 


Asphalt 


cipitation. It takes three tons of the crude 
Trinidad material to make two tons of refined 
asphalt. The first step in the refining process is 
to place the asphaltum in great tanks and melt 
it down. It is necessary that the material be 
stirred continually during this process. A certain 
proportion of the residuum of petroleum is put 
into the asphaltum to act as a flux and melt 
the substance at a lower temperature than it 
otherwise would melt; thus all of the oils in 
the asphaltum are saved. This mixture, when 
done, is called the “paving cement.” While 
this process is going on, sharp, clean sand is 
being heated to about 300 degrees in large 
revolving drums. This sand is mixed in a 
certain proportion with the above mixture, to 
which is then added a certain proportion of 
carbonate of lime. The three substances are 
then mixed by means of a number of iron 
arms revolving at a very high speed. The whole 
mixture, known as a “street mixture,” is then 
taken to the street to be laid as pavement. 

Before the street is ready for the asphalt 
there must be done a certain amount of pre¬ 
liminary work. The street must be carefully 
graded to within eight or nine inches of the 
proposed finished surface. It is necessary that 
the sub-grade be very solid and that it be rolled 
with a heavy steam roller. Upon this founda¬ 
tion is laid a bed of hydraulic concrete, made 
of cement, clean, sharp sand and broken stone. 
This, too, must be well rammed and rolled. 
Upon the efficiency of this preliminary work 
depends the value of the pavement when com¬ 
pleted. The asphalt is usually laid on in two 
courses; first a cushion coat and then a surface 
coat. The asphalt “street mixture” is applied 
when it is at a temperature of about 250 or 
300 degrees. The cushion coat is usually from 
one-half to one inch thick, and the surface coat 
is thick enough to make the entire sheet of 
asphalt two and one-half inches thick. The 
hot mixture is dumped into the street and 
spread evenly from curb to curb with hot rakes. 
Iron tampers and smoothers, also heated, smooth 
and finish the surface, which is then rolled 
with a hand-roller, then with a five-ton, and 
lastly with a ten-ton, roller. The surface coat 
is sprinkled with a small amount of hydraulic 
cement before the heavy rollers are passed 
over it. Asphalt made from Gilsonite is used in 
pavements, the same as Trinidad or Bermudez. 

Rock Asphalt is mined by a simple process 
of blasting. The rock asphalts when used for 
paving are not refined, but are simply crushed, 


reduced to powder by heat, and then compressed 
in place. Aside from its use in paving, rock 
asphalt is also made into asphaltic cement and 
mastic. Mastic is prepared by mixing rock 
asphalt with sand and asphalt. Blocks of 
mastic, when melted, are used for floors, side¬ 
walks and roofing. Asphaltic limestone is found 
in Utah and Kentucky. See Bitumen. 

Asphodel, as'fo del, a genus of lily-like 
plants, with fleshy roots and flowers arranged in 
long, loose clusters. The asphodels are fine gar¬ 
den plants, natives of southern Europe. The 
king's spear has yellow flowers, blossoming in 
June. The white asphodel was a symbol of 
death among the ancient Greeks, who believed 
that the meadows of Hades, the under world, 
were covered with its pale blossoms. The 
source of this superstition was probably the 
fact that in Greece the asphodel is a common 
weed of barren and desert places, thriving 
especially well in the vicinity of tombs. The 
bog asphodel of England and the wild asphodel 
of New Jersey are unrelated species. The 
asphodel of English poets is the daffodil. 

Asphyxia, as fix'e ah, the condition which 
results when oxygen is kept away from air- 
breathing animals. In persons suffering from 
asphyxia, the blood is not purified and congests 
in the arteries, causing death if not relieved. 
The restoration of asphyxiated persons has been 
successfully accomplished a long time after 
death had apparently come, so that the work 
of restoration should be persistently followed 
without discouragement. The attempt should 
be made to maintain the heat of the body and 
to secure the inflation of the lungs, as in the case 
of the apparently drowned. See Drowning. 
As'pinwall. See Colon. 

As’pira'tor, an instrument used to promote 
the flow of a gas from one vessel into another 
by means of a liquid. The simplest form of 
aspirator is a cylindrical vessel containing water, 
with a pipe at the upper end which commu¬ 
nicates with the vessel containing the gas, and 
a pipe at the lower end, which may be closed 
by a stop-cock. By allowing a portion of the 
water to run off by the pipe at the lower part 
of the aspirator, a measured quantity of air or 
other gas is sucked into the upper part. There 
are several variations of this principle. 

Asquith, Herbert Henry (1852- ), an 

English statesman, born at Morley, Yorkshire, 
and educated at Balliol College, Oxford. He 
studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1876. 
In 1880 he became a queen’s counsel. Six 


Ass 

years later he was elected to Parliament from 
East Fife and was re-elected in 1892 and again 
in 1895. He introduced an amendment to the 
Queen’s speech in 1892 which led to the disso¬ 
lution of Lord Salisbury’s government. He was 
Home Secretary in Gladstone’s last cabinet and 
r also served on the Ecclesiastical Commission. 
Mr. Asquith is an effective debater and during 
his parliamentary career he has been one of 
the most prominent supporters of the Liberal 
party. He became premier in 1908 and held 
the position until December, 1916, when he was 
succeeded by David Lloyd George. 

Ass, a small animal related to the horse and 
the zebra. It has ears longer than those of the 
horse, but in shape resembling those of the 
zebra. The domestic ass is supposed to have 
sprung from a wild variety found in Abyssinia. 
There are numerous varieties, varying in size 
and strength, but all are noted for their endur¬ 
ance and their ability to subsist on the coarsest 
food, even when found only in small quantities. 
In the East the ass has been prized for centuries 
as a beast of burden and for other domestic 
purposes. In the United States it is but little 
used, except for breeding purposes. The milk 
is nutritious, and in some parts of Africa large 
herds are kept solely as milk animals. See 
Horse; Mule. # . . . 

Assam', a chief province of British India; its 
area is 52,078 square miles. The climate is 
marked by heavy rainfall, and malarious diseases 
are common in the low grounds; otherwise it is 
not unhealthful. A large part of the province 
may be designated as forest or jungle, the trees 
including teak, date and sago palm and the 
Indian fig-tree. In the jungles roam the ele¬ 
phant, rhinoceros, tiger, buffalo, leopard, bear, 
wild hog, jackal, fox, goat and various kinds of 
deer. Among serpents are the python and the 
cobra. Pheasants, partridges, snipe, wild pea¬ 
cock and many kinds of water-fowl abound. 
Coal, petroleum and limestone are found in 
abundance, iron is smelted to a small extent, 
gold-dust is found in small quantities. The 
article of most commercial importance is tea, the 
yield of which is now over 60,000,000 pounds 
annually. Other crops raised are rice, indian 
corn, pulse, oil-seeds, sugar-cane, hemp, jute 
and potatoes. The population is about 6,150,- 
000, about 4,500,000 of whom are Hindus, 
1,500,000 Mohammedans, and a small part of 
the rest Christians. In 1826 Assam became a 
possession of Britain. The largest town is 
Sylhet, with a population of about 15,000. 


Assaying 

Assas'sins, an Asiatic order or society which 
in the twelfth century became powerful in 
Persia and Asia Minor and terrorized the country 
by the systematic murder of all who were opposed 
to the society. Upon a select band fell the work 
of assassination, to which they were stimulated 
by the intoxicating influences of hashish (See 
Hashish). From the epithet hashishim (hemp- 
eaters), which was applied to the order, the 
European word assassin has been derived. 
Rulers often made use of the services of the 
assassins to rid themselves of enemies. 

Assault' and Bat'tery. An assault in law 
is an attempt to inflict bodily injury upon 
another; battery is the actual infliction of the 
injury, or the consummation of the assault. 
Though the offenses are distinct and separate, 
they are usually committed together and pun¬ 
ished as one. Mere words of abuse or threat 
are not sufficient to constitute assault; there 
must be the appearance at least of actual intent 
and ability to do violence. The least touch of 
another’s person, willfully, negligently or in 
anger, may constitute battery. The use of 
corporal punishment by parents or teachers 
upon children, students or apprentices, is justi¬ 
fiable only to the extent that is necessary in the 
emergency, and any excess of violence constitutes 
assault and battery. 

Assay'ing, the process of determining the 
amount of pure metal, and especially of gold 
and silver, in an ore or alloy. In the case of 
silver the assay is either by the dry or by the wet 
process. The dry process is called cupellation, 
from the use of a small and very porous cup, 
called a cupel, formed of well-burned and finely 
ground bone-ash made into a paste with water. 
The cupel, being thoroughly dried, is placed 
in a fire-clay oven about the size of a drain tile, 
with a flat sole and arched roof, and with slits at 
the sides to admit air. This oven,, called a 
muffle, is set in a furnace, and when it is at a red 
heat the assay, consisting of a small weighed por¬ 
tion of the alloy, wrapped in sheet-lead, is laid 
upon the cupel. The heat causes the lead to 
volatilize or combine with the other metals and 
to sink with them into the cupel, leaving a bright 
globule of pure metallic silver, which gives the 
amount of silver in the alloy operated on. 

Ore is assayed in a similar manner, but the 
ore is crushed to a powder and mixed with 
granulated lead. This is then placed in a cru¬ 
cible and covered with lead, over which borax 
is sprinkled. When heated, the gold and silver 
unite with the lead and form a metallic button. 


Assignats 

which, on cooling, gathers in the center of a mass 
of slag and is obtained by breaking the slag. 
From this button the gold and silver are obtained 
by cupellation. 

In the wet process the alloy is dissolved in 
nitric acid, and to this solution is added one of 
common salt of known strength. This precipi¬ 
tates chloride of silver in the form of a white 
powder. The quantity of silver in this powder is 
determined by knowing the amount of salt used 
in the solution. An alloy of gold is cupelled 
with lead, the same as an alloy of silver, with the 
addition of three parts of silver to one of gold. 
After the cupellation the alloy of gold and silver 
is beaten and rolled into a thin plate, which is 
curled into a spike. This is put into a flask 
with nitric acid, which dissolves the silver. The 
gold is then washed, boiled with stronger nitric 
acid to remove all traces of silver and placed in 
a crucible and remelted. Assaying is carried 
on by the United States government, which 
establishes assay offices at important points in 
regions where gold and silver are mined. See 
Metallurgy. 

As'signats, the name of the paper currency 
issued by the French government during the 
Revolution. The notes were to be redeemed 
with the proceeds of the confiscated goods of 
the Church, but they depreciated until they were 
practically worthless. They were finally re¬ 
deemed by the government at one-thirtieth of 
their original value. 

Assim'ila'tion, the appropriation of food for 
the growth, support and development of living 
tissues, takes place in the cells. In animals and 
man the blood in the capillaries brings to the 
cells the materials which they have the power 
of changing and so adapting to their own uses 
that they grow and become capable of perform¬ 
ing new and even different functions. In order 
that assimilation should take place rapidly in 
any organ, there must be a large supply of blood. 
This is the case in muscle and nerve tissue, while 
in bone, which changes more slowly, the blood 
vessels or capillaries are fewer. The blood 
itself must circulate with a normal degree of 
rapidity, be of sufficient amount and composed 
of proper materials. There must also be taken 
into the system a sufficient quantity of food that 
is of good quality and easily digested. See Diet; 
Nutrition; Secretion. 

Assin'iboi'a, a former district in Canada, 
forming one of the Northwest Territories. In 1905 
it became a part of the two new provinces which 
were made. See Alberta; Saskatchewan. 


Association Football 

Assin'iboin (stone boilers), the name given to 
a Siouan indian tribe because when first met they 
boiled water by dropping hot stones into it. They 
lived between the Missouri and Saskatchewan, 
on both sides of the Canadian border. About 
1400 are now on a reservation in Montana, and 
an almost equal number live in Canada. 

Assiniboine, a river of Canada, which flows 
through Manitoba and joins the Red River of 
the North at Winnipeg, after a somewhat cir¬ 
cuitous course of about 500 miles from the west 
and northwest. It is navigable for over 300 
miles. 

Assisi, as se'se, a small town in Italy, in the 
province of Umbria, 12 mi. s. e. of Perugia. It 
is the see of a bishop and is famous as the birth¬ 
place of Saint Francis d'Assisi. The splendid 
church built over the chapel where the saint 
received his first impulse to devotion is adorned 
with masterpieces of Cimabue and Giotto, and 
is one of the finest remains of medieval Gothic 
architecture. Population in 1911, 6100. 

Associated Press, an association for the 
purpose of gathering news for daily papers. 
The Associated Press was organized in New 
York in 1849 and included the leading papers 
of that city. It is now the largest news-gathering 
organization in the world and maintains repre¬ 
sentatives in all the leading cities and countries. 
Its principal centers in the United States are 
New York, Cincinnati, Chicago, Saint Louis, 
New Orleans and San Francisco. It has the 
country divided into four sections—eastern, 
western, central and southern—and each of these 
divisions has a central office and a superintendent. 
Reports are telegraphed to the central office, and 
from there to all members of the association in 
the division. 

Association Foot'ball, a form of football 
which originated in England and which has been 
growing in popularity in the United States during 
recent years. It is played on a field which is 
marked off in accordance with the accompanying 
diagram, and resembles the American Rugby 
football game in general purposes, although the 
method of playing is vastly different. The field, 
which may vary in length from 100 to 130 yards, 
and in width from 50 to 100 yards, is rectangular 
in form, and has, in the middle of each end line, 
two goal posts 8 yards apart and joined by a 
bar 8 feet from the ground. The object of the 
game is for one of the eleven players of one side 
to kick the ball between the goal posts of the 
opposing side. The game is played in two 
halves of 45 minutes each, unless otherwise 


v 


Association Football 

agreed upon, separated by an interval of five 
minutes. At the beginning of the second half 
the players change goals. 

At the beginning of the game, the football, 
which is spherical in form, is placed on the 
ground in the center of the field and kicked by a 
member of one team toward the opponent’s 
goal. No one of the opponents is allowed to 
come within ten yards of the ball until it has been 
kicked off, nor is any player allowed to pass the 
center of the ground in the direction of his 
opponent’s goal until the ball is kicked off. 
Thereafter, the players may take any position 



on the field they wish. When the ball goes out 
of bounds, it is thrown in from the point where 
it crossed the touch line by an opponent of the 
player who forced the ball out. The man 
throwing the ball in takes it in both hands and 
throws it from above his head as he stands at the 
line facing in. Whenever the ball is passed 
between the goal posts and under the bar with¬ 
out being thrown, knocked down or carried by 
a player of the opposing side, a goal is scored. 
If the ball strikes the goal posts or cross-bar and 
returns to the field, it continues in play as before. 
The team making the most goals in the specified 
13 


Assumpsit 

time wins the game. This game may be played 
by more than eleven players on a side, and thus 
gives an opportunity to many more individuals 
than the American Rugby game. Moreover, 
as it does not call for so great an amount of 
strength nor entail so many injuries, it may be 
patronized by a different class of students and 
young men. Though not as rough as the Ameri¬ 
can game, it is equally exciting and fully' as 
strenuous. See Football. 

Association of Ideas, the term used in psy¬ 
chology to include the conditions under which 
one idea is able to recall another to conscious¬ 
ness. Some psychologists classify these con¬ 
ditions under two .general heads, those governed 
by the law of contiguity and those governed by 
the law of similarity. The first states the fact 
that actions, sensations, emotions and ideas 
which have occurred together or in close succes¬ 
sion, tend to suggest one another when any one 
of them is afterward presented to the mind. 
The second indicates that present actions, sen¬ 
sations, emotions or ideas tend to recall their 
like from among previous experiences. Other 
laws have at times been given, but they are 
reducible to these. On their physical side the 
principles of association correspond to the 
physiological facts of re-excitation of the same 
nervous centers, and in this respect they have 
played an important part in the endeavor to 
place psychology upon a basis of positive science. 
See Psychology; Habit; Memory. 

Assuan, a swahri, a town of Upper Egypt, 
on the east bank of the Nile, below the first 
cataract. It has a garrison and is the depot 
for the caravan trade with Sudan. The granite 
quarries of the Pharaohs, from which were pro¬ 
cured the stones for the great obelisks and 
colossal statues of ancient times, are in the 
neighborhood. The great Nile dam, built by 
the British government and completed in Decem¬ 
ber, 1902, adds much to the prosperity of 
Assuan (see Irrigation). The principal articles 
of trade are dates and senna. Population in 
1907, 16,128. 

Assump'sit, in common law, #n action to 
recover compensation for the non-performance 
of a parole promise, that is, a promise not con¬ 
tained in a deed under seal. Assumpsits are of 
two kinds, express and implied. The former 
are used in cases where the contracts are actually 
made in word or writing; the latter are such 
as the law implies from the justice of the case; 
for instance, employment to do work implies a 
promise to pay. 
















Assyria 

Assyr'ia. Geography. Assyria was an 
ancient country of Mesopotamia. It occupied 
the northern part of the plain and was bounded 
on the north by the mountains of Armenia, on 
the east by Media, on the south by Susiana and 
Babylonia and on the west, probably, by the 
watershed of the Euphrates. It embraced an 
area of about 75,000 square miles. Several 
mountain chains crossed the plain, which was 
watered by the Tigris River and its tributaries. 
The more fertile portion was in the east. 

People. The Assyrians resembled their Baby¬ 
lonian kinsmen in many respects, but were 
more rugged and warlike. They delighted in 
cruelty, and their kings were wont to boast of 
torturing their prisoners. Their religion was a 
worship of various gods representing the powers 
of nature. The great national deity was Asshur. 
Their language was almost a pure Semitic, and 
was expressed in writing by cuneiform symbols 
(See Cuneiform Inscriptions). They had a 
literature comprising hymns to the gods, mytho¬ 
logical poems and works on astrology, law and 
chronology. They were ruled by a king, and 
their government was better organized than 
that of any other people of their day. 

In architecture and sculpture they surpassed 
the Babylonians, though in the other arts and 
in the sciences they were inferior to them. 
Their buildings were of brick, but the founda¬ 
tions and Walls were faced with stone slabs, on 
which were carved sculptures appropriate in 
subject for all the parts of the temples and 
palaces. Their palaces were quadrangular, 
with chambers grouped around three courts. 
The temples were pyramid-shaped. The Assyr¬ 
ian sculpture is remarkable for its colossal 
man-headed bulls and lions guarding the portals, 
and its decorative scenes in low-relief. The 
most of the reliefs are scenes of contemporary 
history, showing how the Assyrian soldiers 
marched, encamped, crossed rivers, attacked 
cities, cooked, tortured enemies and sacrificed 
to the gods. There are also some scenes of 
daily court life, showing the king banqueting 
with his quefen and hunting lions with courtiers. 
The Assyrian sculptors knew nothing of per¬ 
spective, but excelled in chiseling single figures 
in relief. The industrial arts were highly devel¬ 
oped. The king and his courtiers dressed in 
richly embroidered and figured stuffs; their 
arms and armor were highly finished; the king’s 
throne was of carved ivory and wrought gold, 
and he was served from superbly decorated gold, 
silver and bronze vessels. 


Assyria 

History. In the ancient Greek legends, the 
building of Nineveh and the founding of the 
kingdom of Assyria are ascribed to a mythical 
hero, Ninus, and his queen, Semiramis (See 
Semiramis). But in the cuneiform inscriptions, 
which have recently been deciphered and are 
now generally considered better authority on 
the subject than the classical authors, the name 
of Ninus is not recorded, and that of Semi¬ 
ramis appears first in the ninth century B. c. 
The first settlers probably came from Baby¬ 
lonia not later than 1900 B. c., as the rulers, 
with their capital at Asshur, began to make 
their presence felt in Mesopotamia about 1800 
B. c. They were constantly fighting for exten¬ 
sion of territory, and toward the end of the 
eleventh century b. c., under the leadership of 
Tiglathpileser I, they gained in a large measure 
control over Babylonia. With this ruler began 
that devo¬ 
tion to the 
arts for 
which As¬ 
syrian mon- 
archs were 
famous. Af¬ 
ter two cen¬ 
turies which 
were com¬ 
parative ly 
uneventful, 
there arose 

a strong THE GOD NERGAL 

ruler named 

Asurnazirpal, who waged vigorous wars on all 
sides and made Assyria a great empire. Nin¬ 
eveh, which in the eleventh century had been 
made the capital, rose to the position of mis¬ 
tress of the Eastern world. The successors of 
Asurnazirpal pushed their armies in a west¬ 
erly direction, making conquests in Syria and 
Phoenicia. 

Sargon II was the founder of the last and 
most glorious dynasty of Assyria (721-606 
b. c.). He completely subjugated Babylonia, 
overcame the Hittites, put an end to the King¬ 
dom of Israel and made Judah and the Medi¬ 
terranean cities pay tribute. His successors, 
Sennacherib, Esarhaddon and Asurbanipal 
(Sardanapalus), were kept busy maintaining 
the supremacy of the Assyrian power over the 
broad realm. Under Asurbanipal, Assyria rose 
to the height of its greatness; from the frontiers 
of India to the Aegean Sea its rule was supreme. 
But as the treasures of the world poured into the 







Aster 


Astor 


capital, the people became fond of ease and 
luxury and would not go to war to protect their 
foreign possessions. Province after province 
revolted, but Asurbanipal was a powerful mon¬ 
arch and managed to keep his kingdom intact. 
After his death, however, the decline of Assyrian 
power was rapid. Finally, in 606 B. c., the 
Babylonians under Nabopolassar, the Chaldean, 
with the aid of the Medes, overthrew Nineveh. 
Assyria was then divided between the Medes 
and Babylonians. See Babylonia; Nineveh; 
also Architecture, subhead Chaldean-Assyrian 
Architecture. 

As'ter, a genus of plants of the family Com- 
positae, including several hundred species, 
mostly natives of North America, although spe¬ 
cies are widely distributed in other regions. 
Many are cultivated as ornamental plants. 
Asters generally flower late in the season, and 
some are hence called Michaelmas or Christmas 
daisies. The China aster is a very showy 
annual, of which there are many varieties in 
cultivation, some with large, brilliantly colored 
heads that rival the chrysanthemums. 

Aste'ria, a name applied to a variety of 
corundum, which displays a star of six rays 
of light, corresponding to the six-sided form of 
the prism in which corundum crystallizes, when 
cut with certain precautions; and also to the 
cat’s-eye, which consists of quartz and is found 
especially in Ceylon. 

As'teroids or Planetoids, a numerous 
group of very small planets revolving round the 
sun between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, 
remarkable for the eccentricity of their orbits 
and the large size of their angle of inclination 
to the ecliptic. The diameter of the largest 
is not supposed to exceed 450 miles, while 
most of the others are very much smaller, one 
at least being only twelve miles in diameter. 
They number over 270, and new members are 
being constantly discovered. Ceres, the first of 
them, was discovered Jan. 1, 1801, and within 
three years Pallas, Juno and Vesta were seen. 
The extraordinary smallness of these bodies 
and their nearness to one another gave rise to 
the opinion that they were but the fragments 
of a planet that had formerly existed and had 
been brought to an end by some catastrophe. 
For nearly forty years investigations were car¬ 
ried on, but no more planets were discovered 
till Dec. 8, 1845, when a fifth planetoid, 
Astraea, was discovered in the same region. 
The rapid succession of discoveries that fol¬ 
lowed was for a time taken as a corroboration 


of the disruptive theory; but the breadth of the 
zone occupied makes the hypothesis of a shat¬ 
tered planet more than doubtful, and now each 
planetoid is supposed to have had an independ¬ 
ent origin. Eros approaches the earth more 
nearly than any other body excepting the moon. 
The mean distances of the asteroids from the 
sun vary between 200,000,000 and 300,000,000 
miles; the periods of revolution, between 1191 
days (Flora) and 2868 (Hilda). Their total mass 
does not exceed one-fourth that of the earth. 

Asthma, as'mah or az'mah, a disorder of the 
breathing apparatus, the symptoms of which are 
difficulty in breathing, returning at intervals; 
a feeling of weight across the chest and in the 
lungs; a wheezing, hard cough at first, which 
becomes more free tow r ard the close of each 
paroxysm. Asthma is essentially a spasm of the 
muscular tissue which is contained in the smaller 
bronchial tubes. It attacks men more often 
than women, is often a disease of children and 
seems, in some instances, to be hereditary. 
The exciting causes are various—accumulation 
of blood or viscid mucus in the lungs, exposure 
to noxious vapors, to a cold and foggy atmos¬ 
phere or to close, hot air. It frequently follows 
such diseases as measles and bronchitis. By 
far the most important part of the treatment 
consists in removing the exciting causes. It 
seldom proves fatal except as it induces dropsy, 
consumption or other disease. 

Astig'matism, a malformation of the lens of 
the eye, in consequence of which the individual 
does not see objects in the same plane, although 
they may really be so. If a person suffering 
from astigmatism looks at black lines radiating 
from a center, some of them appear much 
brighter than others. If the difficulty is consid¬ 
erable it should be remedied by glasses. 

As'tor, John Jacob (1763-1848), an Ameri¬ 
can capitalist, born near Heidelberg, Germany. 
In 1783 he emigrated to the United States, settled 
at New York and became extensively engaged 
in the fur trade. In 1811 Astoria, near the 
mouth of the Columbia River, was founded by 
him to serve as a central depot for the fur trade 
between the Great Lakes and the Pacific. He 
subsequently engaged, in various speculations, 
and died worth probably $30,000,000, leaving 
$400,000 to found the Astor Library in New 
York. His descendants are the principal ground 
landlords of the city of New York. (See illus¬ 
tration on next page.) 

Astor, William B. (1792-1875), son of John 
Jacob Astor. He carried on the enormous 



Astor 


Astrology 


business interests of his father and is said to 
have left $50,000,000. He added $200,000 to 
his father’s bequest for a public library, besides 
many valuable books and documents. 

Astor, William Waldorf (1848- )> an 

American financier, grandson of William B. 
Astor. He was elected to the state assembly 



of New York in 1877 and to the state senate in 
1879. From 1882-1885 he was minister plenipo¬ 
tentiary to Italy. He inherited the greater part 
of the enormous Astor estate in 1890, but ten 
years later he took up his residence in England. 

Asto'ria, Ore., the county-seat of Clatsop 
co., 70 mi. n. of Portland, on the Astoria & 
Columbia River Railroad, and on the Columbia 
River, 9 miles from its mouth. It is the third 
city in size and the second city in importance 
in the state. The construction of a jetty has 
made its harbor one of the largest on the coast. 
There is a large export trade of lumber, wheat, 
flour and other products. Salmon fishing and 
canning are the most important industries, and 
there are several lumber mills, box factories, 
iron works and other establishments. The city 
has twelve churches, a public library, a hospital, 
a theater, a good fire department and water 
works. Many beach and river resorts are near 
the city. Astoria was the first settlement in 
the Columbia valley, having been founded as a 
fur trading station by John Jacob Astor in 181L 


The English held the place from 1813 to 1818, 
and renamed it Fort Saint George. It was 
chartered as a city in 1876. Population in 
1910, 9599. 

Astrakhan, aks tra halin', a name given to a 
fine fur of a variety of sheep found in Bokhara, 
Persia and Syria, and deriving its name from 
Astrakhan, a city in European Russia. The 
fur is woolly and glossy and is tightly curled. 
The name is also applied to a coarse cloth 
which is an imitation of this. 

Astringent, as trin'jent, a medicine which 
contracts the organic textures and canals of the 
body, thereby checking or diminishing excessive 
discharges. The chief astringents are the min¬ 
eral acids, alum, lime-water, chalk, salts of cop¬ 
per, zinc, iron, lead, silver, and, among 
vegetables, catechu, kino, oak-bark and galls. 

Astrol'ogy, literally, the science or doctrine 
of the stars. The name was formerly used as 
equivalent to astronomy, but is now restricted 
in meaning to the practice of judging of the 
effects and influences of the heavenly bodies on 
human affairs and to the foretelling of future 
events by the stars. As usually practiced, the 
whole heavens, visible and invisible, were 
divided by great circles into twelve equal parts, 
called houses. As the circles were supposed to 
remain immovable, every heavenly body passed 
through each of the twelve houses every twenty- 
four hours. The position of any planet was 
settled by its distance from the boundary circle 
of the house, measured on the ecliptic. The 
houses had different names and different powers, 
the first being called the house of life, the second 
the house of riches, the third of brethren, the 
sixth of marriage, the eighth of death, and so on. 
The part of the heavens about to rise was called 
the ascendant, the planet within the house of the 
ascendant being lord of the ascendant. To cast 
a person's nativity (or draw his horoscope) was 
to find the position of the houses at the instant 
of his birth. The position of the planets being 
determined, the astrologer, who knew the various 
powers and influences possessed by the sun, 
the moon and the planets, could predict what the 
course and termination of that person’s life would 
be. The temperament of the individual was 
ascribed to the planet under which he was bom, 
that is, to the planet which was lord of the ascend¬ 
ant at that time. If Saturn was ascendant, 
the person was saturnine in temperament; if 
Jupiter he was jovial; if Mercury, mercurial. 
The virtues of herbs, gems and medicines were 
supposed to be due to their ruling planets. 













Astronomy 


Astronomy 


WONDER QUESTIONS IN ASTRONOMY 


How big is the universe? 

The universe is boundless. To describe its size is as 
impossible as to tell the duration of eternity. Nep¬ 
tune, the outermost planet in the solar system, is 
nearly two billion eight hundred million miles from 
the sun; the immensity of our own portion of the 
universe is therefore beyond the grasp of human 
comprehension. But we know that the stars are 
themselves suns and centers of other solar systems, 
and that there are thousands and thousands of 
stars. The star nearest our sun. Alpha Centauri, is 
about twenty-five billions of miles away. Who can 
even try to estimate the distance of those stars that 
seem to us to be far out on the borders of spaGe? 

What keeps the sky in place? 

The beautiful blue dome that we call the sky seems 
to us to be a tangible thing, but it is only empty 
space. Therefore it does not have to be kept in 
place, and it could never fall to the earth. The blue 
that we see is caused by reflection of the sun s rays. 
White sunlight is composed of the seven colors of 
the rainbow. The air contains floating specks of 
dust and other tiny particles of matter, and these 
bodies absorb a portion of the light rays and reflect 
the others. Those that are reflected make the color 
combination that gives the sky its blue appearance. 
But if we could sail in a balloon to the upper atmos¬ 
phere, which is practically clear, we would drift 
about in darkness and empty space. 

Do stars really fall? 

Everyone has seen at some time or another what 
appears to be a star shooting out of its place in the 
sky. But there are no such things as falling stars. 
What you see is a small body from the depths of 
space, which on reaching our atmosphere becomes 
intensely heated by friction with the air. Such a 
body is called a meteor. Meteors travel at an 
incredible rate of speed, and when they touch the 
air surrounding the earth their temperature is raised 
about 600,000 degrees. Most of them burn up in 
the air, but sometimes portions of them actually 
fall to the earth. 

Where do the stars go in the morning? 

The stars are suns, like our own, and they shine by 
their own light. We can see them only at night, 
however, because during the day the sun’s rays are 
so bright they shut out the light from other heavenly 
bodies. But the stars remain in their places day 
and night, and when they fade out in the morning 
it is only because their light cannot pierce through 
the brilliance of the sun’s rays. If you should go 
down into a deep well in the daytime and look up 
into the sky you could see stars because you would 
be out of the range of the sunlight. 

Who is “the Man in the Moon” ? 

That curious resemblance to a man’s face that we 
see in certain markings on the moon used to puzzle 


the ancients greatly. We knc«w now that the mark¬ 
ings are moon mountains and huge craters of extinct 
volcanoes. Of course the resemblance to a face is 
only apparent when the moon is seen with the naked 
eye. If we looked at it through a powerful telescope 
we would have to use a great deal of imagination to 
find any Moon Man there. 

Why doesn’t the moon appear round all of 
the time? 

To understand this we must remember that the moon 
is a dark body, like the earth, and that it is only 
visible to us when it reflects the light of the sun. 
The moon makes a complete revolution around the 
earth in a little less than a month. Now, when it is 
directly between us and the sun the side turned 
toward us receives no light at all, and so we have 
moonless nights. As it moves along its orbit a thin 
crescent is illuminated. This grows larger each 
night until we have a half-moon, or first quarter. 
Finally, the moon gets in such a position that the 
side turned toward us is wholly illuminated, and we 
have the round, full moon. 

What strange thing may happen when the 
moon is between the earth and the sun? 
Sometimes the moon comes between the earth and 
the sun in such a way that it shuts off the light of 
the sun. Then we have the phenomenon of the 
solar eclipse. When the eclipse is total the light of 
day fades into the darkness of night, the stars shine 
out, and though it may be morning the birds tuck 
their heads under their wings and the chickens go to 
roost. An average eclipse lasts about three minutes. 
Astronomers predict that one of seven minutes dura¬ 
tion will take place on June 20, 1955. It will be 
noticeable near Manila, in the Philippine Islands. 

What keeps the earth and other planets from 
flying off into space? 

Every particle of matter in the universe exerts an 
attractive force on every other particle; that is, 
seems to try to pull every other bit of matter toward 
it. This pulling force is called gravity, or gravita¬ 
tion. The earth and all the other planets follow 
their regular orbits around the sun century after 
century because they are held in place by gravita¬ 
tion, and every motion in the entire solar system is 
accounted for by this marvelous force. We know 
how gravitation acts, but we do not know just what 
it is. Like electricity, it is one of nature’s mysteries, 
but its effects can be accurately computed. 

How many different motions has the earth? 

The earth is moving in three different ways. It is 
rotating on its axis once in about twenty-four hours, 
a motion that gives us day and night. At the same 
time it is traveling in its orbit around the sun, mak¬ 
ing a complete revolution in one year. This is the 
motion that gives us our seasons. But the entire 
solar system is traveling through space at a terrific 










Astronomy 


Astronomy 


rate of speed, and the earth, as a part of the system, 
is therefore engaged in a third movement. This 
onward movement is carrying us toward the star 
Vega at the rate of about 36,000 miles an hour. 

What causes the spots on the sun? 

The sun is surrounded by a fiery, gaseous envelope 
called the photosphere. This envelope is subject to 
terrible storms, the violence of which is beyond 
human power to imagine. At times these storms 
tear great rents in the photosphere, just as a strong 
wind severs a mass of clouds. Through these holes 
the eye looks into the sun itself, and the exposed 
places appear like black spots. As a matter of fact, 
the spots are exceedingly bright; they seem dark 
only because their brightness is contrasted with the 
much greater splendor of the photosphere. The 
spots are usually circular, but some of them are 
twisted into extraordinary shapes. They vary 
greatly in size. Astronomers observed one in 1905 
that was estimated to be large enough to completely 
cover forty planets, each the size of the earth. Spots 
of this size can readily be seen without the aid of a 
telescope if the observer uses a smoked glass. 

How do planets differ from stars? 

In regard to appearance, stars seem to us to twinkle, 
while planets shine with a steady light. That is 
because the planets are so much nearer to us than 
the stars; the latter are all far beyond the limits of 
our solar system. Through the telescope a planet 
appears as a globe, but a star as a mere point of light. 
Though stars are glowing suns shining by their own 
light, and planets are dark worlds shining by the 
reflected light of the sun, stars do not look so bright 
as planets because of the immense distances between 
them and us. Indeed, it seems wonderful that we 
should be able to see them at all. 

What planet is encircled by millions of moons? 

Saturn is the planet which bears this distinction. 
Multitudes of small satellites, each traveling in its 
own orbit, are journeying about this wonderful 
planet, and they form a system known as the “rings 
of Saturn.” Tjieie are two bright rings, called the 
Outer and the Inner, and between the Inner ring 
and the globe itself there is a faint one that is called 
the crape ring, because through the telescope it looks 
as if made of that cloth. The satellites that form 
the rings are so small that they cannot be dis¬ 
tinguished from one another, even when viewed 
through the most powerful telescopes. An inter¬ 
esting fact about the bright rings is that they have 
dark rifts in them. These are the places where 
moons are lacking, just as if someone had taken an 
immense broom and swept a few millions of them 
away. Besides its rings, Saturn has ten other 
satellites similar to our own moon. 

Are the other planets inhabited? 

This is a subject that is of absorbing interest, but 
astronomers can only conjecture the answer to the 
question. Venus is much nearer the sun than is 
our earth, but it is surrounded by a thick envelope 


of clouds, which would modify the intense heat and 
light received by the planet. It is possible that life 
does exist there. There is considerable evidence, on 
the other hand, for the belief in an inhabited Mars. 
This planet has seasons much like our own, except 
that they are twice as long. Night and day on Mars 
are only a little longer than those on earth. There 
are white patches at the poles of the planet, which 
increase and decrease in size according to season, 
and most astronomers believe these to be areas of 
ice and snow, such as occur in the polar regions of 
earth. The peculiarity that has awakened the most 
speculation, however, is the presence on our neighbor 
planet of a network of fines, running with perfect 
regularity for hundreds of miles. An American 
professor has worked out a theory that these are 
artificial waterways constructed by a race of beings 
of extraordinary intelligence. All we can say with 
any certainty is that Mars is in a situation as favor¬ 
able for habitation as our own planet, and there is 
reason to suppose people do five there. As for the 
other planets, they differ in so many particulars from 
our earth that discussion of their habitancy becomes 
pure speculation. 

Wit at are comets made of, and how do they 
travel through space? 

A typical solar comet, one that travels in an oval 
path around the sun, may be described as a star 
with a tail. Astronomers believe that the starlike 
portion, or head, consists of a swarm of meteors (the 
nucleus) surrounded by a hazy cloud of luminous, 
gaseous matter. It is interesting to know that the 
nucleus appears in many cases only when the comet 
comes near the sun, and that the head usually con¬ 
tracts as it approaches. The wonderful stream of 
fight that trails after the head consists of gaseous 
matter in a highly rarefied state. As the comet 
sweeps toward the sun the tail flies behind it, but 
when it moves away from the sun the tail is reversed, 
for the matter of which it is composed is always 
repelled by the sun. So a comet traveling away 
from the sun may be said to be moving backwards. 
The head of an average comet visible to the naked 
eye is from 40,000 to 50,000 miles in diameter, but 
the tail is frequently 10,000,000 miles long, and there 
are comets on record having tails over 100,000,000 
miles in length. 

Of what does the Milky Way consist? 

That cloudy belt of fight that beautifies the sky on a 
clear night is made up of countless millions of stars. 
They are too far away to appear as distinct, individ¬ 
ual stars when viewed with the naked eye, but 
astronomers have been able to distinguish them with 
the aid of powerful telescopes. Could we view the 
earth from space we would see the Milky Way 
encircling the globe like a gigantic girdle. Some of 
the brightest parts of the belt have dark spaces in 
them, where stars are lacking. One of the most 
noticeable of these is popularly known as the “coal 
sack.” The Milky Way has occupied the same 
position in the sky since man first began to observe 
the wonders of the heavens. In ancient times it 
was thought to be atmospheric vapors. 








Astronomy 


Astronomy 


Astron'omy is that science which investigates 
the motions, distances, magnitudes and various 
phenomena of the heavenly bodies. That part 
of the science which gives a description of the 
motions, figures, periods of revolution and other 
phenomena of the heavenly bodies is called 
descriptive astronomy, that part which teaches 
how to observe the motions, figures, periodical 
revolutions and distances of the heavenly 
bodies, and how to use the necessary instruments, 
is called practical astronomy; and that part which 
explains the causes of their motions and demon¬ 
strates the laws by which those causes operate, 
is termed physical astronomy. Recent years 
have added two new fields of investigation, which 
are full of promise for the advanpement of 
astronomical science (See Astro-Photography; 
Spectrum Analysis). 

There is no subject that makes a stronger 
appeal to the imagination than astronomy. 
“The heavens declare the glory of God” is as 
true today as when it was written, centuries 
ago. Contemplation of the sun, moon and 
stars awakens in the mind questions that take 
one far away from the commonplace aspects of 
everyday life. Because such queries are a 
stimulus to the imagination and open up to 
young people new avenues of knowledge, we 
herewith include two pages of “wonder ques¬ 
tions” and their answers. This material deals 
with some of the elementary facts of astronomy, 
but the information should suggest to the reader 
the possibilities of further study. 

The most remote period to which we can go 
back in tracing the history of astronomy, the 
oldest of the sciences, refers us to a time about 
2500 b. c., when the Chinese are said to have 
recorded the simultaneous conjunction of Saturn, 
Jupiter, Mars and Mercury with the moon. 
This remarkable phenomenon is found, by cal¬ 
culating backward, to have taken place 2460 B. c. 
Astronomy has also an undoubtedly high anti¬ 
quity in India. The mean annual motion of 
Jupiter and Saturn was observed as early as 
3062 B. c.; tables of the sun, moon and planets 
were formed, and eclipses calculated. In the 
time of Alexander the Great, the Chaldeans or 
Babylonians had carried on astronomical obser¬ 
vations for 1900 years. They regarded comets 
as bodies traveling in extended orbits and pre¬ 
dicted their return; and there is reason to believe 
that they were acquainted with the true organi¬ 
zation of the universe. The priests of Egypt gave 
astronomy a religious character; but their 
knowledge of the science is testified to only by 


their ancient zodiacs and the position of their 
pyramids with relation to the cardinal points. 
It was among the Greeks that astronomy took a 
more scientific form. Thales of Miletus, who was 
bom 639 b. c., predicted a solar eclipse, and his 
successors held opinions which are in many 
respects wonderfully in accordance with modem 
ideas. Pythagoras (500 b. c.) promulgated the 
theory that the sun is the center of the planetary 
system. Great progress was made in astronomy 
under the Ptolemies, and we find Timochares and 
Aristyllus employed about 300 b. c. in making 
useful planetary observations. But Pristarchus 
of Samos, who was born 267 b. c., is said, on the 
authority of Archimedes, to have far surpassed 
them, by teaching the double motion of the earth 
around its axis and around the sun. A hundred 
years later Hipparchus made important dis¬ 
coveries and even undertook a catalogue of the 
stars. It was in the second century after Christ 
that Claudius Ptolemy, a famous mathematician 
of Pelusium in Egypt, propounded the system 
that bears his name; viz., that the earth was 
the center of the universe, and that the sun, moon 
and planets revolved around it in the following 
order: nearest to the earth w r as the sphere of the 
moon; then followed the spheres of Mercury, 
Venus, the Sun, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn; 
then came the sphere of the fixed stars; these 
were succeeded by two crystalline spheres and 
an outer sphere, which last was again circum¬ 
scribed by the coelum empyreum, of a cubic shape, 
wherein happy souls found their abode. The 
Arabs began to make scientific astronomical 
observations about the middle of the eighth 
century, and for 400 years they prosecuted the 
science with assiduity. Ibn-Yunis (1000 A. D.) 
made important observations of the disturbances 
and eccentricities of Jupiter and Saturn. In the 
sixteenth century Nicholas Copernicus, bom in 
1473, introduced the system which bears his name, 
and which gives to the sun the central place in 
the solar system and shows all the other bodies 
revolving around it. This arrangement of the 
universe came at length to be generally received, 
on account of the simplicity it substituted for the 
complexities and contradictions of the theory of 
Ptolemy. The observations and calculations 
of Tycho Brahe, a Danish astronomer, bom in 
1546, continued over many years, were of the 
highest value, and won for him the title of regen¬ 
erator of practical astronomy. His assistant and 
pupil, Kepler, born in 1571, was enabled, 
principally by the aid he received from his 
master’s labors, to arrive at those laws which 



Astro-Photography 


Atalanta 


have made his name famous: 1, That the planets 
move, not in circular, but in elliptical orbits, of 
which the sun occupies the position of a focus; 
2, that the radius vector, or imaginary straight 
line joining the sun and any planet, moves over 
equal spaces in equal times; 3, that the squares 
of the times of the revolutions of the planets are 
as the cubes of their mean distances from the 
sun. Galileo, who died in 1642, advanced the 
science by his observations and by the new 
revelations he made through his telescopes, which 
established the truth of the Copernican theory. 
Newton, bom in 1642, carried physical astron¬ 
omy suddenly to comparative perfection. Ac¬ 
cepting Kepler’s laws as a statement of the facts 
of planetary motion, he deduced from them his 
theory of gravitation. The science was enriched 
toward the close of the eighteenth century by the 
discovery by Herschel of the planet Uranus and 
its satellites, the resolution of the Milky Way into 
myriads of stars, and the unraveling of the 
mystery of nebulae and of double and, triple stars. 
The splendid analytical researches of Lalande, 
Lagrange, Delambre and Laplace mark the 
same period. The nineteenth century opened 
with the discovery of the first four minor planets, 
and of the existence of another planet (Neptune) 
more distant from the sun than Uranus. Of 
late years the sun has attracted a number of 
observers, the spectroscope and photography 
having been especially fruitful in this field of 
investigation. From recent transit observations 
the former calculated distance of the sun has been 
corrected, and is now given as 92,560,000 mi. 
An interesting recent discovery is that of the two 
satellites of Mars. The existence of an intra- 
Mercurial planet, which has been named Vulcan, 
has not yet been verfied. Much valuable work 
has of late been accomplished in ascertaining the 
‘ parallax of fixed stars. See Asteroids ; Comets ; 
Earth; Moon; Planet; Solar System; Stars; 
Sun, and the many topics referred to in these 
articles. See, also, the names of the principal 
astronomers referred to. 

There are a number of interesting books on 
astronomical topics, among which are Proctor’s 
Other Worlds than Ours and Half Hours with 
the Stars, and Flammarion’s Astronomy for 
Amateurs. 

Astro-Photog'raphy, the use of the photo¬ 
graphic camera in the study of the heavens. In 
1840 Draper obtained a photograph showing the 
formations on the surface of the moon. This 
was probably the first really successful photo¬ 
graph of any part of the sky; but since that time 


photography has come to be one of the most 
important aids the modern astronomer has. 
The sensitive plate and the lens make no errors 
in recording their observations, and by various 
processes these observations are made intelligible 
and can be studied at leisure without the inter¬ 
ruptions that occur when the heavenly bodies 
are being studied through the telescope. 

Asuncion, a soon'the on, the capital of Para¬ 
guay, situated on the Paraguay River, about 
650 mi. n. of Buenos Ayres. The most important 
buildings are the cathedral, several other churches 
and convents and the government buildings, 
including the president’s palace, houses of con¬ 
gress, arsenal and custom house. The city also 
has a college and a hospital. The principal 
trade is in tobacco, fruits, Paraguay tea, hides, 
provisions and manufactured goods. It is a 
good river port, and numerous steamers and 
sailing vessels are found in its harbor. It was 
founded in 1536 on the Feast of the Assumption; 
hence its name. Population in 1910, 84,000. 

Atacama, ah'tah kah'ma, a rocky region on 
the west coast of South America, belonging to 
Chile. It forms the chief mining district of, 
Chile, containing silver, gold, lead, copper, 
nickel, cobalt and iron mines. It has an area 
of 30,720 square miles. Population in 1910, 
65,617. 

Atahualpa, ah'ta wahl'pa, the last of the 
Incas, succeeded his father in 1529 on the throne 
of Quito, while his brother Huascar obtained the 
kingdom of Peru. They soon made mar against 
each other; the latter was defeated and his 
kingdom fell into the hands of Atahualpa, who 
took terrible vengeance on his opponents. At 
this juncture the Spaniards under Pizarro 
appeared and by a trick seized Atahualpa, who 
offered a vast ransom in gold. Huascar offered 
a greater sum, and Atahualpa in retaliation 
caused his brother to be killed. Pizarro secured 
the ransom and then, after accusing Atahualpa 
of treason, had him quickly tried and executed. 
See Inca; Pizarro, Francisco. 

At'alan'ta, in the Greek mythology, a famous 
huntress of Arcadia. She was to be obtained in 
marriage only by him who could outstrip her in 
a race, the consequence of failure being death. 
One of her suitors obtained from Venus three 
golden apples, which he threw behind him, one 
after another, as he ran. Atalanta stopped to 
pick them up, and was not unwillingly defeated. 
There was another Atalanta belonging to Boeo- 
tia, and the two cannot very well be distinguished, 
as the same stories were told about both. 


Atchafalaya 

Atchafalaya, ach'a fa li'ah (Lost Water), a 
river of the United States, an outlet of the Red 
River. It branches off before the junction of 
the Red River with the Mississippi, flows south¬ 
ward, and enters the Gulf of Mexico by Atcha¬ 
falaya Bay. Its length is 220 miles, the greater 
part of which is navigable 

Atcheen'. See Achin. 

Atch'ison, Kan., the county-seat of Atchison 
co., 49 mi. n. w. of Kansas City Mo., on the 
Missouri Pacific, the Rock Island and the Bur¬ 
lington railways. The city, has an extensive 
trade in grain, flour, livestock, produce and 
fruit, and contains importarft railroad shops, 
lumber mills, factories, foundries and- brick¬ 
yards. It is the seat of the State Soldiers’ 
Orphans’ Home and several denominational 
schools of importance. Population in 1910, 
16,429. 

A tip abas'ca, a former district of Canada, 
belonging to what was known as the Northwest 
Territories. In 1905 it was made a part of the 
provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. See 
Alberta; Saskatchewan. 

Athabasca Lake, a large lake in Canada, 
situated in the northern part of the provinces 
of Alberta and Saskatchewan. It is about 200 
miles long and 35 miles wide at its broadest 
part. Its waters are carried to Great Slave 
Lake through Great Slave River. The northern 
shore is high and timbered with fir, spruce and 
poplar. The southern shore is low and level. 

Athabasca River, a river of Canada, rises in 
the northwestern part of Alberta, in the Rocky 
Mountains, and flows northeasterly and then 
easterly into Athabasca Lake. Its length is 
about 600 miles. 

Ath'ali'ah, daughter of Ahab, king of Israel, 
and wife of Jehoram, king of Judah. After the 
death of her son Ahaziah, she opened her way 
to the throne by the murder of forty-two princes 
of the royal blood.' She reigned six years; in 
the seventh, the high priest Jehoiada placed 
Joash, the young son of Ahaziah, who had been 
secretly preserved, on the throne of his father, 
and Athaliah was slain (II Kings, xi). This 
story is the foundation of a famous tragedy, 
Athalie, by Racine. 

Athanasius, ath an a’zhe us, Saint (about 
293-373), bishop of Alexandria for forty-seven 
years and the most prominent churchman of 
his times. He was known as the most ardent 
opponent of the Arian heresy and was the target 
of the fierce opposition of his enemies, who 
accused him of all manner of crimes, of which, 


Athens 

however, he is now deemed wholly innocent, 
though he was condemned by partisan synods. 
No less than five times he was exiled by the 
emperors, and during these periods he resided 
in Rome and visited many European provinces. 
The last seven years of his life were spent in 
enjoyment of his victory over the heretics who 
had opposed him. He was a vigorous writer 
of many works, which are now regarded as 
authoritative in the Church, and which serve as 
valuable material for the modem historian. 

Ath'apas'can Indians, a great family of 
North American indians who lived in that vast 
region which extended from Alaska through 
British North America to the northern boundary 
of the United States, and, in isolated groups, 
south as far as Mexico. A single tribe living 
near Lake Athabasca bore this name. The 
Chinook, Apache and Navajo are Athapascan. 
The language of these scattered tribes was 
practically the same. With the exception of 
the Navajo and Apache, they have not been 
warlike tribes. Those of the north lived by 
hunting and fishing, while the tribes of the 
Pacific coast lived in permanent villages. 

A'theism, the doctrine that denies the exist¬ 
ence of God. Atheism is contrary to the 
instincts of man, yet doubtless there have been 
individuals who sincerely believed that no God 
is possible. Agnosticism, which is sometimes 
coufounded with atheism, merely professes 
ignorance of God. 

Ath'els tan (895-940), king of England, 
succeeded his father, Edward the Elder, in 
925. He was victorious in his wars with the 
Danes of Northumberland and the Scots, by 
whom they were assisted, and after his great 
victory at Brunanburh he governed in peace 
and with great ability. He was the first to call 
himself king of England. 

Ath'enae'um, the temple of Athene (or 
Minerva) at Athens, where poets and men of 
letters met and read their productions. The 
same name was given at Rome to the school 
which Hadrian established on the Capitoline 
Mount for the promotion of literary and scien¬ 
tific studies, and provided with a regular staff 
of professors. Similar institutions were estab¬ 
lished at Lyons, Marseilles and other places. 
In modem times the same name is given to 
literary clubs and establishments connected with 
the sciences. 

Athe'ne. See Minerva. 

Ath'ens, the capital of the kingdom of Greece 
and formerly the center of Greek culture and 


Athens 


Athens 


the capital of Mttica. Athens is situated in a 
plain about 5 miles from the harbor of Piraeus, 
on the Gulf of Aegina. It is 350 feet above sea 
level and enjoys a dry and warm climate. 

Ancient Athens. When one speaks of 
ancient Athens, one means Athens in the 
time of Pericles, rather than Athens through¬ 
out the period of its long growth or the subse¬ 
quent period of decay. In the Age of Pericles, 
then, Athens was a strong walled city, built 
about the Acropolis, which was a rocky eleva¬ 
tion about 300 feet above the level of the city, 
having on its summit a comparatively level 
area of somewhat less than ten acres. It was 
accessible only on the west, where a stairway 
of sixty marble steps led to a series of colonnades 
and porticoes called the Propylaea, or Gateway. 
This was a magnificent structure built white 
Pentelic marble and trimmed with black mar¬ 
ble. Just within the entrance was the colossal 
statue of Athena, the patron and defender of 
the city. On the right, and a little to the roar, 
was the Temple of the Wingless Victory (Nike 
Apteros), and to the right of the open space 
rose the Parthenon, an exquisitely beautiful 
temple dedicated in 438 B. c. It was entirely 
of fine Pc: italic marble and was the sacred abode 
of the goddess Athena, in whose honor it was 
erected (See Parthenon). To the left of the. 
entrance stood the Erechtheum, a beautiful 
temple of which there still remains the famous 
Porch of the Maidens (See Caryatides). The 
city surrounded the Acropolis on every side, 
extending to a distance of about a^mile there¬ 
from. To the north and directly 'in front of 
the Acropolis was the Tower of the Winds, a 
beautiful structure erected in 159 B. c. and 
still well preserved. To the west were the Hill 
of the Nymphs and the Areopagus (Mars Hill), 
the rocky eminence from which Paul is sup¬ 
posed to have preached to the Athenians. To 
the northwest lay the Theseum, a beautiful 
temple which is still in a fine state of preser¬ 
vation. On the southwest slope of the Acropo¬ 
lis was the ancient Theater of Dionysus, and 
beyond it the stately Olympieum, begun about 
535 b. c., but not finished until seven hundred 
years later. Under the Romans, Athens was a 
flourishing city which in the second century 
Hadrian ornamented with many new buildings; 
but after that time much of the beauty of the 
city was destroyed, the Parthenon was lost to 
pagan religion and became a church of the 
Virgin Mary. In 1456 Athens fell into the 
hands of the Turks, and the Parthenon became 


a mosque. During the siege of Athens by the 
Venetians in 1687 this beautiful building was 
greatly damaged by an explosion, but enough of 
it was left to attest its original splendor. 

Modern Athens. Modem Athens, laid out 
by King Otto in 1835, lies principally to the 
north of the Acropolis. It is built in the form 
of a crescent and has broad boulevards and a 
number of handsome public buildings, of which 
the most interesting are the royal palace, the 
national museum and the new public library. 
An elegant Stadium has been erected, in which 
the modern Olympic games are celebrated. 
Railroads have been laid in the principal streets, 

, ,nd the city i: connected by rail with the Piraeus 
and with Patras. 

There are in the city many museums, some 
of which contain very valuable collections of 
antiquities, which are being increased by the 
continual studies and excavations that are 
going on throughout Greece. The city has 
good schools and a large university with over 
3000 students. Archaeological schools are main¬ 
tained by the United States, England, France 
and Germany. Athens, though it is the financial 
center of Greece, does but little manufacturing, 
and engages only in domestic trade. Rugs, 
silks, scarfs, brass and copper ware are among 
its most important native manufactures. The 
population in 1907, 167,479. 

History. According to tradition, the founder 
and first king of Athens was Cecrops. Theseus, 
who united under his leadership the twelve 
independent townships of Attica, was the most 
famous of the early Athenian kings and the 
favorite national hero. The last king was Cod- 
rus, whom it was felt there was no one worthy 
to succeed, and the state was accordingly organ¬ 
ized as an oligarchy, with an executive officer 
known as the archon. The number of archons 
was later increased to nine. The aristocratic 
form of government grew to be^very unsatisfac¬ 
tory to the people, because the Tillers, bound by 
no written laws, could practice any oppressions 
they chose, and the lower classes finally revolted 
and demanded written laws. Draco, one of the 
archons, drew up a code of laws (See Draco), 
but the people saw that these old laws were 
thoroughly inadequate and demanded new ones, 
which were accordingly formulated by Solon 
(See Solon). In 561 b. c., Pisistratus, by the 
aid of a dissatisfied class in the state, made him¬ 
self tyrant of Athens, and the city prospered 
under his rule and that of his sons, Hippias 
and Hipparchus, who succeeded him. 


Athens 

In 509 b. c. a new constitution, proposed by 
Clisthenes, was adopted, and under it a demo¬ 
cratic government was set up. This new con¬ 
stitution introduced little that was new into the 
government of Athens, but provided for the 
new conditions which had grown up since the 
constitution of Solon was formed. Athens was 
divided into one hundred divisions called demes; 
each citizen was enrolled in one of these divi¬ 
sions and took his surname from the deme, 
instead of from his clan. Ten of the demes, 
not adjacent, but scattered as widely as possible 
so as to include the various local interests, 
composed a ward, and thus the political unity 



of the old clans was destroyed. Many of the 
aliens throughout Attica were under this new 
constitution enrolled as citizens. 

The aid which Athens sent to the Ionian 
colonies in Asia Minor in 499 brought on the 
Persian wars (See Greece, subhead History ), 
and at the close of this struggle Athens found 
herself the leader of Greece. The Confederacy 
of Delos, organized in 476 for the purpose of 
freeing Greek colonies from Asiatic control, 
became in time a consolidated empire with 
Athens as its capital. The fifty years which 
followed were the most brilliant in Athenian 
history; especially under Pericles was Athens 
the literary and artistic center of the world 
(See Pericles). 

In 431 Sparta, jealous of the position of influ¬ 
ence which Athens held as head of the Delian 
League, demanded that Athens free all of the 
Greek cities. Athens in reply demanded that 
Sparta let go her own conquests in the Pelopon¬ 
nesus, and the result was the Peloponnesian 
War (See Greece, subhead History. At the 


Athletics 

close of this conflict, Athens was deprived of 
much of her power, and her democratic govern¬ 
ment was replaced by an oligarchy under 
the Thirty Tyrants (See Thirty Tyrants). 
Although even under the reestablished democ¬ 
racy Athens never regained her former political 
position, she remained the intellectual center of 
Greece. After Philip of Macedon had con¬ 
quered Greece (338 b. c.), Athens was still the 
center of Hellenic culture, until rivaled by 
Alexandria in the second century B. c. Under 
Roman rule, the city was greatly favored by 
some of the emperors, especially Hadrian, who 
built up a new quarter in the northwest of the 
city. From the time of Justinian, who closed 
the schools of philosophy at Athens, until the 
eleventh century, the history of Athens is 
almost a blank. During the twelfth, thirteenth 
and fourteenth centuries she was sometimes 
independent and at other times subject to some 
Italian city or to Turkey. Turkish rule was 
firmly established late in the seventeenth cen¬ 
tury and continued until after the Greek revo¬ 
lution in 1835, when Athens became the capital 
of the new kingdom of Greece. 

Athens, Ga., the county-seat of Clarke co., 
73 mi. n. e. of Atlanta, on the Oconee River, 
and the Georgia, the Central of Georgia and 
the Seaboard Air Line railroads. The city has 
an extensive cotton trade and has cotton mills 
and other manufactures. It is the seat of the 
University of Georgia, the State College of 
Agriculture, the State Normal and the Lucy Cobb 
Institute for Girls. The city was founded in 
1800 as the seat of the state university. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 14,913. 

Athlet'ics. Definition. Athletics is a term 
used to cover a great variety of indoor and out¬ 
door sports, though often restricted to those 
miscellaneous sports of the track and field which 
take the form of personal contests. This article 
considers the term in its latter sense. The more 
important athletic games are described under 
separate titles in their proper places (See Basket 
Ball; Baseball; Football; Lawn Tennis; 
Hockey; Polo; and so forth). In the United 
States the chief popular interest is in the athletic 
sports in schools and colleges, most of which 
support regular teams made up of students, and 
hold meets with their neighbors in their gym¬ 
nasiums in the winter and out-of-doors in the 
warmer seasons. A marked distinction is drawn 
between the professional athlete who enters con¬ 
tests for pay and the amateur who enters for 
sport only. In all schools and colleges the sports 








Athletics 


Athletics 


should be purely amateur. Efforts are always 
made to keep them so. An amateur in this sense 
is “any person who has never competed in an 
open competition or for public money, or for 
admission money, or with professionals for a 
prize, public money or admission money; nor 
has ever at any period of his life taught or assisted 
in the pursuit of athletic exercise as a means of 
livelihood; nor is a mechanic, artisan or laborer.” 

Athletic Sports. The usual sports of an 
athletic meet may be classified as those of the 
track and those of the field, the former being 
held in a circular track, or cinder path, enclosing 
the inner field where the latter sports are held. 
The track events consist of races, which are the 
sprints of 50 yards, 100 yards, 440 yards and 
the long-distance rims of one-half mile, 1 mile 
and 2 miles, and the hurdle races. The field 
events are the high jumps and the broad jumps, 
the pole vault, the shot put, the hammer throw 
and the discus throw. 

The hurdle races are usually two in number: 
one for 120 yards, over 10 hurdles, each 3 feet, 

6 inches high; and the other of 220 yards, over 
10 hurdles, each 2 feet, 6 inches high. In the 
race over high hurdles, the first is 15 yards from 
the starting line; each hurdle is 10 yards from 
its neighbor, and the tenth is 15 yards from the 
finishing line. In the low hurdle race, the 
hurdles are distributed at intervals of 20 yards 
throughout the course. A hurdle race requires 
great skill and endurance, as well as high speed. 
While the hurdler, may run the first stretch and 
the last stretch as he pleases, he must, if he is to 
succeed at all, take always exactly the same 
number of steps between hurdles and jump over 
them in precisely the same way each time. The 
record for the low hurdles is about 23f seconds; 
for the high hurdles, about 15J seconds. 

In making a pole vault the athlete takes the 
pole, which is usually at least 16 feet long, and, 
measuring the height of the bar with his eye, 
takes hold of the pole at the proper height and 
goes back for his run. With the long pole 
extending forward, he runs down to the “take¬ 
off,” and puts the iron-shod end of the pole into 
the ground and leaps upward, throwing his feet 
above his head and pushing his body up at arm’s 
length till he is above the cross-bar. Then, 
with a quick motion, he throws the pole from 
him and himself over the bar. In each com¬ 
petition three trials are allowed at every height 
at which the bar is placed. The amateur record 
for pole vault is somewhere near 11 feet, 11 
inches. 


The shot put consists in throwing or putting 
a 16-pound shot forward from the shoulder. It 
is not a throw exactly, but a push forward and 
upward. The competitor, who stands within a 
circle 7 feet in diameter, must not step outside 
in the course of his throw. The measurement 
is made from the circumference of the circle to 
the spot where the shot first broke ground. A 
12-pound shot is the customary size in high 
school contests. The record for the 16-pound 
shot is about 49J feet; the high school record 
for the 12-pound shot is about 44| feet. 

Hammer throwing is made under conditions 
similar to those of the shot put. The hammer, 
with its handle, must not exceed 4 feet in length, 
nor its total weight exceed 16 pounds. The 
head of the hammer is usually a spherical shot, 
and the handle, a chain with a wooden or metal 
attachment for the hands. The contestant, 
standing within his 7-foot circle, swings the 
hammer around his head to gain momentum 
and then throws it with the force of his body. 
The record for the 16-pound hammer is about 
172 feet. 

The discus throw is made from a 7-foot ring 
and is measured in the same way that the. shot 
put and hammer throw are measured. The 
discus itself is of smooth, hard wood, weighted 
with lead in the center and capped with brass 
disks and a steel ring, and should not exceed 8 
inches in diameter nor 2 inches in thickness at 
the center. Its weight is 4| pounds. The discus 
is taken in the fingers of the right hand with the 
flat side lying against the palm of the hand and 
wrist, and with a whirling motion and a long, 
full-arm swing the discus is thrown. The record 
for the discus throw is about 140 feet. 

Training. Each particular form of athletic 
exercise requires special training, if a person is 
to excel in it. Not only must the athlete do over 
and over again the things he expects to excel in, 
but he must leam the best ways of doing every¬ 
thing and must train himself to do them with 
the least possible expenditure of energy. It is 
here that the coach is best able to help the 
aspiring athlete. There are, however, some 
things which must be learned and done, no 
matter what the sport or game the person is to 
enter: 

The clothing should be adapted to athletic 
contests; it usually consists of a shirt and knee 
pants of light cloth, thick stockings and shoes 
suitable for running on the road. A sweater or 
blanket is a necessity for use after exercise, in 
order to prevent taking cold. The rubber-soled 


Athol 

gymnasium shoes are good for road work, 
though a light leather shoe is preferred. 

The exercise should be general and not con¬ 
fined to the forms of exertion that are necessary 
in the particular contest. Anything that develops 
general strength and agility is an aid in any 
special contest. It is a serious mistake to try 
frequently to make a record for one’s self; that 
is, to run at full speed over the entire course in 
which the competition is to take place, to throw 
the hammer as far as possible or to jump as high 
as one can. After two or three weeks of general 
exercise and trials of the event at a moderate pace, 
the person may safely, as often as once or twice 
a week, do his best without fear of injury. Some 
good athletes never attempt to make a record 
except in competition. 

Proper diet is essential to any person’s physical 
well-being. It is not necessary that a person 
should deny himself the things he likes to any 
great extent, or punish himself with a rigidly 
selected diet, but he should have good, whole¬ 
some, well-cooked food and plenty of it. Rich 
pastries and heavy, indigestible foods of all sorts 
should be excluded. He should be regular in 
his habits, and he should remember that tobacco 
and liquors and everything that overstimulates 
bring a reaction that is injurious. 

Bathing is another important factor in athletic 
training. Every time after a*person has been 
heated in exercise, he should take a show r er bath 
or a sponge bath, and then rub himself thoroughly 
dry with a coarse towel. If a shower bath is 
used, a person should be careful not to turn on 
too cold water or to stay under the shower too 
long. On the other hand, if the water is too 
warm, it is debilitating in its effect. A cold 
s]ponge bath in the morning is always invigorating 
and never weakening. 

Sleep is another of the important things con¬ 
nected with training. At least eight hours a 
night of good sound sleep are essential, and it is 
infinitely better if this sleep can be taken at 
regular hours. To retire early and have several 
hours of sound sleep before midnight is much 
better than to prolong rest the following morn¬ 
ing. 

Ath'ol, Mass., a town in Worcester co., 44 
mi. n. w. of Worcester, on the Boston & Albany 
and the Boston & Maine railroads. It has 
suburban electric railways and contains manu¬ 
factures of cotton goods, shoes, tools, furniture 
and other articles. The place has two national 
banks, a public library and a high school. It 
was settled in 1735 and was called Pequoig until 


Atlanta 

its incorporation in 1762. Population in 1910, 
8536. 

Athor, ah'thor, or Hathor, an Egyptian god¬ 
dess, identified with Venus. Her symbol was 
the cow bearing on its head the solar disc and 
hawk-feather plumes. From her the third month 
of the Egyptian year derived its name. 

Ath'os, Mount (called by modem Greeks, 
Holy Mountain), a mountain of Turkey, 6350 
feet high, terminating the most eastern of the 
three peninsulas known as Chalcidice, jutting 
into the Archipelago. In a broader sense the 
whole peninsula is called Athos. The Persian 
fleet under Mardonius was wrecked here in 
493 B. c., and to avoid a similar calamity during 
his invasion, Xerxes caused a canal, of which 
traces may yet be seen, to be cut through the 
isthmus that joins the peninsula to the mainland. 
On the peninsula there are situated about twenty 
monasteries and a multitude of hermitages, which 
contain from 6000 to 8000 monks and hermits of 
the order of Saint Basil. Athos was the center 
of Greek learning and theology, and the libraries 
of the monasteries are rich in literary treasures 
and manuscripts. The revenue of the com¬ 
munity is derived from pilgrims and from a 
considerable trade in amulets, rosaries, cruci¬ 
fixes, images and wooden furniture. 

At'jeh. See Achin. 

At'kinson, Edward (1827-1905), an Ameri¬ 
can economist and statistician. He invented 
the “Aladdin Oven,” an improved cooking stove, 
and wrote extensively on economic subjects, on 
which he was considered a high authority. 

Atlan'ta, Ga., the capital of the state, and the 
county-seat of Fulton co., 294 mi. n. w. of 
Savannah, and 171 mi. w. by n. of Augusta, on 
five lines of the Southern Railroad, and on the 
Seaboard Air Line, the Western & Atlantic, the 
Central of Georgia, the Birmingham & Atlantic 
and other railroads. It is the largest city of the 
state and one of the most important railroad 
centers in the South. The city covers an area 
of about 26 Yz square miles. There are over 500 
miles of streets, more than 220 of which are 
paved. Grant Park is a beautiful place within 
the old circle which formerly marked the limits 
of the city, and Piedmont Park is on the site of 
the Atlanta Exposition. The most prominent 
building in the city is the state capitol, which 
cost $1,000,000. Its exterior is of limestone, 
while the interior is decorated with Georgia 
marble. 

The educational institutions include the 
Georgia Institute of Technology, Southern Medi- 


Atlantic City 


Atlantic Ocean 


cal College, Southern Dental College, Atlanta 
Theological Seminary (Congregational), Atlanta 
School of Law and Agnes Scott College, besides 
the following institutions for colored people: 
Atlanta University, Clark University, Atlanta 
Baptist College, Morris Brown College, Spel- 
man Seminary and Gammon Theological Sem¬ 
inary (Methodist). The city has a Carnegie 
Library and a state library which contains valu¬ 
able documents on colonial history. Prominent 
institutions are the Presbyterian Hospital, 
Wesleyan Hospital, Tabernacle Infirmary, the 
Grady Memorial Hospital, a home for the friend¬ 
less, a Florence Crittenden home and orphan 
asylums. Among the other noteworthy build¬ 
ings are the Union passenger station, the court¬ 
house, the city hall, the custom house, the cham¬ 
ber of commerce, a federal prison, five opera 
houses, the new Y. M. C. A. building, a number of 
hotels and business blocks. The leading news¬ 
papers are the Constitution, made famous by 
Henry Grady and Clark Howell, and the Journal. 

The city has excellent transportation facil¬ 
ities and conducts a large trade in cotton, 
tobacco, grain, horses and mules. The industrial 
establishments are rapidly increasing, and 
abundant water power is furnished by means of 
a dam across the Chattahoochee River. 

The first house was built on the site of Atlanta 
in 1836. The town was incorporated in 1843, 
under the name of Marthasville, and the present 
name was adopted two years later. The city 
was chartered in 1847, and at the outbreak of the 
Civil War had a population of about 11,000. 
During the war it was an important military 
point, and in 1864 was captured by the Federal 
army under Sherman. The city was nearly 
destroyed by fire on its evacuation by the Union 
forces, but after the war it was quickly rebuilt. 
In 1877 it was made the capital of the state, in 
1887 the International Cotton Exposition was 
held here, and in 1895 it was the scene of the Cot¬ 
ton States Atlanta Exposition. In May, 1917, 
a great fire destroyed about seventy-five city 
blocks, entailing a loss of many millions of 
dollars, in the poorer quarter of the city. 
Rebuilding operations began at once. Popula¬ 
tion in 1910, 154,839, an increase of 49,839 
since 1904. 

Atlantic City, N. J., a city in Atlantic co., 
60 mi. s. e. of Philadelphia, on divisions of the 
Pennsylvania and the Reading railroads. The 
city is a popular seaside resort and is built on 
Absecom Beach, a sandy island about ten miles 
long by three quarters of a mile wide, lying 


four to five miles from the mainland. The 
streets are broad and are named after the states 
in the Union, and a wide board walk four miles 
long forms the favorite promenade along the 
ocean. There are several miles of excellent 
bathing beach, while boating, fishing and hunt¬ 
ing are also popular amusements. Nearly a 
hundred hotels and boarding houses accommo¬ 
date the visitors, while Atlantic City Hospital, 
Mercer Memorial Home for Invalid Women and 
the Children's Seashore Home are prominent 
institutions. The existence of the city as a 
s umm er resort dates from about 1854, when the 
Camden & Atlantic railroad was completed. 
A fire in April, 1902, destroyed several hotels 
and a number of smaller structures, and there¬ 
after all buildings erected within the city limits 
were required to be fireproof. Atlantic City is 
probably the most important all-the-year-round. 
resort in the United States. Its climate and 
hotel accommodations are such that people 
visit the place even in the midst of winter. 
The census gave the population in 1910, as 
46,150, while the transient population in 
summer is variously estimated from 250,000 to 
300,000. 

Atlantic Ocean, that division of the ocean 
lying between Europe and Africa on the east 
and north, and America on the west. Its 
northern and seuthem boundaries are not 
definitely fixed, but are generally considered to 
extend from the Arctic to the Antarctic Circle. 
This gives the Atlantic a length of 9000 miles. 
Its width varies from about 7000 miles, between 
Greenland and Norway, to 4100 miles, between 
Florida and the Strait of Gibraltar. The width, 
between Cape Palmas in Africa and Cape Saint 
Roque in South America, is 1900 miles. The 
area exclusive of branches is about 30,000,000 
square miles. The important branches of the 
Atlantic are, on the east, the North Sea, the 
Baltic Sea, Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean and 
Gulf of Guinea, and on the west, Gulf of Mexico, 
Gulf of Saint Lawrence and Hudson Bay. 
Many geographers consider the Arctic Ocean 
merely as an extension of the Atlantic, while 
others consider it as a separate ocean. The 
coast line of the North Atlantic is irregular, but 
that of the South Atlantic is more even. The 
length of the eastern coast is over 32,000 miles; 
that of the western coast, 55,000 miles. The 
principal islands along the east coast are the 
Faroes, the British Isles, the Canaries, the 
Madeiras and Saint Helena. Those off the 
coast of America are Greenland, Newfoundland, 


Atlantis 

the West Indies, Trinidad and the Falklands, 
while the Azores are just a little east and Iceland 
is just a little west of mid-ocean in the North 
Atlantic. 

The bed of the Atlantic is divided, by a ridge 
extending north and south nearly midway 
between the continents, into two valleys, each 
of which is about 500 miles wide. The eastern 
varies in depth from 14,000 to 15,000 feet, 
and the western from 13,000 to 16,800. The 
dividing ridge is comparatively narrow and has 
a depth of from 9000 to 10,000 feet. North of 
the Azores the bed of the ocean gradually rises, 
forming a plateau whose length extends east 
and west from the Hebrides to Newfoundland. 
This is sometimes known as the telegraph pla¬ 
teau, because the Atlantic Cable is laid upon it 
(See Cable, Atlantic). This plateau separates 
the cold waters of the Arctic Ocean from the 
warmer waters of the Atlantic. The greatest 
depths of the North Atlantic have been found 
east of Newfoundland, where soundings have 
been obtained as low as 20,000 feet, and north 
of Porto Rico, where a depth of 27,000 feet has 
been reached. The South Atlantic has depths 
varying from 20,000 to 24 000 feet. For circu¬ 
lation, see Currents, Marine; Gulf Stream; 
also Tides; Waves. 

Atlan'tis, an island which, according to 
Plato, existed in the Atlantic near the Pillars 
of Hercules (Straits of Gibraltar), was the home 
of a great nation and was finally swallowed up 
by the sea. The legend has been accepted by 
some as fundamentally true, but others have 
regarded it as the outgrowth of some early dis¬ 
covery of the New World. 

At'las, in Greek mythology, a Titan whom 
Jupiter condemned to bear the vault of heaven. 
At his request Perseus showed him the head of 
Medusa, which had the property of turning all 
who looked at it to stone, and Atlas was changed 
into the mountains which bear his name. The 
name atlas is given to a collection of maps and 
charts, because in the first of these which 
appeared the figure of Atlas bearing the globe 
was given on the title-page. 

Atlas Mountains, an extensive mountain 
svstem in North Africa, starting near Cape Nun 
on the Atlantic Ocean, traversing Morocco, 
Algiers and Tunis, and terminating on the 
coast of the Mediterranean. They are divided 
generally into two parallel ranges, running west 
to east, the Greater Atlas lying toward the 
Sahara, and the Lesser Atlas toward the Medi¬ 
terranean. The principal chain is about 1500 


Atmosphere 

miles long. Tizi-Tamjurt in Morocco is 14,500 
feet high, and Miltsin in Morocco, 11,500 feet. 
Silver, antimony, lead, copper and iron are 
among the minerals. The vegetation is chiefly 
European in character, except on the low 
grounds and next to the desert. See Atlas. 

Atmosphere, primarily the gaseous envelope 
which surrounds the earth; but the term is 
applied to that of any heavenly body. The 
atmosphere of the earth consists of a mass of 
gas extending to a height variously estimated 
at from 45 to 212 miles, and pressing on every 
part of the earth’s surface with a pressure of 
about 15 pounds (14.7) to the square inch. The 
existence of this atmospheric pressure was first 
proved by Torricelli, who thus accounted for 
the rush of a liquid to fill a vacuum, and w r ho, 
working out the idea, produced the first barom¬ 
eter. The average height of the mercurial 
column counterbalancing the atmospheric 
weight at the sea-level is a little less than 30 
inches; but the pressure varies from hour to 
hour, and diminishes with the increase in alti¬ 
tude. The pressure varies daily and is usually 
lowest W'hen the temperature is highest. The 
pressure upon the human body of average size 
is no less than 14 tons, but as it is exerted 
equally in all directions, as the gases in the body 
exert an equal pressure in an opposite direction, 
no inconvenience is caused by it. It is cus¬ 
tomary to take the atmospheric pressure as the 
standard for measuring other fluid pressures; 
thus, the steam pressure of 30 pounds per square 
inch on a boiler is spoken of as a pressure of 
two atmospheres. 

The atmosphere consists of a mixture of oxy¬ 
gen and nitrogen in the almost constant propor¬ 
tion of 20.81 volumes of oxygen to 79.19 vol¬ 
umes of nitrogen, or, by weight, 23.01 parts 
of oxygen, to 76.99 of nitrogen. The gases are 
associated together, not as a chemical com¬ 
pound, but as a mechanical mixture. Upon 
the oxygen present depends the power of the 
atmosphere to support combustion and respi¬ 
ration; the nitrogen dilutes the oxygen and pre¬ 
vents its too energetic action. Besides these 
gases, the air contains aqueous vapor in vari¬ 
able quantity, ozone, carbonic acid gas, traces 
of ammonia, argon, and, in towns, sulphureted 
hydrogen and sulphurous acid gas. After 
thunder-storms, nitric acid is also observable. 
In addition to its gaseous constituents the atmos¬ 
phere is charged with minute particles of vege¬ 
table, animal and mineral matter in the form 
of dust. See Air; Barometer; Wind, 


Atmospheric Electricity 

At'mospher'ic Electricity, the electricity 
manifested by the atmosphere. See Aurora 
Borealis; Lightning. 

Atoll', a coral reef surrounding a pool of 
shallow water, usually called a lagoon. The 
atoll is formed by the building of a coral reef 



on a circular or nearly circular foundation. It 
is usually broken in one or more places so that 
the lagoon is connected with the surrounding 
waters. 

At'om. In chemistry an atom is the smallest 
particle into which matter can be divided. It 
is the subdivision of a molecule (See Mole¬ 
cule). For example, consider a molecule of 
water; it is composed of two parts of hydrogen 
and one part of oxygen. As long as the sub¬ 
stance remains water it is formed from these 
elements united in this way; but if it be sep¬ 
arated chemically, it becomes two atoms of 
hydrogen and one atom of oxygen. It cannot 
be subdivided further. 

Atom'ic The'ory, a theory proposed by 
Dalton in the early part of the nineteenth cen¬ 
tury to explain chemical action. He believed 
that all matter &. composed of very small parti¬ 
cles, called atoms, which cannot be divided into 
anything smaller. He thought that these atoms, 
by uniting together, caused chemical changes. 

There are several laws which have been laid 
down to govern chemical reaction. From one 
we learn that in any substance the elements 
forming it are always present in the same pro¬ 
portion by weight. From another law we find 
that when one element, like nitrogen, for exam¬ 
ple, unites with oxygen in several proportions by 
weight, the different proportions of oxygen are 
simple multiples of a common factor. A third 
law tells us that different, elements which com¬ 
bine with a constant weight of one element 
combine in the same proportions with the 
constant weight of another element. 


Atrium 

Atomic Weights. By carefully weighing 
numerous compounds, chemists have determined 
that there is a certain fixed ratio between the 
smallest amount of any element capable of 
existing in a compound and the weight of the 
same quantity of hydrogen existing under similar 
conditions. This fixed number 
is called the atomic weight of 
the element. In other words, the 
atomic weight of any element is 
the number which shows how 
many times heavier than an 
atom of hydrogen is an atom of 
that element. If the atomic weight 
of hydrogen, then, is 1, of oxygen 
it is 16; of chlorine, 35.5; of 
gold, 197; of uranium, 239£. In 
the standard system recom¬ 
mended by a committee of Ger¬ 
man chemists, now generally in 
use, the basis is 16, the atomic weight of 
oxygen. See Molecules. 

Atone'ment, as used commonly today, 
means that which is done to bring about a 
reconciliation between persons at variance; 
but the doctrine of atonement in theology con¬ 
siders what is necessary to bring man into 
union with God, from whom he has been 
separated by sin. It is on this point that 
Christianity differs from heathenism. Various 
ideas were held among the early church fathers 
concerning the manner in which the death of 
Christ was a sacrifice for our sins, a delivery 
from the power of Satan. Many early Chris¬ 
tians asserted that God offered Christ to Satan. 
Anselm’s interpretation, that Christ offered his 
life to God, for which God granted forgiveness 
of the sins of men, has been accepted by Protes¬ 
tants and Catholics, though different sects give 
various modifications to the doctrine. 

A'trium, the entrance hall and central room 
of an old Roman house. This general room 
served as a living room in which the family ate 
and slept and in which were kept the Lares and 
Penates (See Lares and Penates). It had a 
roof which sloped downwards towards the cen¬ 
ter, so that the rain water ran into a cistern in 
the floor beneath. As the houses increased in 
size, the style of the atrium changed, and under 
Augustus there was a series of columns forming 
a regular colonnade along the central opening. 
The houses of Pompeii furnish the best exam¬ 
ples of atria which have been preserved. The 
term atrium is also applied to a large open court 
in front of a temple or public building, and 













Atrophy 

also to the court in front of a basilical church, 
containing a fountain for ablutions, where peni¬ 
tents gathered to supplicate. This use of the 
atrium was discontinued in the early Middle 
Ages. See Baptistry. 

Atrophy, at'ro fy, a wasting of the flesh due 
to some interference in nutrition. It may arise 
from a variety of causes, such as organic disease, 
a want of proper food or of pure air or suppura¬ 
tions in important organs; it is also sometimes 
produced by poisons, such as arsenic, mercury 
and lead, in miners, painters, gilders and per¬ 
sons following similar occupations. In old 
age the whole frame except the heart undergoes 
atrophic change, and it is of frequent occurrence 
in infancy as a consequence of improper, 
unwholesome food and exposure to cold, damp 
or impure air. Single organs or parts of the 
body may be affected, irrespective of the gen¬ 
eral state of nutrition; thus, local atrophy may 
be caused by palsies, the pressure of tumors 
upon the nerves of the limbs or by artificial 
pressure, as in the feet of Chinese ladies. 

At'ropos. See Fates. 

Attachment, in law, the order of a court and 
the process by which an officer of the law seizes 
a certain person or property connected with an 
action at law. The writ of attachment against 
a person was formerly issued to bring a debtor 
before the court, but this use of the writ has 
been practically abandoned, and in the United 
States attachment against a person is issued 
only for contempt of court. The writ of attach¬ 
ment against property is * commonly used to 
prevent the fraudulent removal or concealment 
of the goods before some question concerning 
it can be settled at law, or before a judgment 
against it can be satisfied. 

Attain'der, the extinction of civil rights 
following upon a sentence of death or outlawry, 
in punishment for high crimes. In England 
common law attainder resulted in the forfeiture 
of all the victim’s property, and it also produced 
corruption of blood, that is, it prohibited the 
attainted person from inheriting property or 
transmitting it to his heirs. These provisions 
were later modified by statute and the latter 
has been abolished. The United States Con¬ 
stitution contains the following provision: “No 
attainder of treason shall work corruption of 
blood or forfeiture, except during the life of 
the person attainted.” Many state constitutions 
have similar provisions. See Bill of Attainder. 

At'tar, in the East Indies, a general term 
for a perfume from flowers; in Europe, generally 
14 


Attention 

used only of the attar or otto of roses, an oil made 
from the petals of several species of roses, 
100,000 roses yielding only 180 grains of attar. 
Cashmere and Damascus are celebrated for its 
manufacture, and there are extensive rose farms 
in Rumelia and at Benares. The oil is at first 
greenish, but afterward it presents various tints 
of green, yellow and red. It is frequently 
adulterated with the oils of rhodium, sandal¬ 
wood and geranium, with the addition of cam¬ 
phor or spermaceti. The attar is packed and 
exported in very slender glass bottles. 

Atten'tion, the directing of the mind’s ener¬ 
gies to a definite purpose. Attention depends 
upon the condition of the brain and the attraction 
furnished by the object. It requires the expendi¬ 
ture of nerve force, and when the brain cells are 
unwearied less stimulus is necessary than when 
one is fatigued. This is illustrated by the 
act'vity of a child in the early part of the day. 
He is then interested in and gives his attention 
to many things which, when fatigued, he will 
scarcely notice. This law is also true of the 
adult. It requires greater effort to hold the 
attention upon a subject when one is tired, and 
for this reason strenuous mental work is usually 
accomplished with less effort in the early part 
of the day. 

Attention is of two kinds, norirvoluntary and 
voluntary. The non-voluntary is without effort 
or fixed purpose, while the voluntary is directed 
by the will towards a definite purpose. Non¬ 
voluntary attention is characteristic of early 
childhood, and its activity is aroused by external 
objects. It is transitory and without motive, 
but it merges into voluntary attention so quickly 
that the two phases are not always distinguish¬ 
able, and what is frequently termed non-voluntary 
is voluntary attention. Just as soon as an object 
which excites non-voluntary attention is sought 
for a purpose, the attention upon it becomes 
voluntary, as in the case of a child having his 
attention arrested by a flower; no sooner does 
he see it than he desires to possess it. His non¬ 
voluntary attention has then become voluntary. 
But before he has obtained the flower, some other 
object having a stronger attraction may secure 
his attention, and he will leave the flower and 
follow the new object. Because of these changes 
we often consider the child’s attention to be 
wholly of the non-voluntary sort. This, how¬ 
ever, is due to his apparent lack of purpose. 

Voluntary attention is under control of the 
will and is roused through interest in an object 
more or less remote, the attainment of which 


Attention 


Attica 


requires effort. A pupil’s attention is not drawn 
to a problem in arithmetic so much by the 
problem itself as by the ability which its solution 
will give him. A boy climbs to the top of a 
toboggan slide, not for the purpose of reaching 
the highest point, but because he wishes to slide 
down, and getting to the top is a necessary 
step toward the desired end. Interest is the 
foundation of voluntary attention, and the mind 
never gives heed to those things which have no 
significance. Objects of interest include im¬ 
pressions from the external world received 
through the senses, and those arising from the 
operations of the mind itself, such as memory 
and imagination. The external impressions form 
by far the larger class. The amount of effort 
necessary to fix the attention upon an object 
depends upon our interest in the object and our 
condition of mind. Strong stimuli, such as those 
produced by the ringing of a bell or the firing of 
a gun, call for but little effort, but their effect is 
usually transitory. Those subjects in which we 
are deeply interested call for but little effort, 
while those concerning which we know but little 
or in which we feel only a slight interest, require 
great effort to enable us to hold our attention 
upon them. However, as we learn more of a 
subject our interest in it usually increases, and 
the effort necessary to hold attention upon it 
becomes less and less, until we are frequently 
absorbed in the subject. Complete absorption 
is the hig hest, degree of attention and is reached 
only in cases of the most intense mental activity. 
In such a state one may be spoken to and not 
hear, may fail to notice the presence of others, 
or may even receive bodily injury without being 
aware of it at the time. 

Attention is the foundation of all knowledge, 
and its development and training are essential 
to a well-disciplined mind. These are in accor¬ 
dance with certain principles and laws which 
should be understood by the parent and teacher: 

(1) Attention grows with the development 
of the nervous system. In the young child it is 
almost wholly involuntary, while in the educated 
adult it is almost wholly voluntary. The first 
work of the parent and teacher is to change the 
non-voluntary to voluntary attention. 

(2) Attention is a se’ective activity. What¬ 
ever ideas are in our minds are there because at 
some time in life we willed to put them there. 
Attention singles out or abstracts one object from 
among many crowding upon the mind, and 
directs our activity to it. It also suppresses other 
objects so as to make the principal object of our 


desires stand out clearly in consciousness. Since 
the child is unable to make fine distinctions, he 
can hold in consciousness only the larger features 
and relations of objects, such as form, color and 
odor, while the trained intellect is able to make 
finer distinctions. 

(3) Attention can be fixed only upon those 
objects and ideas which have some meaning, 
that is, which point to something beyond them¬ 
selves. Therefore, in training the attention of 
children, those subjects which have significance 
in the child’s life should be used. Each lesson 
should bring out something new, but this should 
be so related to the knowledge already in the 
mind that it can be readily understood. The 
effort of -attention is lessened in proportion as 
the interest is increased. 

(4) Attention can be held for only a short time 
on an object that does not change: hence, the 
teacher should so plan her lessons as to give 
such variety as will hold the attention of her 
pupils, and at the same time return again and 
again to the leading idea, until it is comprehended. 

(5) Attention requires effort and is followed 
by fatigue. For this reason lessons for young 
children should be short, seldom exceeding ten 
minutes, and if the activity required is intense 
the time should be shorter. Each period of 
intense activity should be followed by a period 
of relaxation, when the children engage in play 
or are provided with an entirely different occu¬ 
pation. 

(6) Attention becomes habitual. It is there¬ 
fore important that this power be rightly trained 
during childhood and youth. Because of 
inability to hold their attention upon a subject 
for any length of time, many people fail to accom¬ 
plish difficult tasks. 

See Association of Ideas; Habit; Interest; 
Perception. Consul Hughes’s The Art of 
Securing Attention and Compayre’s Lectures 
on Pedagogy, Chapter V. 

At'tic, an architectural term used to designate 
a low story surmounting the entablature or main 
cornice of a building. It also refers to a low 
story at the top of a building and to the sky¬ 
lighted rooms in the roof. An attic base is a 
peculiar kind of base consisting of an upper and 
lower torus separated by a scotia and resting on 
a square plinth, and was used by the ancient 
architects in the Ionic order and by Palladio 
and some others in the Doric. 

At'tica, the triangular peninsula that forms 
the southeastern extremity of Greece. The soil 
is poor and the water supply scanty, and these 


Attila 

facts, combined with the character of the coast 
and an exceptionally fine harbor, turn many 
of the inhabitants to a seafaring life. Athens, 
the capital of Attica, was the most famous city 
of ancient Greece. 

At'tila, the famous leader of the Huns, 
succeeded, with his brother Bleda, to the domain 
of his uncle Roas in 434 a. d. The rule of the 
two leaders extended over a great part of north¬ 
ern Asia and Europe, and they threatened the 
Eastern Empire and twice compelled the weak 
Theodosius II to purchase peace. Attila had 
his brother murdered about 445, and in a short 
time greatly extended his dominions. Thrace, 
Macedon and Illyria were overrun, and then 
Attila turned his attention to the West. He met 
the allied armies of the emperor and the Visi- 
gothic king, Theodoric, at Chalons, and was 
iefeated after a bloody battle. In 452 he 
entered Italy, but was prevented from attack¬ 
ing Rome by Pope Leo I. Attila died on the 
night of his marriage with Hilda (or Udico), 
either from the bursting of a blood vessel or by 
her hand. The description of Attila which has 
come down to us states that he had a large head, 
a flat nose, broad shoulders and a short and ill- 
formed body, but that his eyes were brilliant, his 
walk stately and his' voice strong and well-toned. 

At'tlebo'ro, Mass., a town in Bristol co, 
31 mi. s. w. of Boston, on the New York, New 
Haven & Hartford railroad. It contains dye 
houses, gold and silver refineries and smelters, 
and extensive manufactures of jewelry, silver¬ 
ware, cotton goods, machinery, carriages and 
various other articles. The municipality has a 
public library, an almshouse and a sanitarium, 
and it owns and operates the waterworks. It 
was settled in 1669 and was incorporated in 
1694. Population in 1910, 16,215. 

Attorney-general. See Justice, Depart¬ 
ment of. 

Auber, o bare ', Daniel Francois Esprit 
(1782-1871), a French operatic composer, who 
was originally educated for a mercantile career. 
More than forty operas testify to his incessant 
labor and power of originality. Of these, the 
best are Masaniello (1828) and Fra Diavdo 
(1830). 

Au'bum, Me., the county-seat of Andros¬ 
coggin co., 30 mi. s. w. of Augusta, on the 
Androscoggin River and on the Maine Central 
and Grand Trunk railroads. Water power is 
supplied by the river for the manufacturing of 
cotton goods, boots and shoes, furniture and 
leather. Lewiston Falls, Lake Auburn and 


Audiphone 

Poland Springs are scenic points of interest 
The place was settled in 1786. Population iu 
1910, 15,064. 

Auburn, N. Y., the county-seat of Cayuga co., 
174 mi. w. of Albany, on Owasco Lake and on 
the New York Central and the Lehigh Valley 
railroads. The lakes provide good water power 
and the manufactures include cotton and woolen 
goods, carpets and agricultural implements. 
The city has many fine buildings and is the seat 
of Auburn Theological Seminary. Another fea¬ 
ture of interest is the bronze statue of William 
H. Seward, whose home was here. Auburn 
is the seat of a large state prison known for its 
silent system of discipline, where the inmates 
work together without talking to one another, 
and when not at work are confined in separate 
rooms. A state insane asylum and an armory 
are also located in Auburn. The place was firrt 
settled by Capt. John L. Hardenburgh in 1792 
and was known as Hardenburgh’s Comers. 
It was made the county-seat in 1805 and was 
then given its present name, from the place 
described by Oliver Goldsmith in his Deserted 
Village. Population in 1910, 34,668 

Auckland, a town and former capital of New 
Zealand, situated on Waitemata Harbor, one of 
the finest harbors of New Zealand. It has a 
college, some fine public buildings, two libraries 
and a botanical garden. The trade is consider¬ 
able, connection with the chief places on the 
island being furnished by railroad and with the 
other ports of the colony, Australia and Fiji by 
steamboat. The chief industries are ship¬ 
building, sugar refineries and glass-works. Pop¬ 
ulation in 1911, 40,536; with suburbs, 102,676. 

Auc'tion, the public sale of an article to the 
party offering the highest price, or to the bidder 
who first accepts the terms offered by the vender 
where he sells by reducing his terms until some 
one accepts them. The latter form is known 
as a Dutch auction. A sale by auction must be 
conducted in the most open and public manner 
possible; and there must be no collusion on the 
part of the buyers. Puffing or mock bidding 
to raise the price by apparent competition is 
illegal. A bid is an offer and when accepted 
forms a binding contract (See Contract). 

Audiphone, aw'de Jone, or Dentiphone, an 
instrument by means of which deaf persons are 
enabled to hear. It consists essentially of a 
fan-shaped plate of hardened rubber, having a 
handle at one end and a string attached to the 
opposite end. The plate is bent downward by 
pulling on the string, thus forming a concave 



Audubon 


Augsburg Confession 


surface which collects the sound waves and 
transmits them to the teeth, from which they are 
conveyed to the auditory nerve through the 
bones of the face. The audiphone is of use to 
people whose deafness is caused by defects in 
the external or middle ear. See Ear. 

Aud'ubon, John James (1780-1851), an 
American naturalist, born at Mandeville, Louisi¬ 
ana, of French parentage. He was educated in 
France, and studied painting under David. In 
1798 he settled in Pennsylvania, where he lived 
for ten years, devoting his time to the study of 
birds and to making drawings in natural history. 
In 1826 he went to England, exhibited his draw¬ 
ings in Liverpool, Manchester and Edinburgh, 
and finally published them in an unrivaled work, 
containing four hundred thirty-five colored 
plates of birds the size of life, entitled The Birds 
of America. Later there appeared an accom¬ 
panying text entitled Ornithological Biography, 
partly written by William Macgillivray. On his 
return to America Audubon labored with 
Dr. Bachman on a finely illustrated work 
entitled The Quadrupeds of America. His great 
merit is the accuracy and extent of his original 
observations. The Audubon Society, for the 
protection of American birds, is named for him. 

Audubon Society, The, an organization 
which has for its objects the disseminating of 
information about our common birds, in order 
to prevent their destruction, and the creating of 
a sentiment against the wearing of birds and 
feathers as articles of adornment. There are 
Audubon Societies in thirty states, with sixty 
thousand members. Hundreds of thousands of 
circulars have been issued. All the New Eng¬ 
land states, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, 
Florida Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Wis¬ 
consin, Arkansas and Wyoming, have adopted the 
bird law of the American Ornithological Union, 
which forbids the killing at any time of non¬ 
game birds. Bird Lore, a bi-monthly magazine, 
is the official organ of the society. 

Auerbach, ow'ur bahK, Berthold (1812- 
1882), a distinguished German author of Jewish 
extraction. He abandoned the study of Jewish 
theology in favor of philosophy and devoted 
himself to the study of Spinoza, whose works he 
translated. Among his chief works are Judaism 
and Modern Literature; Village Tales of the 
Black Forest, the widest known of his writings; 
Edelweiss, and On the Heights. 

Augeas, aw'je as, a mythical king of Elis, in 
Greece, whose stable contained 3,000 oxen and 
had not been cleaned for thirty years. Her¬ 


cules undertook to clear away the filth in one 
day in return for a tenth part of the cattle, 
and executed the task by turning the river 
Alpheus through the stable. Augeas, having 
broken the bargain, was deposed and slain by 
Hercules. 

Au'ger, a tool used for boring wood. The 
auger has a screw at the point, fpr drawing it 
into the wood, and a spiral pod with a cutting 
lip at each side of the end next to the screw. 



AUGER 

The upper end of the pod forms the shank to 
which the handle is attached. Large augers 
have handles fastened to them, but smaller ones, 
usually called bits, have a common shank which 
fits into a brace or bit-stock. See Boring 
Machines. 

Augite, aw'jite, or Pyroxene, a mineral of the 
hornblende family, an essential component of 
many igneous rocks, such as basalt, greenstone 
and porphyry. A transparent green variety found 
at Zillerthal, in the Tyrol, is used in jewelry. 

Augsburg, owgs'boorg, a city of Bavaria, a 
renowned commercial center t in the Middle Ages, 
and still an important emporium of south Ger¬ 
man and Italian trade. There are many beau¬ 
tiful churches, some of which date from medieval 
times, among them being the cathedral and the 
memorial chapel of the Fugger family. Other 
important buildings are the town-hall, which 
contains the celebrated Golden Hall, one of 
the finest halls in Germany, and the former 
episcopal palace, in which, in 1530, the Augs¬ 
burg Confession was presented to the emperor, 
Charles V. Besides these there are several beau¬ 
tiful modern buildings, a theater, a library and 
a splendid gallery of paintings. The chief 
industries are cotton spinning and weaving, 
dyeing, woolen manufacture, book printing and 
binding and manufactures of machinery, metal 
goods and chemicals. Augsburg is a place 
of great antiquity, Emperor Augustus having 
established a colony here about 12 b. c. In 
1276 it became a free city, and, besides being a 
great mart for the commerce between the north 
and south of Europe, it was a great center of 
German art in the Middle Ages. It early took 
a conspicuous part in the Reformation. In 1806 
it was incorporated in Bavaria. Population in 
1910, 102,487. 

Augsburg Confession. The emperor Charles 
V, with the aim of arranging the difficulties 



Augurs 


Augustus 


between the Catholic and Protestant parties in 
Germany which were the result of the Reforma¬ 
tion, called a diet in 1530 and requested the 
Protestants at that time to present a statement 
of their beliefs. Luther was under the ban of 
the Empire and could not attend the diet, and 
the confession was therefore drawn up by 
Melanchthon and revised by Luther before being 
read. Charles V and the Catholics would not 
accept the document, and the two divisions of 
the Church soon separated completely. From 
that time the Augsburg Confession has been 
regarded as the expression of the creed of the 
Lutheran Church. 

Au'gurs, a board or college of diviners who, 
among the Romans, predicted future events and 
announced the will of the gods. Their predic¬ 
tions were determined by signs in the sky, 
especially thunder and lightning; by the flight 
and cries of birds; by the feeding of the sacred 
chickens; by the course taken or sounds uttered 
by various quadrupeds or by serpents; by acci¬ 
dents .or occurrences, such as spilling the salt 
or sneezing. The answers of the augurs, as 
well as the signs by which they were governed, 
were called auguries, but bird-predictions were 
properly termed auspices. Nothing of conse¬ 
quence could be undertaken without consulting 
the augurs, and by the mere utterance of the 
words alio die (on another day) they could dis¬ 
solve the assembly of the people and annul all 
decrees passed at the meeting. 

Au'gust, the eighth month from January. 
It was the sixth of the Roman year, and hence 
was called Secctilis till the Roman Senate re¬ 
named if in honor of Augustus. 

AugUS'ta, Ga., the county-seat of Richmond 
co., on the Savannah River, at the head of 
navigation, 303 mi. from its mouth. The South¬ 
ern and other railroads connect with the city. 
The water supply is under municipal operation. 
It comes through a canal from a dam in the 
river 9 miles above the city, and also yields 
some 14,000 horse-power for manufactures. 
The mild, even temperature and dry air are 
causing the place to become increasingly popu¬ 
lar as a health resort. Augusta is one of the 
largest cotton markets in the South and has iron 
foundries, wood working industries and impor¬ 
tant manufactories of cotton goods. It also 
ships a considerable amount of lumber, fruits 
and vegetables. The Georgia Medical College, 
which is a part of the state university, and Rich¬ 
mond, Saint Mary’s and Sacred Heart acade¬ 
mies, and Paine’s Institute for Colored Students 


are located here. The streets of the city are 
broad and shady, and there are several parks 
and twenty-five public squares. The most 
important buildings are the Masonic Temple, 
Odd Fellows’ Hall and the Cotton Exchange. 
Population in 1910, 41,040. 

Augusta, Me., the capital of the state and 
the county seat of Kennebec co., 63 mi. n. e. 
of Portland, on the Maine Central railroad and 
on the Kennebec River, 45 mi. from its mouth. 
The river furnishes water power for manufac¬ 
tures of cotton goods, paper, wood pulp and 
lumber. The state house, city hall, post office, 
asylum and United States arsenal are important 
buildings. In the state house is the state 
library of 60,000 volumes and a notable collec¬ 
tion of portraits of distinguished Americans. 
Four miles from the city is a National Soldiers’ 
Home. The first settlement, known as Cushnoc, 
was made by traders in 1754, and the town was 
incorporated as Hallowell in 1771, but the name 
was soon changed to Augusta. It became the 
capital of the state in 1831. Population in 1910, 
13,211. 

Augustine, aw'gus tine, or Aus'tin, Saint, 
the Apostle of the English, flourished at the 
close of the sixth century. He was sent with 
forty monks by Pope Gregory I to introduce 
Christianity into Saxon England, and was 
kindly received by Ethelbert, king of Kent, 
whom he converted, baptizing 10,000 of his 
subjects in one day in the river Swale. 

Augustine, Aurelius Augustinus, Saint 
(354-T30), a renowned father of the Christian 
Church. He was sent to Carthage to be edu¬ 
cated and there entered into the vices and gay 
life of the time. In 383 he went to Rome and 
thence to Milan, where he came under the influ¬ 
ence of Saint Ambrose and was converted to 
Christianity. He divided his goods among the 
poor, retired to private life and gained a repu¬ 
tation by his writings. He was a man of great, 
enthusiasm, powerful intellect and strong influ¬ 
ence, and his Confessions form a remarkably 
written autobiography. It is said “he moulded 
the spirit of the Christian Church for centuries,” 
and both Protestants and Catholics appealed, 
during the Reformation, to his authority. 

Augus'tus I, Frederick (Augustus II of 
Poland, 1670-1733), elector of Saxony and 
king of Poland. He succeeded his brother in 
the electorate in 1694, and when the Polish 
throne became vacant, by the death of John 
Sobieski, Augustus secured it. He joined with 
Peter the Great in the war against Charles XII 



Augustus II 


Auk 


of Sweden. In 1704 he was deposed, but after 
the defeat of Charles at Pultava, the Poles 
recalled him. On ‘the death of Charles XII, 
Augustus concluded a peace with Sweden. 

Augustus II, Frederick (Augustus III of 
Poland) (1696-1763), elector of Saxony and king 
of Poland son of Augustus I, succeeded his 
father as elector in 1733 and was chosen king 
of Poland through the influence of Austria and 
Russia in the same year. Assisted by Russian 
troops he drove Stanislaus Lesczynski, who 
sought to recover his throne, from Poland, and 
in June, 1736, he was generally accepted as king. 
In 1756, at the beginning of the Seven Years’ 
War, Augustus aided Maria Theresa against 
Frederick the Great, but before the end of the 
year his forces had been scattered and he him¬ 
self fled from Dresden to Poland, leaving Saxony 
under Frederick’s dominion until the end of the 
war. 

Augustus, Caius Julius Caesar Octa- 
VI anus (63 B. C.-14 A. D.), originally called 
Caius Octavius, Roman emperor, was the son 
of Caius Octavius and Atia, a daughter of 
Julia, the sister of Julius Caesar. After Caesar’s 
death Octavius returned to Rome to claim 
Caesar’s property and avenge his death, and 
now took, according to usage, his uncle’s name 
with the surname Octavianus. After a struggle 
with Antony, in which Antony was overcome, 
Octavianus succeeded in getting himself chosen 
consul, and soon afterwards, having effected a 
reconciliation with Antony, he formed, with 
him and Lepidus, the second triumvirate. This 
alliance resulted in a proscription, in which 
three hundred senators and two thousand 
knights were put to death. 

Next year Octavianus and Antony de¬ 
feated the republican army under Brutus and 
Cassius at Philippi, and the victors now divided 
the Roman world between them, Octavianus 
taking the West, Antony the East and Lepidus 
Africa. Sextus Pompeius, who had made him¬ 
self formidable at sea, was now put down; and 
soon after, Lepidus, who had hitherto retained 
an appearance of power, was deprived of all 
authority and retired into private life. Antony 
and Octavianus now shared the Empire between 
them; but while the former, in the East, gave 
himself up to a life of luxury and alienated the 
Romans by his alliance with Cleopatra and his 
adoption of Oriental manners, Octavianus skill¬ 
fully cultivated popularity and soon declared 
war against the queen of Egypt The naval 
victory of Actium, in which the fleet of Antony 


and Cleopatra was defeated, made Octavianus 
master of the world, 31 B. c. He returned to 
Rome, celebrated a splendid triumph and 
caused the temple of Janus to be closed as a 
sign of universal peace. Gradually all the 
highest offices of state, civil and religious, 
were united in his hands, and the new title of 
Augustus (sacred) was formally conferred by 
the senate in 27 B. c. Under him successful 
wars were carried on in Africa and Asia, in 
Gaul and Spain, in Pannonia and in Dalmatia; 
but the defeat of Varus by the Germans under 
Arminius, with the loss of three legions, 9 A. D., 
was a great blow to him. He adorned Rome 
in such a manner that it was said, “He found 
it of brick, and left it of marble.” The people 
erected altars to him, and by a decree of the 
senate, the month Sextilis was called Augustus. 
His death, which took place at Nola, plunged 
the Empire into the greatest grief. Augustus 
was thrice married, but had no son, and was 
succeeded by his stepson, Tiberius, whose 
mother, Livia, he had married after prevailing 
on her husband to divorce her. 

Auk, a general name for certain swimming 
birds common in the polar regions. There are 
but two species of the auks proper, the great auk 
and the razor-bill. The great auk, a bird about 



GREAT AUK 


three feet in length, was formerly plentiful in the 
northern regions and was known to visit the 
British Isles, but within the knowledge of man 
it has become extinct. In museums, however, 
’there are some seventy skins, a number of eggs 
and the skeletons of still more individuals. The 
wings of the great auk were only about six inches 


Aulis 


Aurora 


in length and totally useless for flight, but were 
employed vigorously as fins in swimming, 
especially while the bird was diving. The tail 
was about three inches long and the legs of the 
bird were placed so far back that when on land 
the bird seemed to stand erect. The head, neck 
and upper, parts of the bird were black, but a 
large spot under each eye and most of the under 
parts were white. 

The razor-bill is about fifteen inches in length 
and can use its wings in flight. Thousands of 
these birds are killed on the coast of Labrador 
for their breast feathers, which are thick and 
warm. Among the species grouped with the 
auks are the tufted puffin and the rhinoceros 
auklet of the North Pacific, the black guillemot 
of the North Atlantic, the murre or common 
guillemot, which migrates from Spitzbergen 
southward to the New England states, and the 
little auk of Greenland and northern Iceland. 
These birds spend the winter in the open seas, 
but in spring they come to land, where each pair 
claims its little space of ground on which is laid 
its single egg. There are localities on the north¬ 
eastern coast of North America where thousands 
of these birds, sometimes representatives of 
several different species, may be seen sitting 
close together, each protecting its own egg, 
which it holds upon its webbed feet and covers 
with its body. 

Au'lis, in ancient Greece, a seaport in Boeotia, 
on the strait called Euripus, between Boeotia and 
Euboea. It was at Aulis 
that the Greeks were sup¬ 
posed to have gathered be¬ 
fore setting out for Troy. 

Aure'lian, Lucius Domi- 
tius Aurelianus (about 
212-275). emperor of Rome. 

He was of humble origin, 
rose to the highest rank in 
the army and on the death 
of Claudius II in 270 was 
chosen emperor. He deliv¬ 
ered Italy from the barbari¬ 
ans, conquered the famous 
Zenobia, queen of Palmyra, 
and followed up his victories by the reformation 
of abuses and the restoration throughout the 
Empire of order and regularity. He was assas¬ 
sinated while heading an expedition against the 
Persians. 

Aure'lius, Marcus (sumamed Antoninus) 
(121-180 A. D.), often called simply Marcus 
Aurelius, a Roman emperor and philosopher, 


the adopted son and successor of Antoninus 
Pius. He succeeded to the throne in 161. 
Brought up and instructed by Plutarch’s nephew, 
Sextus, the orator Herodes Atticus and the jurist 
L. Volusius Mecianus, he had become acquainted 
with learned men and had formed a great love 
for the Stoic philosophy. A war with Parthia 
broke out in the year of his accession and did not 
terminate till 166. On his return from this 
struggle he was obliged to turn his attention to 
the German tribes who were menacing the 
Roman state. His brother Verus had died, and 
the sole command of the war devolved on Marcus 
Aurelius, who prosecuted it with the utmost vigor, 
compelling the Marcomanni and other tribes to 
sue for peace. The sedition of the Syrian 
governor Avidius Cassius, with whom Faustina, 
the empress, was in treasonable communication, 
called the emperor from his conquests, but before 
he reached Asia the rebel was assassinated. 
Aurelius returned to Rome, after visiting Egypt 
and Greece, but soon new incursions of the 
Marcomanni compelled him once more to take 
the field. He defeated the enemy several times, 
but his activities had exhausted him and he died 
in the midst of his wars. His only extant work 
is the Meditations, which has been translated 
into most modem languages, and which contains 
many beautiful passages that are everywhere 
familiar. Aurelius was one of the best em¬ 
perors Rome had, although his philosophy and 
the magnanimity of his character did not restrain 


AURORA 

With heralds and sun-god. 

him from the persecution of the Christians, 
whose religious doctrines he was led to believe 
were subversive of good government. 

Aurochs, aw'roks. See Bison. 

Auro'ra, in classical mythology, the goddess 
of the dawn, daughter of Hyperion and Thia, 
and sister of Helios and Selene (Sun and Moon). 
She was represented as a charming figure. 





Aurora 


Austin 


“rosy-fingered,” clad in a yellow robe, rising at 
dawn from the ocean and driving her chariot 
through the heavens. Among the mortals whose 
beauty captivated the goddess, poets mention 
Orion, Tithonus and Cephalus. 

Aurora, III., a city in Kane co., 38 mi. w. of 
Chicago, on the Fox River and on the Chicago 
& Northwestern, the Chicago, Burlington & 
Quincy and the Illinois Central railroads. It 
has a fine city hall, iron bridges, a Young Men’s 
Christian Association building, a state hospital, 
a Carnegie library and twelve churches. The 
public school system is excellent, and Aurora 
is also the seat of Jennings Seminary and other 
schools. Aurora is important as a manufacturing 
center, and among the establishments here are 
railroad repair shops, cotton and woolen mills, 
foundries, flour mills, stove works, corset fac¬ 
tories and carriage factories. The surrounding 
country is agricultural, with a gently rolling 
surface. The first settlement was known as 
McCarty’s Mills, but the present name was 
adopted in 1837. Aurora became a city in 1857. 
Population in 1910, 29,807. 

Aurora, Mo., a city in Lawrence co., 270 mi. 
s. w. of Saint Louis, on the Saint Louis & San 
Francisco and the Kansas City, Fort Scott & 
Memphis railroads. It is in an agricultural 
and fruit growing region. The city has lead and 
zinc mines and foundries, machine shops and 
flour mills. Population in 1910, 4148. 

Auro'ra Bo'rea'lis or Northern Lights, 
the name of a peculiar light seen in the sky at 
night, usually in the northern portion of the 
heavens. A similar light in the southern hemi¬ 
sphere is called the Aurora Australis. The north¬ 
ern aurora has been far the most observed and 
studied. It usually manifests itself by streams 
of light ascending toward the zenith from a dusky 
line of cloud or haze a few degrees above the 
horizon and stretching from the north toward 
the west and east, so as to form an arc with its 
ends on the horizon. Its different parts and rays 
are constantly in motion. Sometimes it appears 
in detached places; at other times it almost covers 
the sky. It assumes many shapes and a variety 
of colors, from a pale red or yellow to a deep red 
or blood color; and in the northern latitudes 
serves to illuminate the earth and cheer the gloom 
of the long winter nights. When electricity 
passes through rarefied air it exhibits a diffused 
luminous stream which has all the characteristic 
appearances of the aurora, and hence it is highly 
probable that this light is occasioned by the 
passage of electricity through the upper regions 


of the atmosphere. The connection between 
the aurora and magnetism is also evident from 
the fact that the magnetic needle is strongly 
affected by it. See Electricity; Magnetism. 

Au'rungzebe' (1619 ?-l707), one of the great 
Mogul emperors of India. In his twentieth 
year he raised a body of troops and obtained the 
government of the Deccan. He murdered his 
relatives, one after another, and In 1659 ascended 
the throne. Two of his sons, who endeavored to 
form a party in their own favor, he caused to be 
arrested and put to death by slow poison. He 
conquered Golconda and Bejapur and drove 
out, by degress, the Mahrattas from their country. 
After his death the Mogul Empire declined. 

Ausable Chasm, a picturesque gorge on 
the Ausable River, 2 miles from Keeseville, 
Clinton co:, N. Y. The gorge is about two 
miles long and in some places 175 feet deep. 
The walls are vertical and in many places 
show faults in the strata of rock, which is 
hard sandstone. 

Aus'ten, Jane (1775-1817), an English 
novelist whose works give a remarkably clear 
picture of the manners and standards of her 
day. Her novels, Sense and Sensibility, Pride 
and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, Emma, North- 
anger Abbey and Persuasion, absolutely free from 
sensationalism in style and plot and giving 
unadorned pictures of the lives of the middle 
classes, are always interesting. 

Austerlitz, ows'tur litz, a town in Moravia, 
10 mi. e. of Brunn, famous for the battle in 1805, 
in which Napoleon with 70,000 men defeated the 
allied Austrian and Russian armies with 95,000 
men. The decisive victory of the French led to 
the Peace of Pressburg between France and 
Austria. Population in 1910, about 4000. 

Aus'tin, Minn., the county-seat of Mower co., 
100 mi. s. of St. Paul, on the Red Cedar River 
and on the Chicago Great Western and the 
Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul railroads It 
is surrounded by fertile prairie land, which 
produces live stock, dairy products and grains. 
The city has good water power and its industries 
include meat packing establishments, flour mills, 
railroad shops, cement works and creameries. 
The Southern Minnesota Normal College is 
located here. The city has Lafayette Park 
and numerous fine public buildings, including the 
Carnegie Library and Saint Augustine’s Church. 
Austin was settled in 1854 and was chartered as 
a city in 1873. It now owns its waterworks and 
electric lighting plant. Population in 1910, 
6960. 


Austin 


Australia 


Austin, Tex., the capital of the state and the 
county-seat of Travis co., 160 mi. n. w. of 
Houston, on the Houston & Texas Central, 
Missouri, Kansas & Texas, International & Great 
Northern and other railroads. The city is beau¬ 
tifully located 40 feet above the north bank of 
the Colorado River, which is spanned here by 
two bridges. In 1893 an immense dam 1275 feet 
long was built, but it was carried away by a 
flood in 1900. The most prominent building is 
the state capitol, constructed of red granite at a 
cost of $3,500,000. Austin is the seat of the 
state university. Saint Edward’s College, Tillot- 
son Institute for Colored Students and a number 
of other important schools. State asylums for 
the insane, the blind and the deaf and dumb, 
and the Confederate Soldiers’ Home are also 
located here. There is an extensive wholesale 
trade in provisions, groceries and dry goods, and 
the place is an important market for live stock, 
cotton, grain and hides. There are important 
manufactories of flour, lumber, iron and leather 
goods. Austin was originally known as Waterloo, 
but in 1837 it received its present name, was 
made the capital of the Republic of Texas in 
1839 and later the permanent capital of the state. 
Population in 1910, 29,860. 

Austin, Alfred (1835-1913), an English 
poet, born near Leeds. After graduating at the 



ALFRED AUSTIN 


University of London, he was called to the bar, 
but soon gave up the law for literature. In 
1896 he was made poet laureate of England 


Among his poetical works are English Lyrics, 
Songs of England and A Tale of True Love 
and Other Poems, dedicated to Theodore Roose¬ 
velt. His critical notes in the National Review 
are interesting, and his essay, The Poetry of the 
Period, has attracted much attention. 

Austin, Stephen Fuller (1793-1836), a 
Texas pioneer and founder of the city of Austin. 
He led a company of colonists to Texas in 1821 
and settled on a tract of land granted to his 
father in 1820. In 1833 he was delegate to 
Mexico to obtain ratification of the Texan con¬ 
stitution, and in 1835 he was made commander of 
the Texan revolutionists and went to Washing¬ 
ton to secure the recognition of the independence 
of the Texan republic. He died soon after his 
return to Texas. 

Australasia, aws tral a'she ah. See Oce¬ 
ania. 

Australia, the smallest of the continents, 
lies between the Indian and the Pacific oceans, 
to the southeast of Asia and between 10° 41' 
and 39° 11' south latitude and 113° and 153° 40' 
east longitude. In form it is an irregular oval. 
The greatest length from east to west is 2500 
miles, and from north to south, about 2000 
miles. The area, including Tasmania and smaller 
islands, is- 2,973,000 square miles. Australia is 
much smaller than the other grand divisions, 
and by some geographies it is designated as an 
island. It is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean 
on the east, the Indian Ocean on the south and 
west, and Timor Sea, Arafusa Sea and Coral 
Sea on the north, all comparatively small pas¬ 
sages of water separating the continent from 
the chain of islands to the north. The coast 
lines are quite regular. On the north there are 
two noticeable indentations. Queen’s Channel 
and the Gulf of Carpentaria, while the Great 
Australian Bight touches most of the southern 
coast. The surrounding islands politically con¬ 
nected with Australia are New Zealand and 
Tasmania, a large group at the north belonging 
geographically to Asia. It is supposed by 
many that this chain of islands constitutes the 
remains of a connecting belt of land which in a 
past geological age joined Australia to the 
Asiatic continent. 

Surface and Drainage. The relief forms 
of Australia are much simpler than those of 
other continents. The elevation consists of a 
chain of highlands known as the Great Dividing 
Range, which begins near the western boundary 
of Victoria and extends nearly parallel to the 
coast as far as Cape York. These mountains 


Australia 


Australia 


are highest at their southern extremity, where 
Mount Kosciusko, the highest peak, reaches an 
elevation of 7175 feet, and two others exceed 
7000 feet. This mountain system is given 
various local names, such as the Australian 
Alps, in Victoria, the New England Range and 
Liverpool Range. It is distant from the coast 
from 50 to 300 miles, and forms the watershed 
which separates the rivers flowing into the 
Pacific from those flowing into the interior and 
into the Indian Ocean. The center of the con¬ 
tinent is a vast low plain, which rises gradually 
toward the north and west. In some places 
this is traversed by low ranges of hills that 
divide it into smaller plateaus of varying eleva¬ 
tions. To the west of this plain and skirting 
the western coast are irregular ranges of low 
mountains. The northern and southern coasts 
are nearly all low land. 

The rivers are few and the river systems are 
very small. The most important of these is the 
Murray, with its tributaries, the Darling, Lach¬ 
lan and Murrumbidgee. This system drains a 
great part of the interior west of the Dividing 
Range and enters the sea on the south coast. 
To the east of the Dividing Range the impor¬ 
tant streams are the Hunter, Clarence, Bris¬ 
bane, Fitzroy and Burdekin. The Gilbert, 
Norman and Flinders are the principal streams 
flowing into the Gulf of Carpentaria, and on 
the western coast the Murchison, Gascoyne, 
Ashburton and Fitzroy flow into the Indian 
Ocean. In the interior is a number of streams 
which flow into salt lakes or evaporate in the 
sands. The most important of these is Cooper’s 
Creek. The others are all small. There are 
several lakes in the interior, all of which 
are on the south side of the continent. They 
have no outlets and consequently are salt. The 
most important of these are lakes Eyre, Torrens, 
Gairdner and Amadeus. 

Mineral Resources. The most important 
mineral yet discovered is gold, and for more 
than fifty years the output of gold from Australia 
has been among the largest of all countries. 
The gold district is along the eastern part of 
the continent and is almost entirely confined 
to the region traversed by the mountains. 
However, since 1890 some valuable mines have 
been opened near the western coast. There 
are also valuable deposits of coal and iron ore, 
as well as mines of silver and copper which 
yield a profitable income. Antimony, bismuth, 
manganese, platinum and lead are also found. 
Diamonds and other precious stones occur in 


some localities, and building stones of good 
quality, together with clays suitable for brick 
and tile, are abundant. 

Climate. The climate of Australia is gener¬ 
ally hot arid dry, but healthful. In the tropical 
portions there are heavy rains, and in most of 
the coast districts there is a sufficiency of mois¬ 
ture, but in the interior the heat and drought 
are extreme. Considerable portions devoted 
to pasturage are liable at times to suffer from 
drought. At Melbourne the mean temperature 
is about 56°, at Sydney about 63°. The south¬ 
eastern settled districts are at times subject to 
excessively hot winds from the interior, which 
cause great discomfort and are often followed 
by violent cold winds from the south (“south¬ 
erly bursters”). In the mountainous and more 
temperate parts snow-storms are common in 
winter (June, July and August). 

Vegetation. The Australian flora presents 
peculiarities which mark it off by itself in a 
very decided manner. Many of the most strik¬ 
ing features have an unmistakable relation to 
the general dryness of the climate. The trees 
and bushes have for the most part a scant 
foliage, presenting little surface for evaporation, 
or thick leathery leaves well fitted to retain 
moisture. The most widely-spread types of 
Australian vegetation are the various kinds of 
gum-tree, the shea-oak, the' acacia or wattle, 
the grass-tree, many varieties of other trees 
and a great number of ferns and tree ferns. 
Of the gum-tree there are found upward of 150 
species, many of which are of great value. 
Individual specimens of the peppermint have 
been found to measure from 480 to 500 feet in 
height. As timber trees, the most valuable 
member of this genus is the red-gum, the 
timber of which is hard, dense and almost 
indestructible. A number of the gum-trees 
have deciduous bark. The wattle or acacia 
includes about 300 species, some of them of 
considerable economic value, yielding good 
timber or bark for tanning. The most beau¬ 
tiful and most useful is that known as the golden 
wattle, which in spring is adorned with rich 
masses of fragrant yellow blossom. Palms— 
of which there are 24 species, all except the 
cocoa palm peculiar to Australia—are confined 
to the south and east coasts. Among the so- 
called “scrubs, ” thickets of densely inter-twisted 
bushes occupy extensive areas. The mallee 
scrub is formed by a species of dwarf eucalyptus, 
the mulga scrub by a species of thorny acacia. 
A plant which covers large areas in the arid 





TIMOR 


MBA OR 
(AlWoODi I. 

J SAVU yp 
IS. 


ROTTI I. 


CARTIER I. 


BROWSE I. 


SANDY U 


S prln ^ 


SCOTTS 


Cockburn 

E B E^ V L 

Leopold r 

\LS> K I m b fir \ e>X 

RanWr^w/' / 


BUCCANEER archipelago-v 

C C.Levequyy •:-2 

1\ LACEPEDE f JUJ 1 

\ is. y 4 V° 

A)AMPIER\ 
f LAHO j 
Broome^ 1 
I Roebuck Bp 

,‘U** 

I CjJciubertY //'•••..I 

mu /rj_ - 


H E. RN 

Z>«Ae |Q< 


ROWLEY 

SHOALS 


WhlttlngtonX 

Range “^A 

Tennants Cr. 
Murchison' 


Sandy 


..George 

Range 


Cond on. 


Crawford 


...•. Reynold^* 

RanflnyjQr 

'•Mt.Stanley 

*: Mt. Liebig Hart F 
acDonn ejj £2 

r dorudd Heraannl'KfSWf^fal' 


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Dover Hs) 
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Bar ons 5*29? A. 


TROPIC _ OF_ CAPRICORN- 


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y Lake.' 

Gibson 


5^ar./“'“ 

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l'.R ? nge 


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£#35° 


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T H A 


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lOUTMAN' 

rOCK s 


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Evcrard B. 


■GRAPH 




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HUU? 


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Gtograph^i 

tfaturaKrteC 

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Port A U S U< E 

flind«T*, 


3*nee _■Ci—V •' EAST 

GROI 

GROUP ARCHIPELAGO 
OF THE RECHERCHI 


AUSTRALIA 


ENGLISH STATUTE MILE8 


KILOMETERS 


A 115 


130 Longitude E East 


Geel t 


^ b ^rU Ui > A-. 

| jfekfUnga *E. MTKsSSS«*'‘ 3 ^»^i” Q 

t V I / S 1 °MtrRua» el ’ Vs^) j "VAJLau^f f 0 X Blrks9 y®J«t, Sir Thomas 

\ wt - sh - n -- 0 - 

\ G ^ ° e , 1 Boomerang \ •. (*..•* 




t. Palslt 


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FLINDERS I 


FURNEAUX 


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£? #/> GROUP^ 


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^*«r Bank, St! 


HUNTER IS 
C-Ori* 


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Mt.B 


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St. Alary* 

Lomond 


■Ml 


Macquftria 

C& 


/<Ofstrr B. 
^MABIAI. 

Tasman■ 
U1 Pen. 
SC. Pillar 


BAH 


Port 

South 

TAS 


ANIA 


Same scale a* Australia 


Austral 1 
Lai 




















































































































EP Greenwich 140 


Port Moresbjc 
Y is. (Granville") 


t.’MURR, 


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,CE OF wales I 
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Archer R. 
Keerweer\ 


[attcry 


EDWARD PELLEW 
.GROUP 
* DERI IN |, 


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t?, B< 


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HOLMES 


CORINGA IS. 

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diamond 

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B. 

D»rga»ifW £&\T*V’ 

NORTH NSKS^ 

Auckland:!;; , 
ISLAND M .m~l 

Wsilalo fi.TTS ra 
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BARRIER I. 


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,cv N«W Plymouttvj^T r 
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_ Wangaoi 


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Fo*t< i 


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CJ oulurindCzr- 

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B. 

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ISLAND 


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BoB Bua aflf 


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A raw ataxia 
J amcatow ttfiJ; 


*ncP“W / / , 

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SECRETARY I. 
RESOLUTIONS 


I JHawkfburj 
l! TXPort Chalmert 

w*> Dunedin 

^Poagbtt 

Milton 
Kaitangata 
lolynovix 


-y.. t 

[binders i‘a 


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SOLANDER I.’ ,r- 

STEWART I.) 

/South C, 


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NEW ZEALAND 

Same scale as Australia 


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1 ^ ~ . 

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lexander 

GULF 

IB. 

OTE 
I ANDT 




145 




















































































KELIEF MAP OF AUSTRALIA 






Australia 

regions is the spinifex or porcupine grass, a 
hard, coarse and excessively spiny plant, which 
renders traveling difficult, wounds the feet of 
horses and is utterly uneatable by any animal. 
Australia posseses great numbers of turf-forming 
grasses, such as the kangaroo-grass, which sur¬ 
vives even a tolerably protracted drought. 
The native fruit trees are few and unimportant, 
and the same may be said of the plants yielding 
roots used as food. The vine, the olive and the 
mulberry thrive well, and quantities of wine are 
now produced. The cereals of Europe and 
maize are extensively cultivated, and large tracts 
of country, particularly Queensland, are under 
sugar-cane. 

Animal Life. The animal life is as peculiar 
as the vegetable. Its great feature is the nearly 
total absence of all the forms of mammalia 
which abound in the rest of the world, their 
place being supplied by a great variety of mar¬ 
supials (See Marsupialia), these animals being 
nowhere else found, except in the opossums of 
America. There are about 110 kinds of mar¬ 
supials (of which the kangaroo, wombat, ban¬ 
dicoot and phalangers, or opossums, are the 
best known varieties), over 20 kinds of bats, a 
wild dog (the dingo) and a number of rats and 
mice. Two extraordinary animals, the platy¬ 
pus, or water-mole of the colonist (Ornitho- 
rhynchus), and the porcupine ant-eater (Ech¬ 
idna) constitute the lowest order of mammals, 
and are confined to Australia. Their young are 
produced from eggs. There are upward of 650 
different species of birds, the largest being the 
emu, or Australian ostrich, and a species of 
cassowary. Peculiar to the country are the 
black swan, the honey-sucker, the lyre bird, the 
brush turkey and other mound-building birds. 
The parrot tribe is the most numerous of all. 
There are many reptiles, the largest being the 
crocodile, found in some of the northern rivers 
There are upward of 60 different species of 
snakes, some .of which are very venomous. 
Lizards, frogs and insects are also found in great 
numbers, and the seas, rivers and lagoons 
abound in fish of numerous varieties, and other 
aquatic animals, many of them peculiar. Whales 
and seals frequent the coasts. On the northern 
soasts are extensive fisheries of trepang, much 
visited by native traders from the Indian Archi¬ 
pelago. 

Inhabitants. According to the census of 
1911, the total population of the Commonwealth 
of Australia, including the island of Tasmania, 
was 4,455,005. About 60,000 more are native 


Australia 

races. The natives of Australia belong to the 
Australian negro stock and are sometimes con¬ 
sidered the lowest, as regards intelligence, in 
the whole human family. They are of a dark 
brown or black color, have curly but not woolly 
hair, and are of medium dize but inferior muscu¬ 
lar development. In the settled parts of the con¬ 
tinent they are inoffensive, and are rapidly dying 
out. They. have no fixed habitations; in the 
summer they live almost entirely in the open air 
and in the more inclement weather they shelter 
themselves with bark dwellings of the rudest 
construction. They neither cultivate the soil 
nor domesticate animals. Their food consists 
of such animals as they can kill, and no kind 
of living creature seems to be rejected —snakes, 
lizards, frogs and even insects being eaten, often 
half raw. They are ignorant of the potter’s art. 
In their natural condition they wear little or no 
clothing. The women are regarded merely as 
slaves and are frightfully maltreated. They 
have peculiar marriage rites. They are occa¬ 
sionally employed by the settlers in light kinds 
of work, and as horse-breakers, but they dislike 
continuous occupation and soon give it up. 
The weapons of all the tribes are generally 
similar, consisting of spears, shields, boomer¬ 
angs, wooden axes, clubs and stone hatchets. 

Political Divisions. The entire continent 
is a colony of Great Britain and is divided into 
the following states: Queensland. New South 
Wales and Victoria, occupying the eastern por¬ 
tion of the continent; South Australia, the south 
central portion; and Western Australia, a little 
more than the western third. The Northern 
Territory, formerly a part of South Australia, 
since Jan. 1,1911 belongs to the Commonwealth. 

History. The date of the discovery of 
Australia is uncertain, but previous to 1542 the 
Portuguese published an account of the existence 
of a land which corresponded to Australia, and 
they were probably the first Europeans to see the 
continent. A Portuguese navigator visited Aus¬ 
tralia in 1601, and five years later the Spaniard 
Torres passed through the strait that bears his 
name. Within the next twenty-five years most 
of the coast line was surveyed by Dutch navi¬ 
gators, and in 1664 it was named New Holland 
by the Dutch government. Australia came into 
the possession of Great Britain in 1770. The 
first English settlement was made at Botany 
Bay in 1788 by some convicts who were trans¬ 
ported by the government. These were fol¬ 
lowed by other colonists, the first settlements all 
being made along the eastern coast, from the 



Kauri Pine 


Nutmeg 


Eucalyptus 


J 


PLANTS OF AUSTRALIA 










Australia 


Australia 


north southward. Following these were expedi¬ 
tions into the interior, though no one succeeded 
in crossing the mountains until 1813. The dis¬ 
covery of gold in 1851 and 1852 led to extensive 
immigration, and the development of Australia 
along all industrial lines dates from that event. 
The present political divisions were first formed 
as independent colonies, and then were joined in 
the federation of the Commonwealth of Aus¬ 
tralia on January 1, 1901. See Australia, 
Commonwealth of. 

Australia, Commonwealth of, a British 
dependency consisting of the federated states of 
Australia and Tasmania. In area the common¬ 
wealth includes the continent of Australia and 
the island of Tasmania. The physical features, 
mineral resources, climate, animal and vegetable 
life and inhabitants are described in the article 
Australia. This article deals with the indus¬ 
tries, cities, institutions and government of the 
people. 

Mining. Since 1852 gold-mining has con¬ 
stituted one of the most important industries; 
it employs over 83,000 men, and the yearly out¬ 
put is about $70,000,000. The leading states 
in the order of their production are Western 
Australia, Victoria, Queensland and New South 
Wales. Other important mineral products are 
silver, the annual output being valued at about 
$12,000,000; copper, whose value is about 
$10,200,000 annually; coal, with an annual value 
of $18,000,000, and tin, exceeding $4,000,000 in 
annual value. New South Wales leads in the 
production of silver, zinc and coal, and Tasmania 
in the production of copper and tin. As the gold 
mines become exhausted, gold mining decreases 
and the mining of silver and other metals 
increases. 

Agriculture. The climate and soil of Aus¬ 
tralia are adapted to the production of nearly 
all grains and fruits grown in the warm tem¬ 
perate and semi-tropical regions, but because 
of lack of rainfall only a small portion of the 
country is under cultivation. This is almost 
wholly confined to the eastern section on both 
sides of the mountains. The condition of the 
interior very closely resembles that of certain 
portions of the great plains and plateaus in the 
United States, and it is found that this yields to 
irrigation in a similar manner; consequently, in 
the western portions of Queensland and New 
South Wales and in some parts of South Aus¬ 
tralia, irrigation by means .of artesian wells and 
streams is practiced with great profit. 

The entire region, wherever there is sufficient 


rainfall for grass, is especially adapted to grazing 
and is one of the most suitable regions in the 
world for raising sheep; consequently, the num¬ 
ber of these animals found in Australia exceeds 
that in any other country, and Australia is the 
largest wool-producing country in the world. 
Cattle are also raised in large numbers in Queens¬ 
land and some of the other states. By means of 
refrigeration, mutton and beef can be exported 
to excellent advantage; consequently, stock¬ 
growing is a profitable occupation. 

The leading crops are wheat, com and hay, 
though but little more of any crop is grown than 
is required for home consumption. Grapes, 
coffee, bananas and other fruits are successfully 
grown, but fruit-raising is not one of the chief 
industries. 

Manufactures. The manufactures are lim¬ 
ited and are confined almost entirely to those 
industries which are connected with the prepara¬ 
tion of raw material obtained from the agri¬ 
cultural regions, the preparation of food products, 
the manufacture of textiles, clothing, iron 
products and machines. The large income 
obtained from mining and raising live stock has 
precluded the establishing of manufactures on 
ally extended scale, since most of the manu¬ 
factured products can be obtained cheaper from 
other countries than they can be made at home. 

Transportation. The country is almost 
entirely devoid of navigable rivers; hence, for 
inland transportation it must rely on railways 
and carriage roads. There are over 18,000 
miles of railway, including 500 miles in Tasmania. 
Trunk lines now connect all the important cities 
and many of the large towns in the four eastern’ 
states. Nearly all of these lines are owned and 
operated by the government. In fact, it was 
only by government aid that their construction 
was made possible, since the sparsely settled 
condition of the country would not warrant 
sufficient revenue to induce private capital to 
construct the lines. Telegraph lines connect 
all the important towns and extend across the 
continent from north to south and from east to 
west. These and most of the telephone lines 
are also owned and operated by the government. 

By means of the British Pacific Cable and 
connection with the American Pacific Cable, as 
well as by lines connecting with Asiatic ports, 
Australia has direct telegraphic communication 
with all countries of the world. 

The location of Australia and its adaptability 
to the production of agricultural products at 
little expense give it an extensive trade, exceeding 



Apteryx 


'"'S' 


Kangaroo 


Echidna 


Cockatoo 


Duck-billed Platypus 


Tasmanian -Wolf 


Koala or 

Australian Native Bear 


Emeu 


Wild Rabbit 


ANIMALS OF AUSTRALIA 



























Australia 


Australian Ballot 


per capita that of any other country in the world 
except Belgium. The exports consist of wool, 
gold, hides and meats, while the imports consist 
of manufactured products. 

Government. The Commonwealth of Aus¬ 
tralia is a federation of states, nominally subject 
to Great Britain, but independent as far as all 
acts relating to the welfare of the federated states 
are concerned. The crown appoints the gov¬ 
ernor general, and the highest court of Great 
Britain has power to review, under certain 
limited conditions, the acts of the highest court 
of the commonwealth. The federation is based 
upon a constitution which very closely resembles 
that of the United States. The legislative power 
is vested in a parliament consisting of two 
branches, a senate and a house of representatives, 
the members of each to be elected by the people 
of the different states. The senators are elected 
for six years and the representatives for three 
years. At the organization of the government 
each state was allowed six members in the senate, 
and it was provided that half the number of 
senators should retire every three years, but they 
are eligible for reelection. The number of 
members in the house of representatives is as 
nearly as possible twice the number of senators. 
The federal parliament may extend the voting 
powers of the people, but cannot restrict them. 

The executive department consists of the 
governor general and a ministry, the members 
of which are members of the parliament. In 
this respect the executive department radically 
differs from that of the United States. At the 
head of the judicial departments is a high court 
of justice, which may hear appeals from all 
federal courts, from supreme courts of the states 
and from the interstate commission. This 
court also has original jurisdiction in difficulties 
arising from federal laws, in disputes between 
states and between the citizens of different 
states. Appeals from the decisions of the high 
court to the British Privy Council may be taken 
on questions involving the limits of the consti¬ 
tutional powers of the commonwealth or of the 
different states, provided the high court certifies 
that the question is one which ought to be de¬ 
termined by the Council. All rights are reserved 
to the states unless they have been specifically 
delegated to the federal government. In this 
respect the constitution is like that of the United 
States and the opposite of that for the Dominion 
of Canada. 

The constitution of Australia is regarded by 
many students of politics as a step in advance 


of any constitution that has previously been 
prepared. In addition to the ordinary functions 
assumed by the national government, the Aus¬ 
tralian government assumes control of banking 
and insurance, marriage, divorce, parental rights 
and guardianship, naturalization and the con¬ 
trol of immigration and of foreign races within 
the state. It also has control of most of the 
telegraphs, telephones and railway lines now 
constructed and has authority to obtain control 
of others, with the consent of the state through 
which the lines extend. 

Australia has also made great advancement in 
settling important sociological and governmental 
problems, such as the conflicts between labor 
and capital, the construction and maintenance of 
highways, irrigation, savings banks, the assisting 
of agriculture by reduced freight rates and 
transportation of seeds and agricultural instru¬ 
ments, and in times of drought in the trans¬ 
portation of stock. The government has also 
from time to time appropriated large sums for 
assisting agriculture in such ways as exter¬ 
minating injurious insects and animals, advanc¬ 
ing loans to farmers, and granting bounties 
to those farmers who are willing to found new 
industries, such as the manufacture of dairy 
products and the introduction of new crops. 
Education is practically free, and is compulsory 
except in secondary schools and universities. 
Most of the secondary schools are under denomi¬ 
nation control, and the universities at Adelaide, 
Melbourne, Sydney and Tasmania are partially 
maintained by government support. There is 
no state religion, but the Episcopal church, which 
is an offshoot of the Church of England, has the 
largest number of followers. When the Com¬ 
monwealth was organized, Melbourne was chosen 
as the temporary capital, but in October, 1900, 
a site for the permanent capital was selected in 
the district of Yass-Canberra, New South Wales, 
Canberra being the name of the new city. Plans 
were submitted by architects all over the 
world in competition; the prize was awarded to 
Walter B. Griffin of Chicago. In 1913 the first 
stone of the new city was laid by Lord Denham, 
the governor-general. In 1914 Australian forces 
seized Apia, in German Samoa, shortly after the 
outbreak of the War of the Nations. In that 
war the Commonwealth furnished over 100,000 
men, who entirely without obligation, fought 
valiantly in defense of the mother country and 
the aims of the allied nations. 

Austra'lian Ballot, a method of voting, so 
called because it was first used in Australia. 


Australian Ballot 


Austria-Hungary 


Its essentials are an official printed ballot, sup¬ 
plied by the state or local authorities, and ab¬ 
solute secrecy. The names of the candidates to 
be voted for are arranged under the heading of 
their respective parties and usually in the order 
of the rank of the office. The ballots are de¬ 
livered to the judges of election in sealed pack¬ 
ages on election morning. Each ballot is marked 
with the initials of one of the inspectors as a 
means of preventing the introduction of fraudu¬ 
lent ballots. The voter takes the ballot into a 
booth, where he may mark it as he pleases. If 
he wishes to vote a “straight ticket” he may 
put a cross in the circle at the head of the party 


duced into Victoria and several other colonies 
in the same year. In 1869 the system was given 
a trial at Manchester, England, and in 1872 it 
was definitely established by act of Parliament. 
Shortly afterward it was introduced into Canada, 
but not until 1888 into the United States. A 
Wisconsin law of 1887 had some features of the 
Australian system, but the first complete law was 
that of Massachusetts in the next year. In 
1889, chiefly as a result of an unprecedented 
amount of bribery in the presidential election 
of 1888, nine states passed laws modeled on the 
Australian system, and the system is now used 
in all the states of the United States. 


o REPUBLICAN O DEM0CRATIC O PROGRESSIVE Q SOCIALIST 


432 W. «Ut Place. Chicago 

□ For Lieutenant-Governor. 

JOHN G. OGLESBY 

Elkhart, Illinois. 

For Secret 


□ For Governor, r—i For Governor, 

CHARLES S. DENEEN [\ EDWARD F. DONNE 

4M W tut Pl.~ L ■ 1 4500 Beacon St., Chicago. 

For Lieutenant-Governor, 

| BARRATT O’HARA 

1229 Morse Ave., Chicago. 

For Secretary of State, 

HARRY WOODS 

3000 Warren Ave,, Chicago, 

For Auditor of Public Accounts, 

I JAMES J. BRADY 

2862 Shakespeare Ave., Chicago. 

For State Treasurer, 

WILLIAM RYAN, JR. 

Danville, Illinois, 

For Attorney General, 

I PATRICK J. LUCEY 

Sire*tor. Illinois. 

For Representatives jn Congress, 


□ 
□ 
□ 
□ 
□ 
□ 

angress. For Representatives in Congress, 

□ _ (State at Large—2 to be elected.) - -. (State at Large—2 to be elected.) , , 

WILLIAM E. MASON || LAW’RENCEB. STRINGER| 
- ... ““ □ 


□ 

□ For Secretary of State, r—» 

CORNELIUS J. DOYLE 

Creenfield, IHinoin. *— 1 

□ For Auditor of Public Accounts, |—■ 

James s. McCullough M. 

Itrkana Illiania t—I 

□ 
□ 


Urban*. Illioois. 

For State Treasurer, 


□ ror Mate treasure 

ANDREW RUSSEL 

Jacksonville. Illinois. 

□ For Attorney General, 

WILLIAM H. STEAD 

Ottawa. Illinois. 


Ottawa. Illinois. 

For Representatives in Coni 


□ 3314 Washington Boul, Chicago. - - - 

BURNETT M. CHIPERFIELD 

Canton. Illinois. *- 1 

For Representative in Congress, 

□ Tenth District, » > 

GEORGE EDMUND FOSS 

711 Cordon Ter.. Chicago. " ' 

For Member State Board of Equalization, 

□ Troth District, «■ i 

J. GEORGE SEEBACHER f 

2557 N. Marshfield Are.. Chicago. *— J 


□ 

□ 


WM. 


. Chicago. 

For Representatives in General Assembly. 

i Tblrty-Brst District, 

FRANKLIN S. CATLIN 

4SI Bolden Ave., Chicago. 

HARRY L. SHAVER 

6347 Winthrop Ave., Chicago 

For State’s Attorney. 


□ 

□ 


□ ror Mate s Mttorne 

LEWIS RINAKER 

1318 Norwood Ave.. Chit 

□ For Recorder of D 

JOHN C. CANNON 

1811 Larehmont Ave.. C 

□ For Clerk Circuit Court, __ 

JOSEPH E. BIDWILL, JR. fl 

1058 Columbia Ave., Chicago. “J 

□ For Clerk Superior Court, ( -, 

CHARLES W. VAIL 

7159 Normal Ave.. Chicago. 

□ For Coroner, , 

PETER M. HOFFMAN 

Dcsplames, lllioow. U-J 


Lincoln, Illinois, 

ELZA WILLIAMS 

Pittsfield, Illinois, 

For Representative in Congress, 

Troth District, 

FRANK L. FOWLER 

Wilmette, Illinois. 

For Member State Board of Equalization, 

Tenth District, 

CHARLES H. WEBER 

2037 Crece St., Chicago. 

For Representatives in General Assembly, 

Tbirtjr-ftrst District, 

WILLIAM McKINLEY 

4053 Sheridan Rd., Chicago. 

FRANK J. SEIF, JR. 

1533 Orchard St., Chicago. 

For State's Attorney. 

MACLAY H0YNE 

5136 Washington Ave . Chieaga 
For Recorder of Deeds, 

JOSEPH F. CONNERY 

2028 Washington Boul., Chicago. 

For Clerk Circuit Court, 

JOHN W. RAINEY 

3622 Union Ave . Chicago. 

For Clerk Superior Court, 

RICHARD J. McGRATH 

648 N Carpenter St . Chicago. 

For Coroner, 

DENNIS J. EGAN 

654 W. 18th St., Chicago. 


For Governor, 

FRANK H. FUNK 

Bloomington. Illinois. 

For Lieutenant-Governor. 

DEAN FRANKLIN 

Macomb, Illinois. 

For Secretary of State, 

EDW. 0. PETERSON 

Aurora. Illinois. 

For Auditor of Public Account!. 

EDWIN WINTER 

' Danville, Illinois, 

For State Treasurer, 

PHILIP DECKER 

Murphys boro, Illinois. 

For Attorney General, 

FLETCHER D0BYN8 

67 E. Division St., Chicago. 

For Representatives in Congress, 

(State at Large—2 U be elected.) 

B. M. MAXEY 

Flora, Illinois. 

LAWRENCE P. BOYLE 

459 W. 65th St.. Chicago. 

For Representative in Congress, 

Tenth District. 

CHARLES M. THOMSON 

847 Montrose Ave., Chicago. 

For Member State Board of Equalization, 

Tenth District, 


□ For Governor, 

JOHN C. KENNEDY 

4610 Groan Ave Chicago 

□ For Lieutenant-Governor, 

F, T. MAXWELL 

Springfield, Illinois. 

□ For Secretary of State, 

FRED FREEMAN 

Kankakee. Illinois. 

□ For Auditor of Public Accounts, 

F, 0. ANDERSON 

7019 Rhodes Ave., Chicago 

□ For State Treasurer, 

L. F. HAEMER 

East Moline. Illinois. 

□ _ For Attorney General, 

D. J. BENTALL 

5432 Ingleside Ave., Chicago. 

For Representatives in Congress, 

' t — | (State at Large—2 to he elected.) 

\ WALTER HUGGINS 

| 2626 Adams St.. Chicago. 

| D. L. THOMAS 

*—' O'Fallon, Illinois. 

For Representative in Congress, 

□ Tenth District. 

CHARLES A. LARSON 

Highland Park. Illinois. 

For Member State Board of Equalization 

Tenth District, 


For Representatives in General Assembly, 

Thirty-Brat District, 


□ 

□ Tenth District,_ .-- Tenth District, 

HARRY T. NIGHTINGALE (1 AUGUST A. COOK 

Evans loo, Illinois. *— 1 6251 N. Robey 8«.. Chi< 

□ 

□ 

□ 

□ 

□ 

□ 


□ 


For State's Attorney. 

GEORGE I. HAIGHT 

Evanston, Illinois. 

For Recorder of Deeds, 

WALTER WILLIS 

7949 Muskegon Ave., Chicago. 

For Clerk Circuit Court, 

WILLIAM W. CARNES 

1839 8. Sawyer Ave , Chicago. 

For Clerk Superior Court, 

LAWRENCE NELSON 

4125 Kenmore Are.. Chicago. 
For Coroner, 

E. F. NAPIERALSKI 

i659 W. 18th St.. Chicago. 


Chicago. 

For Representatives in General Assembly 

□ Thlrly-Orst District. 

CHARLES ROUX 

1427 Sedgwick Su. Chicago, 

□ For Slate’s Attorney. 

WM. A. CUNNKA 

5547 Drcxel Ave,, Chicago. 

□ For Recorder of Deeds, 

BERNARD McMAHON 

4637 Calumet Ave . Chicago. 

□ For Clerk Circuit Court, 

JOS. F. UHLENBROCK 

3041 W Raven* wood Park Ave . Chicago, 

□ For Clerk Superior Court, 

LOUIS J. ENGDAHL 

11 W. Erie St.. Chicago. 

□ For Coroner, 

J. W. ZEH 

4W2 N. 46tb Ave.. Chiago. 


PART OF A BALLOT USED UNDER THE AUSTRALIAN BALLOT SYSTEM 


column. If he wishes to vote for some candi¬ 
dates of one party and some of another, he puts 
a cross in the squares before the names of those 
for whom he wishes to vote; this is called 
“scratching” or “splitting” a ticket. In 
another form of the ballot the names of all the 
candidates are arranged in alphabetical order 
for each office. The voter, after marking his 
ballot, must fold it so that none of the marks can 
be seen and hand it to one of the election officials. 

The Australian ballot was first used in the 
colony of South Australia in 1856; it was intro- 
15 


Australian Star-Flower. See Burbank, 
Luther. 

Aus'tria-Hun'gary or Austro-Hungarian 
Monarchy, adualkingdom situated in the south¬ 
eastern part of Europe, extending from 42° to 
51° north latitude, and from 9°30' to 26°30' east 
longitude. Its greatest length from east to west 
is 800 miles, from north to south 650 miles, and 
the area is 261,000 square miles, or about the 
same as that of the State of Texas. The popu¬ 
lation in 1910 was 49,161,766. The boundary 
line is very irregular. It is bounded on the n. 




Austria-Hungary 


Austria-Hungary 


by Germany and Russian Poland, on the e. by 
Russia and Rumania, on the s. e. by Rumania, 
Servia, Turkey and Montenegro, on the s. w. by 
the Adriatic Sea, on the s. by Italy and on the \v. 
by Switzerland and the German Empire. 

Surface and Drainage. In its western and 
northern portions Austria is the most moun¬ 
tainous country of Europe, except Switzerland. 
Spurs of the Alps extend into all of the 
western provinces, and Tyrol, the most west¬ 
erly of all, is famous for the grandeur and 
beauty of its mountain scenery. In this sec¬ 
tion of the country there are many lofty peaks, 
some of which attain a height of nearly 13,000 
feet. The Carpathian Mountains extend along 
the northern boundary for a distance of 800 miles, 
and attain a height of 8737 feet in their highest 
peak. The western prolongation of these 
mountains is known as the Riesengebirge, and 
west of these and running in a nearly north and 
south direction is the Erzgebirge range, which 
forms the boundary between Austria and Bava¬ 
ria (See Alps; Carpathian Mountains). The 
eastern portion of the Empire, or Hungary, is 
divided into two great plains, that south and 
west of the Danube, known as the Little Hun¬ 
garian Plain and having an area of about 4500 
square miles, and the Great Hungarian Plain, 
between the Danube and the Carpathians, which 
covers an area of between 25,000 and 30,000 
square miles. This plain is a vast level tract 
of land, noted for its fertile soil and numerous 
farms. It has but few elevations. On the 
south and southeast there are low mountain 
ranges which form the natural boundary between 
Hungary and the bordering states, and in the 
northern part of the great plain some spurs of the 
Carpathians extend for a short distance in a 
north and south direction. 

The country is drained by the Danube and 
its tributaries, those on the north being the 
Theiss and its tributary, the Maros, and those 
on the south and west being the Raab and the 
Drau or Drave (See Danube River). The 
Elbe and its prolongation, the Moldau, drain 
the northwestern portion of the empire and form 
a water outlet to the Baltic. The mountainous 
regions of Austria contain numerous small lakes 
noted for their beauty. 

Mineral Resources. Compared with other 
European countries, the Empire is rich in min¬ 
erals. Ores of gold, silver, copper, iron, lead, 
tin, zinc, nickel and other minerals are 
found in the mountainous regions, and coal is 
also an important product. The salt mines of 


Wieliczka and Galicia, in the eastern part of 
the Carpathians, have been noted for centuries 
Austria is the largest producer of gold of all 
European countries, apd many of these moun¬ 
tain mines have been worked since the days of 
the Roman Empire. 

Climate. Austria-Hungary is divided into 
three climatic regions. The northern, including 
most of Bohemia and Galicia, has long, cold 
winters and short, temperate summers. The 
central region, which extends through the middle 
portion of the Empire between the 46th and 
49th degrees of latitude, has a mean annual 
temperature of about 50°, and the southern 
region has a mild and, in some localities, almost 
semi-tropical climate. The rainfall varies 
greatly in different parts of the Empire. In 
some of the mountainous regions it exceeds 100 
inches per year, while in lower Austria, Moravia 
and Silesia it averages only about 25 inches; 
but throughout the country there is sufficient 
moisture for agriculture. 

Agriculture. Agriculture is the most impor¬ 
tant industry of the country. The great variety 
of surface and altitude, combined with the 
abundance of rainfall, enable a large number 
of agricultural products to be produced with 
success. In general, the Austrian provinces 
lead in the production of the sugar beet, tobacco, 
hemp, flax, hops, barley and potatoes, while the 
great plains of Hungary are devoted to raising 
cereals and live stock. This section of the 
country is often called the granary of Europe. 
Wheat is the most important Hungarian crop, 
and in some respects this country rivals the 
United States in the production of this impor¬ 
tant cereal. Tropical fruits, melons, hops and 
barley are also raised in large quantities. In 
the southeastern portion oranges, lemons and 
olives are grown with profit. 

Manufactures. Nearly one-third of the 
Empire is covered with forests which contain 
valuable timber trees, and the manufacture of 
lumber is an important industry. Hungary 
exceeds all other European countries in the 
manufacture of flour, and the output averages 
about $50,000,000 annually. It was in this 
country that the present process of making flour 
was discovered. The Bohemians have been 
famed for centuries for their skill in the manu¬ 
facture of glass, and their artware is found in 
all civilized lands. Pottery of excellent quality v 
is also manufactured here. There are also 
important manufactures of woodenware, iron 
and steel, and cotton and woolen goods. The 


Austria-Hungary 

leading industries are carried on on a large 
scale, resembling very closely the methods used 
in the United States. All manufactures are 
characterized by the use of the most modern 
methods and the best of machinery. Beet sugar 
is one of the important food products manu¬ 
factured, and in this industry Austria-Hungary 
is one of the leading countries. 

Transportation. The Danube and its 
tributaries are navigable and furnish important 
waterways to the portions of the country through 
which they flow. There are also numerous 
canals connecting these and other rivers. In 
addition, the country has over 24,000 miles of 
railway connecting all of the principal cities 
and towns. More than halt of the railway 
mileage is under control of the government. 
The mail facilities and the telegraph and tele¬ 
phone systems are also adequate to the needs 
of the country. Owing to her short extent of 
seacoast, Austria-Hungary has a smaller mer¬ 
chant marine than most other European nations, 
and less of her commerce is carried by water. 
Nearly all of the internal and foreign trade finds 
transportation over the rivers or railways. 

Commerce. The commerce of the country 
is important notwithstanding the difficulties of 
transportation. The leading articles of export 
are timber, sugar, live stock, wheat, flour, glass, 
porcelain and leather goods, while the imports 
consist of manufactured articles and raw 
material for the factories. The leading coun¬ 
tries engaged in foreign trade are Germany, 
Great Britain and Italy. The trade with the 
United States is inconsiderable. 

Inhabitants and Language. Next to Rus¬ 
sia, Austria-Hungary contains a greater number 
of races and a greater variety of languages than 
any other European country. The people of 
German descent predominate in the Austrian 
provinces, and here the German language is 
generally spoken. Hungary is divided between 
the Slavs and the Magyars, or Hungarians. 
Each of these races is subdivided into numerous 
local divisions, varying somewhat in language 
and customs. In Hungary the Hungarian and 
Slavic languages are spoken. The country also 
contains Jews, Armenians and some Italians. 

Education. The empire maintains an excel¬ 
lent system of public schools, which are under 
the control of a department of public instruction, 
but each province is held responsible for the 
management of its own schools. The system 
used conforms very closely to that of Germany. 
The Empire is especially noted for the excellence 


Austria-Hungary 

of its technical schools and of its great univer¬ 
sities, especially those located at Vienna and 
Prague. See Vienna, University of; also 
Education, National Systems of. 

Army. See Army, subhead Austro-Hun¬ 
garian Army. 

Government. The Austro-Hungarian Mon¬ 
archy consists of two separate governments, 
whose only bond of union, practically, is the 
ruler, who is at once emperor of Austria and 
king of Hungary. All matters affecting the 
joint interests of the two divisions of the Empire, 
such as foreign affairs, war and finance, are 
dealt with by a legislative body consisting of 
two Delegations, one chosen by the Austrian 
diet and one by the Hungarian diet. These 
two Delegations meet alternately at Vienna and 
Budapest, and deliberate separately, meeting in 
common only when they are unable to agree 
after three communications with each other. 

Austria, independent of Hungary, has a gov¬ 
ernment of its own. The emperor is the source 
of law and justice. He not only legislates con¬ 
currently with the Reichsrai and with the pro¬ 
vincial diets, but makes treaties, issues decrees, 
grants pardons and summons and dissolves the 
legislatures; but every act of his must be coun¬ 
tersigned by a minister, who is thus held respon¬ 
sible to parliament. This Reichsrat consists of 
two houses, the house of lords ( Herrenhaus ) 
and the house of representatives ( Abgeordneten- 
haus ). The franchise is limited only by a slight 
property restriction; the parliament consists of 
representatives of social classes and of the 
various provinces. The executive branch of 
the government is managed by eight depart¬ 
ments, each with a minister, together with two 
ministers who have no special duties. Local 
government is carried on through the provinces, 
each of which has a diet, consisting of one house, 
and an executive, consisting of a committee, 
with a president appointed by the emperor 
and a number of members elected by the diet. 
Every province is also a department, which is 
administered by a governor appointed by the 
emperor. A department is divided into dis¬ 
tricts and communes. The system of courts 
includes district courts, higher circuit courts, 
provincial courts and the Supreme Court of 
Justice and Cassation at Vienna, besides other 
courts having special jurisdictions. 

The government of the kingdom of Hungary 
is in form similar to that of Austria, but the king 
plays a less important part than in Austria. 
The Parliament is composed of two houses, the 


Austria-Hungary 


Austria-Hungary 


table of magnates and the house of represent¬ 
atives, the members of the upper house con¬ 
sisting of certain representatives of the royalty, 
the nobility and the Church and other peers 
nominated by the crown; the lower house, of 
representatives elected by the people with a 
fairly general franchise. The executive power 
is vested in a cabinet consisting of nine minis¬ 
ters, each ruling a department, and a minister 
president. It is responsible to the parlia¬ 
ment. For purposes of local government, 
Hungary is divided into 63 counties, at the head 
of each of which is a governor. Within the 
counties are incorporated, towns, which are gov¬ 
erned by magistrates, and presidencies. The 
latter in turn are divided into greater and 
smaller communes, over each of which is a legis¬ 
lative body, half appointed and half elected. 
The presidencies are only administrative units. 
The system of courts is in general similar to 
that of Austria. 

Cities. The important cities are Vienna, 
the capital and commercial center, Budapest, 
Prague, Triest and Fiume, which is fast becom¬ 
ing an important seaport. Each of these cities 
is described under its title. 

History. In 796 Charlemagne drove the 
Avars from the territory between the Enns and 
the Raab and united it to his empire as a mar- 
gravate, and from the establishment of this 
margravate the present Austro-Hungarian Mon¬ 
archy took its rise. In 900 the Hungarians 
descended upon the country and gained posses¬ 
sion of it, but half a century later they were 
driven out by Otho I and the province was 
reunited to the German Empire. From 982 
to 1156 the margravate was hereditary in the 
dynasty of the Babenbergs, and it was during 
this time that the name Oesterreich (eastern 
country), from which is derived our name 
Austria, was given to the country. In 1156 the 
territory west of the Enns was annexed to 
Austria, and the whole w r as made a duchy. 
From this time on there were various accessions 
of territory, and the rulers of Austria increased 
their pow r er until in 1282 Ottokar, one of the 
.strongest of the dukes, ventured to resist the 
authority of the emperor, Rudolph of Hapsburg. 
Ottokar was killed in the struggle, and in 1282 
Rudolph assigned the territory to his own sons, 
Albert and Rudolph. From that time until the 
present the family of Hapsburgs has ruled in 
Austria. During the two centuries that followed, 
the country was constantly disturbed by wars, 
either with rebellious subjects or with neighbor¬ 


ing provinces, but the duchy grew constantly in 
extent and in its influence in Germany. On the 
death of his father-in-law in 1438, Albert V, 
son-in-law of the qmperor Sigismund, became 
king of Bohemia and Hungary and was also 
chosen emperor as Albert II. So great had the 
power of the Austrian house become in Ger¬ 
many, that from this time on the Hapsburgs 
were able almost always to secure the imperial 
dignity for themselves. 

In 1453, under Frederick III, Austria became 
an archduchy, and by the marriage of Frederick’s 
son Maximilian to Mary, daughter of Charles 
the Bold of Burgundy, the Netherlands were 
annexed to the Austrian possessions. Maxi¬ 
milian, when he became emperor on the death 
of his father in 1493, transferred the government 
of the Netherlands to his son Philip, who by 
his marriage with Joanna of Spain secured pos¬ 
session of the Spanish throne for the Hapsburgs. 
Philip died before Maximilian, and Charles I of 
Spain, the son of Philip, succeeded Maximilian 
as emperor in 1519. He abdicated the imperial 
throne in 1556 and his brother, Ferdinand I, 
succeeded him. Ferdinand, by his marriage 
with the sister of the king of Hungary and 
Bohemia, 4iad succeeded to the rule of those 
countries; but a rival king had been elected in 
Hungary, and it was only after a long struggle 
that Ferdinand’s hold on a part of Hungary 
was confirmed. When Ferdinand died in 1564, 
his son Maximilian II succeeded him as ruler 
of Austria and as king of Hungary and Bohemia, 
and he on his death was succeeded by his son, 
Rudolf II. Matthias, the brother of Rudolf, 
attained the imperial dignity in 1612 and he 
had his cousin, Ferdinand of Styria, made king 
of Bohemia and Hungary. The refusal of the 
Bohemians to accept as their king the Catholic 
Ferdinand brought on the Thirty Years’ War, 
in which Austria represented throughout the 
interests of the Catholics (See Thirty Years’ 
War). 

Leopold I, the grandson of Ferdinand, who 
came to the throne in 1657, proved to be a most 
despotic ruler, and under his tyranny Hungary’ 
revolted. With the aid of the Turks, this revolt 
bade fair to be successful, and the Turks had 
actually advanced to Vienna and begun a 
siege, when John Sobieski came to the aid of 
the city and defeated the besieging army. 
Leopold was able by 1687 to compel the Hun¬ 
garians to recognize their country as part of the 
hereditary possessions of Austria. It was 
during the reign of Leopold that the question 


Austria-Hungary 


Austria-Hungary 


as to the succession to the Spanish throne arose, 
culminating in the War of the Spanish Succes¬ 
sion (See Succession Wars, subhead War of 
the Spanish Succession ). Joseph I succeeded 
to the imperial throne during this war and, 
dying before its close, was followed by Charles 
VI. By the Peace of Utrecht in 1713 Austria 
came into possession of the Spanish Netherlands, 
Milan, Naples and Sardinia, but some years 
later, afte • the War of the Polish Succession, 
ost much of this territory. 

Charles VI had no sons, but by the Pragmatic 
Sanction he attempted to secure the throne to 
his daughter, Maria Theresa. The attempts of 
the other powers to curtail the possessions of 
Maria Theresa after her accession to the throne, 
resulted in the War of the Austrian Succession 
(See Charles VI; Maria Theresa; Succes¬ 
sion Wars, subhead War of the Austrian 
Succession). During the War of the Austrian 
Succession, the emperor Charles VII died, and 
Francis, the husband of Maria Theresa, was 
chosen emperor as Francis I. The Seven Years’ 
War, into which Austria was plunged for the 
sake of regaining Silesia, brought no advantages 
(See Seven Years’ War). When Francis I 
died in 1765, his son, Joseph II, was made joint 
ruler with his mother. His reign was largely 
taken up with attempted reforms, which, how¬ 
ever, met with determined resistance throughout 
his dominions and were the cause of revolts. 
Leopold II succeeded Joseph, and he was on the 
throne when the French Revolution broke out. 
He died before his plans for a resistance to the 
radical republicanism in France could be fully 
matured, but his son, Francis, who came to the 
throne in 1792, carried out his father’s projects. 
In the war with France in Italy, Austria lost 
some of her Italian possessions, but gained 
Venice. In 1804 Francis took the title of 
Hereditary Emperor of Austria , and two years 
later, on the founding of the Confederation of 
the Rhine, he renounced the title of Holy 
Roman Emperor. Austria suffered much in the 
Napoleonic campaign of 1809, but in the follow¬ 
ing year, through the marriage of Napoleon 
with Maria Louisa, daughter of Francis, was 
won to an alliance with Napoleon. This lasted 
but a short time, and Austria had a part in all 
of the last campaigns against France, and 
received at the settlement in the Congress of 
Vienna much of her old territory which had 
been taken from her by Napoleon. 

From 1815 to 1848 Austria, although she 
no longer could claim the nominal authority 


which had been hers as head of the Holy Roman 
Empire, exercised a strong influence in Ger¬ 
many as president of the German Diet, and was 
largely concerned in all the movements of Europe 
through the policy of Mettemich and the Holy 
Alliance (See Metternich, Clemens Wenzel 
Nepomuk Lothar). Her policy was consistently 
reactionary, and she steadily combated all tenden¬ 
cies towards national feeling in Germany. In 
1848, however, when the revolutionary spirit was 
rife in Europe, Austria found herself called on to 
subdue revolts on every side. A popular 
uprising took place in Vienna; Mettemich was 
forced to resign, and the government was com¬ 
pelled to admit a free press and the right of 
citizens to bear arms. In Italy, too, occurred 
revolts, and the Austrians were driven out of 
Venice, where their rule had long been felt to 
be unendurably irksome. The most serious 
difficulty, however, was found in Hungary, 
where the rebellion was put down only after 
the abdication of Emperor Ferdinand in favor 
of his nephew, Francis Joseph, and the forma¬ 
tion of an alliance with Russia. A more vigor¬ 
ous policy was now pursued, and the movement 
in Venice was crushed in 1849. The emperor 
found himself obliged to proclaim a constitution 
in Austria, but he was strong enough to make 
it a constitution of his own formation, with little 
of the liberal character which had been 
demanded in the risings of the year before. 

Austria’s next move of great and lasting 
importance was the attempt to suppress the 
growing national feeling in Italy. Especially 
were these efforts directed against Sardinia, 
which was prepared to resort to arms to drive 
Austria out of Italy. Sardinia, however, gained 
the alliance of France, and, by her victories at 
Magenta and Solferino, obliged Austria to give 
up her hold on Lombardy. In 1866 occurred 
another crisis in the affairs of the Empire. 
Bismarck had drawn Austria into the struggle 
with Denmark for the possession of Schleswig 
and Holstein, and after the successful outcome 
of this conflict, the possession of the two duchies 
was the occasion of war between Austria and 
Prussia (See Seven Weeks’ War). The defeat 
of Austria in this struggle resulted in her entire 
loss of influence in Germany. Robbed of her 
position of importance as head of the German 
Confederation, she found that to maintain her 
integrity she must make concessions in her 
internal government. The Hungarians, whose 
demands for a greater degree of self-government 
had never entirely ceased, finally succeeded in 


Austria-Hungary 


Automobile 


forcing from Austria the Ausgleich of 1867, an 
agreement which settled the relations of Austria 
and Hungary on their present basis. The 
political history of Austria-Hungary is chiefly 
a struggle between the various race elements 
for the ascendancy, the subjects of dispute 
being language, religion, education and the forms 
of government. 

In foreign affairs Austria-Hungary has been 
one of the lesser powers. In 1878 it was author¬ 
ized by the Congress of Berlin to assume a pro¬ 
tectorate over Bosnia and Herzogovina, and in 
1908 formally annexed these provinces. In 1883 
Austria became a member of the Triple Alliance 
(which see). Austrian relations with Italy and 
with Russia have been strained at various times, 
Russia being especially angered by Austria’s 
policy toward the Balkan states. During the 
Balkan War of 1913, Austrian influence was 
strong, and at the close Austria’s determination 
that Servia should receive slight additions to 
its territory resulted in the establishment of 
the kingdom of Albania, thus creating a new 
small country instead of giving Servia an out¬ 
let on the Adriatic. (See Balkan War) 

War of the Nations. The Austrian atti¬ 
tude toward the Balkan nations has caused 
constant irritation, especially in Servia, which 
is allied by ties of blood and religion to the 
inhabitants of Bosnia and Herzogovina. The 
anti-Austrian agitations culminated on June 28, 
1914, in the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, 
nephew of Francis Joseph I and heir to the 
Austrian throne, while on a visit to Serajevo, the 
capital of Bosnia. The assassin was a Servian 
student, and the attack is said to have been the 
result of a widespread Servian conspiracy. The 
Austrian government, asserting that high officials 
of Servia were involved in the conspiracy, de¬ 
manded on July 23 that the Servian government 
apologize officially for the anti-Austrian agita¬ 
tion, curb the hostile expressions of the press, 
and allow Austria to make an independent in¬ 
vestigation of the supposed conspiracy. To all 
these demands, except the last, Servia yielded, 
but asked that this demand be referred to the 
court of arbitration at the Hague. Austria 
promptly declined this offer and declared war 
against Servia. 

At this point the Russian government inti¬ 
mated that any aggression by Austria would 
compel Russia to take up arms to maintain 
Servia’s independence. Austria replied that it 
had no intention of annexing Servian territory, 
but Russia commenced mobilization of her 


army. Emperor William of Germany, who had 
been asked by Russia to use his influence to keep 
peace between Austria and Servia, regarded the 
movements of Russian troops as a menace to 
Germany and to Austria, her ally. To his ulti¬ 
matum of July 31 that Russian mobilization 
cease within twenty-four hours, Russia made no 
reply. Emperor William declared a state of war 
on August 1,' and at the same time' asked France 
what her attitude would be. The French reply 
being evasive and unsatisfactory, he declared 
a state of war against France. German troops 
immediately advanced against Russia and 
France, one German army crossing Luxem¬ 
bourg and Belgium. At this invasion of her 
neutrality Belgium called Great Britain to her 
defense. Germany maintained that she had 
no designs on Belgium and would indemnify that 
country for any losses caused by the passage of 
German troops, but rejected Great Britain’s 
request that absolute neutrality be preserved. 
Owing to this rejectioii Great Britain declared 
war against Germany on August 4. 

In all the steps leading to this remarkable 
situation—a general European war— each coun¬ 
try has attempted to shift all blame on its 
opponents. The Austrian quarrel with Servia 
over the assassination of Archduke Franz 
Ferdinand was thrust into the background, and 
an unparalleled war of nations came to the 
fore. See War of the Nations. 

Automo'bile, the name which is popularly 
applied to all forms of self-propelling vehicles, 
provided they do not require tracks for their 
operation. Wagons, carriages, omnibuses, tour¬ 
ing-cars, run-abouts, heavy vehicles for trucking 
freight and other road conveyances driven by 
steam, electricity, petroleum, gasoline or 
naphtha are classed as automobiles. The 
automobile proper is a development of recent 
date, though as early as 1680 Sir Isaac Newton 
invented a toy horseless carriage which embodied 
all the essential features of a steam automobile. 
In 1827 Walter Hancock, an Englishman, finally 
succeeded in applying what was then a remark¬ 
able boiler to a three-wheeled vehicle which he 
called the Automaton. Contemporary with 
Hancock, several other inventors made valuable 
improvements on steam vehicles. But by 1836 
all practical continued effort in the development 
of the horseless carriage had ceased and was 
never resumed until more than fifty years later. 

The period of modern development of the 
automobile began in 1894, when a Frenchman, 
Leon Serpollet, applied his instantaneous gen- 


Automobile 


Automobile 


erator or boiler, invented in 1889, to a motor 
vehicle. This boiler is of the water-tube type 
(See Boiler). The fuel used is vaporized oil. 
Just above and surrounding the burner is a coil 
of round pipe. This coil receives the water and 
passes it into the series of water-tubes, from 
which the steam and water pass into twisted 
flat tubes. These tubes deliver the steam im¬ 
mediately to the engine. 

Next to France, the chief development of the 
steam automobile has been in the United States. 
Some American machines have water-tubes, but 
many of these of standard make have fire-tubes 
of copper or steel, surrounding a cylindrical 
upright boiler. Gasoline is generally used as a 
fuel and is vaporized by special burners. Auto¬ 
matic feed-pumps, operated from the engine, 
usually supply water to the boiler. 

Gasoline automobiles came into use about the 
same time as the steam vehicles, and have 
largely supplanted them in public favor. The 
motive power in these vehicles is given to the 
piston by the explosion of vaporized oil. By the 
successive explosions power is transmitted to a 
crank-shaft, from which it is led off by a chain- 
drive or gearing to the driving shaft. Other oil 
vehicles are constructed on the same principle. 

The standard automobile car is a touring car 
of 20 to 30 horse-power weighing from 2000 to 
2500 pounds, though larger cars having 40 horse¬ 
power or more and proportionately heavier are 
found. The motors for these cars usually have 
four or six cylinders and are placed in front and 
covered by a hood or bonnet. The power is trans¬ 
mitted through a gear which usually meshes into 
a bevel gear on the rear axle. Some machines 
are propelled by a chain and sprocket wheel in a 
manner similar to the bicycle, though this is not 
common for the heavier and more powerful 
machines. The wheels are from 32 to 34 inches 
in diameter and have pneumatic tires 4 to 4^ 
inches in diameter. These cars will seat four to 
seven people, and under ordinary conditions 
will traverse long distances at the rate of twenty 
to thirty miles an hour over good roads. 

The electric automobile came into use in 
France and America at about the same time 
as the gasoline automobile. The electric car¬ 
riages at once found great favor because of the 
ease with which they can be operated and 
because of their freedom from noise and disa¬ 
greeable odors; but it was soon found that they 
were not suitable for heavy work or for travel¬ 
ing long distances, because the motive power 
had to be supplied through a storage battery, 


and in order to secure a battery furnishing 
sufficient power for a long distance the weight 
would be so great as to load the machine down 
with almost its capacity for transportation. 
Again, these batteries could not be charged 
except as they were brought in contact with 
dynamos, and if one became exhausted on the 
road the automobile must be hauled to the 
nearest electric station before power could be 
supplied. By continuous experiment, however, 
the storage battery has been greatly improved, 
so that now a battery of much lighter weight 
contains a larger supply of electricity, and 
machines have been made in France which 
stored sufficient electricity to enable them to 
travel from 60 to 130 miles. United States 
electric carriages have made successful trips of 
100 miles with one charge. These results show 
that the electric automobile has been greatly 
improved, and with this improvement its use 
will become widely extended. 

The use of the automobile as a vehicle for 
regular transportation and for the purpose of 
carrying freight in cities has become thoroughly 
established. Cars are now made so durable 
that they withstand long trips over rough roads, 
several trips between the Atlantic and the Pacific 
coast having been successfully made within a 
reasonable time. Like the bicycle, when it 
first came into general use the automobile was 
regarded as a vehicle of pleasure and sport. 
Automobile races in the United States and 
Europe, especially in France, are common, and 
in some of these remarkable rates of speed have 
been maintained. In a contest held in Jackson¬ 
ville, Florida, in 1911, the winner covered a dis¬ 
tance of 300 miles in 3 hours, 53 minutes, 33 
seconds, an average speed of more than 75 miles 
an hour. Several days earlier the same driver 
set a record of 81.65 miles in one hour. The 
world’s record for one mile is 25.4 seconds, made 
on a straight track in 1911. The racing auto¬ 
mobiles are specially built to offer the least pos¬ 
sible resistance to the air, and have engines of 60 
to 90 or even greater horse power. But it is as a 
vehicle of business that the automobile is to 
be more highly valued. Motor cars, drays 
and trucks are now common in all cities of the 
United States, and the extended use of the auto¬ 
mobile is exerting a strong influence in securing 
better roads throughout the country. See 
Good Roads Movement. 

The manufacture of automobiles has become 
an important industry, in which France and the 
United States take the lead. For a time auto- 


Autumn 


mobiles were imported from France in quite 
large numbers, but American manufacturers 
were soon able to supply the home demands, 
and now nearly all automobiles used in the 
United States are of American manufacture. 
There has been a noteworthy increase in the de¬ 
mand for cheaper automobiles, at prices ranging 
from $450 to $1,000, evidence that the automo¬ 
bile is no longer a luxury, only for the rich. 

Au'tumn, the season of the year between sum¬ 
mer and winter. Astronomically speaking, in 
the Northern Hemisphere this season covers the 
period from the autumnal equinox, about Sep¬ 
tember 22, till the winter solstice, December 22. 
Popularly, however,'in America the term autumn 
is used to denote the months of September, 
October and November; and in England, to 
denote August, September and October. 

Av'alanche, a large mass of snow or ice that 
slides down a mountain. Avalanches are of 
different forms; those consisting of fine, dry 
particles of snow driven down the mountain by 
a strong wind are known as wind or dust ovo- 
lanches ; those which consist of great masses of 
snow sliding down a slope by their own weight 
are known as sliding avalanches', those which 
are detached by heat from the high glaciers are 
known as glacier or summer avalanches. The 
sliding avalanche is the most dangerous of all, 
and consists of vast accumulations of snow set 
free from above, which increase in force as they 
descend, overthrowing houses, tearing up trees, 
burying villages and swallowing up forests, 
cattle and human beings. An avalanche which 
fell in the Alpine district of Italy, in 1885, con¬ 
tained 250,000 tons of snow. 

Avebury, Baron. See Lubbock, John. 

Ave Maria, ah'va mah ree’ah, (Hail, Mary), 
the first two words of the angel Gabriel’s saluta¬ 
tion to Mary (Luke I, 28), and the beginning of 
the very common Latin prayer to the Virgin in 
the Roman Catholic Church. Its lay use was 
sanctioned at the end of the twelfth century, and 
a papal edict of 1326 ordains the repetition of the 
prayer thrice each morning, noon and evening, 
at the hour indicated by the bells called the Ave 
Maria or Angelus Domini. 

Aver'nus, a lake now called Lago d’Averno, in 
Campania, Italy, between the ancient Cumae 
and Puteoli, about eight miles from Naples. It 
occupies the crater of an old volcano, and is in 
some places 180 feet deep. Formerly the gloom 
of its forest surroundings and its sulphurous 
vapors caused it to be regarded as the entrance 
to the infernal regions. It was the fabled abode 


Avocet 


of the Cimmerians, and was especially dedicated 
to Proserpine. 

Aves'ta. See Zend-Avesta. 

A'viary, a building or enclosure for keeping, 
breeding and rearing birds. The custom of 
establishing aviaries has been prevalent in all 
countries since the times of the early Greeks and 
Romans, and in England we know that they 
were in use as early as 1577. At the present 
date, in all of the zoological gardens of Europe 
and America there are fine aviaries. New 
York, Washington, Boston, Chicago and other 
American cities have buildings of this sort, and 
fine collections of birds are maintained at public 


expense. 

Avicenna, av'e sen'nah, or Ebn-Sina (980- 
1037), an Arabian philosopher and physician. 
At the age of twenty-one he wrote an encyclo¬ 
pedia of the sciences, but of his one hundred 
works the best known is the Canon Medicinae, 
which was in use as a text-book at Louvain and 
Montpellier in the middle of the seventeenth 
century. 

Avignon, a ve nyoN\ an old town of south¬ 
eastern France, capital of the department Vau- 
cluse. It is an archbishop’s see and has an 
ancient cathedral on a rock overlooking the 
town and an immense palace in which the popes 
resided, now used as barracks. Silk manu¬ 
facture and the rearing of silkworms are the 
principal employments in the district. After 
its purchase by Pope Clement VI in 1348, 
Avignon and its district continued to be the 
property of 
the papal see 
till 1791, 
when it was 
united to the 
French Repub¬ 
lic. Population 
in 1910, 49,304. 

Av'ocet or 
Av'oset, a wad¬ 
ing bird found in 
temperate regions 
of Europe and 
America during 
the summer, but 
migrating south 
in winter. The 
bill is long, slen- avocet 

der, elastic and bent upward toward the tip. 
The legs are long, the feet webbed, and the 
plumage, which is generally light, is varied with 
black on the wings and brown on the head, 



Avogadro’s Law 


Ayr 


neck and breast. In the western states the 
avocet is considered a good game bird. It 
feeds in the marshes, where, with its sensi¬ 
tive beak, it scoops up the worms and small 
crustaceans from the mud. 

Avogadro’s Law, ah'vo gah'drose, a principle 
advanced in 1811 by Avogadro, an Italian 
scientist. This principle asserts that equal 
volumes of different gases at the same pressure 
and temperature contain an equal number of 
molecules. 

Avoirdupois, av'urdu poiz ', (from old French 
words meaning goods of weight), a system of 
weights used for all goods except precious metals, 
gems and medicines. In this system a pound 
contains 16 ounces, or 7000 grains. 

A'von, the name of several smaller rivers in 
England, of which the most famous rises in 
Northamptonshire, flows past Shakespeare’s 
birthplace, Stratford, and falls into the Severn, 
after a course of 96 miles. 

Ax, a steel tool used in felling trees and chop¬ 
ping wood., The thick part of the ax is called 
the head and contains the eye, into which 
the handle is driven. The blade of the common 
ax is wedge-shaped and has a curved edge from 
five to six inches long and in line with the handle. 
The handle, also called the helve, is from two 
and one-half to three feet long, and is for use with 
both hands. The shape of the ax varies in 
different countries, but the common American 
pattern is considered the best. A hatchet is a 
small ax with a short handle, to be used in one 
hand. It is used in shingling and lathing. A 
broadax has a chisel-shaped edge and a wide 
blade. It was formerly used in hewing timber. 
The largest factory in the world for manufac¬ 
turing axes is at Collinsville, Conn. 

Ax'iom, a self-evident truth; specifically, in 
mathematics, certain fundamental relations 
which are so plain that they require no proof and 
upon which all processes are based. Among 
these are the following: (1) that equal quantities 
added to equal quantities produce equal quanti¬ 
ties; (2) that a whole is greater than any of its 
parts. See Algebra. 

Ax'is, the straight line, real or imaginary, pass¬ 
ing through a body or magnitude, on which it 
revolves, or may be supposed to revolve; for 
instance, the axis of the earth, the imaginary line 
drawn through its two poles. 

In botany the word is also used, the stem being 
termed the ascending axis, the root the descending 
axis. 

In anatomy the name is given to the second 


vertebra from the head, that on which the atlas 
moves. In mathematics an axis is the straight 
line about which the parts of a figure or body 
are symmetrically arranged. 

Ax'olotl, a larval salamander, usually five to 
six inches long, living in the lakes about Mexico. 
The young have bushy external gills similar to 
those of the mud puppy. A remarkable fact 
about these salamanders is that they remain 



AXOLOTL, 


permanently in the larval condition and never 
are transformed into adults. One species, the 
black Mexican axolotl, is highly valued as food 
by the Mexicans. 

Aye-Aye, i-i, an animal of Madagascar, so 
called from its cry, belonging to the lemur 



AYE-AYE 


family. It is about the size of a hare, has large, 
flat ears, a bushy tail, large eyes and long, sprawl¬ 
ing fingers, the third so slender as to appear 
shriveled. In color it is musk-brown, mixed 
with black and gray ash. It feeds on grubs and 
fruits, and in its habits it is nocturnal. 

Ayeshah, Aysha, or Aisha, a’e shah or 
i f shah, daughter of Abu-bekr and favorite 
wife of Mohammed. After his death she 
opposed the succession of his son-in-law, Ali. 

Ayr, a town in Scotland situated on the river 
Ayr, 34 mi. s. w. of Glasgow. The modern 
town is well laid out and has good buildings and 
paved streets. The most important structures 
are the churches, the town hall, the county 
buildings, the academy, free library and railway 
station. The leading industries are shipbuilding, 
tanning and the manufacture of carpets, lace 
curtains and boots and shoes. Ayr is on a good 



Azalea 


Azurite 


harbor at the mouth of the river and has quite 
an extensive commerce, exporting iron, coal 
and manufactured goods. Within a mile 
and a half of the town is the birthplace of 
Robert Burns and the Alloway church. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 32,985. 

Aza'lea, a genus of plants belonging to the 
heaths, remarkable for the beauty and fragrance 
of their flowers and 
distinguished from 
the rhododendrons 
chiefly by the flow¬ 
ers having five sta¬ 
mens instead of ten. 

Many beautiful 
rhododendrons 
whose leaves fall 
once a year are 
known under the 
name of azalea in 
gardens. Azaleas 
are common in 
North America. 

An Asiatic species, 
famous for the stu¬ 
pefying effect which 
its honey is said 
to have produced 
on Xenophon’s army, is also common in gardens 
and shrubberies, and another is a brilliant 
greenhouse plant. Shades of red and pink 
predominate, though there are yellow azaleas. 

Azincourt, ah zhaN koor '. See Agincourt. 

Azo'ic Era, the earliest division of geologic 
time, extending to the Protozoic Era. As 
used by most geologists, it means the same 
as the Archaean System. See Archaean 
System; Geology. 

Azores, a zomf, or Western Islands, a group 
of islands belonging to Portugal, in the North 
Atlantic Ocean. They are nine in number and 
form three distinct groups: the northwest, con¬ 
sisting of Flores and Corvo; the central, con¬ 
sisting of Terceira, Sao Jorge, Pico, Fayal and 
Graciosa; and the southeast, consisting of Sao 
Miguel (Saint Michael) and Santa Maria. Sao 
Miguel, Pico and Terceira are the largest. The 
islands are volcanic and subject to earthquakes, 
and are conical, lofty, precipitous and pictur¬ 
esque. The most remarkable summit is the peak 
of Pico, about 7600 feet high. There are nu¬ 
merous hot springs. The Azores are covered with 
luxuriant vegetation, and have many different 
woods, besides corn-fields, vineyards, lemon and 
orange groves and rich open pastures. The 


mild and somewhat humid climate, combined 
with the natural fertility of the soil, brings all 
kinds of vegetable products rapidly to perfection. 
The prosperity of these islands is hindered by 
the lack of good harbors. The Azores were 
discovered by Cabral about 1431, shortly after 
which date they were taken possession of and 
colonized by the Portuguese. When first visited 
they were uninhabited, and had scarcely any 
animals except birds, particularly hawks, called 
in Portuguese acores, to which the islands owe 
their name. Population in 1911, 246,213. 

Azov, a zof, Sea of. an arm of the Black Sea, 
with which it is united by the Strait of Kertch. 
Its length is about 170 miles, its breadth about 
80 miles and its greatest depth not more than 8 
fathoms. The western part, called the Putrid 
Sea, is separated from the main expanse by a 
long sandy belt called Arabat, along which runs 
a military road. The sea teems with fish. The 
Don and other rivers enter it, and its waters are 
very fresh. 

Az'tec, a race of people who settled in Mexico 
and ultimately extended their dominion over a 
large territory, and were still growing under their 
most celebrated ruler, Montezuma, at the time of 
the arrival of the Spaniards, by whom they were 
speedily subjugated, in the early part of the 
sixteenth century. They had a considerable 
knowledge of agriculture, maize and the agave 
being the chief products. In metal work, 
feather work, weaving and pottery they possessed 
a high degree of skill. To record events they 
used hieroglyphics, and their lunar calendars were 
of unusual accuracy. Two special deities 
claimed their reverence, the god of war, propiti¬ 
ated with human sacrifices, and Quetzalcoatl. 
the beneficent god of light and air, with whom 
at first the Aztecs were disposed to identify 
Cortez. Their temples, with large terraced 
pyramidal bases, were in the charge of an exceed¬ 
ingly numerous priesthood, with whom lay the 
education of the young. See Indians, Ameri¬ 
can, subhead Mexican and Central American 
Indians', Montezuma; Cortez, Hernando. 

Az'urite, a crystallized copper carbonate, 
usually found in copper ores. It is found near 
Lyons, France, in Siberia and in Arizona. 
When occurring in large quantities and uncrys¬ 
tallized, it is used as a source of copper. Some 
varieties are cut into slabs and used for table 
tops, and others, especially those found in the 
ihines of Arizona, are highly esteemed as gems. 
It is azure blue in color. It takes a high polish 
and presents a beautiful appearance. 




B is the second letter and the first consonant in 
the English and in all other alphabets which are 
derived from the Phoenician. It is pronounced 
solely by the lips, and is distinguished from p 
by being produced by the utterance of voice as 
well as breath. In related languages it is often 
found that a b in one language is replaced by a 
p in another, especially when it occurs in a 
terminal position. In music, B is the seventh 
note of the diatonic scale, or scale of C. It is 
called the leading note, as there is always a 
feeling of suspense when it is sounded until the 
keynote is heard. 

Baader, bah'dur, Benedict Franz Xavier 
von (1765-1841), a German Roman Catholic 
philosopher and theologian born in Munich. 
He was fitted for civil engineer and practiced 
that profession for a number of years, though 
during his school career and afterwards he man¬ 
ifested unusual interest in philosophy. He was 
the discoverer of the use of glauber’s salt, in 
place of potash, for making glass. In 1826 he 
was appointed professor of philosophy and 
speculative theology in the new University of 
Munich. Twelve years later he came into 
prominence by his open opposition to the inter¬ 
ference of the Catholic Church in civil matters, 
and because of this he was forbidden to lecture 
on philosophy of religion. He did not believe 
in the papacy and desired to have it abolished. 
Notwithstanding his conflict with the higher 
authorities of the Church, he is considered one 
of the greatest philosophers and theologians of 
his day. 

Baal, ba'al, or Bel, a Hebrew and Semitic 
word signifying lord, and applied to many 
different divinities. In Hosea n, 16, it is applied 
to Jehovah himself, while Baal-berith (the 
Covenant-lord), was the god of the Shechemites, 
and Baal-zebub (the Fly-god) the idol of the 
Philistines. There were as many Baals as there 
were towns. 

Baalbek, bah'lbek, a ruined city of Syria, 
situated near the foot of Antilibanus, 40 mi. n. w. 


of Damascus. In ancient times Baalbek was a 
city of considerable importance and is supposed 
to have contained a population of at least 200,000. 
The name signifies city of Baal. The place is 
now of interest because of its extensive ruins. 
The most ancient ruin is that of the Temple of 
the Sun, which was a rectangular building 290 
feet long and 160 feet wide, having its roof 
supported by 54 Corinthian columns, 19 on each 
side and 10 at each end. The circumference 
of these columns is about 22 feet and their 
length 50 feet, but, with the pedestal, capital 
and entablature, they had a height of 85 feet. 
The ruins of this structure exhibit work remark¬ 
able not only for its magnitude but for the nicety 
of its execution. Some stones used in the great 
platform of the temple are over 60 feet long and 
12 feet thick. These are laid side by side and 
are so nicely fitted together that their joints are 
not easily seen. South of the Temple of the Sun 
is found a temple of Jupiter, which is probably 
of more recent origin. The present town is an 
insignificant village of about 2000 inhabitants. 

Bab'bitt Metal, a soft metal resulting from 
melting together certain proportions of copper, 
tin and zinc or antimony, and used with the view 
of obviating friction as far as possible in the 
bearing of journals, cranks and axles. Babbitt 
metal was invented by Isaac Babbitt, a gold¬ 
smith of Boston, Mass., from whom it takes its 
name. 

Bab'cock, Orville E. (1835-1884), an 
American soldier, born in Franklin, Vt. He 
graduated at West Point and served during the 
whole of the Civil War, for a time as aide-de- 
camp to General Grant. He later became 
private secretary to President Grant, and in 
1876 he was indicted for complicity in the 
Whisky Ring frauds, but was acquitted. 

Ba'bel, Tower of, a structure in the plain 
of Shinar, Mesopotamia, which, according to 
the eleventh chapter of Genesis, was commenced 
by the descendants of Noah, subsequent to the^ 
deluge. The tower of Babel has commonly 










Bab-el-Mandeb Babylon 


been identified with the great temple of Belus 
(or Bel), one of the chief edifices in Babylon, 
and the huge mound called Birs Nimrud is 
generally regarded as its site, though another 
mound which to this day bears the name of 
Babil, has been assigned by some as its site. 
Babel means literally gate of God , and is not 
derived from the word meaning confusion. 

Bab-el-Mandeb, bahb'el mahn'deb (gate of 
tears), a strait between the Indian Ocean and 
the Red Sea, formed by projecting points of 
Arabia, in Asia, and Abyssinia, in Africa. Its 
width is 15 miles at its narrowest part. 

Babirussa or Babyrussa, bab i roo'sa, a wild 
hog which inhabits Celebes and other East 
Indian islands. It is an active animal, with a 
nearly naked skin, and does not root in the 
ground as do other members of its family. The 
upper canine teeth do not grow downward, but 
upward, through openings in the skin of each 
side of the snout, and they curve backward 
nearly to the eyes. 



BABIRUB8A 


Babism, bahb'izm, the name of the doctrine 
of a religious sect in Persia, founded by Muham¬ 
mad ibn Radhik about 1843. The sect takes its 
name from Muhammad’s self-styled title of 
Bab-ud-Din. The doctrines are pantheistic and 
opposed to the strict Mohammedan faith. The 
Babists believe that all individual existence 
comes from the supreme deity. They attach 
great importance to the number 7 and to the 
number 19, which they consider to represent the 
deity. They consider Christ, Moses and Mo¬ 
hammed as prophets, but forerunners of the Bab, 
and inferior to him. They prohibit polygamy 
and recognize the equality of the sexes to a much 
greater extent than the Mohammedans. 


Baboon, bab oon ', a common name applied to 
a division of old-world apes and monkeys. They 
have long, abrupt muzzles like a dog, strong 
tusks or canine teeth, usually short tails, cheek- 
pouches and small, deep eyes, with large eye¬ 
brows. Their hind and fore feet are well pro¬ 
portioned, so that they run easily on all fours, 



BABOON 

but they do not maintain themselves in an up¬ 
right posture with facility. They are generally 
of the size of a moderately large dog, but the 
largest, the mandrill, is, when erect, nearly of 
the height of a man. They are almost all con¬ 
fined to Africa and are ugly, sullen, fierce and 
gregarious, defending themselves by throwing 
stones, d'"rt and the like. They live on fruits 
and roots, eggs and insects. The chacma or pig¬ 
tailed baboon is found in considerable numbers 
in parts of the South African colonies, where 
the inhabitants wage war against them on 
account of the ravages they commit in the fields 
and gardens. The common baboon, of a brownish 
yellow color, inhabits a large part of Africa 
farther to the north. The hamadryas of Abyssinia 
is characterized by long hair, forming a sort of 
shoulder cape. See Mandrill; Ape; Monkey. 

Bab'ylon, the capital of Babylonia, once one of 
the largest and most splendid cities of the ancient 
world. It was a royal city sixteen hundred years 
before the Christian era; but the old city was 
almost entirely destroyed in 689 b. c. A new 
city was built by Nabopolassar, and it was under 
him and his successor, Nebuchadnezzar, that 


/ 
























Babylonia 

Babylon reached the height of its glory. This 
later Babylon covered about fifty square miles and 
was in the form of a square, with walls of such 
immense height and thickness as to constitute 
one of the wonders of the world. It contained 
splendid edifices and pleasure grounds; the 
“hanging gardens,” a sort of lofty terraced 
structure supporting earth enough for trees to 
grow, and the celebrated tower of Babel, or 
temple of Belus (See Babel, Tower of). After 
the city was taken by Cyrus it began to decline, 
and had suffered severely by the time of Alex¬ 
ander the Great. Discoveries have been made, 
on its site, of numerous and valuable inscriptions 
in the cuneiform or arrowhead character. See 
Babylonia. 

Babylo'nia. Geography. Babylonia was 
an ancient district of Mesopotamia, included 
between Assyria and Susiana on the north, the 
Persian Gulf on the south, the Tigris on the 
east and the Arabian Desert on the west. 
According to the Babylonian inscriptions, the dis¬ 
trict consisted of several divisions, the northern 
part being known in the earliest days as Akkad, 
or Accad, and the southern part as Shumar, or 
Shinar. The term Babylonia is derived from 
Babylon, the name of the capital of the district, 
and is applied in the Old Testament to the 
whole country. The surface is an alluvial 
plain, formed in great part through deposits by 
.the river. At one time the plain was covered 
with a network of canals and was very fertile, 
but it is now a cheerless waste. 

People. The Babylonians were a quick¬ 
witted, commercial people, fond of letters and 
other peaceful pursuits. Their language closely 
resembled that of the Hebrews and Phoenicians 
It was written in cuneiform characters, first on 
papyrus leaves and later on clay tablets (See 
Cuneiform Inscriptions) . In bulk the remains 
of the literature are immense, and consist largely 
of hymns, prayers, omens and incantations, but 
include, also, epics, myths, legends and historical 
works. There are also works on science, agri¬ 
culture and commercial law, which show that 
some important progress had been made along 
these lines. The system of government was 
a pure despotism, with viceroys ruling the 
provinces under the king, who dwelt in luxurious 
seclusion from his people. The worship of the 
dead played a prominent part in the Babylonian 
religion. 

Art. In Babylonia, architecture as a fine 
art was first practiced. The material '.sed was 
sun-dried bricks, and the tools used in building 


. Babylonia 

were very simple. As the land was flat, the 
buildings were erected on high platforms of 
brick, reached by stairways. Statues, both 
standing and seated, carved basins and low 
reliefs show that the Babylonians practiced 
sculpture in more varied forms than the Assyr¬ 
ians, but, probably owing to their lack of stone, 
they never attained to the skill of their neighbors. 

History. The date of the settlement of 
Babylonia is unknown, nor is it known positively 
whence the ancient Babylonians came. From 
the cuneiform inscriptions it appears that the 
first settlers were Semites -who came from the 
upper Tigris-Euphrates region. These people 
mingled with the Aryans and Caucasians, and 
by 4000 B. c. they had reached a high state of 
culture. Detailed information concerning the 
history of Babylonia begins about 2300 b. c., 
with King Hammurabi, who united all the 
southern states of Mesopotamia under his power 
and placed the seat of government at Babylon. 
About 1900 B. c., or earlier, began the coloni¬ 
zation of Assyria by the Babylonians. Once 
established, Assyria grew to be a rival of the 
parent state, and wars between the two nations 
were almost constant. From about 1782 b. c., 
Babylonia was ruled for over five centuries by 
a people known as the Kassites, who came from 
Media. During the next two hundred fifty 
years, no less than four changes in dynasties 
took place, native Babylonians alternating with 
Kassites. In 1026 B. c. a native ruler came to 
the throne. But about this time Assyria began 
to interfere in Babylonian affairs, and in 710 
B. c. Sargon II, a powerful king of Assyria, 
reduced Babylonia to an Assyrian province, 
although its final subjugation was not effected 
until 638 B. c., when Sargon’s son Sennacherib 
destroyed Babylon. Less than one hundred 
years later, when the Assyrian power began to 
wane, the Babylonians, incited by Nabopolassar 
of Chaldaea and aided by a horde of Medes 
under Cyaxares, revolted and, marching into 
Assyria, took and destroyed Nineveh. Nabopo¬ 
lassar then established the new Babylonian 
kingdom, about 626 B. c. His son, Nebuchad¬ 
nezzar, ruling from about 604-561 B. c., was 
the most powerful monarch who ever sat on the 
Babylonian throne. He conquered Jerusalem 
and Tyre and ravaged Egypt along the shores 
of the Mediterranean. Moreover, he raised 
Babylon to its highest degree of splendor and 
power. Nebuchadnezzar was succeeded by a 
line of weak kings, and the country was in a 
constant state of turmoil until 538 B.C., when 



Babylonish Captivity 

Cyrus the Great captured Babylon. After this 
Babylonia was a Persian province until, with 
the conquest of Alexander the Great, it passed 
under Greek control and then into the hands 
of the Parthians. After Alexander’s death the 
country was neglected, and owing to the perish¬ 
able quality of the building materials, the cities 
soon were in ruins. See Babylon; Assyria. 

Bab'ylo'nish Captiv'ity. See Jews. 

Bacchus, bak'kus (Dionysus), the god of 
wine, son of Jupiter and Semele. He first 
taught the cultivation of the vine and the prep¬ 
aration of wine. In art he is represented 
usually as naked, but sometimes he has an 
ample mantle about his shoulders or a fawn- 
skin across his breast. He is often accompanied 
by Silenus, Bacchantes or satyrs. The Bac¬ 
chanalia, the feasts periodically held in his 
honor, were so licentious that they were abol¬ 
ished by the Roman Senate in 187 b. c. Bac¬ 
chante was the name given generally to a female 
taking part in such feasts and processions. 

Baccio della Porta, bah'cho del'lah por'tah. 
See Bartolommeo, Fra. 

Bach, baliK, Johann Sebastian (1685-1750), 
one of the earliest and greatest of German 
musicians. Descended from a long line of 
musicians, he was early trained in the art and 
soon disting uished himself. In 1703 he was 
engaged as a player at the court at Weimar and 
subsequently held an appointment at Leipzig. 
As a player on the harpsichord and organ he 
had no equal among his contemporaries; but 
it was not till a century after his death that his 
greatness as a composer was fully recognized. 
His compositions include studies for the organ, 
piano, stringed and keyed instruments; church 
cantatas; oratorios; masses, and passion music. 
It is as a composer for, and performer upon, 
the organ that his fame is most secure, and 
especially through his fugues, which are consid¬ 
ered the most perfect ever written. More than 
fifty musical performers have proceeded from 
this family. Bach was the father of twenty-one 
children, and all of his eleven sons were distin¬ 
guished as musicians. 

Bach'eller, Irving (1859- ), an Ameri¬ 

can novelist, born at Pierpont, N. Y. He gradu¬ 
ated at Saint Lawrence University and was con¬ 
nected successively with the Daily Hotel 
Reporter of New York, the Brooklyn Times, 
the Pocket Magazine and the New York World. 
Before 1900 he also wrote for periodicals, pub¬ 
lished two books and conducted a syndicate for 
supplying magazines with literary material. 


Backgammon 

His Eben Holden, D’ri and I and Darrel of the 
Blessed Isles, each with a setting near his early- 
home, achieved a success which was not increased 
by a later novel, Vergilius, picturing Rome at 
the beginning of the Christian era. 

Bach'elor’s But'tons, a name given to the 
double-flowering buttercup, with white or yel¬ 
low blossoms, and to the common blue corn¬ 
flower, as well as to several different species. 

Bacillus, ba sil'lus, the name applied to cer¬ 
tain minute, rod-like organisms, forming one 
of the three principal classes of bacteria which 
often appear in putrefactions. One bacillus is 
believed to be the cause of tubercles in the lung, 
and is thought to be present in all cases of con¬ 
sumption. See Bacteria. 

Back'gammon, a game played by two persons 
upon a double table, or board, made for the 
purpose. Each end of each side of the board 
has six points colored alternately red and black. 
Each of the two players has fifteen “men” or 



backgammon board 


checkers. Two dice are used, and the throw 
from these determines the number of the point 
on which a man can be placed; or, after ali 
have been placed, the number of points it can 
be moved onward or the point from which it 
can be thrown off in the fourth section. The 
game is won by the player who first moves all 
men from point to point around the table and 
throws them off from the last section. At any 
time when a point holds two men it is covered, 
and the other player is unable to put a man 
upon it. If only one man is on a point, the 
opponent may remove it if one of his men can 
be placed upon that point, in which case the 
man removed must be entered and played 
around again. Neither player can move for- 


































Bacon 


Bacon 


ward until all his men are entered on the first 
section; nor can he throw off until all men are 
upon the last section. 

Ba'con, a kind of salted and smoked meat 
prepared from the sides and back of the hog. 
The name is also given to hams and shoulders 
that have been pickled and smoked. Bacon is 
usually dry-salted and then smoked. The best 
quality is cut into very thin slices and packed 
in sealed tin cans. 

Bacon, Augustus Octavius (1839-1914), 
an American lawyer and politician, born in 
Brian co., Ga. He entered the Confederate 
army, and at the close of the Civil War became 
one of the leading lawyers of his state. He 
entered politics, was several times candidate for 
the Democratic nomination for governor of 
Georgia and was for many terms a member of 
the lower house of the state legislature. He 
was elected United States senator in 1895 and 
was reelected in 1901, 1907 and 1913. 

Bacon, Francis (1561-1625), a great English 
philosopher, statesman and jurist. He was 
knighted, made Baron Verulam and in 1621 



FRANCIS BACON 

viscount of Saint Albans. When he was a boy. 
Queen Elizabeth asked him how old he was. 
He gave the courtly reply, “Two years younger 
than your majesty’s happy reign.” He was 
admitted to the bar when twenty-one years old, 
entered Parliament at twenty-three, filled various 
legal offices, and in 1618 was created lord high 


chancellor. He was accused of corruption as 
a judge and pleaded guilty to the charge. He 
was fined $200,000 and sentenced to the Tower 
during the king’s pleasure. Subsequently his 
punishment was practically remitted. 

Bacon’s principal title to renown is in his 
development of the inductive method of reason¬ 
ing, of which Aristotle was the father. He 
undertook to rearrange the whole system of 
human knowledge, and though his self-appointed 
task was too great for him, yet he contributed 
more to real scientific progress than any other 
man since the days of the Greek philosophers. 
The illness of which he died was con¬ 
tracted while he was engaged in an experiment 
with snow, an experiment whose success has 
led to the cold storage systems of to-day. The 
Novum Organum was his most pretentious work. 
His Essays, fifty-eight in number, treating 
of a great variety of subjects, are as bright, as 
fresh, as applicable to life, as when they were 
written. They are so full of meaning, so con¬ 
densed in style and so logical in arrangement, 
that they repay the closest study. 

Bacon, Nathaniel (1648-1676), an English 
colonist, chiefly famous as the leader of Bacon’s 
Rebellion in Virginia. He was bom in Eng¬ 
land and was a distant relative of the great 
Lord Bacon. He was educated as a lawyer, 
emigrated to Virginia in 1673, and there he 
rose to prominence as a land-holder and leader. 
Because of Governor Berkeley’s refusal to pro¬ 
ceed against the indians, Bacon was chosen by 
the colonists to lead an independent force and 
succeeded in putting down a serious uprising 
in 1675. This led to Bacon’s Rebellion. 

Bacon, Roger (1214-1294), an English monk, 
and one of the most profound and original 
thinkers of his day. He first entered the Uni¬ 
versity of Oxford and afterward that of Paris, 
where he received the degree of Doctor of 
Theology. About 1250 he returned to England, 
entered the order of Franciscans, and made 
researches in physics, which led his eccle¬ 
siastical superiors to charge him with practicing 
“black art,” or magic. He was sent to Paris 
and kept in confinement for ten years. Having 
been set at liberty, he was again thrown into 
prison (1278), where he remained for at least 
ten years. His most important work is his 
Opus Majus, in which he discusses the relation 
of philosophy to religion, and then treats of 
language, metaphysics, optics and experimental 
science. He was well versed in geography 
and astronomy and invented the magnifying 
glass. 









Bacon’s Rebellion 


Bacteria and Bacteriology 


Bacon’s Rebellion, a rebellion of colonists 
in Virginia in 1676, under the leadership of 
Nathaniel Bacon, against the colonial govern¬ 
ment headed by William Berkeley. The chief 
causes of the incident were unequal taxation, 
enforcement of the navigation laws and Gov¬ 
ernor Berkeley’s vacillating attitude toward the 
indians. The last named was the immediate 
occasion for the outbreak. Bacon, being refused 
a commission to fight the indians, organized a 
force of his own, and returning from the fron¬ 
tier, defied the authority of the governor. Bacon 
died suddenly of a fever, and the rebellion soon 
collapsed, but Berkeley executed a number of 
those who had been prominent in the affair. 

Bacte'ria and Bacte'riol'ogy. Bacteria 
are minute one-celled vegetable organisms, 
which multiply by transverse division. They 
are spherical, oval, rod-like or spiral in shape 
and of exceedingly small size — some being 
less than 1-30,000th of an inch in diameter. 
They may be divided into two groups, according 
to the source from which they obtain nutriment: 
the saprophytes, who live on dead organic matter, 
and the parasites, who live upon living organisms. 
The saprophytic bacteria are beneficial, for by 
their aid dead bodies are dissolved into their 
original elements and made good for higher 
plants and animals. In fact, existence without 
them would not long be possible (See Putre¬ 
faction). Some bacteria attach themselves to 
the roots of plants and furnish them with food. 
Others are used in making acids, cheese and but¬ 
ter, and in many other processes. All fermenta¬ 
tion is of bacterial origin (See Fermentation). 
With the parasites, on the other hand, the condi¬ 
tions are different. Through their activities there 
is constantly a loss to both the animal and vege¬ 
table kingdoms. They rob the organism in 
which they live of substances it needs to keep it 
healthy, and at the same time they form sub¬ 
stances that are directly poisonous to the tissues 
in which they are growing. Some bacteria 
flourish in an atmosphere of oxygen, while to 
others the presence of this gas is a detriment, 
and this fact gives rise to another classification. 

The principal forms of bacteria are three in 
number: 

(1) The micrococcus is a small, oval or round 
body which grows and multiplies in various ways, 
so that individuals are found growing in large 
bunches, in long chains, in fours, in squares, 
cubes and so on, according to the species. The 
most common of the micrococci are the pus 
microbes, golden, lemon-colored and white. 


(2) The bacillus is a minute rod-shaped 
organism that varies as to length, breadth and 
thickness in the different species. The bacilli 
of consumption and of typhoid are common 
examples. 

(3) The spirillum is a minute spiral or comma- 
shaped germ, which in some species presents 
letter S curves and in others resembles a bacillus. 
An example of this form is the spirillum of 
Asiatic cholera. 

An important feature of certain bacteria is , 
their power of spore formation, a process by i 
which an organism is enabled to enter a state in 
which it resists influences opposed to its growth. 
It is this property which renders certain germs 
so harmful, as in this state they resist chemical 
and physical agents that easily destroy life, even 
withstanding the action of a temperature of 212° 
F. for several hours. The bacillus of anthrax is 
a good example of this. Certain bacteria 
possess the power of moving about. The pro¬ 
pelling power is composed of hair-like appen¬ 
dages, called flagellae, projecting from various 
parts of the body-wall. This power is pos¬ 
sessed preeminently by the bacillus of typhoid. 

Bacteria are found everywhere, and they 
multiply so rapidly that it has been estimated 
that one bacillus in twenty-four hours will 
produce sixteen and a half millions. 

By their growth bacteria produce certain 
poisons, called ptomaines and tox-albumins. 
This action is the cause of the numerous deaths 
reported from eating ice cream, sausage, fish 
and other substances, and of several common 
diseases (See Antiseptics; Germ Theory of 
Disease; Medicine). 

Bacteriology treats of the character, growth 
and products of bacteria, of their effects upon 
humanity, especially as the causes of disease. 
In order to study bacteria they are placed in a 
flask containing a nourishing material, which is 
absolutely free from other germs. The nutritive 
material, gelatin, bouillon, potato, blood serum 
or whatever it is, must be adapted to the specific 
bacterium, for not all flourish equally well in any 
medium. 

After the preparation of the medium, it must 
be made perfectly sterile. This is accomplished 
by submitting it to the action of live steam for 
half an hour on three successive days. The 
object of this “fractional sterilization” is to kill 
the successive crops of spores as they develop. 

When the medium has been properly prepared, 
a portion of a substance containing the bacteria 
to be studied is placed with the medium in a 


Bactria 


Baden 


flask where it can be kept'from contamination, 
and is submitted to a gentle heat until a growth 
of the bacteria can be seen. Small quantities 
of these are put into- other sterilized flasks and 
the process repeated until finally all the bacteria 
but the species wanted have been left behind 
and the desired one grows alone. The bacteria 
are now studied under the microscope until their 
form and habits are known and their species is 
identified. Finally, if the bacteria are thought 
to be disease-producing, an animal, usually a 
guinea pig or a rabbit, is inoculated, and if the 
animal falls ill with the disease which existed 
where the original specimens came from, the 
germ is known to be the real cause of the 
disease. 

Through such a laborious process was the 
bacillus of consumption separated, identified 
and made known to the world by Koch. 

In many cities, laboratories are established for 
the protection of public health, and in these 
specific cases are studied after the general 
method described above, but varied to suit the 
conditions. Water is examined for indications 
of typhoid danger; cases of suspected diphtheria, 
tuberculosis, cholera and other diseases are 
critically studied and preventive measures advo¬ 
cated. 

The study of bacteriology may be said to have 
had its beginning with the observations of 
Leeuwenhoek in the year 1675. In this year 
he published the fact that he had seen, by means 
of a lens of his own construction, living, moving 
animalcules in a drop of rain water. Extending 
his work to the examination of sea water, well 
water, the contents of the intestinal canal of 
frogs, birds and other animals, he found objects 
that differed in size, shape and peculiarity of 
movement. From a study of his work it is 
known that he had discovered what are now 
known as bacteria. The work of Rindfleisch, 
Klebs, Orth, Eberth and others, shows a gradual 
advance, and with Koch, in 1881, bacteriology 
as a science was firmly established. 

Bac'tria or Bactrian'a, a country of ancient 
Asia, south of the Oxus and reaching to the west 
of the Hindu Kush. The land included in 
Afghanistan and Asiatic Russia, known to-day 
as the province of Balkh, was formerly Bactria. 
It is often regarded as the original home of the 
Aryan people. A Graeco-Bactrian kingdom 
flourished about the third century b. c., but its 
history is obscure. In the early years of the 
Christian era Bactria was the center of Bud¬ 
dhism. 

16 


Badajoz, bah'da hose', a town, the fortified 
capital of the Spanish province of the same name, 
132 mi. e. of Lisbon and 5 mi. from the frontier 
of Portugal. Among the important buildings 
are a ruined Moorish castle, the fortifications, an 
old cathedral and a large granite bridge across 
the Guadiana. The manufactures include soap, 
woolens and leather. In 1811 Badajoz was 
taken by Marshal Soult, and it was stormed by 
Wellington April 6, 1812. Population in 1910, 
33,160. 

Badeau, ba do', Adam (1831-1895), an Ameri¬ 
can soldier, born in New York. He served on 
General Sherman’s staff and later on General 
Grant’s, and retired with a brigadier general’s 
brevet in the regular army. From 1869 to 1881 
he was secretary of legation and consul general 
at London, and he accompanied General Grant 
on his trip around the world. He published 
Military History of Ulysses S. Grant and Grant 
in Peace. 

Baden, bah'den, a town of Austria, 15 mi. s. w. 
of Vienna. It is especially noted because of its 
hot sulphurous springs, used both for bathing 
and drinking. In 1840 Baden was made a city 
It is generally known as Baden Bei Wien. 
Population in 1910, 14,083. 

Baden, or Baden-Baden, to distinguish it 
from other towns of the same name, a town and 
watering-place in the grand duchy of Baden, 18 
mi. s. w. of Karlsruhe. It is built in the form of 
an amphitheater, at the edge of the Black Forest. 
Baden has been celebrated from the remotest 
antiquity for its thermal baths, which are recom¬ 
mended for the treatment of gout, rheumatism 
and diseases of the skin and kidneys. The town 
has many good buildings and a castle, the sum¬ 
mer residence of the grand duke. The principal 
industry is wood-carving. Population in 1910, 
22,066. 

Baden, Grand Duchy of, the fourth state in 
size, and the fifth in population, of the German 
Empire. It has an area of 5824 sq. mi. It is 
traversed to a considerable extent by the lofty 
plateau of the Black Forest, which attains its 
highest point in t^e Feldberg, 4904 feet. The 
principal minerals worked are coal, iron, zinc 
and nickel. The number of mineral springs is 
remarkably great, and of these not a few are 
celebrated. The agricultural interests are 
important, and the products include wheat, 
oats, barley, rye, potatoes, hemp, tobacco, wine 
and sugar-beets. Baden is also famous for its 
fruits and for its fine wines. Among the im¬ 
portant manufactures are textiles, tobacco and 




Baden-Powell 

cigars, chemicals, machinery, jewelry, pottery 
ware wooden clocks (confined chiefly to the 
region of the Black Forest) and musical instru¬ 
ments 

The capital is Karlsruhe, about 5 miles from 
the Rhine, and other chief towns are Mannheim; 
Freiburg-im-Breisgau, with a Roman Catholic 
university; Baden, with its warm mineral springs, 
known and used in the time of the Romans, and 
Heidelberg, having a university founded in 1386, 
the oldest in the present German Empire’(See 
Heidelberg, University of). 

In the time of the Roman Empire Southern 
Baden was a part of the province of Rhaetia, 
which belonged to the Romans. Under the 
old- German Empire it was a military district 
under the control of a marquis, which in 1533 
was divided into Baden-Baden and Baden- 
Durlach, but was reunited in 1771. The title 
of grand duke was conferred upon the ruler by 
Napoleon in 1806, and in the same year Baden 
was extended to its present limits. In 1871 it 
became a member of the German Empire. 
Population in 1910, 2,142,833. 

Ba'den-Powell, Robert Stevenson Smyth 
(1857- ), a British soldier, who began his 

military career with the army in India, after¬ 
wards serving in Afghanistan and South Africa. 
He acquired distinction as commander of the 
native troops in Ashantee in 1895, and later in 
the Matabele campaign. He was in command 
of the British forces besieged in Mafeking during 
the South African War, and succeeded in repelling 
his assailants until he was relieved. Because of 
his success in defending the place he was pro¬ 
moted to be Tnajor general. See Boy Scouts. 

Badger, baj'ur, a carnivorous mammal, 
allied both to the bears and to the weasels, 



BADGER 


different species being found in Europe and 
America. The badger has short, thick legs, and 
long claws on the fore feet. The common badger 
is about the size of a dog, but much lower on the 


Bagdad 

legs with a flatter and broader body, a very 
thick, tough hide and long, coarse hair. It 
inhabits the north of Europe, Asia and America, 
is indolent and sleepy, feeds by night on vege¬ 
tables and small quadrupeds, and burrows in 
the ground. Its flesh may be • eaten, and its 
hair is used for artists’ brushes in painting. 
“Badger baiting,” or “drawing the badger,” was 
a barbarous sport formerly practiced. A badger 
was put in a barrel, and one or nlore dogs were 
put in to drag him out. When this was effected 
he was returned to his barrel, to be similarly 
assailed again. From this cruel sport came the 
word badgering, which means worrying. The 
American badger belongs to a separate genus. 
It has a brownish color, and its head is striped 
with white. Wisconsin is called the badger state. 

Bad Lands,, the name given to certain lands 
which, by reason of the absence of natural vege¬ 
tation, have been greatly eroded by the rains 
and have been formed into hills and valleys of 
all sizes. The term is applied specifically to a 
region in the United States which lies at the 
upper part of the Missouri drainage basin, 
partly in South Dakota and partly in Nebraska. 

Baeda, be'dah. See Bede. 

Baf'fin, William (1584r-1622), an English 
navigator, famous for his discoveries in the 
Arctic regions. In 1616 he ascertained the 
limits of the inlet afterwards known as Baffin’s 
Bay. He was killed at the siege of Ormuz, 
while aiding the Persians in an attempt to drive 
out the-Portuguese. 

Baf'fin’ s Bay, a large gulf in the northeast 
of North America, bounded on the east by 
Greenland. It is about 850 miles long, and its 
greatest width is 400 miles .The shores are 
rocky and high. This bay was named in honor 
of William Baffin, who explored it in 1616. It 
is largely an ice sea and is blocked almost solid 
with ice in the winter. 

Bagatelle, bag a tel', a game played with 
spherical balls and a cue, on a long, flat board 
covered with cloth like a billiard-table. At one 
end of the board are nine cups or sockets of just 
sufficient size to receive the balls, which are 
driven from the other end by the cue. Nine 
balls are used, generally one black, four white 
and four red, the distinction between white and 
red being made only for the sake of variety. 
In ordinary use the word bagatelle means any 
trifling thing. 

Bagdad, bag dahd r , the capital of a Turkish 
province of the same name, in the southern part 
of Mesopotamia. The manufactures are leather, 


Bagehot 


Baiae 


silks, cottons, woolens, carpets and ornamental 
fabrics. Steamers ply on the river between 
Bagdad and Bassorah, and the town exports 
wheat, dates, galls, gum and carpets to Europe. 
The city is inhabited by Turks, Arabs, Persians, 
Armenians, Jews and a small number of Euro¬ 
peans. Bagdad was formerly a great center of 
Arabian learning and one of the most flourishing 
cities of the world. It was founded in 762. In 
1258 it was sacked by a Mongol ruler and since 
1638 has been held by the Turks. It has been 
frequently visited by the plague, and in 1831 
was nearly devastated. Population, estimated, 
over 150,000. 



Bagehot, baj'ot, Walter (1826-1877), an 
English journalist and economist, born in Som¬ 
erset. He graduated from University College, 
London, with high honors, in 1848. He was 
admitted to the bar four years later, but did not 
practice. From 1855 to 1864 he was associate 
editor of the National Review, and from 1860 
until his death he was editor and joint pro¬ 
prietor of The Economist. He was the author 
of numerous economic and political works, 
notably The English Constitution; Physics and 
Politics, and Lombard Street. These have all 
been widely translated, and have passed through 
numerous editions. 

Bag'pipe, a 
musical wind- 
instrument of 
very great an¬ 
tiquity, having 
been used a- 
mong the an¬ 
cient Greeks. 

It still continues 
in use among 
the country peo¬ 
ple of Poland, 

Italy, France, 

Scotland and 
Ireland. Though 
now often re¬ 
garded as the 
national instru¬ 
ment of Scot- 

. , . , BAGPIPE 

land, it is only 

Scottish by adoption, having been introduced 
into that country from England. It con¬ 
sists of a leathern bag and of pipes, into which 
the air is pressed from the bag by the performer’s 
elbow. In the common, or Highland, form one 
pipe, called the chanter, plays the melody; of the 
three other pipes, called drones, two emit a mono¬ 


tone in unison with one of the lowest notes of 
the chanter, and the third and longest gives forth 
a note an octave lower. 

Baha'ma Islands or Lucayos, a group of 
British West Indian islands lying n. e. of Cuba 
and s. e. of the coast of Florida. They are 
formed largely of windblown coral sand. The 
principal islands are Grand Bahama, Great 
Abaco, Little Abaco, Andros Islands, New 
Providence, Eleuthera, Great Exuma, San Sal¬ 
vador, Acklin’s Island and Great Inagua. 
Twenty of the whole group are inhabited, and 
the most populous is New Providence, which 
contains the capital, Nassau. The principal 
product is pineapples, which form the chief 
export, though other fruits are also grown, as 
well as cotton, sugar, maize and ground nuts. 
The agave, from which the sisal hemp is obtained, 
nearly covers the surface of some of the islands. 
The Bahamas are a favorite resort for invalids 
suffering from pulmonary diseases. The first 
British settlement was made on New Providence 
towards the close of the seventeenth century. 
San Salvador or Watling Island is thought by 
some authorities to be the same as Guanahani, 
the land first touched on by Columbus in 1492. 
Population in 1911, 55,944. 

Bahia, bah e'ah, or Sao Salvador, sawN 
saTva dor, a town of Brazil, on the Bay of All 
Saints, capital of the province of Bahia It was 
founded in 1549 and is the oldest town in Brazil, 
of which it was capital until 1763. Bahia is 
well supplied with churches and has beautiful 
buildings, the more important of which are the 
governor’s palace, the mint, the courthouse, the 
university, the cathedral and the palace of the 
archbishop. The harbor is one of the best in 
America, and the trade, chiefly in sugar, cotton, 
coffee, tobacco, hides, piassava and tapioca, is 
very extensive. Population in 1910, estimated 
at 230,000. 

Bahia Honda, one'da (deep bay), a seaport 
on the northern coast of Cuba, 60 mi. w. s. w. 
of Havana. It is one of the best harbors on 
the island and is protected by a small fort. 
Near by are mines of coal and copper. Popu¬ 
lation, about 1300. 

Baiae, bi'e (now called Baga), an ancient 
town in Italy in Campania, 10 mi. w. of Naples. 
It was famed among the Romans as a watering 
place and was noted for its warm springs and 
baths. Many of the wealthy Romans had 
country houses at Baiae. The city became noto¬ 
rious for the luxury and the dissolute life of its 
inhabitants. With the fall of Roman power it 



Baikal 


Baird 


lost its importance, and it is to-day the site of 
innumerable ruins. 

Baikal, bi kahi, a lake in southern Siberia, 
the largest fresh water lake in Asia. Its length 
is 375 miles, greatest breadth 37 miles and 
greatest depth over 4000 feet. It is surrounded 
by rugged and lofty mountains. There are seals 
and many fish, particularly salmon, sturgeon and 
pike; the seal and sturgeon fisheries are impor¬ 
tant industries. This lake is frozen over from 
December to April. 

Bail, in law, property pledged as security for 
a person under arrest, in order that he may 
have his liberty until trial. Bondsmen must be 
citizens of the state, holders of real estate and 
within reach of the processes of the court, and 
they must be financially responsible to the 
amount of the bail. The person may be re¬ 
arrested on the complaint of the bondsmen, and 
thereupon their responsibility ceases. A person 
accused of murder or held to enforce the judg¬ 
ment of a court cannot be released on bail. 

Bailey, Joseph Weldon (1863- ), an 

American statesman, bom in Copiah co., 
Miss. He was admitted to the bar in 1883 and 
removed to Texas in 1885, beginning the success¬ 
ful practice of law at Gainesville. He attained 
prominence as a Democratic politician and from 
1891 to 1901 represented his district in Con¬ 
gress, being honorary nominee of his party for 
speaker and the leader of the minority in the 
House. He was elected United States senator in 
1901 and was an acknowledged leader of the 
Democrats of that body for two terms. 

Bailey, Liberty Hyde (1858- ), American 

educator, born at South Haven, Mich. He re¬ 
ceived his college training at the Michigan Agri¬ 
cultural College, from which he graduated in 
1882. For a year he was assistant to Prof. Asa 
Gray at Harvard, for five years professor of 
horticulture and landscape gardening at Michi¬ 
gan Agricultural College, then from 1888 to 1903 
professor of horticulture and since 1903 director 
of the New York State College of Agriculture at 
Ithaca. Professor Bailey has been a voluminous 
writer on botany and agriculture. His most 
important works include Lessons with Plants; 
Botany, an Elementary Text far Schools; The 
Nature-Study Idea; The Country-Life Movement. 
He is also the editor of Cyclopedia of American 
Horticulture; Cyclopedia of Agriculture, and the 
Rural Science Series. 

Bain, Alexander (1818-1887), an English 
educator and psychologist, born at Aberdeen, 
Scotland, and educated at Marischal College. 


He began his career as teacher of moral and 
natural philosophy in Marischal College and 
afterwards held numerous positions of impor¬ 
tance. In 1857 he was appointed examiner in 
logic and moral philosophy at the University 
of London. He was also examiner in moral 
science for the India civil service and later 
professor of logic and English literature in the 
University of Aberdeen, of which institution he 
was chosen lord rector in 188h. Doctor Bain 
was one of the foremost thinkers and writers of 
his day upon his favorite topics. He was a 
leader in the school of psychologists who devel¬ 
oped the science from the physiological point of 
view (See Psychology), and by his lectures 
and writings he was very influential in molding 
psychological and educational thought in Eng¬ 
land and the United States. Among his many 
works, those best known in this country are 
The Emotions and the Will, The Relation of 
Mind and Body and Mental and Moral Science. 

Bain'bridge, William (1774-1833), an Amer¬ 
ican naval officer. He served for years in the, 
merchant marine, and when the United States 
navy was reorganized in 1798 he was appointed 
lieutenant commandant. In 1800 he com¬ 
manded the frigate George Washington, which 
carried to Algiers the commercial tribute then 
levied by the dey of that country, and in 1801 
he was captain of the Essex, which cruised in 
the Mediterranean. During the war with 
Tripoli, he commanded the frigate Philadelphia 
under Commodore Preble, and while chasing a 
blockade-runner his vessel grounded on a reef 
and was obliged to surrender. The captain 
and his three hundred men were kept as prison¬ 
ers until the peace, in June, 1805. He sailed 
from Boston in 1812, in command of a squadron 
comprising the Constitution, Essex and Hornet, 
and late in the year he captured the British 
frigate Java, for which achievement Congress 
distributed among the crew 850,000 as prize 
money, voted the commodore a gold medal 
and gave each of his officers a silver one. In 
1815 Bainbridge commanded the Mediterranean 
squadron. 

Bairam, bi rahm', the Easter of the Moham¬ 
medans, which follows immediately after Rama¬ 
dan, a month of fasting, and lasts three days. 
Sixty days after this first great Bairam begins 
the lesser Bairam. 

Baird, Spencer Fullerton (1823-1887), an 
American naturalist, born at Reading, Pa., and 
educated at Dickinson College, Carlisle, Pa., 
and at the College of Physicians and Surgeons 


Baireuth 


Baku 


in New York City. He early exhibited a taste 
for natural history, and during his school life 
became acquainted with Agassiz, Audubon and 
other leading zoologists. After teaching for a 
time he was made assistant secretary of the 
Smithsonian Institution and succeeded Doctor 
Joseph Henry as secretary. During Mr. Baird’s 
connection with this institution, he developed 
the system of fish culture now in general use in 
the United States (See Fish Culture). Baird 
was a prolific writer for periodicals and edited 
for a number of years the reports of the Smith¬ 
sonian Institution and of the United States Fish 
Commission. Among his most noted works are 
Birds of America , History of American Birds and 
Mammals of North America. 

Baireuth or Bayreuth, hi'roit, a town of 
Bavaria on the Red Main, 41 mi. n.e. of Nurem¬ 
berg. The principal buildings are the old and 
the new palace, the opera house and the gymna¬ 
sium. The place is especially famous for the 
national theater, finished in 1875, which is used 
for the performance of Wagner’s music (See 
Wagner, Wilhelm Richard). A monument 
to Jean Paul Richter stands in Baireuth. The 
principal industries are cotton-spinning, sugar 
refining, manufacture of musical instruments 
and brewing. Population in 1910, 34,547. 

Ba'ker, Edward Dickinson (1811-1861) 
an American soldier, born in England. He 
moved to America in 1816, began the practice 
of law at Springfield, Ill., and became a member 
of the Illinois legislature in 1837. He took part 
in the Mexican war and served two terms in 
Congress. Later he went to Oregon and was 
elected United States senator. In the Civil 
War he commanded a regiment of New York 
and Philadelphia volunteers and was killed at 
Ball’s Bluff while leading a charge. 

Baker, Sir Samuel White (1821-1893), a 
distinguished English explorer. In 1861 he 
began his travels in the Upper Nile regions, 
which resulted in the discovery of Albert Nyanza 
and of the exit of the White Nile from it. In 1869 
he returned to the interior of Africa as head of 
an expedition sent by the khedive of Egypt to 
annex and open up to trade a large part of the 
newly explored country, and he was raised to 
the dignity of pasha. His writings include 
The Rifle and the Hound in Ceylon, Eight 
Years’ Wanderings in Ceylon, The Albert 
Nyanza and Cast up by the Sea. 

Baker City, Ore., the county-seat of Baker 
co., is on the Oregon Railroad and Navigation 
Line, 357 mi. e. of Portland. It is an important 


distributing point. It is also the center of the 
Blue Mountain mining district, which has the 
largest annual output of gold in the state. The 
Powder River valley and adjacent smaller valleys 
produce large crops of cereals, fruit, hay and 
vegetables. The chief industries include lumber 
mills, flour mills and foundries. Excellent public 
and private schools are maintained. Population 
in 1910. 6742. 

Bakersfield, Cal., the county-seat of Kern 
co., on the Kern River and the Southern Pacific 
and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe railroads. 
The city has large commercial and manufactur¬ 
ing establishments which supply the surround¬ 
ing oil, fruit-growing and live-stock district. 
Foundries, flour mills, fruit and meat-packing 
houses and especially oil refineries are prominent 
in the city. The oil fields of the vicinity are 
among the richest in the United States. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 12,727. 

Bak'ing Pow'der, a mixture of cream of tar¬ 
tar, soda and starch, or flour. Baking powder 
is used in raising bread, biscuit and other prepara¬ 
tions of flour or meal. The starch or flour 
serves to keep the cream of tartar and soda from 
acting upon each other, until the powder is wet. 
The principle of baking powder is that when 
wet, the cream of tartar attacks the soda and 
sets free carbonic acid gas. This passes through 
the dough and causes it to rise and become light 
and porous. Baking powder is liable to be 
adulterated with alum and ammonia, both of 
which are injurious, and some states carefully 
regulate the manufacture of baking powder by 
law. The alum can be detected by dissolving 
the powder in cold water. If the water does nol 
foam, alum is present. Ammonia can be 
detected by dissolving a small quantity of the 
baking powder in water and boiling. If am¬ 
monia is present, the odor can be detected in the 
steam. 

Baku, ba lcoo\ a Russian port on the western 
coast of the Caspian Sea. The city includes a 
strange combination of ancient, oriental and 
modern structures. Petroleum is found in the 
vicinity and the annual production now exceeds 
nine million tons. The mining and refining of 
this oil is the leading industry; other important 
industries are the manufacturing of tobacco 
and chemicals. A considerable trade is carried 
on in cotton, silk, rice and wine. Baku has iong 
been the place of pilgrimage for the Parsees or 
Fire-worshipers. The port is a station of the 
Caspian fleet and is strongly fortified. Popu¬ 
lation, 112,250. 


Balaam 


Balch 


Ba'laam, a heathen seer, invited by Balak, 
king of Moab, to curse the Israelites, but com¬ 
pelled by a miracle to bless them ( Num . xxii- 
xxiv). In another account he is represented 
as helping to lead the Israelites to worship Baal, 
and as being, therefore, slain in the Midianitish 
war (Num. xxi; Joshua xm). 

Balaklava, bah la Jclah'vah, a small port on 
the Black Sea, in the southwest of the Crimea. 
•In 1854, during the Crimean War, the town was 
occupied by the British under Lord Raglan. 
Here the troops suffered great privations, many 
perishing with hunger and cold. On October 
25 occurred the Battle of Balaklava, between 
the Russians and British. The daring but 
unsuccessful charge of the British cavalry in 
this battle has been immortalized by Ten¬ 
nyson in his poem. The Charge of the Light 
Brigade. 

Bal'ance, a device for weighing substances. 
The simplest form of balance consists of a 
horizontal bar resting upon a pivot which passes 
through the center of the bar 
and is supported by an up¬ 
right standard. The arms of 
the horizontal bar must be of 
equal size and weight. Di¬ 
rectly over the point of sup¬ 
port is a vertical needle which 
moves over a disk graduated 
in degrees. The scale pans, 
two shallow circular pans, are 
suspended from each end of 
the bar. The object to be 
weighed is placed in one pan, 
and small metal pieces of 
known weight are put in the 
other pan until the two pans 
are balanced. Such a bal¬ 
ance, when carefully made, SPRINQ BALANCE 
is a very delicate instrument and will indicate 
the weight of a grain of sand. The best balances 
are enclosed in glass cases to protect them from 
dust and corrosion from the atmosphere. 

The common spring balance used in grocery 
stores and meat shops consists of a scale pan 
attached to a spring. An indicator on the 
spring passes over a graduated scale, showing 
the weight of the article placed in the scale pan. 
Spring balances are suitable for ordinary com¬ 
mercial purposes, but they are not exact, hence 
cannot be used in weighing substances of great 
value or for determining the weight of small 
quantities of anything. See Steelyard; 
Weighing Scale. 


Balance of Power, a political principle 

which first came to be recognized in modern 
Europe in the sixteenth century, though it appears 
to have been also acted on by the Greeks in 
ancient times in preserving the relations between 
their different states. The object in maintaining 
the balance of power is to secure the general 
independence of nations as a whole, by pre¬ 
venting the aggressive attempts of individual 
states to extend their territory and sway, at the 
expense of weaker countries. The first Euro¬ 
pean monarch whose ambitious designs induced 
a combination of other states to counteract them 
was the emperor Charles V, and similar coali¬ 
tions were formed in the seventeenth century, 
when the ambition of Louis XIV excited the 
fears of Europe. A century later the nations 
combined against the exorbitant power and 
aggressive schemes of the first Napoleon. More 
recent still is the Crimean War, entered into to 
check the ambition of Russia (See Crimean War) . 
It was, too, the violation of the principle by 
Russia, in her attempts to gain power in the 
East, which led to the Russo-Japanese War. 

Balaton, boTaton, or Plattcnsee', a lake of 
Hungary, 55 mi. s. w. of Budapest. In length 
it is 50 miles, and in breadth 3 to 10 miles. Of 
the thirty rivers flowing into it, the Zala is the 
largest, and the lake communicates with the 
Danube by the rivers Sio and Sarviz. 

Balbo'a, Vasco Nunez de (1475-1517), one 
of the early Spanish adventurers in the New 
World. Having dissipated his fortune, he came 
to America, and was at Darien in 1510. An 
insurrection placed him at the head of the colony, 
and he immediately began a search for a rumored 
western ocean. On Sept. 25, 1513, he saw for 
the first time the Pacific. Returning to Darien, 
he found himself supplanted by a new governor. 
Anger and jealousy at once arose on both sides, 
but Balboa submitted. Davila, the new gov¬ 
ernor, apparently became reconciled to him, and 
gave him his daughter in marriage, but shortly 
after had him beheaded on a charge of intent to 
rebel. Pizarro, who afterward completed the 
discovery of Peru, served under Balboa. 

Balch, bawlch, George Beall (1821-1908), 
an American naval officer. He entered the navy 
in 1837, was many years on foreign service and 
participated in the attack on Vera Cruz. He 
served in the South Atlantic squadron during 
the Civil War, commanding in turn the Poca¬ 
hontas and the Pawnee. In 1878 he was made 
rear admiral, and he was placed on the retired 
list in 1883. 




Balder 


Balkan War 


Balder, bawl'dur, in Northern mythology, 
the son of Odin and Frigga, the personification 
of the sun and of the brightness of summer. 
For his beauty and goodness he was beloved by 
all of the gods except the wicked Loki, who was 
determined to accomplish his destruction. 
Balder’s mother, fearful for his life, obtained 
from all things in the world, with the exception 
of a little spray of mistletoe which grew upon 
an oak tree, a promise that they would not injure 
Balder. It became, therefore, a favorite sport 
of the gods to hurl their most dangerous weapons 
at him in order to see them fall harmless. Loki, 
however, fashioned a dart from the mistletoe, 
which he put into the hand of Balder’s blind 
brother, directing him how to throw it. The 
dart struck Balder and he fell dead. 

Bald'ness, loss of the hair, complete or partial, 
usually the latter, and due to various causes. 
Most commonly it results as one of the changes 
belonging to old age. It may occur at an unusu¬ 
ally early age, as a result of some acute disease, 
or without any such cause. In both, the latter 
cases it is due to defective nourishment of the 
hair, owing to lessened circulation of the blood 
in the scalp. The best treatment for preventing 
loss of hair seems to consist in such measures as 
bathing the head with cold water and drying it by 
vigorous rubbing with a rough towel and brush¬ 
ing it well with a hard brush. Various stimu¬ 
lating lotions are also recommended. Probably 
in most cases baldness of old age is unpreventable. 

Balearic, bal e ar'ik, Isles, a group of islands 
situated southeast of Spain and including 
Majorca, Minorca, Iviza and Formentera. 
Their combined area is 1935 square miles. 
Their products are similar to those of Spain 
and Portugal. The islands now form a Spanish 
province. The capital is Parma, on Majorca. 
In the thirteenth century they constituted an 
independent kingdom, which was finally united 
with Spain. Population, about 311,650. 

Baleen'. See Whalebone. 

Balfour, bal foor ', Arthur James, Rt. Hon., 
(1848- ), a noted British statesman. He 

was educated at Eton and Trinity College, 
Cambridge, and in 1874 was returned to Parlia¬ 
ment as Conservative member for Hertford. In 
1886 he was returned from Manchester. Public 
attention was soon drawn to him by his quick¬ 
ness of perception and readiness in debate, and 
he became one of the most effective speakers in 
the House. From 1878 to 1880 he was private 
secretary to his uncle, Lord Salisbury, whom he 
accompanied to the Congress of Berlin. He 


was appointed president of the Local Govern¬ 
ment Board in 1885, secretary for Scotland in 
1886 and chief secretary for Ireland in 1887. 
His brilliant administration while in this position, 
at the time one of the most difficult in the British 
cabinet, won him the praise of all parties. In 
1892 he became first lord of the treasury and 
leader of the House. With the exception of the 
brief interval when the Liberals were in power 
he held this position until July, 1902, when, on 
the resignation of Lord Salisbury, King Edward 
appointed him premier and asked him to form 
a cabinet. The Liberal victory of 1906 removed 
Mr. Balfour’s party from power. 

Mr. Balfour is the author of The Foundations 
of Belief and The Defense of Philosophic Doubt, 
works which have attracted much favorable 
attention. 

Baliol, ba'le ol or baTyol, John de (1249- 
1315), king of Scotland. On the death of Mar¬ 
garet, granddaughter of Alexander III, Baliol 
claimed the vacant throne by virtue of his 
descent from David, earl of Huntington, brother 
to William the Lion. Robert Bruce, a descend¬ 
ant of David by another line, opposed Baliol; 
but Edward I’s decision was in favor of Baliol, 
whom he induced to swear allegiance to him. 
Irritated by Edward’s harsh exercise of author¬ 
ity, Baliol concluded a treaty with France, then 
at war with England, but after the defeat at 
Dunbar he was obliged to give up his crown to 
Edward. He was sent with his son to the 
Tower, but in 1297 obtained liberty to retire 
to his Norman estates, where he died. 

Balkan, bal kahn Mountains (ancient 
Haemus), the most eastern branch of the great 
Alpine system of central Europe, extends from 
the plain of Sophia to the Black Sea, separating 
Bulgaria from eastern Rumelia, and forming 
the watershed between the Danube and the 
Maritza. In the central Balkans are the high¬ 
est summits, several of which are over 7000 
feet high. The mountains are crossed by six 
roads over as many passes, the most important 
of which is the Troyan, which forms the over¬ 
land route between Vienna and Constantinople. 

Balkan War, a conflict between Turkey and 
the allied Balkan states, Bulgaria, Montenegro, 
Servia and Greece. To understand the under¬ 
lying causes of the war it is necessary to remem¬ 
ber that Turkey, in the early part of the eight¬ 
eenth century, had acquired possession of the 
entire Balkan Peninsula, except Montenegro. 
In the course of the nineteenth century Greece 
and Servia became independent and in 1908 


Balkan War 


Balkan War 


Bulgaria’s independence was formally pro¬ 
claimed. For two centuries the Balkan Penin¬ 
sula had been the scene of almost continuous 
warfare, sometimes merely internal, but more, 
often with Turkey. There still remained under 
Turkish rule Macedonia and Albania, whose in¬ 
habitants were allied by ties of race and religion 
to the independent states of the peninsula. 
Under Turkish rule the Albanians and Mace¬ 
donians, according to the proclamation of Czar 
Ferdinand of Bulgaria, had not been able “to 
obtain conditions of life that are bearable. To 


succor the Christian population of Turkey re¬ 
mains to us no other means than to turn to 
arms. Our work is a just, a great and a sacred 
one. With faith in the protection and support 
of the Almighty ... I order the brave Bul¬ 
garian army to march on to Turkish territory.” 
This was the spirit of all the Balkan allies. 

The war was begun by Montenegro on Octo¬ 
ber 8, 1912; nine days later Servia and Bulgaria 
were officially declared at war with Turkey, and 
on the 18th Greece issued her declaration. The 
allied troops, evidently working out a definite 


plan, crossed the Turkish borders at once. The 
Montenegrins and Servians marched on Scutari 
and Monastir, the Bulgarians towards Adrian- 
ople, and the Greeks on Janina and Saloniki. 
Monastir and Saloniki were captured in Novem¬ 
ber, 1912. By the end of the year the Turks 
were confined to Constantinople and several 
other strongly fortified cities. On December 3, 
an armistice was proclaimed {except by Greece, 
whose troops continued to besiege Janina). 
Delegates were sent to a peace conference in 
London, but the delays of the Turks so irritated 


the other delegates that they withdrew from the 
conference. Hostilities began again in February. 
In March, Janina and Adrianople were taken, 
and in April, Scutari. The European powers, 
urged on by Austria, compelled Montenegro to 
yield Scutari to them, it being to their interest 
to make Albania a single weak state rather than 
to allow the allies to divide it among them. On 
May 30, the Treaty of London, signed by dele¬ 
gates from each of the countries involved, ended 
the war. Each of the allies received additional 
territory and Albania was made a new kingdom. 


SCALE OF MILES 

(5 ldo 



Before the War After the War 

BOUNDARIES OP THE BALKAN COUNTRIES 























































Ballad 


Ballet 


The Allies against Bulgaria. Long before 
the Treaty of London was signed it was clear 
that trouble was inevitable between the Balkan 
allies. Bulgaria had made a definite and secret 
arrangement with Servia, but not with Greece 
or Montenegro, as to the division of conquered 
territory. Bulgaria fir.->t came to blows in April 
over the possession of Saloniki, which was 
claimed by Bulgaria but held by Greek troop 9 . 
By June 30, 1913, Bulgaria and Greece were 
openly at war. On July 8, Servia and Montene¬ 
gro, and three days later Rumania, also declared 
war against Bulgaria. Rumania, at the begin¬ 
ning of the war, had been inclined to side with 
Turkey, but had agreed to remain neutral, with 
the understanding that it should receive some 
compensation. Bulgaria refused to accede to 
Rumania’s demands for a cession of territory, 
and Rumania replied by a declaration of war and 
by sending troops into the territory in dispute. 
At the same time Turkish troops, disregarding 
the treaty of London, recaptured Adrianople 
and most of the territory recently taken from 
them by the Bulgarians. Czar Ferdinand, de¬ 
serted by all his allies and actually at war with 
them, was compelled to sue for peace. By the 
treaty of Bucharest, ratified on August 25, Bul¬ 
garia agreed to the terms as dictated by the other 
countries, thereby losing much of the territory 
gained by the war with Turkey. 

Summary. The table below summarizes the 
net result of the two wars, so far as it can be 
measured in territory and population. Each 
country gained as follows: 

AREA POPULATION 

Greece.20,000 square miles.1,000,000 

Servia.19,000 square miles.1,100,000 

Bulgaria.12,500 square miles. 500,000 

Rumania. 2,500 square miles. 250,000 

Montenegro. 2,000 square miles. 200,000 

Bal'lad, a term loosely applied to various 
poetic forms of the song type, but in its most 
definite sense, a poem in which a short narrative 
is related. The ballads , had no single author, 
and they were handed down orally, thus chang¬ 
ing greatly as time went on; but the fact that 
they belonged to no one person more than to all 
others kept them simple narratives into which 
little subjective emotion was introduced. The 
themes with which they dealt—love, hatred, 
fear, crime, superstition, war or death—were 
such as to render them well-nigh universal in 
their appeal. The theory is now generally ac¬ 
cepted that they are the spontaneous outgrowth 
among primitive people of a desire to seek relief 
in moments of solemnity. 


Every European nation, Greece, France, Ger¬ 
many, Norway, Sweden, England, Denmark, 
Portugal and Italy alike, has its collection of 
ballads and folk-songs of dateless age and un¬ 
known, or folk, origin. Spanish literature is un¬ 
usually rich in ip collection of ballads; and re¬ 
cent researches have revealed an unexpected 
wealth among the Servians, who are still pro¬ 
ducing ballads or maintaining those they have. 
No systematic effort to collect ballads and study 
them was made until the publication of Percy’s 
Reliques in England in 1765. This served as an 
impetus to widespread study of the ballad, and 
attempts to gather the folk-songs from those who 
were still reciting them as they were handed down 
by word of mouth. The result of this study in 
England was a greater spontaneity in poetic 
form, as witness the poems of Coleridge', Words¬ 
worth, and Scott. In Germany, France, and 
other countries a similar revival of interest, with 
similar results, was taking place. Another im¬ 
portant English collection was Scott’s Border 
Minstrelsy, published in 1802-03. Such poems as 
Tennyson’s Revenge, Rossetti’s King’s Tragedy 
and Sister Helen, and Coleridge’s Ancient Mari¬ 
ner are imitations or adaptations of real ballads. 

Bal larat', a city and gold field of the colony 
of Victoria, Australia, 96 mi. n. w. of Melbourne. 
Ballarat was the scene of one of the earliest gold 
discoveries in Victoria, June, 1851. and for over 
fifty years has been the center of one of the 
richest gold-yielding districts in the world. A 
nugget weighing about 184 pounds was found 
at Ballarat and was sold for $52,500. Quartz 
mining is now the leading feature of the district, 
and gold-bearing reefs are remuneratively 
worked at a depth of 900 and 1000 feet. The 
town of Ballarat consists of two distinct munici¬ 
palities, Ballarat East and Ballarat West, with 
an aggregate population of 44,000. It has iron- 
foundries, breweries and distilleries, several flour 
mills and other factories. It is connected by 
railway with Melbourne, and six lines of railway 
branch off to other towns. 

Ballet, bal lay ', a kind of dance, now used 
chiefly as interlude in a theatrical performance. 
Its original aim was to represent actions and 
feelings through dancing and gestures. This 
idea arose early in the eighteenth century, but 
the modern ballet differs greatly from the original, 
for it is now rather a spectacular dance than a 
dramatic representation, the main purpose being 
rather to please the eye than to impress the mind. 
The ballet as used in modern operas is more 
nearly the ballet of old, for it is usually more or 












Balliol College 


Balloon 


less closely connected with the play and incor¬ 
porated in it, as in Faust and Tannkduser. 

Balliol, bayl'yol, College. See Oxford, 
University of. 

Balloon', a gas-tight bag or envelope, made 
of light material and filled witjj heated air or 
other gas lighter than ordinary air, so that it 
will rise and float in the atmosphere. Balloons 
are either spherical or pear-shaped. Those used 
for making voyages are covered with a strong 
net of cords, to the lower extremity of which the 
basket or car is attached. The first balloons 
were constructed by the Montgolfier brothers in 



BALLOON 


France in 1783. Their balloon rose to a height 
of over a mile, and the experiment attracted the 
attention of a large number of scientific men. 
A few months later a balloon made of silk and 
coated with rubber varnish, to make it gas-tight, 
was filled with hydrogen. This ascended to a 
height of 3000 feet and traveled 15 miles before 
lighting. It was torn into shreds by the terri¬ 
fied inhabitants in whose neighborhood it de¬ 
scended. The success of this experiment by 
Professor Charles, a leading physicist of Paris, 
led to the first successful balloon ascent. 

The modern balloon differs but very little 


from the one first constructed by Professor 
Charles. It contains a valve in the top for the 
escape of gas, and the mouth, through which 
it is filled, is left open so that the gas may escape 
when it expands on reaching high altitudes. 
The valve closes with a spring and is opened 
by a cord which reaches to the car. Since the 
discovery of illuminating gas, that has taken 
the place of hydrogen for inflating balloons, 
because it’ is much cheaper and because it does 
not escape as readily through the Jpars in the 
bag. However, this gas is much heavier than 
hydrogen, and the lifting power of a balloon 
filled with it is only about one pound for every 
thirty cubic feet of gas. Therefore, balloons 
designed for long voyages or to carry heavy 
loads need to be of large size. Some have been 
constructed having a diameter of 118 feet^and 
a lifting capacity of over 55,000 pounds. jThe 
car is usually constructed of willow or some 
other light, strong material, and, besides the 
aeronaut, it contains thermometers, barometers 
and occasionally other instruments for recording 
atmospheric conditions. The aeronaut must be 
provided with a certain amount of ballast, 
which is usually in the form of sand, since by 
the use of this and the escape valve he is able 
to control the ascent and descent of the balloon. 

Balloons are used by meteorologists for secur¬ 
ing information about the temperature, humidity 
and currents in the upper air. The two most 
remarkable voyages for this purpose are that of 
Glaishar and Coxwell in 1862, reaching an alti¬ 
tude of 29,000 feet, and that of Burson and Surmg 
of Berlin in 1901, when by inhaling oxygen an 
altitude of 31,000 feet was reached. Unmanned 
balloons carrying self-recording instruments have 
reached an altitude of 72,000 feet, or 13J miles. 

Military Ballooning. Great Britain, Ger¬ 
many, France and the United States employ 
balloons in their military service, and their 
respective armies have a division whose officers 
and men devote their entire time to this branch 
of the service. Small balloons having a capacity 
of about 10,000 cubic feet are found to be the 
most successful for observations on the field. 
The balloon is attached to a rope or wire cable 
by means of which its movements are controlled. 
Hence it is called a captive balloon. In case of 
action the balloon is located about a mile in 
the rear of the front line, and the officer who 
ascends can telephone the position and move¬ 
ments of the enemy to the general in command. 

The signal corps of the United States army 
has charge of this branch of the service. At 





Balloon-fish 


Balmoral Castle 


Omaha a large government plant has been 
established. This plant is equipped for con¬ 
structing and housing balloons, and for com¬ 
pressing gas so that 2000 cubic feet of gas can 
be forced into an iron cylinder of one cubic 
foot capacity. These cylinders are easily carried 
and when the gas is needed it is liberated into 
the balloon. See Flying Machine. 

Balloon-fish, a curious tropical fish that can 



BALLOON-FISH 


inflate itself, float back down on the surface of 
the water and thus escape pursuit. 

Bal'lot, literally, one of many little balls 
(called by the French ballottes), usually of 
different colors, which are put into a box in such 
a manner as to enable the voter, if he choses, 
to conceal for whom or for what he gives his 
suffrage. The method is adopted by most clubs 
in the election of their members—a white ball 
indicating assent, a black ball dissent. Hence, 
when an applicant is rejected he is said to be 
blackballed. This form of balloting is used 
when the College of Cardinals votes for a Pope. 

The term voting by ballot is now applied to any 
method of secret voting, as, for instance, when 
a person gives his vote .by means of a ticket bear¬ 
ing the name of the candidate whom he wishes 
to support. In the United States the ballot was 
in use in early colonial times and was made com¬ 
pulsory in the constitution of most of the states. 
The written ballot system was used in the senate 
of the Venetian Republic, and it has also been 
used in the French Chamber of Deputies and in 
the British Parliament, but the idea of secret 
ballots in any legislative assembly is displeasing 
to modern theories of popular government and 
has been practically abandoned everywhere. 
For the election of public officials, however, the 
use of the secret ballot has spread. The Aus¬ 
tralian ballot, the system now in general use in 
English-speaking and most other countries, 
is described in a separate article. See Aus¬ 
tralian Ballot; Election; Short Ballot. 

Ball’s Bluff, Battle of, one of the first 
important battles of the Civil War, fought 
October 22, 1861, at Ball Bluff’s, Va., between a 


detachment of about 2000 Federals of McClel¬ 
lan’s army and a Confederate force which was 
lying in ambush. After a terrible hand to hand 
fight, the Federals were driven in confusion from 
the field with a heavy loss, including one of their 
commanders, Colonel Baker, ex-United States 
senator from Oregon. 

Balm, bahm, a fragrant perennial herb belong¬ 
ing to the mint family, a native of the south of 
Europe and western Asia and naturalized in a 
few places in England. It has long been culti¬ 
vated in gardens; the stems and leaves are 
still occasionally used in medicine as a gentle 
stimulant and tonic, and were formerly in high 
repute. The taste is somewhat bitter, and 
slightly aromatic. A variety of the common 
catnip, with a smell like that of balm, is often 
mistaken for it. Moldavia balm is a native of 
eastern Europe and Siberia. Bastard balm, 
a native of the south of England and of many 
parts of Europe, is a beautiful plant. When 
dried it has a delightful fragrance,which it retains 
for a long period. 

Balmaceda, bahl ma sa'dah, Josis Manuel 
(1840-1891), a Chilean statesman, born at 
Santiago. He ea.iy distinguished himself as a 
political orator, advocated in Congress the 
separation of Church end State, and as premier, 
in 1884, introduced civil marriage. Elected 
president in 1886, he sr on came into armed con¬ 
flict with the Congressional party, provoked by 
his alleged cruelties and official dishonesty. 
Balmaceda was utterly defeated and committed 
suicide at Santiago. 

Balm of Gil'ead, the gum from a tree, r, native 
of Arabia Felix; also obtained from another 
closely allied species. The balm of Gilead of 
the shops, or balsam of Mecca or ot Syria, is 
obtained bv making an incision in the trunk of 
the tree. The gum has a yellowish or greenish 
color, a warm, bitterish, aromatic taste and a 
sharp, fragrant smell. It is valued for its 
fragrance and its supposed medicinal powers. 

Balmor'al Castle, one of the royal residences 
of Great Britain, beautifully situated on the south 
bank of the Dee, 45 miles west of Aberdeen. It 
stands in the midst of beautiful and varied 
mountain scenery and is surrounded by an estate 
of 40,000 acres. It is built of gray granite, in the 
Scottish baronial style, and consists of two 
Separate blocks of buildings united by wings, 
and a tower 35 feet square and 80 feet high, 
with a turret rising 20 feet. Balmoral Castle 
was the favorite autumn residence of Queen 
Victoria. 


Balsam 


Baltimore 


Balsam, bawl'sam, an aromatic, resinous sub¬ 
stance flowing from certain plants. A great 
variety of substances pass under this name. 
In chemistry the term is confined to such vege¬ 
table juices as consist of resins mixed with 
volatile oils. It is soluble in alcohol and ether 
and is capable of yielding benzoic acid. The 
balsams are either liquid or more or less solid; 
as, for example, the balm of Gilead and the 
balsams of Copaiva, Peru and Tolu. Benzoin, 
dragon’s-blood and storax are not true balsams, 
though sometimes called so. The balsams are 
used in perfumery, medicine and the arts. See 
Balm of Gilead. 

Balsam Fir. See Fir. 

Baltic, bawl'tik, Provinces, a term com¬ 
monly given to three Russian governments 
bordering on the Baltic, namely, Courland, 
Livonia and Esthonia. The area is 36,560 
sq. mi. The soil is not very fertile and agri¬ 
culture is not an important industry. Com¬ 
merce and manufactures are highly developed 
and are aided by the Baltic. Livonia and 
Esthonia once belonged to Sweden, and Cour¬ 
land was a dependency of Poland. Through 
the conquests of Peter the Great early in the 
eighteenth century, all came into the possession 
of Russia. Population in 1910, 2,664,000. 

Baltic Sea, an inland sea or large gulf in 
northern Europe, washing the coasts of Den¬ 
mark, Germany, Russia and Sweden. A chain 
of islands separates the southern portion from 
the northern, which is called the Gulf of Bothnia. 
The northern extension includes the gulfs of 
Riga and Finland, indenting the coast of Russia, 
and the Gulf of Bothnia, between Russia and 
Sweden. The Baltic receives the drainage of 
a large part of northern Europe, and more than 
250 rivers flow into it. Owing to this drainage, 
the water of the Baltic contains only one-third 
as great a per cent of salt as the Atlantic. There 
is a large trade, the important harbors being at 
the cities of Copenhagen, Kiel, Danzig, Memel, 
Riga, Kronstadt and Stockholm. The Kaiser 
Wilhelm Canal, near Kiel, affords access to the 
North Sea (See Kaiser Wilhelm Canal). 
Storms are frequent, often causing severe losses, 
and navigation in the northern part is hindered 
by ice during the winter season. The Baltic 
Sea is of great commercial importance to northern 
Europe. See Cattegat; Skagerrak. 

Baltimore, bawl'd mar Md., chief city of 
the state and seventh largest city of the United 
States, is situated on the north side of the 
Patapsco River, 14 mi. above Chesapeake Bay, 


94 mi. s. of Philadelphia and 42 mi. n. e. of 
Washington. The city rises from the water 
front in a gradual slope toward the north. The 
wholesale and manufacturing districts are on 
and about the branches of the river, the north¬ 
west branch extending almost into the center 
of the city and giving ample opportunity for 
docks. The greatest extension of the city is 
from east to west, and the principal streets 
r unnin g in this direction are Baltimore and 
Lexington, while Charles is the principal street 
running north and south. The city is divided 
into nearly equal east and west portions by a 
small stream called Jones Falls. This stream 
was covered in 1914, the water now being led 
through three large concrete tubes; where the 
stream once was there is now a 75-feet wide 
boulevard. The residential and newer part of 
the city is in the west and northwest sections, 
while the eastern portion contains most of the 
old town. Baltimore Street and Charles Street 
divide the city into four parts, and the number¬ 
ing extends from these streets in each direction. 

Parks and Boulevards. The city has a 
number of beautiful and interesting parks. Chief 
among these is Druid Hill Park, containing 
Druid Lake and noted for its beautiful walks 
and drives and a number of monuments and 
statues. This park is situated in the north¬ 
western portion of the city. In the northeast 
portion is Clifton Park, containing Clifton Lake, 
and in the eastern section, near the river, is 
Patterson Park, which includes a number of 
squares. Besides these, there are several small 
parks so distributed through the city that 
they are within easy access. Carroll Park was 
the former home of the Carrolls, who were 
prominent in the early history of the country. 

In the center of the city, between Fayette and 
Lexington streets, is Monument Square, which 
contains the battle monument erected in 1815 
to the memory of those who fell in the defense 
of the city in the War of 1812. The Washington 
Monument, erected between 1815 and 1830, 
stands in the heart of the city, at the inter¬ 
section of Mount Vernon Place and Washington 
Square; the colossal statue of Washington is 
mounted upon a Doric column. It was the early 
erection of this structure that gave Baltimore the 
name of the “Monumental City.” Other monu¬ 
ments and statues of note are the one to the 
memory of Columbus, the statue of Sir William 
Wallace and the Wildey Monument, erected to 
the founder of the Order of Odd Fellows in the 
United States. There are a number of ceme- 


Baltimore 


Baltimore Oriole 


teries in and about the city which are noted for 
their extent and beauty. Chief among these are 
Greenmount Cemetery, Loudon Park and the 
National Cemetery, containing the graves of a 
large number of Union soldiers. 

Buildings. The city is well built, but most 
v of the older structures are of brick. Chief among 
the public buildings are the city hall, which 
occupies an entire square and cost over $2,271,- 
000. This is a marble structure and is noted 
for its immense dome, which is 260 feet high. 
To the west of the city hall is the United States 
government building, and beyond this the 
United States courthouse, which is a massive 
granite structure. The Masonic Temple, near 
the intersection of Charles and Saratoga streets, 
is also worthy of mention. The most important 
churches are the Roman Catholic cathedral, 
a granite structure in the form of a cross; the 
Mount Vernon Methodist church, of green 
serpentine; the First Presbyterian church and 
the Unitarian church. Among the buildings 
recently constructed, that of the Baltimore & 
Ohio railroad is one of the most noted, and one 
of the finest, office buildings in America. 

Institutions. Baltimore maintains an excel¬ 
lent system of public schools, and has, in addition, 
the Peabody Institute, containing a free library 
of over 130,000 volumes; the Athenaeum, which 
contains collections of the Maryland Historical 
Society-and the libraries of this society and the 
Mercantile Library Association; the Maryland 
Institute, designed for the promotion of mechanic 
arts; the Johns Hopkins University, one of the 
finest institutions of higher learning in the 
country; Goucher College, an advanced institu¬ 
tion for women only; the University of Mary¬ 
land; and the Pratt Free Library, which con¬ 
tains over 200,000 volumes. 

Among the charitable institutions are the 
Johns Hopkins Hospital, the state asylum for 
the insane, the Baltimore orphan asylum. Saint 
Paul’s Orphan Asylum and a number of sani¬ 
tariums and schools for indigent children. 

Commerce and Industry. Baltimore is 
favorably situated for both domestic and foreign 
commerce. The city has an excellent harbor 
at the head of Chesapeake Bay, is well sheltered 
and deep enough for the largest ocean vessels. 
Consequently lines of steamers are maintained 
between the city and nearly all important 
European ports. It is also an important rail¬ 
road center, being one of the chief points on 
the Baltimore & Ohio, the Pennsylvania, 
and the Western Maryland Systems. It has 


excellent railway connections with the northern, 
southern and central portions of the country. 

The leading industries consist in the manu¬ 
facture of clothing, textiles, boots and shoes, 
flour, fertilizers, bricks, machinery and various 
metallic wares, and in the canning of fruits and 
oysters. The oyster fisheries of Chesapeake 
Bay are extensive, and Baltimore is the chief 
center of this trade. 

History. The city was founded in 1729 
and named in honor of Lord Baltimore, pro¬ 
prietor of the Maryland colony. It was incor¬ 
porated in 1796. Baltimore suffered a bom¬ 
bardment in the War of 1812, but, owing to the 
gallant defense of the garrison at Fort Henry 
and in other fortifications, was not captured. 
From the close of the War of 1812 to the begin¬ 
ning of the Civil War, the city grew steadily 
and became an important shipping port. The 
ships constructed here became famous through¬ 
out the world as the Baltimore differs. The 
Civil War was disastrous to the growth of the 
city, since connection with the South was cut 
off and nearly all of the commerce and manu¬ 
factures were either crippled or suspended; but 
after 1865 Baltimore regained her former pros¬ 
perity and grew rapidly. In February, 1904, a 
disastrous fire devastated nearly all of the 
business portion of the city, destroying over 1500 
buildings and nearly $80,000,000 worth of prop¬ 
erty. The burnt district has been rebuilt on a 
greatly improved plan, and notwithstanding the 
fire the city gained nearly 50,000 inhabitants in 
ten years. Population in 1910, 558,485. 

Baltimore, Sir George Calvert, Lord' 
(1580-1632), a British statesman. He was for 
some time secretary of state to James I, but 
this post he resigned in 1624 in consequence of 
having become a Roman Catholic. Notwith¬ 
standing this, he retained the confidence of the 
king, who in 1625 raised him to the Irish peer¬ 
age. He had previously obtained a grant of 
land in Newfoundland, but as this colony was 
much exposed to the attacks of the French, he 
left it and obtained another patent for Mary¬ 
land. He dijed before the charter was com¬ 
pleted, and it was granted to his son Cecil, who 
founded the colony. 

Baltimore O'riole, Hangbird, Firebird or 
Golden Robin, one of the most beautiful of the 
birds that nest in northern United States, a 
relative of the blackbird. It is about seven 
inches long, has a black head and upper parts 
and brilliant orange under parts. It weaves a 
long, graceful, pouch-like nest, usually far out 



Baluchistan 


Bamberg 


on the tip of a high limb, where it is shaded by 
overhanging leaves. It is a courageous bird 
and is quite able to protect its nest from much 
stronger and larger birds. Its song is sweet 
and clear, and this, with its bright colors and 
its destructiveness to insects, make it a great 
favorite with every one. It is called the Baltimore 
oriole because black and orange were the colors 
of Lord Baltimore. 

Baluchistan or Beluchistan, ba loo'chi- 
stan, a country in Asia, bounded on the n. by 
Afghanistan, on the e. by British India, on the 
s. by the Arabian Sea and on the w. by Persia. 
The general surface of the country is rugged 
and mountainous, with some extensive intervals 
of barren, sandy deserts, and there is a general 
deficiency of water. Cotton, indigo and various 
fruits grow in several parts of the country. The 
date palm is abundant in the southwest. The 
country is almost entirely occupied by pastoral 
tribes under semi-independent sirdars or chiefs. 
The khan of Khelat is nominal ruler of the 
whole land, and in 1877 concluded a treaty with 
Great Britain which placed the whole country 
at the disposal of the British government for 
all military and strategical purposes. Khelat 
is the capital, and Quetta, a town in the north¬ 
east, is the principal city. 

BaPuster, the name applied to the small 
pillars or columns which are used in a series 
and topped by a rail or coping, thus forming 
a balustrade. Balustrades are used to surround 
the roofs of houses and open spaces and also to 
serve as guards for stairways and as parapets 
for bridges. Balusters are often vase or urn 
shaped, having the swelling at the lower end, 
or consist of two vase-shaped pieces, one above 
the other, with a molding between them. 

Balzac', Honore de (1799-1850), the 
greatest of French novelists. He was educated 
for the law, but his inclinations were always 
toward literature, and from an early date he 
wrote novels. None of these had any particular 
merits, and only with the publication in 1829 
of The Chouans did it become evident that the 
young writer was a man of genius. This genius 
he fumed to the carrying out of a plan for repre¬ 
senting in a series of novels, to be called The 
Human Comedy , all the phases of human life in 
the France of his day. The outcome of this 
ambitious plan was an astonishing number of 
novels, containing the marvelous delineations 
of character which entitled him to rank almost 
with Shakespeare in his power to portray men. 
That all sides of life might be presented, Balzac 


often introduced into his works accounts of 
most immoral and licentious characters and 
happenings, but with it all he does not neglect 
to lay stress upon the better and more idea) 
aspects of life. The best of his novels are gen¬ 
erally considered to be Eugenie Grandet, a study 
in avarice, which is by many critics considered 
to be the greatest of the world’s novels; Cousine 
Bette; Lost Illusions and Poor Relations. Dur¬ 
ing the latter part of his life Balzac was much 
influenced by Madame Hanska, a Polish coun¬ 



tess, whom he married only a few months before 
his death. 


Bambarra, bam bahr'ra , a former kingdom in 
Western Africa, situated on the Upper Niger. 
The country is mountainous in the southwest 
and flat in the northern part. It is generally 
very fertile, producing large crops of corn, rice, 
maize and yams. The principal industries are 
the .weaving of cloth and the manufacture of 
leather and metal products. The commerce is 
quite extensive. The inhabitants belong to the 
Mandingo race and are partly Mohammedans. 
Population, estimated at 2,000,000. 

Bamberg, bahm'berg, a town of Germany, 
Bavaria, 33 mi. n. of Nuremberg. It is the 
seat of a Catholic archbishop and contains a 
cathedral founded in 1004, one of the finest 
churches in Germany; the churches of Saint 
James and Saint Mary; a royal palace, and a 
royal library. The royal library contains 
100,000 volumes and valuable manuscripts. 
Bamberg carries on a large trade, its industries 
being cotton spinning, tobacco manufacture and 
brewing. Population in 1910, 48,063. 



Bamboo 


Banana 


Bamboo', the common name of the giant, tree¬ 
like grasses of the tropics and sub-tropics. 
There are many species, belonging to Asia, 
Africa and America, and they vary in height 
from a few feet to a hundred feet. From the 
long, thick, creeping underground rootstalk, 
spring several round, jointed stalks, which send 
out from their joints several shoots and one or 
two sharp, rigid spines. The oval leaves, eight 
or nine inches long, grow on short footstalks, 
and the flowers grow in large clusters from the 
joints of the stalk. Some stems grow to eight 
or ten inches in diameter and are so hard and 
durable as to be used for building purposes. 
The smaller stalks are used for fishing rods, 
walking sticks, flutes, and for innumerable 
other purposes. In the East Indies, China and 
other Eastern countries, cottages are almost 
wholly made of bamboo; bridges, boxes, water 
pipes, ladders, fences, bows and arrows, spears, 
baskets, mats, paper and masts for boats are 
but a few of the other uses to which it is put. 
The seeds of some species are also edible, and 
the young shoots are pickled and eaten. The 


BAMBOO 



bamboo is imported into Europe and America 
as a paper material, as well as for other pur¬ 
poses. 

Bamian, bahm e ahri, a valley and pass of 
Afghanistan, the latter at an elevation of 8496 
feet, the only known pass over the Hindu Kush 
for artillery and heavy transport. The valley 
is one of the chief centers of Buddhist worship 


and contains five remarkable colossal statues. 


Banana, ba nab!na, a plant originally a 
native of the East Indies. It is really an herb 



BANANA THEE, FRUIT Also FLOWER 

Flower grows at end of stem, beyond the fruit. 


with an underground stem, and the trunk, 
which is sometimes as high as thirty feet, is 
really not a trunk at all, but is formed by the 
closely compacted sheaths of the fallen leaves. 
These leaves, which grow to be six or ten feet 
long and one or more broad, have strong mid¬ 
ribs from which veins are given off at right 
angles. The leaves are used for covering the 
roofs of houses, for basket-making and, besides, 
yield a useful fiber, of which manila hemp is an 
example. In the countries where the banana 
is native, the uses to which it can be put are 
innumerable. The spikes of flowers grow nearly 
four feet long, in small bunches, covered by 
purple-colored bracts. The great cluster hangs 
down from the summit of the plant, and, as the 
bracts fall off one at a time, the flowers under 
each bract blossom with their faces toward the 
ground, but as the separate fruits begin to grow, 
they turn upward. A bunch of bananas in a 
store is hung bottom side up. The bananas are 
from four to ten or twelve inches long and one 
inch or more in diameter, and a bunch of them 
often weighs from forty to eighty pounds. The 
banana is cultivated in tropical and subtropical 
countries and is an important article of food. 
Enormous quantities of the fruit are annually 
shipped into the United States from Mexico, 
Central America and the West Indies, and 
increasingly large quantities are being raised in 
the warmer parts of this country. 

Banana, an island, and also a seaport, situated 
at the mouth of the Kongo River. This was 



Banca 


Band 


formerly an important commercial port, but the 
construction of a railroad from Matadi, on the 
coast, to Leopoldville, drew the ocean traffic to 
Matadi, and Banana has now lost its impor¬ 
tance as a commercial center. 

Banca or Banka, bahn'ka, an island belong¬ 
ing to the Dutch East Indies, between Sumatra 
and Borneo. It is 118 miles long. It is cele¬ 
brated for its excellent tin, of which the annual 
yield is above 4000 tons; but it produces nothing 
else of any importance. Population, 115,000. 

Ban'croft, George (1800-1891), an Ameri¬ 
can historian, born at Worcester, Mass. He 



GEORGE BANCROFT 


graduated from Harvard in 1817, studied his¬ 
tory and philology in Germany and then trav¬ 
eled for some years in Europe. During his 
travels he formed the acquaintance of eminent 
scholars, among them Wilhelm von Humboldt 
and Schleiermacher. After returning to America 
he taught for a time, preached occasionally and 
in 1838 was made collector of customs at Boston. 
While lecturing on German literature he con¬ 
tinued his literary labors and published (1841) 
The History of the Colonization of the United 
States. Later this work was embodied in his 
larger history of The United States of North 
America. He was secretary of the navy under 
Polk (1845), established the naval school at 


Annapolis and from 1846 to 1849 was ambas¬ 
sador to England. He published (1852) a 
History of the Revolution in North America, 
from material collected while in England. His 
oration in honor of Abraham Lincoln, delivered 
in 1866, is of historic value. He was minister 
to Prussia (1867), to the North German Confed¬ 
eration (1868), and in 1871 was sent as ambas¬ 
sador to the German Empire. For many years 
he was an eminent contributor to The North 
American Review. While secretary of the navy 
he gave the order to take possession of California 
in case of war with Mexico. He was secretary 
of war one month, and gave the order to march 
into Texas. His last public address was given 
at Washington, D. C., April 27, 1886. 

Bancroft, Hubert Howe (1832- ), an 

American historian, born in Ohio. He went to 
California in 1852 and engaged in the publish¬ 
ing business. Becoming deeply interested in the 
history of the Pacific coast regions, he collected 
a library relating to the subject and gave him¬ 
self up to its classification and to original work 
on the subject. In 1875 he published in five 
volumes his work on The Native Races of the 
Pacific States, and in 1882 he published the first 
volume of his History of the Pacific States. He 
also wrote on the Spanish missions of California 
and the vigilance committees. 

Band, a name given to a combination of 
musical instruments that may be played upon 
the march. This form of music did not arise 
until after the middle of the thirteenth century, 
when traveling musicians joined together in 
guilds. At first these musicians played no 
written music, believing that they would be 
able to attain a greater influence if their pro¬ 
fession was surrounded with some mystery. 
The military band is usually connected with a 
military body, such as an infantry or cavalry 
regiment. It is composed chiefly of wind instru¬ 
ments, such as clarinet, piccolo, cornet, trom¬ 
bone, oboe, saxophone, baritone, bass horn, 
tuba and bass and snare drums. Gilmore was 
probably the most noted leader of military bands 
in America, but at the beginning of the twen¬ 
tieth century John Philip Sousa had succeeded 
to his place as a leader of both concert and 
military bands. In America military bands are 
composed of enlisted men; in England they are 
chosen especially from the schools. The great¬ 
est band of the kind in the United States is the 
United States Marine Band at Washington. In 
Europe there are the Royal Artillery and the 
Royal Marine of England, the Grenadier of 










Bandage 


Bangor 


Germany, the Garde Republicaine of France, 
the Ottoman Palace of Turkey, the Bersaglieri 
of Italy and the Czar’s Regiment of Guards of 
Russia. The so-called brass band, as its name 
indicates, is composed principally of brass instru¬ 
ments, giving a powerful but rather coarse tone 
to the music. The fife and drum corps is a 
popular form of band in America. 

Band'age, a surgical wrapper of some kind 
applied to a limb or other portion of the body 
to keep parts in position, exert a pressure, or 
for other purpose. Ordinary roller bandages 
are long strips of flannel, linen, cheese-cloth or 
other soft fabric, from one to five or six inches 
in breadth and from twenty to thirty feet in 



length. The outer end is laid on the limb and 
the strip is wound smoothly around in a spiral 
so that each turn overlaps the previous one. 
Special bandages are required for special cases. 
In the drawing may be seen samples of several 
forms of bandages and particular ways of ap¬ 
plying them. 

Banda, bdhn'da, Isles, a group of islands in 
the Indian Archipelago, belonging to Holland. 

17 


They are beautiful islands of volcanic origin. 
They yield large quantities of nutmeg and mace. 
Gunong Api, or Fire Mountain, is a cone-shaped 
volcano, which rises 2320 feet above the sea. 
Population, about 8000. 

Ban'dicoot, the largest known species of rat, 
measuring about a foot in length. It is a native 



BANDICOOT 


of India and is very abundant in Ceylon. Its 
flesh is said to be delicate, resembling young pork, 
and is a favorite article of diet with the natives. 
It lives on grains and vegetables and is very 
destructive to rice fields and gardens. The 
name also given to a family of Australian 
marsupials. 

Bane'berry, a European plant, local in Eng¬ 
land, with a spike of white flowers and black, 
poisonous berries. Two American species are 
considered remedies for rattlesnake bite. 

Banff, bamf, a pleasure and health resort in 
Alberta, Canada, on the Canadian Pacific rail¬ 
road. It is noted especially for its beautiful 
scenery. It has r, fine hotel, sulphur springs, 
open-air swimming pools and a sanitarium. 
The village has a population of about 1000, but 
during the season it is filled with visitors. 

Bangalore, ban ga lor', a town of Hindustan, 
capital of Mysore, that gives its name to a con¬ 
siderable district in the east of Mysore state. 
The town stands on a plateau 3000 feet 
above sea-level and is one of the pleasantest 
British stations in India. In the old town stands 
the fort, reconstructed by Hyder Ali in 1761 and 
taken by Lord Cornwallis in 1791. There are 
manufactures of silks, cotton cloth, carpets and 
gold and silver lace. Population in 1911,189,485. 

Ban'gor, Me., the county-seat of Penobscot 
co., on the Penobscot River and on the Maine 







Bangs 


Banks 


Central and other railroads. A dam across the 
river above the city affords water power for 
extensive manufactures, which include furniture, 
carriages, trunks, agricultural implements, shoes, 
clothing and dairy products. There are also 
flour mills, shipyards, pork-packing estab¬ 
lishments and extensive iron foundries. Bangor 
Theological Seminary is located here, also the 
Eastern Maine asylums. The first settlement 
was made in 1769 and was known as Kendus- 
keag Plantation till 1787, when it was called 
Sunbury. In 1791 it was incorporated as Bangor. 
Population in 1910, 24,803. 

Bangs, John Kendrick (1862- ), an 

American editor and humorist, whose home is in 
Yonkers, N. Y. After graduating at Columbia 
College he studied law, but in 1888 became 
editor of the Drawer and of Literary Notes, in 
Harper's Magazine. His light verse and highly 
amusing stories are everywhere popular. Tid- 
dledywinks Tales, Three Weeks in Politics, Mr. 
Bonaparte of Corsica, The Bicyclers, A House¬ 
boat on the Styx, Ghosts I Have Met, The 
Enchanted Typewriter, The Idiot at Home, Over 
the Plum Pudding and Molly and the Unwise 
Man are some of his best known stories. 

Bangweo'lo or Bemba, the southernmost 
of the great lake reservoirs of the Kongo, dis¬ 
covered by Livingstone in 1868. It is an oval¬ 
shaped, shallow sheet of water, said to be 150 
miles in length from east to west and |bout 75 
miles in width, but its exact limits are uncertain. 
Henry M. Stanley visited this lake in 1876, on his 
expedition across Africa. 

Banian, ban'yan, an Indian trader or merchant, 
one engaged in commerce generally, but more 
particularly one of the great traders of western 
India, who carry on a large trade with the 
interior of Asia by means of caravans, and with 
Africa by vessels. They form a class of the 
Vaisya caste, wear a peculiar dress and are 
strict in the observance of fasts and in abstaining 
from the use of flesh. Hence Banian days were 
days in which sailors in the navy had no meat 
served out to them. Banian days are now 
abolished, but the term is still applied to days of 
poor fare. See Banyan. 

Ban'jo, a five- to nine-stringed musical instru¬ 
ment, with a body like a tambourine and a neck 
like a guitar. It is played by stopping the 
strings with the fingers of the left hand and 
twitching or striking them with the fingers of 
the right. 

Ban'kok, the capital of the kingdom of Siam. 
The city is situated on an island and is intersected 


by many little canals. A large portion of the 
population live in boats or wooden houses, 
erected on bamboo rafts, which are moored in 
the river and form a kind of floating town. The 
exports consist chiefly of rice, sugar, silk, cotton, 
tobacco, pepper, sesame, ivory, hides 
and teak, which is shipped in large 
quantities. Most of the business is 
in the hands of the Chinese. The 
royal palace is on the mainland. Pop¬ 
ulation in 1909, 628,675. 

Bank'mpt, a person whom the law 
does or may take cognizance of as 
unable to pay his debts. Properly 
the term is of narrower meaning than 
insolvent, an insolvent person simply 
being unable to pay all his debts. 

In all civilized communities laws have 
been passed regarding bankruptcy. 

At present bankruptcy in England 
is regulated by an act of 1883, 
which has as its essential feature 
the intervention of the Board of 
Trade at all stages of the bank¬ 
ruptcy, with the object of obtain¬ 
ing full official supervision and 
control. In America Congress 
has the power of legislating 
upon bankruptcy, and upon two 
occasions it has done so, the pres¬ 
ent federal statute being passed in 1898. Bank¬ 
ruptcy proceedings may be begun either by a debtor 
or his creditors, the former case being voluntary 
bankruptcy, the latter, involuntary. A man may 
be adjudged a bankrupt for (1) concealing or 
transferring goods in order to defraud creditors, 
(2) transferring goods in order to give certain 
creditors preference over others, (3) allowing 
a creditor to gain preference through legal 
proceedings, (4) making an assignment of his 
property to his creditors, (5) signing a statement 
of his inability to pay his debts. If he is adjudged 
a bankrupt, a trustee is appointed who has 
possession of all his property and divides it pro 
rata among his creditors. The bankrupt is 
thereupon discharged of all his debts. 

Banks, Nathaniel Prentiss (1816-1894), 
an American soldier, born at Walton, Mass. 
He learned the trade of a machinist, but later 
became a local newspaper editor, a lawyer, then 
representative in the legislature, governor of 
Massachusetts, speaker in the United States 
Congress, and general of volunteers in 1862. 
His first military effort was made at the Battle 
of Winchester, where he was attacked by the 



Banks 


Banks and Banking 


forces of “Stonewall” Jackson, and later he was 
placed in command of the defenses of Washington 
while preparations were being secretly made to 
send a strong expedition by sea to New Orleans. 
He was placed in command of this expedition, 
which set out early in 1864, and on reaching 
New Orleans he succeeded General Butler in 
command. This expedition, while it met with 
some successes, did not accomplish its object, 
and in May, 1864, General Banks was relieved 
of his command, resigned his commission and 
returned to his native state. He was elected to 
Congress by his former constituents and served 
for many terms. For a long time General 
Banks was chairman of the committee on foreign 
relations. He afterward served as United States 
marshal for Massachusetts and was again elected 
to Congress in 1888. 

Banks, Savings. See Savings Banks. 
Banks and Banking. Purposes and Func¬ 
tions. A bank is an institution or organization 
for the purpose of handling money. Its chief 
functions are to provide a place of safe keeping 
and deposit for money, to borrow and lend 
money, and in some instances to issue bills or 
notes for circulation as currency. The proper 
performance of these functions serves many 
useful purposes in mercantile affairs. The first 
and most important is the keeping or hoarding 
of money in order to hold it secure from robbers. 
Originally a charge was made to the depositor 
for this purpose. Secondly, by accepting the 
contributions of a large number of depositors, 
banks vastly increase the available capital of a 
community by concentrating it for use in such 
amounts as are convenient in ordinary commercial 
affairs. Thirdly, they facilitate to a remarkable 
extent all business and exchange. They bring 
together those who have money lying idle and 
those who are able to use the money with profit 
to themselves. Fourthly, they afford a safe and 
convenient method of paying debts. For in¬ 
stance, A owes B $100. Instead of drawing 
this amount from a bank in which he has it 
deposited, A gives B an order on the bank for 
$100, which when presented at the bank is 
promptly paid. This order is called a check. If 
A and B are both depositors in the same bank, 
B deposits the check which he has received from 
A and $100 is added to his account and $100 
subtracted from A’s account. Thus, the debt 
is paid and no money changes hands. The 
same method is employed if A and B are in 
different cities, the check in this instance being 
called a draft. This exchange is facilitated by 


the policy of all banks to maintain accounts with 
banks in other important commercial centers. 
The system of paying debts by checks which are 
not collectable except by the parties in whose 
favor they are drawn, or when endorsed by those 
parties, evidently constitutes a perfectly safe 
means of transferring funds. At the same time 
it facilitates business in another way. Because 
of the use of checks only a small part of the 
money deposited in a bank need be kept on 
hand, the rest being loaned out at such an interest 
as will net a profit to the institution. Thus, 
much more money is available for investment 
than would be possible if every bank had to 
retain an amount sufficient to pay in cash the 
claims made upon it from day to day. 

National Systems. The systems of banking 
which exist in different countries, though agreeing 
in general principle in accordance with the above 
statements, differ in details. In England the 
most important banking institution is the Bank 
of England, which was incorporated in 1694 as 
a joint-stock association, with a capital of 
£1,200,000. It loaned its entire capital to the 
government and received the right to issue notes 
for circulation, and also was given a monopoly 
of the banking business of the country, with the 
privilege of establishing branch banks. Gradu¬ 
ally the charter has been amended and extended 
until the present capital of the bank, to the extent 
of which it is allowed to issue bills of circulation, 
is £15,750,000. All its notes are redeemable in 
gold and therefore pass freely at par anywhere 
in the world. It holds deposits amounting to 
more than $225,000,000, has outstanding loans 
of nearly $170,000,000, and by reason of its 
many branches and sound basis is the most 
influential financial institution in the world. 
Scotland and Ireland each has a separate bank¬ 
ing system. 

The Bank of France was established in 1800, 
upon a basis similar to that of the Bank of 
England. It has the sole right to issue paper 
money in France, and its notes are issued upon 
such excellent security that they pass as readily 
as do those of the Bank of England. It has 
often come to the aid of the government in 
time of need, and in 1890, when the London 
money market was undergoing a severe strain, 
the Bank of France relieved the situation there 
and throughout the world by advancing a large 
sum in gold. The banking systems of other 
European countries are similar to that of France. 

United States. The national bank system 
was organized by a law passed in 1863. Under 


Banks and Banking 


Banks and Banking 


this act banks may be organized by five or 
more persons, authorized to issue notes for 
circulation by purchasing government bonds 
with their capital stock. At first the issue of 
notes was limited to ninety per cent of the face 
value of these bonds, but by an act of 1900 
the banks were allowed to issue notes to the full 
amount of their bonds, or in excess of this 
amount, if gold or specie to cover the excess is 
deposited with the United States government. 
The minimum capital stock allowed was $25,000, 
for banks in towns having a population of three 
thousand or less. Strict supervision of all 
operations of the national banks is exercised by 


the government through a system of examiners, 
directed by the comptroller of the currency. 
Besides these there are many hundreds of state 
and private banks; in many states the latter are 
not subject to state examination. 

Currency Law of 1913. The national bank act 
of 1863 was framed to meet an emergency, that 
is, to create a market for United States bonds 
and to standardize and give uniform value to 
bank notes. It survived changing conditions 
for fifty years, but latterly it has been recog¬ 
nized that the system of note issue has grown 
so inflexible as to support inadequately the great 
business development of the country. The 


fundamental purposes of the new law are (1) to 
supply better control of bank reserves and (2) 
to provide a more flexible currency based upon 
commercial assets instead of government bonds. 
This currency is issued under the supervision of 
the federal reserve board, by the twelve federal 
reserve banks which were created under the terms 
of the act. The primary function of these banks 
is to rediscount commercial paper. For ex¬ 
ample, a retailer pays for goods which he has 
received from a wholesaler by giving his note. 
The wholesaler presents the note to a national 
bank, which pays it, less the interest or discount. 
The bank in turn presents the note to the reserve 


bank, which rediscounts it and pays for it with 
current funds or, if necessary, by issuing federal 
reserve notes. In times of great demand for 
money, there will be a large supply of notes; if 
the demand is slack, the amount of the notes 
will be less. The national bank notes will be 
gradually retired. 

There are twelve federal reserve banks. Their 
location and the districts which they serve are 
indicated on the accompanying map. Each 
national bank in the United States is required to 
subscribe to the stock of the reserve bank in its 
district. State banks may subscribe, but are 
not required to do so. Each national bank 



















Banks and Banking 


Banks and Banking 


must invest 6 per cent of its capital and surplus 
in the stock of the reserve bank. The minimum 
capital of a reserve bank is fixed at $4,000,000. 
A reserve bank is a depository only for funds 
of its member banks, and, in the discretion of 
the secretary of the treasury, of government 
funds. Besides acting as a reserve bank, it 
may buy and sell certain classes of commer¬ 
cial paper, both at home and abroad. Each re¬ 
serve bank will be managed by a board of nine 
directors, three of whom will be bankers named 
by the member banks of the district. Three of 
the other members will be citizens, not bankers, 
also chosen by the banks, and the remaining 
three directors will be appointed by the federal 
reserve board at W ashington. The federal reserve 
board, which is the body in supreme control of 
this new system, is composed of the secretary of 
the treasury and the comptroller of the cur¬ 
rency, as exofficio members, and five other 
members appointed by the president for ten-year 
terms at an annual salary of $12,000. 

The currency law of 1913 greatly extends the 
legitimate field for national banks. The pe¬ 
culiar needs of farming are recognized: federal 
reserve banks may discount ordinary commercial 
paper for ninety days, but commercial paper 
issued for agricultural purposes may be dis¬ 
counted for six months. National banks out¬ 
side the reserve cities are also allowed to buy 
first mortgages on farms for periods not longer 
than five years. The law also provides, for the 
first time, for foreign trade. With the approval 
of the federal reserve board any national bank 
with a capital and surplus of $1,000,000 may 
establish foreign branches. These extensions of 
the privileges of national banks are almost equal¬ 
ly noteworthy with the main purpose of mak¬ 
ing the currency system more flexible. 

At the end of the fiscal year 1913 there were in 
the United States 7404 national banks with a 
capital of $1,051,720,000, and a circulation of 
$722,125,024. At the same time there were 
14,011 state banks, 1016 private banks, 1515 
loan and trust companies, besides 1978 savings 
banks, a total of 25,924 banks in the country. 

History. Banking has existed since the 
earliest times, but the first banks were really 
only money exchanges. (See Money and 
Banking, Vol. V. ) The first bank whose his¬ 
tory can be traced was the Bank of Venice, 
established in 1171 and continuing almost until 
the nineteenth century. By the end of the 
sixteenth century banks were flourishing in 
nearly every large city of Europe, most of them 


being founded for the same purpose as the 
Bank of Venice. Gradually they assumed other 
functions, such as receiving deposits. The pres¬ 
ent check and draft system originated about the 
beginning of the seventeenth century. Finally, 
banks began to pay depositors for the use of 
funds, and in this was the origin of the interest 
upon savings accounts. 

The first bank chartered in the United States 
was opened in 1780 under an act of Congress 
but was rechartered by Pennsylvania in the 
following year, owing to opposition to the policy 
of government control of finances. The first 
really national bank was organized in 1791, with 
a capital of $10,000,000, the government retain¬ 
ing the right to subscribe one-fifth of this 
amount. Its charter. was limited to twenty 
years. The headquarters of the bank were 
at Philadelphia, but it established branches 
in several other cities. At the expiration of 
its charter the opposition of local and state 
banks had become so influential that the 
charter was not reissued. Disastrous finan¬ 
cial conditions followed, and as a result another 
United States Bank was chartered under Presi-, 
dent Madison in 1816, its capital being 
$35,000,000, of which the government sub¬ 
scribed $7,000,000, and individual citizens took 
the remainder. This charter was also limited to 
twenty years. During its existence it did 
valuable service in maintaining a fairly uniform 
currency and in facilitating exchanges through 
its branches in different parts of the country. 
But under President Jackson the demands 
of rival institutions for its destruction were 
heeded, and though Congress rechartered the 
bank in 1831, the act was vetoed by President 
Jackson. Under Van Buren a sub-treasury or 
independent treasury system was substituted, 
and until the establishment of the present 
national banking system, it proved an efficient 
means of regulating the currency and providing 
for the financial needs of the country. Under 
this system the funds of the government were 
deposited in government vaults in various cities, 
where they were kept until used by order of the 
executive department of the United States. 
Thus, the government was entirely separated 
from the banking business, except at times when 
the unusual demands upon the banks could not 
be met by them, when government funds were 
released to relieve the situation. Since the 
Civil War, however, though the sub-treasuries 
are still in existence, the principle of complete 
separation of the government and the banks 


Bannockburn 


Barbadoes 


has been abandoned, government funds being 
deposited in many of the national banks through¬ 
out the country. See Savings Banks; Clear¬ 
ing-house; Currency; Negotiable Paper; 
Notes. 

Ban'nockburn, a village in Scotland on the 
Bannock rivulet, 3 mi. s. e. of Stirling. Here 
was fought, in 1314, the great battle by which 
Robert Bruce, through his victory over Edward 
II, won independence for Scotland. The Eng¬ 
lish lost about thirty thousand men, while the 
Scotch lost but eight thousand. 

Bantu, bahn'too, the general name of a group 
of African races, including, among others, the 
Kaffirs, Zulus and Bechuanas, but not the 
Hottentots. 

Ban'yan, or Ban'ian, a remarkable fig tree 
of India. The peculiar feature of this tree is 
its method of throwing down from the hori¬ 
zontal branches supports which take root as 
soon as they touch the ground, enlarge into 
trunks and extending branches in their turn, 
cover a wide extent of ground. As the Hindu 



BANYAN TREE 


word for trader is banian, it is probable that the 
tree is so called because the Hindu merchants 
frequently spread their goods in the shade of 
these tree-forests. Banyan wood is soft and 
porous, and from its white, sticky juice bird¬ 
lime is sometimes prepared. One of the largest 
banyan trees known to exist was discovered on 
one of the Howe Islands, 300 miles from Port 
Macquarie, in Australia, and covered nearly 
seven acres. 

Bap'tism, a rite which is generally thought 
to have been administered to proselytes by the 
Jews, even before Christ. From this baptism, 
however, that of Saint John the Baptist differed, 
because he baptized Jews, also, as a symbol of 
the necessity of perfect purification from sin. 
Christ himself never baptized, but directed his 
disciples to administer this rite to converts 
{Matt, xxviii, 19); and baptism, therefore, 
became a religious ceremony among Christians, 


taking rank as a sacrament with all sects winch, 
acknowledge sacraments. In the primitive 
church the person to be baptized was dipped in 
a river or in a vessel, with the words which 
Christ had ordered, and was given a new name 
to express the complete change. Sprinkling, or, 
as it was termed, clinic baptism, was used only 
in the case of the sick who could not leave their 
beds. The Greek church and Eastern schis¬ 
matics retained the custom of immersion; but 
the Western church adopted or allowed pouring 
or sprinkling, which has since been continued 
by most Protestants. Since the Reformation 
there have been various Protestant sects called 
Baptists, holding that baptism should be admin¬ 
istered only by immersion, and to those who can 
make a personal confession of faith. Different 
churches have adopted various customs in con¬ 
nection with baptism. The Greek, Reformed 
and Roman churches baptize infants. The 
Church of England makes the sign of the cross 
on the forehead of the candidate. Some 
churches formerly anointed with oil to signify 
the gift of the Holy Spirit, or breathed upon 
the candidate to drive out the devil. 

Bap'tists, a Protestant sect distinguished by 
its opinions respecting the mode and subjects 
of baptism. The name was first applied in 
1644 to English congregations who taught that 
the only true method of baptism is by immer¬ 
sion. The first Baptist church in America 
was founded at Providence, R. I., in 1639 by 
Roger Williams. See Baptism. 

Baptist Young People’s TJnion, The, of 
America, was organized July 7, 1891, as a 
federation of all Baptist young people, without 
regard to name or organization. Its purpose 
is to bring all such persons together in a com¬ 
mon interest and sympathy in work, to de¬ 
velop Christian character, to increase Scrip¬ 
tural knowledge and to impart a wider mis¬ 
sionary outlook. The association is represented 
by branch societies in nearly every state and 
territory. The headquarters are at Chicago. 

Bar'aboo, Wis., the county-seat of Sauk co., 
on the Baraboo River and on the Chicago & 
Northwestern railroad. The city is beautifully 
located in a fruit-growing district. Its manu¬ 
factures are aided by good water power, and it 
has linen and woolen mills and railroad shops. 
Population in 1910, 6324. 

Barbados, bahr ba'doze, the most easterly of 
the West India Islands, situated 78 mi. e. of 
Saint Vincent. The soil in the lowlands is very 
fertile, and large crops of sugar cane are raised. 


Barbara 

Other important products are cotton, coffee, 
tobacco, indigo and arrowroot. The leading 
industries are the manufacture of sugar and 
rum, but the island has considerable commerce 
and important fisheries. Barbados is the head¬ 
quarters for the English forces in the West Indies. 
The island was discovered in 1518, was occupied 
by the British in 1625 and has always been a 
British possession. It is under a governor, 
assisted by an executive committee and a legis¬ 
lative council, all appointed by the king, and a 
house of assembly elected by the people. Bridge¬ 
town is the capital. Population in 1911,171,982. 

Bar'bara, Saint, according to the legend, a 
saint of Nicomedia, in Asia Minor, who was 
beheaded by her father for having turned Chris¬ 
tian. Her father immediately thereafter was 
struck dead by lightning. Saint Barbara is 
invoked in storms, and is considered the patron 
saint of artillerists. 

Barba' rian, a name given by the Greeks to 
every one who spoke any language but Greek. 
Originally, it had no unpleasant significance, 
but naturally, because the Greeks invariably 
regarded themselves as superior intellectually to 
any other people, it soon took on something of 
the modern meaning—rude, uncivilized and 
illiterate. The Greeks, of course, applied the 
term to the Romans, who in turn made use of 
it to designate all who differed from themselves 
in language and civilization. 

Barbaros'sa, a surname given to Frederick I 
of Germany. It means Redbeard. 

Bar'bary, a general name for the most 
northerly portion of Africa, comprising Morocco, 
Fez, Algeria, Tunis and Tripoli, including Barca 
and Fezzan. The principal races are the Ber¬ 
bers, the original inhabitants, from whom the 
country takes its name; the Arabs, who con¬ 
quered an extensive portion of it during the times 
of the caliphs; the Bedouins, Jews, Turks and 
French colonists of Algeria. The country, which 
was prosperous under the Carthaginians, was, 
next to Egypt, the richest of the Roman prov¬ 
inces, and the Italian states enriched themselves 
by their intercourse with it. In the fifteenth 
century, however, it became infested witfi 
adventurers, who made the name of Barbary 
corsair a terror to commerce, a condition of 
things finally removed by the French occupation 
of Algeria. 

Barbary Ape, a species of ape, or tailless 
monkey, with greenish-brown hair. It is the 
size of a large cat and is common in Barbary 
and other parts of Africa. Some formerly lived 


Barberry 

on the Rock of Gibraltar, being the only Euro¬ 
pean monkeys. 

Bar'becue, a word of West Indian origin, 
applied to the practice of roasting whole a hog or 
other large animal. In the Southern states the 
word has been extended to signify any open air 
festivity where animals are roasted whole and 
great quantities of food and drink are provided. 

Bar'bel, a genus of fresh water fishes of the 
carp family, distinguished by the four fleshy 
appendages growing from the lips, two at the 
nose and one at each comer of the mouth, form¬ 



BARBEL 


ing the kind of beard to which the genus owes its 
name. The barbel is common in European 
rivers and reaches a weight of twenty pounds. 
It gives good sport to the angler, but its flesh is 
very coarse. 

Bar'ber, one whose occupation is to shave or 
trim the beard, or cut and dress hair. The prac- 
tice’of surgery was formerly a part of the craft, and 
by an act of Henry VIII the Company of Barbers 
was incorporated with the Company of Surgeons 
—the company being then known as the Barber- 
surgeons—with the limitation, however, that the 
surgeons were not to shave or practice “barbery,” 
and the barbers were to perform no higher 
surgical operation than blood-letting and tooth¬ 
drawing. This continued till the time of George 
II. The sign of the old profession—the pole 
which the patient grasped, with its spiral decora¬ 
tion in imitation of the bandage—is still retained 
by barbers. The barbers’ shops, always notori¬ 
ous for gossip, were in some measure the news- 
centers of classic and medieval times. 

Bar'berry, a common shrub, bearing bunches 
of small, beautiful, nearly oval, red berries. The 
leaves are serrated and pointed, and thorns, 
three together, grow upon the branches, with the 
hanging clusters of yellow flowers. A curious 
fact about these flowers is that the stamens are 
held away from the pistils by a fold in the corolla 
till they are released by the wind or by a passing 
insect. Then they fly forward and snap their 
pollen on the stigma The berries are sour, and 
when boiled with sugar they make an agreeable 
preserve or jelly. They are also used as a dry 
sweetmeat, in sugar plums or comfits they are 


Barber’s Itch 


Barebones Parliament 


pickled with vinegar, and they are used for the 
garnishing of dishes. The bark is said to have 
medicinal properties, and the inner bark and 
roots mixed with alum yield a fine yellow dye. 
The shrub was originally a native of eastern 
countries, but is now generally diffused in Europe, 
as also in North America. Numerous other 
species belong to America and Asia. 

Bar'ber’s Itch, a disease that affects the faces 
of men, and is so-called because it is often com¬ 
municated by the implements of the barber shop. 
It is caused by a parasitic fungus that find;.; its 
way into the hair follicles and causes a scarlet 
eruption, which spreads over the face and is 
accompanied by severe itching and burning. 
The disease may be readily cured by killing the 
parasite. 

Bar'ca, a division of North Africa lying 
between Tripoli and Egypt and bordering on the 
Mediterranean Sea. It formerly belonged to 
Turkey but is now an Italian possession. The 
surface is mountainous, except near the coast, 
where there is a belt of arable land. The 
products are grain, cattle and vegetables. The 
country also exports ostrich feathers and ivory, 
which are obtained through caravan trade with 
the interior. In ancient times Barca formed a 
portion of Cyrenaica, which in the fourth and 
fifth centuries rivaled Carthage in prosperity 
and importance. Bengazi is the capital and 
chief town. The population does not exceed 
300,000. 

Barcelo'na, one of the largest cities of Spain, 
chief town of the province of Barcelona, and 
formerly capital of the kingdom of Catalonia, 
situated on the northern portion of the Spanish 
Mediterranean coast. It is divided into the 
upper and lower town; the former is modern, 
regular and stone-built; the latter is old, irregu¬ 
lar and brick-built. The city contains a univer¬ 
sity, a cathedral, a theater—one of the largest in 
Europe—several public libraries, a museum 
and a large arsenal and cannon foundry. The 
principal manufactures are cottons, silks,woolens, 
machinery, paper, chemicals, stoneware and 
soap. Its exports are manufactured goods, 
wine and brandy, fruit and oil; and the imports 
are coal, textile fabrics, machinery, cotton, fish, 
hides, silks and timber. Barcelona was governed 
by its own count until the twelfth century, 
but was united with Aragon in 1151. In 1640, 
with the rest of Catalonia, it placed itself under 
the French crown, and twelve years later it sub¬ 
mitted again to the Spanish government. In 
1697 it was taken by the French, but was restored 


to Spain at the Peace of Ryswick. Population 
in 1910, of commune, including suburbs, 587,219. 

Barcelona, a town of Venezuela, situated near 
the mouth of the Neveri River. The site is very 
unhealthful. The principal exports are cattle, 
jerked beef, hides, cotton, cacao and indigo. 
Population, about 10,000. 

Bar'clay, Robert (1648-1690), the cele¬ 
brated apologist of the Quakers, bom at Gordons- 
town, Scotland, and educated at Paris in a school 
of which his uncle was rector. This uncle 
promised to make Barclay his heir if he would 
accept the Catholic faith, but Barclay refused to 
do this. Later he became a Quaker, because, as 
he said, he found no charity in either Calvinists 
or Catholics. In his travels with William Penn 
and George Fox through England, Holland and 
Germany, to spread the opinions of the Quakers, 
he was received everywhere with the highest 
respect. Among his published works are Truth 
Cleared* of Calumnies, The Anarchy of the 
Ranters and Treatise on Universal Love. 

Barclay de Tolly, bahr kli' de to le f , Michael, 
Prince (1761-1818), the Russian general who 
commanded uring Napoleon’s invasion of 
Russia in 1812. By his tactics of avoiding open 
battle and of devastating the country through 
which Napoleon must pass, he began the reverses 
which finally ended in Napoleon’s defeat. His 
tactics made him unpopular, however, and his 
command was taken from him and given to 
Kutusoff, under whom Barclay served for a 
time. Restored later to his position, he took a 
prominent part in the battles of Bautzen, Dresden 
and Leipzig. 

Bard, one of an order among the ancient Celtic 
tribes, whose occupation was to compose and 
sing verses in honor of the heroic achievements 
of princes and brave men, generally to the accom¬ 
paniment of the harp. The bards of Gaul were 
known to the Romans two centuries before 
Christ, but only the tradition of their popularity 
survives. The first Welsh bards of whose work 
anything remains, lived in the sixth century, 
and from that date until the tenth century little 
is heard of the bards. Edward I of England is 
skid to have hanged all the Welsh bards as 
promoters of sedition, and on this event is based 
Gray’s ode, The Bard. For the preservation of 
the remains of the ancient Welsh literature, the 
Cambrian Society was formed in 1818. 

Bare'bones Parliament, the name given to 
the parliament assembled by Cromwell in 1653, 
because one of its prominent members bore the 
name Praise-God Barebones, 


Barege 

Barege, bahrayzh', a light, open tissue of 
silk and worsted, or cotton and worsted, for 
women’s dresses, originally manufactured near 
Bareges. In France it is called crepe-de-barege. 

Bareilly or Bareli, ba ra'le, a city of India, 
situated in the Northwest Provinces, 152 mi. 
e. of Delhi. The town has a pleasant site on 
an elevated plateau, contains one well-built 
street, two forts and cantonments and environs 
for troops. The leading manufactures are 
swords, ornamental furniture, gold and silver 
lace and perfumery. The city was seized by 
the native troops during the Indian outbreak, 
and the European residents were massacred. 
It was retaken by Lord Clyde in 1858. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 129,462. 

Bareli, ba ra'le. See Bareilly. 

Bar'ham, Richard Harris (1788-1845), an 
English humorist, the author of the Ingoldsby 
Legends. He was ordained in 1813, in 1821 
was appointed a minor canon of Saint Paul’s 
and in 1824 became a priest of the chapel royal. 
He published several novels and then began his 
inimitable burlesque metrical tales under the 
name of Thomas Ingoldsby, which at once 
became popular from their droll humor, fine 
irony and varied and whimsical rhymes. 

Bar Har'bor, Me., a town and popular sum¬ 
mer resort of Hancock co., on the cast side of 
Mount Desert Island, 46 mi. s. c. of Bangor. 
It ranks as one of the most fashionable summer 
resorts of the Atlantic coast. Population, about 
2000. 

Bari, bah're, a seaport in South Italy, on a 
small promontory of the Adriatic, capital of the 
province Terra di Bari. It was a place of 
importance as early as the third century b. c. 
and has been thrice destroyed and rebuilt. 
The present town, though poorly built for the 
most part, has a large Norman castle and a fine 
cathedral. It manufactures cotton and linen 
goods, hats, soap, glass and liquors. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 103,520. 

Bari, a negro people of Africa, dwelling on 
both sides of the White Nile, and having Gon- 
dokoro as their chief town. They follow agri¬ 
culture and cattle-rearing Their country was 
conquered by Sir Samuel Baker for Egypt. 

Ba'ring Brothers, the name of a noted 
British banking firm, the founders of which 
were Francis and John Baring, sons of a Ger¬ 
man who settled in England in the first half of 
the eighteenth century. The house was estab¬ 
lished in 1770. Through a number of genera¬ 
tions the business has descended from father to 


Barker’s Mill 

son, and each head of the house has attained 
importance in the English government. In 1885 
the present head of the house was raised to the 
peerage as Baron Revelstoke. 

Baring-Gould, Sabine (1834- ), an Eng¬ 

lish clergyman and author, bom at Exeter. He 
was educated at Cambridge and has held sev¬ 
eral livings in the English church. Among his 
works are Iceland, its Scenes and Sagas, Curious 
Myths of the Middle Ages, The Origin and. 
Development of Religious Belief, Lives of the 
Saints, and the novels, Mahalah, John Herring, 
Court Royal and The Broom Squire. 

Ba'rium, a metal, found in nature only in 
compounds, such as the common sulphate and 
carbonate. Barium was isolated by Davy for 
the first time in 1808. It is a yellow, malleable 
metal, which readily oxidizes, decomposes 
water and fuses at a low temperature. Its 
nitrate and chlorate are used in making fire¬ 
works. 

Bark, the exterior covering of the stems of 
exogenous plants. It is composed of several 
layers and is separable from the wood. The 
outside layer is heavy, rough or corky, and 
usually dead. The innermost layer conveys the 
foods, and the intermediate green zone has 
chlorophyll, which manufactures starch here in 
the same way that it does in the leaves. The 
outer and inner zones of bark may increase in 
thickness, but the green layer remains about 
the same, supplying cells to the outer layer and 
taking them to the woody interior. The rough 
and tattered appearance of the barks of some 
trees is owing to the growth of the interior and 
to the warping which comes from constant dry¬ 
ing and wetting. Many plants produce bark 
that is valuable in commerce. Cork is gathered 
from the outer layer of the bark of certain oak 
trees; tannic acid, the substance which is valua¬ 
ble in tanning leather, is obtained from the bark 
of hemlock and other trees; quinine is made 
from Peruvian bark, and the. bark fibers of 
hemp, flax and other plants are made into 
threads, ropes, mats and cloths. 

Bark'er’s Mill, a device for illustrating the 
principle of reaction (See Dynamics). It con¬ 
sists of a vertical tube having two horizontal 
arms attached near the lower end. On one side 
of each of these arms, near its outer extremity, 
is r. small opening. These openings face in 
opposite directions. The apparatus is mounted 
on a frame so that it can rotate. When water 
is poured into the vertical tube, the reaction of 
the water jet rushing from the orifices in the 


Barletta 


Barnabas 


arms causes each arm to move backward and 
thus makes the apparatus revolve. This device 
is of no practical 
use in laboratories, 
but sprinkling ma¬ 
chines operated on the 
same principle are com¬ 
mon. 

Barlet'ta, a fortified 
town in Italy, situated 
on the west shore of the 
Adriatic, on a rock}' 
island. The principal 
buildings are an ancient 
cathedral of Byzantine 
architecture, 
a castle con¬ 
structed by 
Charles V, 
converted into a con¬ 
vent, several church¬ 
es, and a college 
funded by Ferdi¬ 
nand IV. In the 
market place is a 
colossal statue fifteen 
feet high, representing the emperor Heraclius. 
Barletta is nine miles west of Cannae, celebrated 
for the disastrous defeat of the Romans by Han¬ 
nibal in the Punic War. Population, 42,000. 

Bar'ley, a grain resembling wheat in its 
general appearance and manner of growth. 
Barley has been known and cultivated from the 
earliest times, and beer was made from it by 
the Egyptians. The chief species are two- 
rowed barley, four-rowed barley, and six-rowed 
barley, of which the small variety is the sacred 
barley of the ancients. In North America the 
extent of it as a crop is comparatively small; 
the production in Canada is relatively greater 
than in the United States, and the Canadian 
barley is of very high quality. The United States 
produces about 150,000,000 bushels a year, 
California, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa, in 
the order named, being the leading states in 
its production. Barley is better adapted for 
cold climates than any other grain, and some 
of the coarser varieties are cultivated where no 
other cereal can be grown. Some species are 
mere grasses. Scotch barley is the grain deprived 
of the husk in a mill. Pearl barley is the grain 
polished and rounded and deprived of the husk 
and other coverings. Barley-water, a decoction 
of pearl barley, is used in medicine. Barley is also 
a healthful and nourishing food. See Brewing. 


Bar'low, Francis Channing (1834-1896), 
an American soldier and lawyer born in Brook¬ 
lyn, N. Y. He graduated at Harvard in 1855, 
enlisted in the New York national guard in 
1861 and was promoted to be lieutenant colonel 
of the Sixty-first Regiment of New York Volun¬ 
teers in the same year. He became brigadier 
general and performed distinguished service at 
Antietam, Chancellorsville and Gettsyburg 
and as commander of a division at Spottsyl- 
vania Courthouse. From 1865 to 1868 he was 
secretary of state of New York and later attor¬ 
ney general of the state, and in the latter capac¬ 
ity had charge of the prosecution of the Tweed 
Ring. See Tweed, William Marct. 

Barlow, Joel (1754-1812), an American 
poet, politician and pamphleteer. After an 
active and changeful life as chaplain, lawyer, 
editor, land-agent, lecturer and consul, he 
went to Paris and was active there during the 
Revolution. On his return to America he was 
appointed minister plenipotentiary to France, 
but died near Cracow on his way to a conference 
with Napoleon. His principal poem. The 
Columbiad, dealing with American history from 
the time of Columbus, was published in 1807, 
but it was not successful. Hasty Pudding, a 
mock-heroic poem, met with greater popular favor. 

Barmecide’s, bahr'me sidez, Feast, a phrase 
proverbially used for a feast on imaginary dain¬ 
ties. It originates in the story of the barber’s 
sixth brother, in the Arabian Nights. 

Bar'men, a city of Germany, situated on the 
Wupper River, 25 mi. n. e. of Cologne. The 
town is made up of several small villages, 
extending along the valley, and on its western 
boundary it forms a continuation of the town of 
Elberfeld. The river flows through the center 
of the town and is crossed by about twenty 
bridges. Among the important buildings are 
the municipal theater and the old and new 
Rathaus. There are also a number of chari¬ 
table, benevolent and educational institutions, 
a municipal hospital, a museum of natural his¬ 
tory, a library and an art gallery. The chief 
industry is the manufacture of ribbon, in which 
Barmen is the leading city of the Continent. 
Other manufactures are cotton and woolen 
fabrics, linens, silks, laces, soap, candles, 
machinery and musical instruments. The loca¬ 
tion and industries of Barmen make it an impor¬ 
tant commercial center. Population in 1910, 
169,201. 

Barnabas, the surname given by the apos¬ 
tles to Joseph, a fellow laborer of Paul, and, 








Barnacle 


Barnburners 


like Paul, ranked as an apostle. He is said to 
have founded at Antioch the first Christian 
community, to have been first bishop of Milan 
and to have suffered martyrdom at Cyprus. 

Bar'nacle, the name of a family of marine 
crustaceans. They are enveloped by a rftantle 
and shell, composed of five principal valves 
and several smaller pieces, joined together by 
a membrane attached to their circumference; 
and they are furnished with a long, flexible, 
fleshy stalk, provided with muscles, by which 
they attach themselves to ships’ bottoms, sub¬ 
merged timber, rocks and the like. One species. 



BABNAGLE3 


the acorn barnacle, has no stalk, but has a hard, 
acorn-shaped shell of many leaf-shaped valves. 
The structure of the barnacle can best be seen 
in the goose barnacle. It has a leathery stalk 
and six pairs of jointed feet. At the base of 
the shell is a cement-gland containing a secre¬ 
tion which enables the barnacle to adhere to 
any substance. These forms are widely dis¬ 
tributed and are common in salt waters every¬ 
where. Barnacles feed on small marine animals 
brought within their reach by the water and 
secured by their tentacles. Some of the larger 
species are edible. According to an old fable, 
these animals produced barnacle geese. See 
Barnacle Goose. 

Barnacle Goose, a wild goose common in 
Europe as a summer visitant in the North Sea 
Its forehead and cheeks are white and the upper 
body and neck black. It takes its name from 
the absurd belief that it is produced from the 


barnacles that grow on rocks. 

Bar'nard, Frederick Augustus Porter 
(1809-1889), an American educator, bom at 
Sheffield, Mass., and educated at Yale College. 
He began his career as a teacher of the deaf 
and dumb, but was soon chosen professor of 
natural philosophy and mathematics in the 
University of Alabama. In 1856 he was elected 
president of the University of Mississippi and 
in 1864 became president of Columbia College 
(now Columbia University), which position he 
held for twenty-four years. He was United 
States commissioner to the Paris Exposition in 
1867 and was also associated with numerous 
astronomical projects and with the United 
States Coast Survey, being chosen in 1863 to 
superintend the publication of the maps and 
charts of that organization. At his death he 
left most of his property to Columbia College, 
and Barnard College, affiliated with Columbia 
University, is named after him. 

Barnard, Henry (1811-1900). an American 
educator, bom at Hartford, Connecticut. He 
became prominently identified with educational 
work while he was a member of the state legis¬ 
lature of Connecticut. At that time he was 
successful in securing the reorganization of the 
public school system of the state and in intro¬ 
ducing many improvements. He was after¬ 
wards made state school commiss ; oner and in 
1856 founded the American Journal of Educa¬ 
tion. He was one of the leaders in the move¬ 
ment to secure the establishment of a national 
bureau of education, and became the first com¬ 
missioner of education of the United States. 
The most important of his writings are Hints 
and Methods for Teachers, Pestalozzi and Pes- 
talozzianism and German Educational Reforms. 

Bar'nard College. See Barnard, Fred¬ 
erick Augustus Porter; Columbia Univer¬ 
sity. 

Barn'bum' - ers, the name given, in American 
history, to a faction of the Democratic party in 
New York state, so-called from their radical 
tendencies, in allusion to the story of the Dutch¬ 
man who burned down his barn to clear it from 
rats. The division of the party was in 1844, 
the followers of Van Buren being termed Barn¬ 
burners, and those of Polk, Hunkers. In 1848, 
after a contest in the Democratic national con¬ 
vention, the former joined the Free-soilers and 
voted for Van Buren, and thus made possible 
the election of Taylor, the Whig candidate. 
The Democrats were practically reunited in 
1852. See Democratic Party. 
















Barneveldt 


Barometer 


Bar'neveldt, Jan van Olden (1547-1619), 
a Dutch statesman, advocate general of Holland. 
Largely through his influence, Maurice of 
Nassau was raised to the stadtholdership, but 
when Barneveldt saw that Maurice desired to 
make of the Netherlands a monarchy with him¬ 
self at the head, he set himself to oppose these 
ambitious plans. The conflict was disguised 
under the appearance of a religious contro¬ 
versy, with Barneveldt at the head of the faction 
known as Remonstrants, and Maurice at the 
head of the Contra-Remonstrants. Although he 
had done more for his country than any other 
man of his generation, Barneveldt was aocused 
of favoring Spain, was arrested, given an unfair 
trial and beheaded. 

Bar'ney, Joshua (1759-1818), an American 
naval officer, born in Baltimore, Md. In the 
American Revolution, Barney served with dis¬ 
tinction on the Hornet, the Wasp, the Virginia 
and the Hyder Ali and was twice captured, 
spending many months in prison. Though only 
twenty-three years of age, he was promoted by 
Congress to the rank of commodore and received 
from the State of Pennsylvania a gold-hilted 
sword. In the War of 1812 Barney was ap¬ 
pointed commander of the gunboat flotilla, 
organized for the defense of Chesapeake Bay. 
At the Battle of Bladensburg in August, 
1814,' he distinguished himself, but was 
severely wounded. For his services at this 
battle, the city of Washington voted him a 
sword. 

Barnum, Phineas Taylor (1810-1891), an 
American showman, born at Bethel, Conn. His 
father was tailor, farmer and tavern-keeper in 
turn. At thirteen young Barnum was employed 
in a country store, and about five years after¬ 
ward went into the lottery business. At nineteen 
he married secretly and then began to edit the 
Danbury Herald of Freedom,. 

In 1834 he removed to New York, where he 
entered upon his first venture as a showman, 
buying Joice Heth, the reputed nurse of General 
Washington, and exhibiting her with consid¬ 
erable profit. After 1839 he was reduced again 
to poverty, but in 1841 he bought Scudder’s 
American Museum in New York, through 
which he became at once prosperous by exhib¬ 
iting various fraudulent freaks and curios, and 
also a noted dwarf (Charles S. Stratton of 
Bridgeport), whom he styled Gen. Tom Thumb 
and exhibited in Europe in 1844. In 1847 he 
offered Jenny Lind SI 000 a night for 150 nights, 
and received $700,000—the concert tickets often 


being sold at auction, in one case as high as 
$650 for a single ticket. 

Soon, however, he was again bankrupt; but 
settling with his creditors in 1857, he entered 
upon new enterprises and made another fortune. 
In 1866 he was a candidate for a seat in Congress, 
but was unsuccessful. In 1868 he relinquished the 
business of showman, resuming it, however, in 
1871, when he organized a traveling museum, 
menagerie and circus, known as the “Greatest 



Show on Earth,” which required 500 men 
and horses and 100 railroad cars to transport it. 
In 1879 he estimated the number of his patrons 
up to date as 90,000,000. He paid $10,000 to 
the London Zoological society for the huge 
elephant, “Jumbo.” Barnum published several 
books, including an autobiography, which tells 
frankly of many of his audacious frauds. His 
principle was to create a public demand by 
advertising, then to satisfy it, either in truth or 
by fraud. He once said, “The American people 
like to be humbugged.” 

Baro'da, a fortified city of India, capital of 
the state of Baroda, 248 mi. n. of Bombay. 
The trade of Baroda is important and consists 
of grain, flax, cotton and tobacco produce. 
There are several fine buildings and educational 
institutions. Since 1802 the state has been 
tributary to Great Britain. Population of town 
in 1911, 99,345. 

Barom'eter, an instrument for measuring the 
pressure of the atmosphere. There are numer¬ 
ous patterns of barometers, but that in most 



Barometer 


common use is the siphon barometer, illustrated 
in Fig. 1. This consists of a bent tube of uni¬ 
form size, having two unequal arms, the longer 
closed and the shorter open. A quantity of 
mercury sufficient to fill the longer arm is poured 
into the tube, and the 
instrument is set in an 
upright position. The mer¬ 
cury then takes such a 
position that the difference 
in the levels in the two 
arms represents the pres¬ 
sure of the atmosphere. 
At sea level, under ordinary 
conditions, the atmosphere 
will sustain a column of 
mercury thirty inches high, 
and this column is equal 
in weight to a column of 
atmosphere having the 
same area and extending 
from the earth as far as 
the atmosphere reaches. 
Since the atmospheric pres¬ 
sure lessens as altitude in¬ 
creases and the column of 
mercury gradually lowers 
in ascending from sea 
level, a barometer is fre¬ 
quently used to mark the 
altitude of different local- 


fig. 2 

ities. The most common use of the barom¬ 
eter, however, is in foretelling the weather. 
There are mercurial barometers in all stations 
of the United States Weather Bureau, for this 
purpose. Since a change of weather follows a 
change of atmospheric pressure, the rise or fall 
of mercury in the barometer enables one to fore¬ 
tell in a measure what changes to expect. In 




Barranquilla 

making this forecast, one may be guided by the 
following laws: 

(1) A rising barometer indicates the approach 
of fair weather. 

(2) A gradually falling barometer indicates the 
approach of foul weather. 

(3) A sudden fall of the barometer indicates 
the approach of a storm. 

(4) A high, unchanging barometer indicates 
settled fair weather. 

Aneroid Barometer. This consists of a flat, 
circular metallic box, represented in Fig. 2. 
Within the box is a system of wheel work con¬ 
nected with a needle, which passes over a dial, 
like the hands of a watch. One side of the box 
is constructed of such light material that it bends 
inward with the pressure of the atmosphere, but 
it is sufficiently elastic to resume its former posi¬ 
tion when this pressure is removed, or to tend to 
resume this position as the pressure is lessened. 
When the barometer is completed the air is 
exhausted from it and it is then sealed. The 
motion on the flexible side caused by the. vari¬ 
ation of pressure moves the needle backward 
and forward over the dial. When carefully 
constructed the aneroid is very accurate and it 
is convenient in measuring altitudes, since it can 
be carried from place to place with ease and the 
changes can be read by noting the movements of 
the needle over the dial. 

Barouche, baroosh’, a four-wheeled carriage 
having a low body, two inside seats facing each 
other, and an outer seat for the driver. The 
barouche has a top, which can be lowered and 
which is often called a falling top. 

Barquisimeto, bahr'ke se ma’to, a city in the 
north of Venezuela, capital of the province of 
Barquisimeto. It was founded in 1522, named 
New Segovia and is one of the oldest settlements 
made by the Spaniards in America. It was 
almost completely destroyed by an earthquake 
in 1812. Population ir^ 1911, about 30,000. 

Barr, Amelia Edith Huddleston (1831- 
), an American novelist, bom in England. 
She was married in 1850 to Robert Barr and 
four years later went to Texas, where her hus¬ 
band and three sons died of yellow fever. Later 
she removed to New York. Her first novel, 
Romance and Reality, was published in 1872, 
and after that time she wrote some thirty novels, 
among them Jan Vedder’s Wife, A Border 
Shepherdess, A Daughter of Fife and The Lions 
Whelp. 

Barranquilla, bahr ran ke'lya, a city of 
Colombia, South America, situated on the 































Baxras 


Barrie 


Magdalena River, 15 mi. from its mouth. The 
river has been dredged so as to allow sea-going 
vessels to pass up to the city, which has become 
an important seaport, as it is the leading center 
for the interchange of inland products and 
imports. Population, about 40,000. 

Barras', Paul Francois Jean Nicholas 
Count de (1775-1829). a member of the French 
National Convention and of the Directory. After 
serving in the army in India and Africa, he joined 
the revolutionary party and was a deputy to the 
States-General of 1789. He took part in the 
attack upon the Bastille and upon the Tuileries 
and vot£d for the death of Louis XVI. In 1795 
he was elected president of the Convention and 
later in the year was made a member of the 
Directory. From 1797 he governed absolutely 
until June, 1799, when Sieyes entered the Direc¬ 
tory and, in alliance with Bonaparte, procured 
his downfall. He afterward resided at Brussels, 
Marseilles, Rome and Montpellier under sur¬ 
veillance, returning to Paris only after the 
restoration of the Bourbons. His memoirs were 
suppressed and seized, but they were published 
recently. 

Barre, bar're, Vt.. a city in Washington co., 
6 mi. s. e. of Montpelier, on the Central Vermont 
and the Montpelier & Wells River railroads. 
It is one of the most important centers of the 
granite industry in the United States. Barre 
was settled about 1788 and was chartered as a 
city in 1894. It now owns and operates its 
waterworks. Population in 1910, 10,734. 

Bar'rel, a circular vessel bulging in the 
middle. Barrels are made of thin pieces of 
wood called staves, which are fitted together and 
arranged around circular boards, that form the 
ends and are called the heads. The staves are 
held in place by hoops which are driven on 
tightly. The staves are made wider in the 
middle than at the ends, and this makes the 
bulge, which adds strength to the barrel. They 
also have a groove near each end into which the 
head, beveled for the purpose, fits. That part 
of the stave between this groove and the end 
is called the chine. Staves are made of oak and 
elm, and in barrels for holding liquids they are 
about three-fourths of an inch thick. Such 
barrels have a large hole in the middle called 
the bung , which is used in filling and emptying 
the ,barrel. Barrels are now made by machinery 
(See Cooperage). 

The barrel as a measure has many different 
meanings. In wine measure it is 31 § gallons, 
while in England a barrel of beer means 36£ 


imperial gallons As a liquid measure the barrel 
in the United States is no longer used, but it is 
used to denote quantities of certain articles sold 
by weight and frequently packed in barrels. 
Thus, a barrel of flour must contain 196 pounds, 
and a barrel of pork or beef, 200 pounds. 

Bar'rett, Lawrence (1831-1891), an Ameri¬ 
can actor, born in Paterson, N. J. He made his 
first appearance on the stage at Detroit, Mich., 
in 1863, as Murad, in the drama of The French 
Spy. In 1861, at the beginning of the Civil War, 
Mr. Barrett for a time served as a captain of a 
company of Massachusetts infantry. Retiring 
from the army, he again acted in Washington, 
Philadelphia and New York City. In the last- 
named place he was advanced to performing 
Othello to the Iago of Edwin Booth. During 
1873 and 1874 he starred in the large cities of the 
Union, and in 1875 he renewed his connections 
with Booth in New York City. I.ater he 
appeared in King Lear, Julius Caesar and 
Boker’s Francesca da Rimini. For some years he 
traveled through the United States in company 
with Mr. Booth, and he visited Europe several 
times. 

Bar'rie, Sir James Matthew (1860- ), 

Scottish novelist. His novels, which deal with 
the homely side of Scotch life, have a peculiar 



charm by reason of his pathos and humor and 
his intimate acquaintance with the characters 
he describes. He has written, among others, 
When a Man’s Single, A Window in Thrums, 
The Little Minister, Sentimental Tommy, Tommy 
and Grizel, Margaret Ogilvy and The Utile 





Barrier Reef 

White Bird. Several of his books have been 
dramatized, and he has written a number of 
successful plays, among which are The Professor's 
Love Story, The Admirable Crichton, Alice-sit- 
by-the-fire and Peter Pan. 

Bar'rier Reef, a coral reef which extends for 
1260 miles off the northeast coast of Australia, 
at a distance from land ranging from ten to one 
hundred miles. In sailing from Sydney through 
Torres Straits, vessels have the choice of the 
inner or outer routes; the former, though nar¬ 
row, gives a channel of about 12 fathoms deep 
throughout, and is protected from the sea by 
the reefs themselves; the outer channel is dam 
gerous. 

Bar'ron, James (1769-1851), an American 
naval officer. As a boy he served in the mer¬ 
chant marine, and in 1798 he was made lieu- 
lenant in the navy. In 1807 he was given the 
rank of commodore and the command of the 
Chesapeake. He was met by the British 
frigate Leopard, whose captain demanded the 
surrender of several alleged British deserters 
from among the American crew. To this 
demand Barron demurred, and the Leopard 
opened fire, killing three and wounding eighteen 
of the Chesapeake’s men. The American ensign 
was hauled down, and the alleged deserters were 
carried away on the British vessel. The British 
government promptly repudiated the action of 
the captain of the Leopard, the deserters were 
restored and a monetary indemnity paid to our 
government. Barron thereafter was tried by 
court-martial and suspended from rank and 
pay for five years. On the expiration of this 
term he was kept on shore duty. In 1820 Bar¬ 
ron killed Commodore Decatur in a duel in 
which Barron himself was wounded. 

Bar'row, a river in the southeastern part of 
Ireland, in the province of Leinster. It is next 
in importance to the Shannon and is navigable 
for 25 miles from the sea. 

Bar'row-in-Fur'ness, a seaport and parlia¬ 
mentary borough of Lancashire, England. Its 
prosperity is due to the mines of red hematite 
iron ore, which abound in the district, and to 
the railway, rendering its excellent natural har¬ 
bor available. It has several large docks, 
besides graving-docks, a floating-dock capable 
of receiving vessels of 3000 tons, a large timber 
pond and other important structures. The chief 
manufactures are ribbons and other textiles. 
There are several establishments for calico- 
printing, famous for the dye called Turkey red. 
There is an extensive trade in timber, cattle. 


Barry 

grain and flour; and iron ore and pig iron are 
largely shipped. It has numerous blast-furnaces 
and one of the largest Bessemer-steel works in 
the world. Besides iron-works, a large business 
is done in ship-building, the making of railway 
cars, ropes, sails and bricks. Population in 
1911, 63,775. 

Bar'rows, John Henry (1847-1902), an 
American teacher, lecturer and preacher, bom 
at Medina, Mich., and educated at Olivet Col- 
lege, Yale and Andover theological schools, and 
in Gottingen, Germany. He was pastor of the 
First Presbyterian church in Chicago from 1881 
to 1896. Dr. Barrows conceived the idea of a 
World’s Parliament of Religions in connection 
with the World’s Columbian Exposition and was 
made its president and organizer. In 1894 
he made a tour of the world. In 1898 he was 
elected president of Oberlin College. He wrote 
A History of the Parliament of Religions; Life 
of Henry Ward Beecher; Christianity, the 
World’s Religion, and A World Pilgrimage. 

Barrow Strait, the connecting channel 
between Lancaster Sound and Baffin’s Bay on 
the east and the polar ocean on the west. It 
is very deep and has rocky and rugged shores. 
It was named after Sir John Barrow, a famous 
British traveler. 

Barry, Sir Charles (1795-1860), an Eng¬ 
lish architect, bom in London. After executing 
numerous important buildings, such as the 
Reform Clubhouse, London, Saint Edward’s 
School, Birmingham, and Manchester’s Athe¬ 
naeum, built in the Grecian style, he was 
appointed architect of the new Houses of Parlia¬ 
ment at Westminster, with the execution of 
which he was occupied for more than twenty- 
four years. After this he was knighted and 
was made a Royal Academician. 

Barry, Edward Middleton (1830-1880), 
the son of Sir Charles Barry, was also a distin¬ 
guished architect. He succeeded hi? father as 
architect of the Houses of Parliament and 
besides this built Charing Cross, the new Covent 
Garden Theater and the new National Gallery 
in London. 

Barry, John (1745-1803), an American 
naval officer, bom in Ireland. He was appren¬ 
ticed to seamanship and became master of a 
vessel. At the beginning of the Revolution he 
offered his services to the United States, and in 
1776 he became commander of the Lexington 
and captured the British ship Edward. In 1777 
he captured a British war schooner in the Dela¬ 
ware River, but in the following year, while in 


Barry 


Bartlett 


command of the Raleigh, he was pursued and 
driven on shore by a British squadron. Later 
he was transferred to the Alliance, and in a 
severe engagement captured two British ships. 
He was senior officer, with the rank of commo¬ 
dore, in the reorganized navy in 1794. 

Barry, William Farquhar (1818 - 1879), an 
American soldier, born in New York City. He 
graduated at West Point, served in the Mexican 
War and in the Seminole War and performed 
frontier garrison duty until 1861. He entered 
the artillery service of the Union army, became 
brigadier general of volunteers and had charge 
of the artillery of the Army of the Potomac and 
of the artillery of the defenses of Washington. 
From 1864 to 1866 he held the same position on 
the staff of General Sherman, and in the latter 
year he was brevetted major general of the 
regular army. During the Fenian raids against 
Canada, he was in command on the frontier. 

Bar'rymore, Maurice (1847-1905), an Eng¬ 
lish actor and playwright. His true name was 
Herbert Blythe. He was bom in India, edu¬ 
cated at Cambridge, England, and early entered 
upon a stage career. He came to America in 
1875 and thereafter spent most of his time here. 
In 1866 he married Georgiana Drew, the 
daughter of Mrs. John Drew. He appeared as 
leading man for many of the greatest actresses 
of the time, including Modjeska, Langtry and 
Olga Nethersole, and he was the author of 
Nadjeska, which Madame Modjeska produced 
in 1884. He was the father of Ethel and Lionel 
Barrymore. 

Bar'ter, a term used in political economy 
and commerce to denote the exchange of a 
commodity for another commodity, as distin¬ 
guished from sale, which is the exchange of a 
commodity for money Barter was the earliest 
form of exchange and is still in vogue among 
uncivilized peoples. Most courts now treat the 
terms barter and sale as interchangeable, though 
many still consider them as distinct terms. 

Barth, Heinrich (1824-1865), an African 
traveler, bom at Hamburg. He graduated at 
the University of Berlin in 1844 and in the 
following year set out to explore all the coun¬ 
tries bordering on the Mediterranean. His 
explorations, which extended over hundreds of 
thousands of square miles, and his scientific 
accounts of them, placed him among the fore¬ 
most African explorers. He published Travels 
and Discoveries in Northern and Central Africa. 

Bartholdi, hahr tole de f , Frederic Auguste 
(1834-1904), a French sculptor, best known 


as the artist of the statue of Liberty Enlight¬ 
ening the World, now overlooking the harbor of 
New York (See Liberty, Statue of). His 
masterpiece is the Lion of Belfort. 

Bartholomew, the apostle, is probably the 
same person as Nathanael, mentioned in the 
Gospel of Saint John as one of the first disciples 
of Jesus. He is said to have taught Chris¬ 
tianity in the south of Arabia, but there is 
nothing to confirm the statement. 

Bartholomew’s Day, Saint, a feast of 
the Church of Rome, celebrated in honor 
of Saint Bartholomew. What is known as 
the Massacre of Saint Bartholomew was the 
slaughter of the French Protestants which 
began Aug. 24, 1572, by secret orders from 
Charles IX at the instigation of his mother, 
Catharine de’ Medici, and in which, according 
to Sully, 70,000 Huguenots, including women 
and children, were murdered throughout the 
country. During the minority of Charles and 
the regency of his mother, a long war raged 
in France between the House of Guise and the 
Catholics on the one hand and the House of 
Conde and the Huguenots on the other. In 
1570 overtures were made by the court to the 
Huguenots, which resulted in a treaty of peace. 
This treaty blinded the chiefs of the Huguenots, 
particularly Admiral Coligny, who was wearied 
with civil war. The king appeared to have 
entirely disengaged himself from the influence 
of the Guises and his mother; he invited Coligny 
to his court, and honored him as a father. The 
sister of the king was married to the Prince 
de Bearn (1572) in order to allure the most 
distinguished Huguenots to Paris. Charles was 
induced by* his mother to believe that Coligny 
had designs on his life. Accordingly, he con¬ 
sented to help her in her plans the a general 
massacre of the Huguenots on the night of 
Saint Bartholomew’s day. On that night, at a 
signal from the tower of the royal palace, the 
assembled companies of the House of Guise 
fell on the Huguenots, and the bloody carnival 
began. Coligny was among the first to fall. 
Catharine compelled her son to acknowledge 
before the parliament his sole responsibility for 
the massacre. The king is said to have died 
of remorse for his part in the affair. 

Bart'lett, Samuel Colcord ( 1817 - 1898 ), 
an American educator and clergyman, born at 
Salisbury, N. H., and educated at Dartmouth 
College and Andover Theological Seminary. 
He filled successively the positions of pastor of 
a Congregational church at Monson, Mass., 


Bartolommeo 


Barton 


professor of intellectual philosophy at Western 
Reserve College, pastor of a Congregational 
church at Manchester, N. H., pastor of the 
New England church, Chicago, and professor 
of biblical literature in Chicago Theological 
Seminary. In 1877 he was chosen president of 
Dartmouth College, which position he occupied 
for fifteen years. During his administration the 
scope of work in the college was greatly 
enlarged. Besides being a frequent contributor 
to religious and literary periodicals, he was the 
author of From Egypt to Palestine, Sources of 
History in the Pentateuch and numerous other 
works. 

Bartolommeo, bahr'to lorn ma'o, Fra (1475- 
1517), the name assumed by Baccio della Porta, 
an Italian painter, bom at Florence, and a note¬ 
worthy member of the Florentine school of 
painting. He studied under Roselli and came 
under the influence of Leonardo da Vinci and 
Raphael, the latter of whom was his intimate 
friend. Later his visit to Rome caused him to 
imitate Michelangelo. He was an admirer and 
follower of Savonarola, on whose death he joined 
the Dominicans and assumed the name Fra 
Bartolommeo, but later he was persuaded to 
take up painting again. The distribution of 
light and shade and the general arrangement 
constitute the great merit of his art. In the 
convent of San Marco are some of Fra Bartol¬ 
ommeo’s finished frescoes. Some of his best 
productions are a picture of Savonarola, Saint 
Mark in the Pitti Palace, Saint Sebastian and 
Marriage of Saint Catharine, in the Louvre, and 
The Virgin upon a Throne , in Florence. 

Bartolozzi, bahr'to lot'se, Francesco (1727- 
1815), a distinguished Italian designer and 
engraver, born at Florence. He later went to 
London, where his best works were produced, 
and finally went to Lisbon, Portugal, where he 
died. 

Barton, bahr'ton, Bernard (1784-1849), an 
English poet, known as the Quaker poet. His 
poetry, though deficient in force, is fluent and 
graceful and shows a pure religious spirit. It 
brought him the friendship of Southey, Lamb 
and Byron. 

Barton, Clara, (1821-1912), an American 
philanthropist, born in Oxford, Mass., and 
educated in Clinton, N. Y. She became a 
teacher, founded a free school in Bordentown, 
N. J., and became clerk in the United States 
patent office in 1854. When the Civil War began 
she devoted herself to the care of wounded 
soldiers on the battlefield and in 1864 she had 
18 


charge of the hospitals with the Army of the 
James. In 1865 she visited Andersonville, Ga., 
to mark the graves of the Union soldiers. During 
the war between Germany and France she 
volunteered her service and was decorated with 
the golden cross of Baden and the iron cross of 
Germany. The American Red Cross Society 
was organized in 1881, and she became its 
president. In 1884 she represented the United 
States at the Red Cross Conference in Geneva, 



CLARA BARTON 


Switzerland, and was also a delegate to the 
International Peace Convention the same year, 
in that. city. In 1883 the United States Senate 
committee on foreign relations requested her 
to prepare a History of the Red Cross. In 1898 
she went to Cuba to distribute supplies furnished 
by the United States government. In 1904 she 
resigned the presidency of the Red Cross Society 
and was succeeded by Mrs. John A. Logan. 

Barton, Edmund, Rt. Hon. (1849- ) an 

Australian statesman, born in Sydney Aus¬ 
tralia, and educated at the University of Sydney. 
From 1883 to 1887 he was speaker of the legis¬ 
lative assembly of New South Wales, and he 
served later as attorney-general and as a member 
of the federal convention at Sidney in 1891. He 
was a strong advocate of Australian federation, 
took a leading part in the fight for it, and in the 
first federal cabinet in 1901 was made premier 
and minister for external affairs. He held this 
position for two years, and then became judge 
of the High Court of Australia. 






Baryta 

Bary'ta, oxide of barium, called also heavy 
earth, from its being the heaviest of the earths. 
It is generally found in combination with sul¬ 
phuric and carbonic acids, forming sulphate and 
carbonate of barium, the former of which is 
called heavy spar. Baryta is a gray powder, has a 
sharp, burning taste and a strong affinity for 
water, and forms a hydrate with that element. 
With the acids it forms white salts, all of which 
are poisonous except the sulphate. Several 
mixtures of sulphate of barium and white lead 
are manufactured and are used as white pig¬ 
ments; sulphate of barium may be used alone. 
Carbonate of barium, which in the natural state 
is known as witherite, is also used as the base of 
certain colors. The nitrate is used in the prepa¬ 
ration of green fireworks. 

Basalt', a well-known igneous rock occurring 
in the ancient trap and the recent volcanic series 
of rocks, but most abundantly in the former. 
It is a fine-grained, heavy, crystalline rock, con¬ 
sisting of feldspar, augite and magnetic iron and 
olivine. Basalt is very common in regions that 
have been disturbed by volcanic action. Its 
tendency to crystallize in columns gives a pecu¬ 
liar character to the scenery. The columns are 
four-sided, six-sided or eight-sided, and are 
usually jointed. Fingall’s Cave on the island 
of Staffa, the Giant’s Causeway, Ireland, and 
the cliffs along the Columbia River in Wash¬ 
ington are noted illustrations of basaltic columns. 
See Igneous Rocks. 

Bas'com, John (1827-1911), an American 
educator, born at Genoa, N. Y., and educated 
at Williams College and Andover Theological 
Seminary. On completing his education he was 
appointed professor of rhetoric at Williams 
College, which position he held for nineteen 
years, when he was chosen president of the Uni¬ 
versity of Wisconsin in 1874. In 1887 he retired 
from this position and became professor of polit¬ 
ical science at Williams College, where he re¬ 
mained until 1901, when he retired. Among his 
most important works are A Textbook of Political 
Economy, The Principles of Psychology, The 
Growth of Nationality in the United States and 
God and His Goodness. 

Base, in chemistry, a chemical compound 
which will unite with an acid to form a salt. The 
metal of the base takes the place of the hydrogen 
of the acid. A base may be an oxide, as calcium 
oxide or lime, or a hydroxide (hydrate), as 
potassium hydroxide. The union of a base and 
an acid usually destroys the properties of both. 
In some cases, however, not all the hydrogen of 


Baseball 

an acid is replaced by the metal of a base, and 
the salt formed may have acid properties. 

Base'ball, a game played with ball and bat, 
which has attained a national character in the 
United States, where dozens of professional 
leagues play daily throughout the summer 
season, and the games of a single league during 
a single season have been witnessed by nearly 
2,500,000 spectators. Every college and high 
school has its baseball team, and on the vacant 
lots in every city, baseball games contribute to 
the development of the street urchin’s muscles 
and wit. Everybody seems to know baseball 
slang, and the spectators at every game try to 
encourage their favorite team and to unsettle the 
nerves of their opponents by shouting or “root¬ 
ing.” Baseball is an excellent game, for it 
requires fleetness of foot, quickness and accuracy 
in catching and throwing the ball; gives every 
player an opportunity to distinguish himself and 
requires the exertion of keen intelligence, espe¬ 
cially in cooperating with team-mates in a play. 

History. The game probably originated in 
the English game of rounders, though simpler 
games employing ball and bat, such as one-old- 
cat or town ball, were played in the United States 
before baseball. Prior to 1842 no such game as 
our modem baseball was known, and its develop¬ 
ment has been altogether American. It was 
introduced into England in 1874, later into 
Australia and, to some extent, into Japan. In 
1845 the Knickerbocker Club of New York drew 
up the first set of rules for the game, and between 
1857 and 1871 a national association supervised 
the rules. During the War of the Rebellion 
baseball was played in both armies with enthusi¬ 
asm, and the soldiers returning home communi¬ 
cated their interest to all sections of the Union. 
Soon the National Association, an openly 
professional league, was organized, but because 
of its gambling operations was supplanted after 
five years by the present National League. This 
league, together with the American League, 
which appeared in 1900, has since guided the 
development and formulated the rules of the 
game. The Federal League, organized in 1914, 
has many players who were formerly members 
of National or American League teams. 

Rules op the Game. A baseball field 
should be over 100 yards square. Ninety feet 
from the center of one side of the field is the 
white rubber slab (See h, Fig. 1), called the home 
plate. The diamond consists of a square 90 feet 
on a side, its three corners occupied by the can¬ 
vas bags or bases, which are known in succession 


Baseball 


Baseball 


from right to left as first base, second base and 
third base. In Fig. 1 the distances are all 
marked in feet. The lines which appear on the 
field are drawn solid, and those which are 
merely of assistance in laying out the field are 
dotted. Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of the home 
plate, with dimensions in feet and inches, and it 
shows, as well, the dimensions of the boxes 
within which the batsmen must stand. White 
chalk lines (oa in Fig. 1) indicate the position 
beyond which the player who is coaching, or 
advising, the base runner may not pass; and 
others (6 6), the points beyond which die players 

+ 

8 



waiting for their turns at bat shall not advance. 
The lines from the home plate to the first base 
and from the home plate to the third base are 
continued and known as foul lines (See Fig. 1), to 
guide the umpire in determining whether the 
batted ball is fair or foul, it being the latter if it 
strikes outside the foul line. It is customary 
to indicate by flags on the fence surrounding 
the grounds, or on poles in the ground far out 
in the field, the extremities of the foul lines. The 
ball is hard but elastic, 3 inches m diameter and 
weighs 5 ounces. The bat is of ash or some 
other elastic wood, tapering from a diameter of 


2£ inches to a size convenient for the hands, and 
usually about 34 inches long. Balls and bats 
used by nonprofessional teams and by younger 
players may be smaller and lighter. Each team 
consists of nine players. One nine is at bat, try¬ 
ing to run around the bases and make the scores 
upon which victory depends, while the opposing 
side is in the field. At intervals, when three 
batsmen are out, the teams change places, until 
each side has been at the bat nine times; that is, 
has had nine innings. If, for any reason, a 
game is stopped before four and a half innings 
have been played by either side, it is considered 
no game. If more than four 
and a half innings have been 
played, then the side which was 
ahead at the last even inning 
wins. If a game is a tie at the 
end of the ninth inning, play 
is continued until one side is 
ahead of the other at even in¬ 
nings or until the game is 
stopped by the umpire. The 
team in the field consists of 
three divisions: the battery, the 
infield and the outfield. The 
positions of these men will be 
easily understood by consult¬ 
ing Fig. 1. The battery con¬ 
sists of the pitcher, who stands 
at the rubber slab (2) and 
throws the ball over the plate, 
within reach of the batsman’s 
bat, but so swiftly or decep¬ 
tively as to elude it if possible; 
and the catcher (1), who guards 
the home plate, catches the 
ball when it is not hit and 
returns it to the pitcher. The 
catcher is protected against 
glancing balls by a wire mask, 
an inflated chest protector and a 
heavily padded hand mit. The infield consists 
of a first baseman (3), a second baseman (4), a 
shortstop (5) and a third baseman (6). The 
outfield consists of a right fielder (7), a center 
fielder (8) and a left fielder (9). These men wear 
lightly padded gloves and are expected to catch 
the balls hit by the batsman. They do not 
always occupy the positions shown in the dia¬ 
gram, but move about according to the habits 
of the pitcher and batsman, especially noticing 
whether the batter is right or left-handed, and 
watching attentively any runners who may 
occupy bases. 






Baseball 


Basel 


The batter, who stands at c or d (Fig. 1), tries 
to knock the swiftly pitched ball into the field 
between the lines of the first and third bases, 
and out of reach of his opponents. An umpire 
watches the ball as it is pitched, and when it 
appears to pass over the plate higher than the 
batter’s knees and below his shoulders, calls a 
strike, whether the batter strikes at such a ball, 
hits it foul or fails to strike at it. The third 
strike, however, cannot be called on a foul ball. 
After three strikes, the batsman is out and gives 
place to another player unless the catcher fails 
to catch the ball on the third strike and the 
batsman reaches first base before the ball. Pitched 
balls which do not pass over the plate or which 
do not pass at the right height, are called balls, 



FIG. 2 


and after four such balls the batsman is allowed 
to occupy first base unmolested. Having made 
a fair hit, the batsman becomes a baserunner 
and tries to make a circuit of the bases. If he 
reaches home after touching first, second and 
third bases in succession, he scores a point for 
his side. If the hit is caught on the “fly,” or 
if the ball is held by an opponent on first base 
before the runner reaches that point, or if the 
runner while between bases is touched by the 
ball in the hands of an opponent, he is out. Once 
having reached first base, however, he cannot be 
put out while in contact with a base unless he is 
“forced off” that base by a following runner. 
When three men are out, the inning is complete. 

There are many minor rules, some of which 
change from year to year, but which are so 
thoroughly advertised in the daily papers and 
the numerous books of rules that no one inter¬ 
ested in the game need remain ignorant of them. 
While the greatest skill and judgment are per¬ 
haps demanded of the pitcher, yet the catcher 
and every fielder and baseman must have a 
peculiar fitness for his position. The infielder 
must have a quick eye to take a ground ball at 


the right point; and the outfielder to chase a 
fly ball and be at the right spot to catch it as 
it falls. Every player cultivates a habit of 
throwing the ball the instant he receives it. 
Underhand throwing usually saves time on 
ground balls, but does not give such speed or 
accuracy as overhanded throwing. The pitcher 
may throw the ball at different speeds, so as to 
deceive the batsman; may place it close to the 
handle of the bat, where it cannot be knocked 
far; or may throw it so that it will curve in or 
out or rise or drop. The advantages of the 
curved ball are that it is hard to hit squarely, 
and is exceedingly deceptive for the batsman. 
The catcher studies the weak points of every 
batsman and signals for the balls which the 
batsman finds it most difficult to hit. See 
Athletics. 

Basedow, bah'ze do, John Bernhard (1723- 
1790), a German educator. The chief feature 
pf Basedow’s system of pedagogy is the full 
development of all the faculties of the young. 
He established a school called the Philanthro- 
pinum, where he attempted to apply his ideas. 
His pupils had eight hours for sleep, eight hours 
for food and recreation and eight hours for 
study. Basedow did not prove to be a good 
organizer, and his school did not succeed. 

Basel, bah’zel, a city of Switzerland. It is 
43 miles north of Berne, and consists of two 
parts on opposite sides of the Rhine, connected 
by three bridges. It has an ancient cathedral, 
founded in 1010, containing the tombs of Eras¬ 
mus and other eminent persons; a university, 
founded in 1459; a seminary for missionaries, 
and a museum containing the valuable public 
library and pictures. The industries embrace 
the manufacture of silk ribbons, paper and 
aniline dyes, tanning and brewing. Basel is 
the most important manufacturing and com¬ 
mercial city in Switzerland. Here was signed 
the treaty of peace between France and Prussia, 
and that between France and Spain, both in the 
year 1795, and here was held an ecumenical 
council in 1431 (See Basel, Council of). 
Population in 1910, 131,914. 

Basel, Council of, an ecclesiastical council, 
held at Basel from 1431 to 1449, summoned by 
Pope Martin V. Soon after the Council had 
constituted itself, the new pope, Eugenius IV, 
requested the cardinal legate, Cesarini, to dis¬ 
solve it and call one a little later at Bologna. 
The Council refused to dissolve and proceeded 
to transact business. Its main objects were the 
union of the Greek and Latin churches, a com- 





Bashi-Bazouks 


Basket Ball 


promise with the Hussites and the institution of 
certain reforms within the Church. The Coun¬ 
cil was, on the whole, a failure. 

Bash'i-Bazouks' , irregular troops in the 
Turkish army. They are mostly Asiatics and 
have had to be disarmed several times by the 
regular troops, on account of the barbarities 
by which they have rendered themselves infa¬ 
mous. 

Ba'sic Slag, the slag or refuse matter which 
is obtained in making basic steel, and which, 
from the phosphate of lime it contains, is a 
valuable fertilizer. See Steel. 

Basil, baz'il, a plant of the mint family, 
native of India but cultivated in Europe and 
the United States. It is much used in cookery, 
especially in France. 

Basil'ica, among the Greeks and Romans 
.originally a public hall of justice or a court¬ 
house in which the magistrates administered 
justice. It was generally oblong in shape and 
was adorned with rows of columns, which 
divided it into aisles, the middle one being the 
widest and having at the end a semicircular or 
square apse, in which the tribunal was placed 
(See Apse). The basilicas gradually became 
market places and exchanges, and at the begin¬ 
ning of early Church history, some of them 
were changed into Christian churches. Various 
modifications were from time to time introduced, 
until they were very different from the original 
form. 

Basilisk, baz'i lisle, a fabulous creature, 
variously regarded as a kind of serpent, lizard 



THE MYTHICAL BASILISK 


or dragon. It inhabited the deserts of Africa, 
and its breath, and even its look, was fatal. 
The name is now applied to a species of harm¬ 
less lizards, distinguished by an elevated crest 
or row of scales, which, like the dorsal fins of 
some fishes, runs along the whole length of the 
back and tail. The mitered or hooded basilisk 
is especially remarkable for a membranous bag 
at the back of the head, of the size of a small 
hen’s egg, which can be inflated with air. The 
other species have such hoods, but of a less size. 

Ba'sil the Great (about 330-379). a theo¬ 
logian, the founder of Eastern monasticism, born 


at Caesarea. He received a thorough education, 
after which he became closely identified with 
the social life of Caesarea, but soon directed his 
energies to religious work. For a number of 
years he subjected himself to the severest denials, 
which gave him wide reputation among the 
leaders of the Church. He was made presbyter 
of Caesarea in 364, and later he was appointed 
bishop of Caesarea and Cappadocia. He was 
noted for his great courage and strict adherence 
to his belief, which caused him several prolonged 
controversies of a theological nature. He pos¬ 
sessed excellent literary ability and wrote many 
letters and works of a theological nature. Of 
these the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers has 
been translated into English. 

Basin, in physical geography, the whole tract 
of country drained by a river and its tributaries. 
The line dividing one river basin from another 
is the watershed', the various watersheds divide 
each country into its river basins. The basin 
of a lake or sea consists of the basins of all the 
rivers which run into it. 

In geology a basin is any dipping or dispo¬ 
sition of strata toward a common axis or center, 
due to upheaval and subsidence. It is some¬ 
times used almost synonymously with “forma¬ 
tion,” to express the deposits lying in a certain 
cavity or depression in older rocks. 

Bas'ket, a vessel made by weaving together 
twigs, splints, leaves, grass or wire. The most 
common baskets are made from thin, flat strips 
of wood, called splints. Ash, oak, elm and birch 
are the woods most frequently used. The 
splints for handmade baskets are obtained by 
beating the logs with a heavy maul until the 
wood readily splits into thin pieces. The splints 
are then cut to the proper width, finished and 
soaked in water until they can be bent to any 
desired shape. Twigs of the willow are used 
for making many kinds of baskets and for baby 
carriages, chairs and other articles of furniture; 
in Holland, Germany and France the grow¬ 
ing of willows for basketry constitutes an impor¬ 
tant industry. In the United States baskets 
used for marketing fruit are made by machinery 
and the sides and bottom are often of one piece. 
See Basketry. 

Bas'ket Ball, an American winter game that 
has in recent years come into great popularity 
with both sexes in their gymnasiums. It was 
invented in 1891 by James Naismith, and 
rapidly found its way into the schools and 
colleges, and thence into general athletic asso¬ 
ciations, especially those fostered by the Young 



Basket Ball 


Basket Ball 


Men’s Christian Associations and the militia 
companies. The game is one of the best possi¬ 
ble for athletic development, as it calls for great 
quickness, agility and endurance, besides com¬ 
pelling quickness of perception and rapidity of 
thought. No one can be a good basket ball 
player who does not throw his whole soul into 
the sport, and who has not perfect control of 
his muscles. Basket ball is the winter substi¬ 
tute for baseball and football, and it has many 
advantages for boys and men, in that it does 
not call for the highly specialized skill of base¬ 
ball, nor for the great strength of football. 

The field should be large enough to give free 
and unimpeded action to the ten men who play 
in the game, should be longer than broad, and 
should not cover more than 3500 square feet of 
actual playing space. The accompanying dia¬ 
gram shows how the field should be laid out, 
and gives the dimensions of the required lines. 
The heavy lines of the diagram should be 
painted in black on the floor of the gymnasium. 
At the center of each end of the field is a basket 
18 inches in diameter, whose rim is 10 feet from 
the ground, and 6 inches away from the rigid, 
smooth supporting surface back of it. This 
smooth surface, or background, must be at 
least 6 feet horizontally and 4 feet vertically, 
and must extend not less than 3 feet above the 
top of the basket. The round ball, which must 
not be more than 32 nor less than 30 inches in 
circumference, is an inflated rubber bladder 
covered with a leather case. Each team is 
composed of five men; two known as forwards, 
two as backs or guards and one as the center. 
The game is played in two halves of limited 
time, each opposing team defending one of the 
baskets. The object of the game is for mem¬ 
bers of one team to throw the ball into the bas¬ 
ket of the opposing team. Each time a “bas¬ 
ket” is so thrown during actual play ; two points 
are scored. In case a “foul” is called by an 
official against any member of a team, a 
designated player from the other side may have 
what is called a “free throw;” that is, he stands 
in the center of the circle, twenty feet from the 
basket, and has a right to throw the ball if 
possible into the opponent’s basket without any 
interference or interruption from the other side, 
all the players being kept outside the circle and 
the lane shown in the diagram. A basket so 
thrown counts one point for the side making it. 
At the beginning of the game the centers from 
the opposing team stand within the central 
four-foot circle, each facing his opponent’s bas¬ 

I 


ket. The referee takes the ball and tosses it 
into the air so it will come down between the 
two centers, each of whom endeavors to strike 
or obtain possession of the ball. From the 
moment the ball is thrown, play is begun. The 
men follow the ball over the field, all trying to 
get possession of the ball so as to throw it into 
the basket nearest the forwards when the game 
started, or pass it on to a forward to their own 
side, who may have an opportunity to make the 
basket. The business of the backs, or guards, 
is to prevent the forwards of the other team 
from throwing a basket, and to get the ball and 
pass it to their own forwards. There is fine 



chance for team work in the game, and a well 
drilled team has its signals by which players 
are informed as to the general course of the 
play, if it is not broken up. The ball may be 
caught, thrown or struck with the open hand, 
but no person having caught the ball can take 
more than one step with it. The ball must not 
be kicked or struck with the foot or body, and 
when caught it must be held entirely by the 
hands. Opponents must not touch the body 
of the person carrying the ball if they can avoid 
it, but they may interfere with his throwing it 
in many ways. If the ball goes outside the 
boundary lines, a player of the side opposite 
to the one who forced the ball outside has a 
right to throw it to a member of his team inside. 







Basketry 


Basketty 


or in case of doubt, the official may decide to 
throw it up between two opposing players at 
the spot where it crossed the line. At any time 
when the ball is held by two players of an 
opposing side, the referee throws it up between 
them, as in the center at the opening of the 
game. The game is governed by special rules, 
which vary somewhat from year to year and 
which provide for the various emergencies that 
may arise and determine what shall be consid¬ 
ered fair or foul play and what penalties shall 
be assessed. Using the fist, kicking, striking, 
shouldering, tripping and unnecessary roughness 
are all ban-ed. See Athletics. 

Bas'ketry, the art of basket-making (See 
Basket). Basketry is among the simplest of 
the mechanic arts, and wherever uncivilized 
races have been found, their women are seen 



to be skillful in weaving textiles into baskets, 
cloth and matting. Among all uncivilized 
tribes this work bears evidence of more or less 
skill, but as far as known, the American indians 
excel all others in the variety, designs and finish 
of their baskets, and it is from them that many 
of the most useful and beautiful designs have 
been obtained. 

Manufacture. The manufacture of baskets 
includes gathering and preparing the material 
as well as fashioning it into the finished article. 
The processes involved and the labor necessary 
depend upon the material used and the kind 
of baskets that are to be made from it. All 
baskets, according to their construction, can be 
divided into two classes, woven baskets and 
coil baskets. 


Woven Baskets. The simplest form of woven 
basketry and that in most general use for large 
baskets is checker work, in which the splints 
cross at right angles, each splint of the “weft” 



running alternately above and below the splints 
of the “warp.” This style of weaving is 
employed with both large and fine splints, but 
more frequently with the larger ones. See 

Fig- !• . , 

The style of weaving common in baskets 
made of cane is known as twill work. This con¬ 
sists in passing 
each splint of the 
weft over two or 
more splints of 
the warp, then 
under two, form¬ 
ing a diagonal or 
twilled pattern. 

These patterns are 
subject to a great 
variety of changes. 

See Fig. 2. 

Another com¬ 
mon style is the 
wicker work so 
frequently seen in 
willow baskets. 

T his also is sub¬ 
ject to a great 
variety of changes and patterns and is often 
combined with twilled work, for which it forms 
borders. See Fig. 3. 

The style of weaving common among the indian 
tribes of the Rocky Mountains and all along the 
Pacific coast is twined work. This is the most 

































































































































Basketry 


Basque 


intricate and also the most beautiful of all styles 
of weaving. The warp consists of rigid rods or 
splints, and the weft is in pairs or in three- 
strand, twining 

and braiding in 
threes. In pass¬ 
ing from rod to 
rod of the warp, 
the weft strands 
are twisted in half- 
turns. Twined 

work is subject to 
many changes of 
pattern and some 
of the most beau¬ 
tiful basketry is 
made in this way. 

See Fig. 4. In 
Fig. 5 is shown the 
plan of starting a basket in three-strand braid 
and twined work. 

Coiled Baskets. Coiled baskets are made by 
sewing over and over with some sort of flexible 
material, each stitch interlacing with the one 
underneath. What corresponds to the warp 
in the woven work is of a coarser and a more 
rigid material, and a fine, flexible bark is used 




FIG. 5 


for the sewing. This style of basketry is very 
popular in what is known as raffia work in the 
schools. There are many varieties of coiled 
work and the variety of production is equally 
great. Among the indians specimens of coiled 
baskets have been found so small that they 
would pass through a lady’s finger ring, while 
others are larger than an ordinary barrel. This 
plan of basketry admits of the use of a finer and 


more flexible material than is generally employed 
in woven work, and for this reason more beauti¬ 
ful and delicate results can be obtained. The 
stitches may be coiled openly, forming what is 
known as openwork, shown in Fig. 6, or they 
may be coiled about a body of one or more rods 



fig. 6 


or splints. Fig. 7 shows a very common 
pattern, in which the stitches are coiled around 
three rods. ‘ By varying the form of the stitch 
the basket-maker introduces bands and thus 



FIG. 7 


breaks the monotony of the surface, adding to 
the grace and beauty of the basket. 

Basketry forms a very useful and valuable 
occupation for a portion of the industrial work 
in schools. It is simple, easily learned and 
excellent for training both the hand and the 
eye. Consult Mary White’s How to Make 
Baskets and More Baskets, and How to Make 
Them. 

Basque, bask, a remarkable race of people, 
dwelling partly in the southwestern comer of 
France, but mostly in Spain near the Pyrenees. 


































1 and 16, Hopi Coiled Plaques. 

2, Oregon and California Twined 

Basket. 

3. Klikitat Imbricated Basket. 


INDIAN BASKETRY 

4 and 9, Washo Basket Bowls. 

5, Klamath Gambling Tray. 

6, 7 and 11, Tlinkit Twined Baskets. 
8 and 10, Salish Imbricated Baskets. 
12 and 18, Tlinkit Covered Baskets 


13, Mission Indian Coiled Plaque. 

14, Tulare Coiled Jar. 

15, Apache Ancient Water Jar. 

17, Panamint Coiled Bowl 






















































































« 























































t 















































Basra 


Bassora 


They preserve their ancient language, manners 
and national dances, and make admirable 
soldiers, especially in guerrilla warfare. Ignatius 
Loyola, Saint Francis Xavier and other famous 
men were natives of the Basque provinces- 

Basra, bahs'rah. See Bassora. 

Bas-relief, bah re leef, (or low relief) is the 
mode of sculpturing figures to give them a slight 
projection from the background. Strictly speak¬ 
ing, the height should be less than half- of the 
thickness of the figure. The frieze of the 
Parthenon at Athens has the most famous 
examples of bas-reliefs in the world. See Alto- 
Rilievo; Mezzo-Rilievo. 

Bass, the name given to several species of fresh 
water and some salt water fishes. The large- 
mouthed black bass and the small-mouthed black 
bass are among the best game fishes of the 



BLACK BAS3 


United States. The former are more plentiful 
in lakes, while the latter prefer clear water and 
running streams. Botn species vary considerably 
in color, those in clear water being much lighter 
and brighter and frequently thought to be 
entirely different fishes from their relatives of 
dark water. In most states they are protected 
by law through the greater part of the year. 
They are taken with light rods and tackle and 
make a vigorous fight for liberty. 

There are also numerous fresh water species 
of less value. Among these are the white bass, 
found in the vicinity of the Great Lakes, the 
striped bass or rock fish of the Atlantic coast, 
from Florida to the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, 
and the yellow bass, found in the lower Missis¬ 
sippi Most of the other species of fishes called 
bass belong to the perch family. 

Sea bass common along the southern 
Atlantic coast are known in various localities 
as red-fish, redr-horse or red-drum, from the 
reddish-brown color. They sometimes attain 
a weight of fifty pounds. The lips are tough, 
the fins large and the scales so big that in tlie 
largest specimens they are removed with a hoe. 
Smaller ones run in companies and go by the 
name of school bass, while the larger ones are 
found in pairs or singly and are called channel 


bass . AH species are excellent rood and highly 
esteemed. The sea bass found around Cata¬ 
lina Island off the coast of California often attain 
a weight of 300 to 400 pounds. 

Bass, base, or Basso, ba'so. See Singing. 

Basse-Terre, bas tare ', the capital of Saint 
Christopher, one of the West India Islands, is 
situated on the south side of the island on the 
mouth of a small river. It has a good harbor and 
is a seaport of some importance, since the sur¬ 
rounding country yields abundant crops of sugar 
cane and tropical fruits. The town was destroyed 
by fire in 1867 and rebuilt on a modem plan. 
Population, about 9000. 

Bas'sia, a genus of tropical trees found in the 
East Indies and Africa. The fruit of one species 
yields a kind of butter that is highly valued and 
forms an important article of commerce in the 
interior of Africa. There are several other 
species, of which the Indian oil-tree and the 
Indian butter-tree are well-known examples. 
The wood is as hard and durable as teak. 

Bassoon', a musical wind instrument of the 
reed order, consisting of four tubes, blown through 
a bent metal mouthpiece. 

The tu^es are holed and 
keyed like the clarinet. For 
convenience of carriage the 
instrument is divided into 
two or more parts, whence 
its Italian name fagotto, a 
bundle. It serves for the 
bass among wood-wind in¬ 
struments, as oboes and 
flutes. Its compass compre¬ 
hends three octaves, rising 
from B flat below the bass 
staff. 

Bassora, bahs*so ra . or 
Basra, a city in Asiatic 
Turkey, on the west bank of 
the Shat-el-Arab, about 50 
mi. from its mouth and 270 
mi. s. e. of Bagdad. The 
city is one of great commer¬ 
cial importance. The chief 
exports are dates, camels and 
horses, wool and wheat. The 
ruins of the ancient and 
more famous Bassora, 
founded by Caliph Omar in bassoon- 
636, at one time a center of Arabic literature and 
learning and regarded as “the Athens of the 
East,” lie about 9 miles southwest of the modern 
town. Population, estimated at 55,000. 




Bass Strait 


Bat 


Bass Strait, a channel beset with islands and 
coral reefs, which separates Australia from 
Tasmania. It is 150 miles wide and was dis¬ 
covered by George Bass, a surgeon in the royal 
navy, in 1798. 

Bass'wood, Bass or Lin'den, a large, hand¬ 
some tree, with big, rounded leaves, common in 
North America. It yields a light, soft timber, 



used for building boats and canoes and for small 
carved and turned objects. The flowers are 
strongly fragrant and rich in honey, so that the 
tree is a favorite with bee-keepers. 

Bastia, bas ie'a, the former capital of the 
island of Corsica, upon the northeast coast, 75 
mi. n. e. of Ajaccio. This is the wealthiest and 
most populous town in the island. Population 
in 1911, 27,338. 

Bastien-Lepage, bas tyaN ' le pazk', Jules 
(1848-1884), a French painter. At an early age 
he showed an inclination for painting, and after 
taking several prizes for drawing he went to 
Paris to study, where he attended the Ecole des 
Beaux Arts. Among his works are the Song of 
Spring, Portrait of My Grandfather, which 
brought him fame, The Hay-makers, Joan of 
Arc Listening to Voices and The Forge. 

Bastille, bas teel', a French name for any 
strong castle provided with towers, but as a 
proper name, the state prison and citadel of 
Paris, which was built about 1370 by Charles 
V. It was ultimately used chiefly for the con¬ 
finement of persons of rank who had fallen 
victims to the intrigues of the court or the caprice 
of the government, and thus was regarded as a 


symbol of oppression. The capture of the 
Bastille by the Parisian mob, July 14, 1789, was 
the opening act of the Revolution. The mob 
first attempted to negotiate with the governor, 
Delaunay, but when these negotiations failed, 
began to attack the fortress. For several hours 
they continued their siege without being able to 
effect anything more than an entrance into the 
outer court of the Bastille; but at last the arrival 
of some of the Royal Guard with a few pieces 
of artillery forced the governor to let down the 
second drawbridge and admit the populace. The 
governor was seized, but on the way to the town- 
hall he was torn from his captors and put to 
death. The next day the destruction of the 
Bastille commenced. To-day a bronze column 
marks the site of the Bastille, while the anni¬ 
versary of its destruction is celebrated as the 
national holiday of France. 

Basu'toland, a native province and British 
possession of South Africa, sometimes called the 
Switzerland of South Africa. It is bounded on 
the n. w. by Orange River Colony; on the s. and 
s. e. by Cape Colony and on the n. e. by Natal. 
The country was opened to missionaries before 
1869, and since that date the people have made 
rapid advancement in civilization. In 1866 the 
Basutos, who had lived under a semi-protectorate 
of the British since 1848, were proclaimed 
British subjects, and in 1871 the province was 
joined to Cape Colony. In 1879 the native 
tribes caused a revolt which the Cape forces were 
unable to put down, and, finally, in 1884, when 
peace was restored. Basutoland was separated 
from Cape Colony and is now governed by a 
resident commissioner under the high com¬ 
missioner of South Africa. The region, mainly 
barren or shrubby, is mountainous, and it has 
several peaks which rise to the height of 10,000 
feet. Population in 1911, 405,600. 

'Bat, one of the group of wing-handed, flying 
mammals, of the order chiroptera, having the 
fore limbs peculiarly modified so as to serve for 
flight. Bats are animals of the twilight and 
darkness and are common in temperate and 
warm regions, but they are most numerous and 
largest in the tropics. All European bats are 
small and have a mouse-like skin. The body of 
the largest British species is less than that of a 
mouse, but its wings stretch about fifteen inches. 
During the day it remains in caverns, in the 
crevices of ruins, hollow trees and other lurking 
places, and flits out at evening in search of food, 
which consists of insects. Several species of the 
same genus are common in North America- 




Batangas 


Bates 


Many bats are remarkable for having a curious 
growth on the nose, shaped something like a 
horseshoe. In some bats these growths resemble 
leaves, and in one species the entire nose looks 
like a flower. The eyes in most bats are very 
small, but they are remarkably keen. Bats may 
be conveniently classified in two sections: the 
flesh-eating, comprising all European and most 
African and Alnerican species, and the fruit¬ 
eating, belonging to tropical Asia and Australia, 
with several African forms. At least two species 
of South American bats are known to suck the 
blood of other mammals, and hence they are 
called vampire bats (See Vampire Bat), though 
the name has also been given to a species not 
guilty of this habit. As winter approaches, in 
cold climates bats seek shelter in caverns, vaults, 
ruined and deserted buildings and similar 
retreats,where they cling together in large clusters, 
hanging head downward, and sleep until the 
returning spring recalls them to life. The brown 
bat of the United States, the heavy bat of the 
Eastern states, the big-eared bat of the Mississippi 
valley, the leaf-nosed bat and the lyre bat are 
common species. See Fox Bat. 

Batangas, batahn'gas, a town on the island 
of Luzon, Philippine Islands, capital of the 
province of Batangas, situated 50 mi. south 
of Manila. The town is well built and 
contains good stores and many elegant homes. 
Previous to the Spanish-American War, Batangas 
enjoyed a prosperous trade, which has not yet 
been fully restored. The town is in the midst 
of one of the richest sugar-producing districts 
in the Philippines, but the industry is not fully 
developed. The production of cocoanut oil is 
also important. Population in 1910, 33,131. 

Bata'via, a city and seaport of Java, on the 
north coast of the island, the capital of all the 
Dutch East Indies. It is situated on a wide, 
deep bay, the principal warehouses and offices 
of the Europeans, the Java Bank, the exchange 
and other business buildings being in the old 
town, which is built on a low, marshy plain 
near the sea, intersected with canals. The 
Europeans reside in a new and much healthier 
quarter. Here is located one of the most beau¬ 
tiful botanic gardens in the world. Batavia has 
a large trade, sugar, coffee, rice and indigo 
being the chief exports. It w r as founded by the 
Dutch in 1619 and attained its greatest pros¬ 
perity in the beginning of the eighteenth century. 
Its inhabitants are chiefly Malay, with a consid¬ 
erable mixture of Chinese and a small number 
of Europeans. Population in 1905, 138,551. 


Batavia, N. Y., the county-seat of Genesee 
co., 36 mi. e. of Buffalo, on Tonawanda creek 
and on the Erie, the Lehigh Valley and the 
New York Central railroads. It is in a farming 
region and has manufactories of agricultural 
implements, shoes, firearms and other articles. 
The state institution for the blind is here, and 
the city has a public library which is a memorial 
to William Morgan, who became famous during 
the Anti-Masonic excitement in 1826. Batavia 
was founded by Joseph Ellicott in 1801. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 11,613. 

Bate'man, Newton (1822-1897), an Ameri¬ 
can educator, bom at Fifield, N. J., and edu¬ 
cated at Illinois College and Lane Theological 
Seminary. He began his career as professor of 
mathematics in Saint Charles College. In 1858 
he was elected state superintendent of public 
instruction for Illinois, and he held the position 
for ten years, during which time he was largely 
influential in establishing the school system and 
shaping the educational policy of the state. In 
1875 he became president of Knox College. 

Bates, Arlo (1850- ), an American 

author, born in Maine. He graduated at Bow- 
doin College, and after editing the Boston 
Sunday Courier, in addition to other literary 
w r ork, he became professor of English literature 
at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 
He has written Love in a Cloud, The Diary of 
a Saint and other novels; poems, some of which 
are collected in Under the Beech Tree; critical 
Talks on Writing English, and a volume on the 
study of literature. 

Bates, Edward (1793-1869), an American 
statesman, born in Virginia. He studied law 
and practiced in Missouri, becoming attorney 
general of the state. He served a term in Con¬ 
gress, 1827-1828, and was then and thereafter 
a prominent opponent of the slavery party. 
He received forty-eight votes on the first ballot 
in the Republican convention of 1860, but with¬ 
drew in favor of Abraham Lincoln, who after¬ 
ward made him attorney general of the United 
States. 

Bates, John Coalter (1842- ), an 

American soldier, bom in Fort Charles co.. 
Mo. He was educated at Washington Univer¬ 
sity, Saint Louis, entered the Union army at the 
opening of the Civil War, served in the Army of 
the Potomac and on the staff of General Meade 
from the Battle of Gettysburg to the close of 
the war, being brevetted major and lieutenant 
colonel. He served in the regular army after 
the war, and at the outbreak of the Spanish- 


Bath 


Bath 


American War was made brigadier general of 
volunteers, becoming major general of volun¬ 
teers before the end of the Santiago campaign. 
He was for a time military governor of a depart¬ 
ment in Cuba, but was transferred to the Philip¬ 
pines, where he conducted several successful 
campaigns. In 1902 he was made major gen¬ 
eral of the United States regulars and in 1906 
became lieutenant general of the army, succeed¬ 
ing General A. R. Chaffee. General Bates 
was a member of several special army boards, 
notably that which adopted the present system 
of drill, and another which adopted the Krag- 
Jorgensen rifle for use in the army. 

Bath. The use of the bath is, as might be 
anticipated, an exceedingly old custom. Homer 
mentions the bath as one of the first refresh¬ 
ments offered to a guest; thus, when Ulysses 
enters the palace of Circe, a bath is prepared for 
him, and he is anointed after it with costly 
perfumes. In later times, rooms, both public 
and private, were built expressly for bathing, 
the public baths of the Greeks usually being 
connected with gymnasiums. The fullest details 
we have with respect to the bathing of the 
ancients apply to Its luxurious development 
under the Romans. Their bathing establish¬ 
ments consisted of four main sections; the 
undressing room, with an adjoining chamber 
in which the bathers were anointed; a cold room 
with provision for a cold bath; a room heated 
moderately to serve as a preparation for the 
highest and lowest temperatures, and the 
sweating-room, at one extremity of which was 
a vapor-bath, and at the other, an ordinary hot 
bath. After going through the entire course, 
both the Greeks and the Romans made use of 
strigils or scrapers, either of horn or metal, 
to remove perspiration, oil and impurities from 
the skin. Connected with the baths were walks, 
covered race grounds, tennis courts and gardens) 
the whole, both in the external and internal deco¬ 
rations, being frequently on a palatial scale. 
The groups of the Laocoon and the Famese 
Hercules were both found in the ruins of Roman 
baths. 

At the present time the bath commonly in use 
in Russia consists of a single hall, built of wood, 
in the midst of which is a powerful metal oven, 
covered with stones and surrounded with broad 
benches, on which the bathers take their places. 
Cold water is then poured upon the heated stones, 
and a thick, hot steam rises, which causes the 
perspiration to issue from the whole body. The 
bather is then gently whipped with wet birch 


rods, rubbed with soap and washed with luke¬ 
warm and cold water; of the latter, some pail¬ 
fuls are poured over his head, or else he leaps, 
immediately after this sweating-bath, into a 
river or pond, or rolls in the snow. The Turks, 
by their religion, are obliged to make repeated 
ablutions daily, and for this purpose there is 
in every city a public bath connected with a 
mosque. A favorite bath among them is 
a modification of the hot-air bath of the 
ancients, introduced generally under the name 
of Turkish bath into other than Mohammedan 
countries. A regular accompaniment of this 
bath, when properly given, is the operation 
known as “kneading,” generally performed at 
the close of the sweating process, after the final 
rubbing of the bather with soap. It consists in 
a systematic pressing and squeezing of the 
whole body, the stretching of the limbs and the 
manipulating of all the joints, as well as the 
fleshy and muscular parts of the body (See 
Massage). 

Public baths are common in the United States, 
every large city having a number of baths fitted 
up in artistic style for the use of well-to-do 
patrons. Besides these, there are free public 
baths for the poor. The gymnasiums at col¬ 
leges and high-schools have baths where the 
athletes may bathe after exercise, and at many 
of the public schools bathing privileges are 
afforded the pupils. In various parts of the 
country are hot springs and medicinal springs, 
where large sanitariums have been erected for 
the invalids who flock to the springs to bathe. 
Among the most famous are those at Hot Springs, 
Garland co., Ark., resorted to by invalids for 
the cure of rheumatism and similar complaints. 
There are from seventy-five to one hundred 
springs, varying in temperature from 105° to 
160°, issuing from a lofty ridge of sandstone 
overlooking the town, while others rise in the 
bed of the stream near by. The most celebrated 
natural hot baths in Europe are those of Aix-la- 
Chapelle, Karlsbad and Baden in Germany; 
Toeplitz, in Bohemia; Bagniferes, Bareges and 
Dax, in the south of France, and Spa, in Bel¬ 
gium. 

Cold baths are invigorating and stimulating 
and should be taken in the morning unless fol¬ 
lowed by a chill; warm baths are restful and 
quieting and may be taken at any time; hot 
baths are weakening and should be taken at 
night, or only when it is possible to rest for a 
long time after them. There is a great differ 
ence in the effects of baths upon different indi- 


Bath 

viduals, and every person should be observant 
for himself. A cold morning bath of the neck 
and chest is a good preventive of “taking cold.” 

Bath, a city of England, situated on the Avon 
100 mi. w. of London. The location is in a 
narrow valley, and the town has beautiful sur¬ 
roundings. The most interesting building is the 
Abbey Church, which is considered one of the 
finest specimens of perpendicular Gothic archi¬ 
tecture in Europe. Bath is celebrated for its 
hot springs, which have strong medicinal prop¬ 
erties. These springs yield about 200,000 
gallons of water a day. The city was founded 
by the Romans, who named it Aquae Solis, 
meaning the waters of the. sun. The town 
reached the height of its influence and prosperity 
under the leadership of Beau Nash in the eight¬ 
eenth century and became a very fashionable 
resort. It is now, however, more of a health 
resort. Population in 1911, 50,729. 

Bath, Me., the county-seat of Sagadahoc co., 
35 mi. s. of Augusta, on the Maine Central rail¬ 
road and on the Kennebec River, 12 mi. from 
the ocean. There is an excellent commercial 
port and a large ocean trade. Ship-building is 
the chief industry, but there are also foundries, 
machine-shops and boiler-works, and manu¬ 
factures of lumber, oilcloth, woolen goods and 
shoes. The first settlement was probably made 
by a missionary to the indians about 1660. The 
town was incorporated in 1781, and a city 
charter was secured in 1847. Population in 
1910, 9396. 

Bathom'eter, an instrument for measuring 
the depth of sea beneath a vessel without casting 
a line. It consists of a vertical steel tube of 
small bore, having a cup-shaped expansion 
attached to its lower end. This is closed with 
a corrugated steel plate which forms a dia¬ 
phragm. The tube and cup are filled with 
mercury, which rises and falls with the varying 
depth of the water. The change in the height 
of the column of mercury is indicated on a 
micrometer scale which is read through a micro¬ 
scope. The instrument works on the principle 
that the land exerts stronger attraction than the 
water, and that this power diminishes according 
to the law of gravitation; that the force of attrac¬ 
tion between bodies decreases as the square of 
the distance between them increases. When the 
vessel is in shallow water, the mercury is drawn 
down with greater force and the column lowers; 
as the water deepens it rises. A perfect instru¬ 
ment will indicate a difference of a fathom in 
depth. 


Battery 

Baton Rouge, hat'onroozh, La., the capital 
of the state, 89 mi. n. w. of New Orleans, on 
the eastern bank of the Mississippi River and 
on the Yazoo & Mississippi Valley and the 
Texas & Pacific railroads. It is a picturesque 
city, built on a bluff above the river, and has 
many quaint old houses of French and Spanish 
styles. The manufactures include lumber and 
cotton products, brick, sugar and ice. It was 
one of the earliest French settlements in Louisi¬ 
ana. The state university, penitentiary, agri¬ 
cultural experiment station, and several chari¬ 
table institutions are located here. Population 
in 1910, 14,897. 

Batoum, ha toom'. See Batum. 

Batrachians, ha tra'ke anz , the name given 
originally to an order of animals between the 
snakes and fishes. See Amphibians. 

Battal'ion, in the United States, a body of 
troops consisting of four companies of infantry, 
usually commanded by a major. As the bat¬ 
talion is rather too large a unit to be directed 
by one commander in the field, the company 
bids fair to displace it in battle. An artillery 
battalion includes from two to four batteries. 

Bartering-ram, an engine for battering 
down the walls of besieged places. The ancients 
employed two different engines of this kind— 
one suspended in a frame, the other movable 
on wheels or rollers. Each consisted of a beam 
or spar with a massive metal head, and was 



BATTERING-RAM 


set in motion either by a direct application of 
manual force or by means of cords passing 
over pulleys. Some are said to have been 120 
feet or more in length and to have been worked 
by 100 men. One is described as being 180 
feet long and having a head weighing 1£ tons. 
They were generally covered with a roof or 
screen for the protection of the workers. 

Bat'tery, in artillery, the name applied to 
an organization within a company, which 







Bat tie 


Bavaria 


includes as many guns as can be commanded 
by a single officer. Batteries vary widely in 
size and style, according to the service for which 
they are designed. In the field artillery the 
battery usually consists of six guns, along with 
the commanding officer, gunners, horses and 
drivers. In the navy the term applies to all of 
the guns of a ship. The term is also sometimes 
applied to a group of large guns within a forti¬ 
fication, or mounted for the purpose of defending 
a position. See Artillery. 

Battle, Trial by or Wager of. During the 
Middle Ages, when a man was accused of a 
crime he might appeal to the court for the 
privilege of proving his innocence by fighting 
his accuser. It was believed that God would 
fight on the side of the man who was in the 
right, and thus the judgment was held to be 
absolutely just. If the accused or the accuser 
was a woman, she might choose a champion to 
fight in her stead. The custom was later pro¬ 
hibited by law. 

Bat'tle Creek, Mich., a city in Calhoun co., 
160 mi. e. of Chicago, at the junction of the 
Kalamazoo River and Battle Creek, and on the 
Michigan Central, the Chicago and Grand 
Trunk and the Cincinnati Northern railroads. 
There are a number of mills and manufactories, 
but the city has become best known by the 
many establishments for the manufacture of 
foods. It is the headquarters of the Seventh 
Day Adventists, who maintain a college, a pub¬ 
lishing house, a health-food factory and one of 
the largest sanitariums in the world. The 
country is agricultural and raises considerable 
fruit. Battle Creek became a city in 1860. 
Population in 1910, 25,267. 

Battle of the Nations. See Leipzig, 
Battles of. 

Bat'tleship. See War Ship. 

Batum or Batoum, ba toom r , a Russian port 
on the eastern coast of the Black Sea, granted 
to Russia by the Treaty of Berlin in 1878. The 
harbor is one of the best on the east coast of the 
Black Sea. An extensive trade is carried on, 
Batum being the chief commercial center for the 
export of petroleum, wheat and manganese ore. 
Its importance as a naval and military station 
to Russia is very great, as it has one of the 
strongest positions on the Black Sea. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 32,700. 

Baucis, haw'sis, and Philemon, fil'e mon, 
an aged couple with whom a famous old myth 
was connected. One evening Jupiter and 
Mercury, who were visiting the earth in disguise 


and had been driven from an inhospitable 
village, came, beyond the bounds of the village, 
to the cottage where Baucis and Philemon lived. 
The strangers, although unrecognized, were 
kindly received and were given the best that the 
cottage afforded. While they were at supper, 
Baucis and Philemon observed, to their great 
amazement, that the pitcher from which the 
milk was poured was constantly refilled as soon 
as empty. This showed them the divine char¬ 
acter of their guests. 

Baudry, bo dre', Paul Jacques Aime (1828— 
1886), a prominent French painter. The deco¬ 
ration of the foyer of the New Opera House at 
Paris was intrusted to him, and this work is con¬ 
sidered among the most brilliant creations of 
modern art. His best painting i s The Glorifi¬ 
cation of the Law. 

Bauxite, boke'site, the mineral from which 
aluminum is obtained. It has a coarse, granular 
structure and is of various colors. It occurs 
in clay-like deposits and is usually mixed with 
a greater or less proportion of oxide of iron. 
Large deposits are found in Ireland and in the 
United States in Arkansas, Alabama and Georgia. 
The American deposits are pure and well suited 
to the production of aluminum. See Alumi¬ 
num. 

Bava'ria (German, Bayern), a kingdom of 
the German Empire, consists of two separate 
portions, the eastern, or Bavaria proper, and the 
western, or Rhenish Bavaria. Eastern Bavaria 
is bounded on the n. by Prussia, Saxe-Meiningen, 
Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, Reus and Saxony, on the e. 
and s. by Austria and on the w. by Wurtemburg 
and Baden. Rhenish Bavaria is bounded on 
the n. and w. by Prussia and Hesse-Darmstadt, 
on the e. by Baden and on the s. by Alsace- 
Lorraine. The total area of the kingdom is 
29,282 square miles, or a little less than that of 
South Carolina. Next to Prussia, Bavaria is 
the largest state of the German Empire. 

Nearly all of the boundary lines are formed by 
mountain ranges, and the country is generally 
mountainous or hilly. The interior is a plateau 
having an average elevation of 1600 feet and 
gradually sloping toward the north. Rhenish 
Bavaria is traversed by the Harz Mountains, 
which have an elevation of over 3200 feet.. 

The country is drained by the Danube, which 
traverses it from west to east and receives ai 
tributaries the Uler, Lech, Isar and Inn from 
the south, and the Warnitz, Althmul, Naab, 
Regen and Vils from the north. The Main 
and its tributaries drain the northern part. In 


Bavaria 


Baya 


the southern part are numerous mountain lakes 
famed for the beauty of their scenery. 

The important minerals are coal, iron, salt, 
graphite and lithograph stone. About 25,000,- 
000 tons of coal are mined each year, but with 
this exception mining operations are limited. 

Agriculture is the leading industry, and 
Bavaria is the most important agricultural state 
of the Empire. There are many agricultural 
associations, through which the farmer’s work 
is organized. These assist in the purchase of 
seed, agricultural machinery, and in the market¬ 
ing of products and other movements tending 
to the farmer’s prosperity. The most important 
crops are rye, wheat, barley, oats, potatoes, hay 
and grapes. The raising of live stock is also 
an important industry, and some of the best 
breeds of cattle found in the world are produced 
in Bavaria. About one-third of the country 
is covered with forests, all of which, whether 
belonging to the state or to private individuals, 
are under the supervision of the government. 

Bavaria is the largest beer-producing country 
in the world, and beer is its most important 
manufactured product. Other leading manu¬ 
factures are. linens, woolens, cottons, leather, 
paper, glass, iron ware, jewelry and scientific 
instruments. 

The leading exports are beer, textiles and 
scientific instruments. The imports are food 
products and manufactures. The chief cities 
are Munich, the capital, and Augsburg, Nurem¬ 
berg, Wurzburg and Ratisbon. 

The government is a constitutional monarchy. 
The king is the chief executive and is assisted 
by a council of state of six ministers. The par¬ 
liament, known as the Landtag , is composed of 
two houses, the upper known as the Chamber 
of Councilors of the Realm, and consisting of 
80 members, and the lower, or Chamber of 
Deputies, consisting of 159 members, elected 
by the people for six years. The elective fran¬ 
chise is restricted to property holders. Bavaria 
is represented in the national parliament by six 
members in the Bundesrat and by 48 in the 
Reichstag. For the purpose, of local govern¬ 
ment, the kingdom is divided into eight districts, 
each of which is subdivided into administrative 
districts. Each district has its local legislature, 
which is made up of representatives elected for 
six years. In regard to its internal affairs the 
kingdom is entirely independent. 

History. Bavaria is the home of the Celtic 
tribes known as the Boii and was for a long time 
a Roman province. During the reign of Charle- 


magen it came under the sway of the Franks, 
and after his death it was ruled by lieutenants 
having the title of margrave. In the latter part 
of the twelfth century the country came under 
the rule of the Wittelsbach family, which, with 
few interruptions, has continued to rule to the 
present time. The present constitution was 
adopted in 1818, but owing to the inability of the 
ruler did not secure the benefits which the people 
expected until about 1850. Bavaria opposed 
the movement towards a united Germany under 
the leadership of Prussia, and in 1866 sided 
with Austria in the Austro-Prussian War. As 
a result she was compelled to cede a portion of 
her territory to Prussia and pay a large indemnity. 
She also entered into an offensive and defensive 
alliance with Prussia, and this compelled her to 
side with Germany in the war with France. On 
the conclusion of this war she took a leading part 
in the formation of the German Empire. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 6,887,291. See Germany. 

Bax'ter, Richard (1615-1691), the most 
eminent of the English nonconforming divines 
of the seventeenth century, was born of poor 
parents and received his education largely in a 
course of private study. He was ordained in 
1638, and in 1640 he became parish clergyman 
of Kidderminster, where he soon became a very 
popular preacher. On the breaking out of the 
Civil War he went to Coventry and ministered to 
the garrison, and later he was chaplain in one of 
the regiments. He condemned the execution of 
the king and the election of Cromwell. At the 
Restoration he became king’s chaplain. In 
1685 he was arrested and imprisoned by Judge 
Jeffreys and released after two years. He left 
about 150 treatises, of which his Saints' Ever¬ 
lasting Rest and Call to the Unconverted have been 
the most popular. 

Bay, the name, rightly, of the laurel tree, noble 
laurel, or sweet bay; but the term is often 
loosely given to many similar trees and shrubs. 
A fatty oil, used in veterinary medicine, and a 
volatile oil are obtained from the berries. Super¬ 
stitions have always been connected with the 
bay tree. In England the leaves are used in 
Christmas decorations, and they were once 
thought to be a safeguard from lightning. Sprigs 
of laurel or bay were in ancient times worn as a 
signal of victory. See Laurel. 

Baya, bah'ya, an interesting weaver bird 
which lives in the East Indies. It builds a nest 
resembling a bottle, which it suspends from the 
branch of a tree. The entrance is from 
beneath, and there are two chambers, one 


Bayard 

occupied by the male and one by the female. 
The baya is a very intelligent bird, is easily 
tamed, and is often taught by the natives to 
fetch and carry and do other entertaining tricks. 

Bay'ard, James Asheton (1767-1815), an 
American statesman, born in Philadelphia. He 
graduated at Princeton in 1784, studied law in 
Philadelphia, was admitted to the bar in 1787 
and settled in Wilmington, Del. In 1796 he was 
elected to Congress as a Federalist and in 1804 
was made United States senator. He served 
till March 3, 1813, and as a Federalist opposed 
the declaration of war against Great Britain in 
1812. In 1814 President Madison appointed 
him a commissioner, with Albert Gallatin and 
John Quincy Adams, to negotiate a peace with 
Great Britain. He was appointed minister to 
Russia, but declined the office. His two sons, 
Richard Henry and James A., were successively 
senators from Delaware, and his grandson, 
Thomas F., was senator from 1869 to 1884. 

Bayard, Pierre du Terrail (known as 
Chevalier Bayard) (1476-1524), a French knight, 
the model of all the virtues of chivalry. He 
served under the French kings Charles VIII, 
Louis XII and Francis I, and under all of them 
he achieved wonderful successes over the Italians, 
Spaniards and English. One of his most 
famous exploits was the defense of a bridge at 
Garigliano, in 1503, against the assaults of two 
hundred Spaniards. The brilliant victory at 
Marignano, 1515, was won largely through his 
efforts, and Francis I bowed before him after 
the victory to receive knighthood from him. 
His valor, his generosity and his unblemished 
honor won for him the name of Chevalier sans 
peur et sans reproche (the knight without fear 
and without reproach). 

Bayard, Thomas Francis (1828-1898), an 
American statesman, born at Wilmington, Del. 
He studied law and established a reputation as 
an able attorney. He was opposed to the Civil 
War and took no part in it, but in 1869 he was 
elected United States senator, serving till 1884. 
In 1885 he was made secretary of state in Presi¬ 
dent Cleveland’s cabinet. He served with credit, 
though he was not tested by very important 
questions. In 1893 he was appointed ambassa¬ 
dor extraordinary and plenipotentiary to England. 

Bay City, Mich., the county-seat of Bay co., 
on the Saginaw River, 4 mi. from Saginaw Bay 
and on the Michigan Central, the Pere Marquette 
and other railroads. It has large steel ship¬ 
building plants and an extensive trade in lum¬ 
ber, salt, coal and manufactured articles. There 


Bayonne 

are a number of fine buildings, including the city 
hall, Masonic Temple, First Presbyterian church 
and the United States government building. 
West Bay City, formerly a separate city, was in¬ 
corporated into Bay City in the year 1905. 
Bay City was settled in 1836, incorporated in 
1859 and chartered as a city in 1865. Popula¬ 
tion in 1910, 45,166. 

Bayeux, bayd f , an ancient town in France, 
in the department of Calvados, 16 mi. n. w. of 
Caen. In its cathedral, said to be the oldest in 
Normandy, was preserved for a long time the 
famous Bayeux tapestry(See Bayeux Tapestry)^ 
The manufactures are lace ; calico and porce¬ 
lain. Population in 1911, 7736. 

Bayeux Tapestry, a celebrated piece of 
embroidery of early medieval times, giving in a 
series of pictures the history of the invasion and 
conquest of England by the Normans. It is 
supposed to have been worked by Matilda, 
wife of William the Conqueror, and her attend¬ 
ants. It contains over fifteen hundred figures, 
with inscriptions in Latin; it is 230 feet long and 
about twenty inches high. The tapestry was 
found in the cathedral at Bayeux and is still kept 
in the library at Bayeux, having been preserved 
in a fine condition. 

Bay Mahog'any, that variety of mahogany 
exported from Honduras. It is softer and less 
finely marked than the variety known as Spanish 
mahogany, but it is more abundant and the 
trees are of larger size. See Mahogany. 

Bay'onet, a sword-like blade attached to the 
end of a musket and used principally in repel¬ 
ling a cavalry charge. At first the bayonet, 
which was invented sometime in the seven¬ 
teenth century, was thrust into the gun barrel, 
but very soon was improved so as to fit around 
the barrel and thus cause no interruption to 
firing. Before modem long-range weapons 
were introduced, fighting at the point of the 
bayonet was common, but recently its usefulness 
in this respect has been questioned. Formidable 
knife bayonets and combinations of bayonets 
and entrenching tools are in use in the United 
States infantry. 

Bayonne, ba yon', a fortified town of France, 
situated near the coast about 3§ mi. from the 
Bay of Biscay. It has an excellent harbor, 
guarded by three lighthouses at its entrance. 
The important buildings are a cathedral begun 
in 1213, a theological seminary and a naval 
school. The leading industries are sugar refin¬ 
ing and the manufacture of linen goods, leather, 
cream of tartar and brandy. There are a'so 


Bayonne 

glass factories, foundries and shipyards. An 
extensive trade is carried on with Spain and 
Portugal and the South American countries. 
Bayonne is the ancient Lapurdum and was a 
commercial center as early as the third century. 
Population (of commune), 27,600. 

Bayonne, N. J., a city in Hudson co., on 
New York and Newark bays, and on the New 
Jersey Central railroad. The largest refinery of 
the Standard Oil Company is located here, and 
the other industries include chemical, boiler and 
smelting works and electric launch, wire and 
silk factories. The residence section contains 
many fine homes of New York business men. 
The city was formed by the union of several 
former villages and was first chartered as a city 
in 1869. Population in 1910, 55,545. 

Bayreuth, bi'roit. See Baireuth. 

Bay Rum, a liquid prepared by dissolving the 
oil of bay in alcohol, diluting the soiution with 
water and adding a small quantity of the oil of 
orange peel and of allspice. The oil of bay is 
obtained by distilling the leaves of a tree belong¬ 
ing to the myrtle family, growing in the West 
Indies. Bay rum is used for toilet purposes 
and in medicine as a liniment. 

Bay Win'dow, a window forming a bay or 
projecting section of a room, and rising from 
the ground or basement on a plan rectangular, 
semioctagonal or semihexagonal, but always 
straight-sided. The term is, however, also often 
used to designate a bow window, which more 
properly forms a semicircle, and an oriel win¬ 
dow, which is supported on a kind of bracket 
and is usually on the first floor. 

Bazaine, ba zane', Franjois Achille (1811— 
1888), a marshal of France. He took part in 
the Crimean War and in the expedition to 
Mexico for the purpose of making Maximilian, 
archduke of Austria, emperor. In the latter 
part of the Franco-German War he had com¬ 
mand of the main French armies, and after a 
succession of defeats he took refuge in Metz, 
which in October, 1870, he was obliged to sur¬ 
render, with 173,000 men. He was tried by a 
court-martial and sentenced to be shot, but 
his sentence was commuted to twenty years’ 
imprisonment. In 1874 he escaped from 
prison. 

Bazar or Bazaar, bazahf, in the East, an 
exchange or market-place, usually consisting of 
small shops or stalls in a narrow street or series 
of streets. A bazar is sometimes covered and 
sometimes open. Markets for the sale of 
miscellaneous articles, chiefly fancy goods, are 
19 


Bean 

now to be found in most European cities, bear¬ 
ing the name of bazars. 

The term bazar is also applied to a sale of 
miscellaneous articles, mostly of fancy work, 
contributed gratuitously, in the furtherance of 
some charitable or other purpose. 

Bdellium, del’le um, an aromatic gum resin, 
brought chiefly from Africa and India, in pieces 
of different sizes and shapes, externally of a 
dark reddish brown, internally clear and not 
unlike glue. To the taste it is slightly bitterish 
and pungent, but its odor is agreeable. The 
ancients regarded it highly as a medicine, but 
it is not now used for that purpose. 

Bea'consfield, Earl of. See Disraeli, 
Benjamin. 

Beagle, be’gl, a small hound, formerly kept 
to hunt hares, now displaced by the harrier, 
which sometimes is called beagle. The beagle 
is smaller than the harrier, compactly built, 
smooth-haired, with pendulous ears. The 
smallest of them are little larger than the lapdog. 

Beam, a long, straight and strong piece of 
wood, iron or steel, used generally in an impor¬ 
tant place in a structure to support a weight. 
The term has several technical applications. 
(1) In a balance it is the part from the ends 
of which the scales are suspended. (2) In 
a loom it is a cylindrical piece of wood/m which 
weavers wind the warp before weaving; also, 
the cylinder on which the cloth is rolled as it is 
woven. (3) In a ship it is one of the strong 
transverse pieces stretching across from one 
side to the other to support the decks and retain 
the sides at their proper distance; a ship is said 
to be on her beam ends when lying over on her 
side. (4) In a plow, the beam is the main piece 
to which the plow tails are fixed, and by which 
the plow is drawn. 

Bean, the seed of a number of annual plants 
that vary in the form of growth from vines to 
short, stocky shrubs. Beans are borne in pods 
and are of many different sizes, shapes and 
colors. The kidney bean of Europe is the com¬ 
mon bean of the United States, and many 
varieties of it are cultivated throughout the 
country. Beans are very nutritious and are 
freely used as an article of food in all countries 
in the temperate latitudes. They are especially 
valuable for military campaigns, since within a 
small space they contain a large amount of 
nutriment. Certain varieties of beans having 
tender, fleshy pods are grown in gardens and 
on truck farms for the pods, which are placed 
on the market as string beans. Other varieties* 


Bear 


Bear 


such as the cranberry and lima beans, are har¬ 
vested and used before the seeds are ripe. The 
iima bean is grown in large quantities in Cali¬ 
fornia, where it is either canned or dried before 
marketing. 

Beans flourish best in a rich soil having a good 
proportion of clay but not a great amount of 
moisture. The plants are very tender and are 
injured by the lightest frost; therefore the seed 
should not be sown until all danger from frost 
has passed. 

Bear, a large, shaggy beast of prey closely 
allied to the dog in structure and having many 
features in common with the badgers, weasels 
and skunks. Bears have massive heads, extended 
narrow jaws and large teeth. The body appears 


POLAB BEAK 

more bulky than it really is, because of the 
looseness of the skin, the length of the coarse 
fur, the stumpy tail and the comparative short¬ 
ness of the legs. The limbs are furnished with 
long and powerful claws for use in digging, 
fighting and climbing trees. The senses of hear¬ 
ing and smell are very well developed. Bears 
are clumsy in their movements; yet they can 
run rapidly, and most of them climb trees or 
scramble over rocks with remarkable speed. 
They usually make their home in some cave 
or crevice among rocks, or in hollow trees. 
There, in the early spring, the young ones, 
usually two in number, are born. Each bear 
family usually keeps pretty well to itself, instead 
of hunting in packs as the wolves do. Bears 
will eat nearly all kinds of food. They are 


fond of fruits, berries, herbs, roots, eggs, ants 
and honey. They capture and devour small 
animals in the woods and often raid human 
settlements in search of young pigs, calves, 
colts and sheep. Almost all bears eat fish and 
reptiles, and some species live almost entirely 
on fish. 

The species are not numerous, and the family 
likeness is so marked in all that many of the 
members are difficult to distinguish from one 
another. The polar bear or ice bear of the Arctic 
region is decidedly different from all the others. 
It is exceptionally large, some specimens being 
nine feet or more in length. The color is a 
creamy white, except the claws, which are 
black. The head is long and pointed, the limbs 
slender and the feet large, and 
hairy on the soles. The black 
bear is the most widespread va¬ 
riety, being still found in all the 
great forest regions north of 
Mexico. It is not dangerous 
unless wounded or enraged. 
The Florida and the Louisiana 
bears closely resemble the black 
bear. The barren-ground bear, 
a large brownish-white species, 
lives on the brushy plains north¬ 
west of Hudson Bay. The 
grizzly bear of the mountains of 
western North America is one of 
the largest and most savage of 
the family. Though not quar¬ 
relsome, it is easily enraged, and 
then fights with terrific energy. 
It is found from the Black Hills 
of Dakota westward, and from 
Mexico to northern Alaska. The 
color ranges from gray to reddish-brown, those 
of the latter color being known as cinnamon bears, 
of the former, as silver-tips. Some weigh one 
thousand pounds. Formerly they were the ene¬ 
mies of the buffalo and deer, and now they prey 
upon cattle and horses of western ranches. Un¬ 
like other bears, they do not hibernate long, and 
they hunt for food by day and night. The | 
Kadiak bear is so called from its home on 
Kadiak Island, Alaska, where it was discovered 
in 1895. The largest known specimen of bear 
was a Kadiak weighing two thousand pounds, 
but the Kadiaks are, however, usually smaller 
than the grizzlies. The color varies from a 
yellowish to a dark brown. 

Of the bears of the old world, the best known 
species is the brown bear of northern Europe 












Bear 


Beard 



The pelt of bears is much valued for furs, 
overcoats and rugs and is becoming very expen¬ 
sive, owing to its rarity. The flesh is used for 
food in some parts of -the world, and the fat 
and claws are valuable. 

Bear, Great, the group of stars called Ursa 
Major or Great Bear by the ancient Greeks. 
The seven bright stars of the constellation form 
a dipper-shaped figure, from which it takes, in 
the United States and elsewhere, the common 
name Big Dipper. The two stars which form 
the front of the dipper are called the pointers, 
because a line drawn from the bottom star 
through the top one will, if continued, pass so 
near the North or Pole Star that it is easy to 
locate it. In England the seven stars are called 
the Wagon, Charles’s Wain or the Plow. The 
Lesser Bear or Little Dipper is the constellation 
in which the Pole Star is located. These two 
constellations, with Cassiopeia and several others, 
are always visible in the northern heavens, 
where they appear to move around the North 
Star. The accompanying diagram shows the 
relative position of the principal constellations. 
Hold it with the month at the top and it will be 
nearly correct at eight o’clock in the evening. 

Bear and Bull, terms frequently used in the 
buying and selling of stock on the stock exchange 


and grain on the board of trade. Bear is the 
term applied to one who attempts to lower the 
price of the stock or grain, and bull to one who 
attempts to raise the price. It is evident that 
those who wish to buy are the bears, and those 
who wish to sell, the bulls. To “bear stock” 
or to “bull stock” are phrases in common use. 

Bear'berry, an evergeen shrub of the heath 
family, growing on the barren 
moors of Scotland, northern 
Europe, Siberia and North 
America, where its berries 
afford food for the grouse 
and other wild fowl. The 
leaves are used in medicine 
as a tonic. 

Beard, beerd, the hair upon 
the chin, cheeks and upper 
lip, which in the • human 
family appears as a dis¬ 
tinctive mark of the male 
sex. Slaves in ancient times, 
were deprived of their beards, 
and with the Turks even 
now the attendants in the 
palace of the sultan have 
shaven faces. The intense 
love of cleanliness on the part of Egyptians would 
not suffer them to wear a beard, save, according 
to Herodotus, in times of mourning. Among the 
early Greeks a thick beard was considered a mark 
of manliness, and the Greek philosophers thought 
that a certain dignity of character attached to 
its long growth. Shaving was introduced into 


CONSTELLATIONS ABOUND THE NOHTH STAB 

Greece by Alexander the Great, who ordered 
his soldiers to shave in order that their enemies 


and Asia. This is the bear most often seen in 
menageries, as it can be easily tamed and taught 
to dance and perform various tricks. Other 
Old World bears are the Himalayan and 
Japanese black bears, the black sun-bear of the 
Malayan Peninsula and neighboring islands, 
and the sloth-bear or honey-bear of India and 
Ceylon. 


GBIZZLT BEAB 




Beard 

might not seize them by the beard, and the 
practice continued general to the time of Jus¬ 
tinian. During medieval and modem times 
the custom has changed from time to time in 
different countries, a clean-shaven face being 
sometimes the fashion, at other times a beard. 

Beard. William Holbrook (1825-1900), 
painter, bom in Painesville, Ohio. He began 
as a portrait painter about 1841 and settled in 
Buffalo, where he remained until 1857. He 
went to Europe and after his return devoted 
himself to the painting of animals, becoming 
popular by his humorous sketches of monkeys, 
rabbits, bears and other animals, which he repre¬ 
sented as possessing human attributes. Among 
these are Dance of Silenus, Bears on a Bender and 
Flaw in the Title. 

Bear Lake, Great, one of the large lakes of 
Canada,-situated in the district of Mackenzie, on 
the Arctic Circle. Its area is 11,800 sq. mi. Its 
outline is very irregular; its greatest length is 150 
miles,and it receives the drainage from a large ter-' 
ritory. The outlet is through Great Bear River, 
which leads to the Mackenzie. Bear Lake is sit¬ 
uated on low land, scarcely200 feet above sea level. 
The waters are clear and cold, and the lake 
abounds in fish, especially herring and salmon. 

Beatrice, be'a tris, Neb., the county-seat of 
Gage co., 40 mi. s. of Lincoln, on the Big Blue 
River and on the Union Pacific, the Rock Island, 
the Burlington and other railroads. The city 
has good water power and extensive manufac¬ 
tures, including flour and agricultural imple¬ 
ments. The state institution for feeble minded 
youth is located here. The municipality owns 
and operates the waterworks. The place was 
settled in 1859 and was made a city in 1873. 
Population in 1910, 9356. 

Beatrice Portlnari, porte nah're, (1266- 
1290). the poetical Idol of Dante, the daughter 
of a wealthy citizen of Florence and wife of 
Simone dei Bardi. She was but nine years of 
age when Dante met her first at the house of her 
father. He saw her only once or twice through¬ 
out his life, and she probably knew little of him. 
The story of his love is recounted in the Vita 
Nuova, and she has an important place in the 
Divina Commedia. 

Beaumarchais, bo mahrshay', Pierre Augus¬ 
tin Caron he (1732-1799), a French wit and 
dramatist. His proficiency in music was such 
that he was made music-master to the daughters 
of Louis XV. He first distinguished himself 
by his Memoires, or statements in connection 
with a lawsuit, which by their wit, satire and 


Beauregard 

liveliness entertained all France. In 1775 
appeared The Barber of Seville, and its success 
was immediate and great. With its sequel, the 
Marriage of Figaro, it has given Beaumarchais 
a permanent reputation as the most important 
dramatist of the eighteenth century in France. 
He wrote several other works, among them a 
melodrama and a libretto for an opera, but they 
added nothing to his fame. He was instru¬ 
mental in securing aid for the American colonies 
from France, during the Revolutionary War. 

Beaumont, bo mont', Tex., the county-seat of 
Jefferson co., 80 mi. n. e. of Houston, on the 
Neches River and on the Texas & New Orleans, 
the Beaumont & Kansas City and other rail¬ 
roads. It is in a vast timber district and is one 
of the greatest lumber centers in the South. 
The manufactures include foundry and machine 
shop products, furniture, ice and tile, while live 
stock and hides are also exported. Oil was dis¬ 
covered in 1901, and since that time the city has 
developed rapidly. Population in 1910, 20,640. 

Beaumont, bo'mont, Francis (1584-1616), and 
Fletch'er, John (1579-1625), two eminent 
English dramatic writers, contemporaries of 
Shakespeare, and the most famous of literary 
partners. In all, the works which bear their 
names number over fifty, and it is impossible to 
discover just what share each had in these 
productions. Certain of the plays, indeed, as 
Philaster and Maid's Tragedy, we know were 
largely Beaumont’s, while The Faithful Shep¬ 
herdess is mostly Fletcher’s. Their dramas, 
which in their day are said to have been pre¬ 
ferred to Shakespeare’s, have little powerful 
character-drawing, and are greatly marred by 
coarseness. They are, however, extremely clever 
and they contain some of the most musical lyrics 
in the English language. 

Beaumont, William (1785-1853), an Ameri¬ 
can surgeon. His experiments on digestion with 
Saint Martin, who lived for years after re¬ 
ceiving a gunshot wound which left an aperture 
of about two inches in diameter in the stomach, 
were of great importance to physiological science. 

Beauregard, bo're gahrd, Pierre Gustave 
Toutant (1818-1893), an American soldier. 
He was bom in New Orleans, studied at West 
Point and left it as artillery lieutenant in 1838. 
He served in the Mexican War and on the out¬ 
break of the Civil War joined the Confederates, 
giving up his position as superintendent of the 
military academy at West Point. He began the 
war by the bombardment of Fort Sumter, gained 
the first battle of Bull Run, lost that of Shiloh, in 


Beauvais 


Bebel 


spite of most determined resistance, assisted in 
the defense of Charleston, opposed Sherman’s 
march to Atlanta and aided Lee in the defense 
of Richmond. In April, 1865, he surrendered 
to General Sherman. After the war he served 
as adjutant general of Louisiana and president 
of the New Orleans, Jackson & Mississippi 
railroad. 

Beauvais, bo va' t a town in France, capital 
of the department of Oise, 54 mi., by rail, n. w. 
of Paris. The city has fine edifices, the choir 
of the uncompleted cathedral being one of the 
finest specimens of Gothic architecture in France. 
There are manufactures of Gobelin tapestries, 
textiles and carpets. Population in 1911,20,248. 

Bea'ver, a fur-bearing animal, about two feet 
in length, at one time common in the northern 
regions of both hemispheres, but 
now found in considerable num¬ 
bers only in the United States 
and Canada. It usually lives in 
colonies, but occurs solitary in 
central Europe and Asia. It 
has short ears, a blunt nose, 
small forefeet, large webbed 
hindfeet and a flat tail covered 
with scales on its upper surface. 

The food of the beavers consists 
of the bark of trees, leaves, roots 
and berries. Their favorite 
haunts are rivers and lakes 
which are bordered by forests. 

In winter they live in houses, 
about three feet high and seven 
feet across, substantially built of 
branches of trees and of mud, on 
the water’s edge so that the en¬ 
trance can be under water. 

These dwellings are called beaver 
lodges, and each accommodates a single family. 
The teeth of beavers are very strong and they cut 
down quite large trees by gnawing around them. 
The trees are felled for food, and also that their 
branches may be used in building their houses. 
Beavers are most peculiar, in that sometimes 
many families work together in communities 
practically as one. If the stream on which they 
have located is not deep enough, or if the water 
does not cover land enough for them, the colony 
will unite and build an ingenious dam of wood, 
stones and mud across the stream. In the pond 
thus created, each member has its own home. 
The beavers hold among animals somewhat the 
same position the bees have among insects, in this 
remarkable instinct of working in common. 


The fur of the beaver is valuable and was at one 
time largely used in the manufacture of hats, but 
the animals have been driven so far into the 
wilderness and are so nearly all killed that beaver 
fur is now expensive and rare. 

Beaver Dam, Wis., a city of Dodge co., 65 mi. 
n. w. of Milwaukee, on Beaver Lake and on the 
Chicago, Milwaukee & Saint Paul railroad. It 
is in a fertile district, has good water power and 
contains flour, cotton and woolen mills, malleable- 
iron works and other factories. It is the seat 
of Wayland Academy and has a public library 
and several parks. The place was settled in 
1841. Population in 1910, 6758. 

Beaver Falls, Pa., a borough in Beaver co., 
31 mi. n. w. of Pittsburg, on the Beaver River, 
4 mi. above its junction with the Ohio, and on 


BEA.VEB 

railroads of the Pennsylvania and Erie systems. 
It is in a coal and natural gas region and has 
abundant water power. The principal manu¬ 
factures are iron and steel products, tubing, glass¬ 
ware and pottery. It contains fine public 
buildings and a park called Riverview. Beaver 
Falls was originally called Brighton. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 12,191. 

Bebel, ba'bel, Ferdinand August (1840- 
1913), German socialist writer and leader, bora 
at Cologne. He adopted the views of Karl 
Marx. His keen intellect, organizing talent and 
oratorical ability made him the natural leader of 
his party in the Reichstag, to which he was 
elected in 1871, and of which he remained a mem¬ 
ber, except for a brief period, until bis death. 







Bechuana 


Bedford 


The measures he advocated, regarded as radical 
in some respects, led to repeated imprisonment, 
but he is now classed among conservative so¬ 
cialists. Under his leadership, the Social Demo¬ 
cratic party in Germany has become very strong. 
A voluminous writer, his well-known works in¬ 
clude Woman and Socialism; Woman in the Past, 
Present and Future, and My Life, an auto¬ 
biography. 

Bechuana, be chwah'nah, a race inhabiting 
the central region of South Africa north of Cape 
Colony. They belong to the Bantu family and 
are divided into tribal sections or sub-kingdoms. 
They live chiefly by husbandry and cattle- 
rearing and work with some skill in iron, copper, 
ivory and skins. The impositions of the Boers 
and others led them to seek British protection. 
From 1878 to 1880 South Bechuanaland was 
partly administered by British officers, and in 
1884 and 1885 a great part of the rest of Bechuana 
territory was brought under British influence. 

Beck'et, Thomas a (1118-1170), archbishop 
of Canterbury. He was educated at Oxford and 
Paris and studied civil law at Bologna in Italy. 
On his return he was made archdeacon of 
Canterbury and provost of Beverly. In 1155 
Henry II appointed him chancellor, and pre¬ 
ceptor to his son, Prince Henry. At this time 
Becket lived in an expensive manner, was a 
liberal entertainer and the king’s prime com¬ 
panion. In 1162 he was consecrated archbishop, 
gave up his luxurious habits and became a 
zealous champion of the Church, liberal only in 
charities. A series of bitter conflicts with the 
kin g followed, ending in Becket’s flight to France. 
A reconciliation took place in 1170, and Becket 
returned to England, resumed his office and 
renewed his defiance of the royal authority. A 
rash hint from the king induced four barons to 
go to Canterbury and murder the archbishop 
while at vespers in the cathedral, Dec. 29, 1170. 
He was canonized in 1172, and the splendid 
shrine erected at Canterbury for his remains was 
a favorite place of pilgrimage. Chaucer’s 
Canterbury Tales are told by a party of men 
going on a pilgrimage to this shrine. 

Bed, an article of furniture upon which to 
sleep. Savages sleep on the ground or on beds 
made of leaves or the skins of animals. The 
Hindus use a light mattress for a bed. The 
Japanese lie on matting and use a wooden head 
rest which closely fits the neck, and the Chinese 
make their beds by spreading rugs or matting on 
the floor or ground. The beds used in Europe 
and America are raised on a bedstead. That 


used in the United States is patterned after the 
bed used in England and contains a mattress, 
pillows, sheets and quilts or comforters. The 
best beds have steel springs, upon which the 
mattress is laid. 

Bed, in geology, a stratum or layer of rock of 
varying thickness. It may consist of a number 
of thin layers or laminae, of a single stratum 
having considerable thickness or of several 
strata taken together. The last is usually 
termed a formation. A very thin bed is called 
a seam. 

Bed'bug, an offensive insect about three- 
sixteenths of an inch long, with a roundish, flat 
body and rusty color. When touched it emits 
an unpleasant odor. The female lays her eggs 
in summer in the crevices of bedsteads, furniture 
and the walls of a room. The larvae are small, 
white and semi-transparent, and grow to* full 
size in about eleven weeks. The bedbug is 
fond of human blood, but thrives on other sub¬ 
stances. 

Bede, beed, or Baeda, be/da, (about 672-735), 
known as The Venerable, a distinguished English 
scholar. He was educated at Saint Peter’s 
monastery, Wearmouth; took deacon’s orders 
in his nineteenth year at Saint Paul’s monastery, 
Jarrow, and was ordained priest at thirty. He 
was the most learned Englishman of his day, 
and in a sense was the father of English history, 
his most important work being his Ecclesiastical 
History of England. 

Bed'ford, England, the county town of Bed¬ 
fordshire, on the Oise, 45 mi. n. n. w. of London. 
The chief buildings are the law courts, a range of 
public schools, a large infirmary, a county jail 
and several churches. Extensive manufactures 
of agricultural implements and lace bring a 
good trade. John Bunyan was born at Elstow, 
a village near the town, and it was at Bedford 
that he lived, preached and was imprisoned. 
A fine monument has been erected to him in 
the town. Population in 1911, 39,200. 

Bedford, Ind., the county-seat of Lawrence 
co., 65 mi. s. w. of Indianapolis, on the Balti¬ 
more & Ohio and other railroads. It is noted 
for its extensive quarries of building stone. 
There are also railroad shops and veneering 
mills. Many of the buildings, both public and 
private, are fine stone structures. Population 
in 1910, 8716. 

Bedford, John Plantagenet, Duke of 
(1396-1435), one of the younger sons of Henry 
IV, king of England. He defeated the French 
fleet in 14i6, commanded an expedition to 























































































































































































1, Italian Queen Bee. 

2, Italian Worker. 

3, Italian Drone. 


HONEYBEE 

4, Sealed Honeycomb. 7, Two Queen Cells. 10, Basswood. 

5, Worker Cells. 8, Wild Plum. 11, White Clover. 

6, Drone Cells. 9, Wild Crab Apple. 





Bedlam 


Bee 


Scotland in 1417 and was lieutenant of England 
during the absence of Henry V in France. On 
the death of Henry V he became regent of 
France and for several years his policy was as 
successful as it was able and vigorous. The 
greatest stain on his memory is his execution of 
Joan of Arc in 1431. He died at Rouen and 
was buried in the cathedral of that city. 

Bed'lam, a corruption of Bethlehem, the 
name of a religious house in London, converted 
into a hospital for lunatics. The original Bed¬ 
lam stood in Bishopsgate street, while its modem 
successor is in Saint George’s Fields. The luna¬ 
tics were at one time treated as little better 
than wild beasts, and hence Bedlam came to be 1 
typical of any scene of wild confusion. 

Bed'loe’s Island or Liberty Island, an 
island in upper New York Bay, \\ im. s. w. 
of the southern extremity of Manhattan Island. 
It was given to the United States government 
for the purpose of harbor defense. This island 
was once occupied by Fort Wood, and on it 
now stands the famous colossal Statue of Lib¬ 
erty, given by France to the United States. 

Bedouins, bed'oo inz, a Mohammedan people 
of Arab race, inhabiting chiefly the deserts of 
Arabia, Syria, Egypt and North Africa. They 
lead a wandering existence in tents, huts, cav¬ 
erns and ruins, associating in families under 
sheiks, or in tribes under emirs. They are only 
shepherds, herdsmen and horse-breeders, vary¬ 
ing the monotony of pastoral life by raiding on 
one another and by plundering unprotected trav¬ 
elers, whom they consider trespassers. They are 
ignorant of writing and books, their knowledge 
being purely traditional and mainly genea¬ 
logical In stature they are undersized, and 
though active, they are not strong. The ordi¬ 
nary dress of the men is a long shirt, girt at the 
loins, a black or red and "yellow turban for the 
head, and sandals. The women wear loose 
drawers, a long shirt and a large dark-blue 
shawl covering the head and figure. 

Bee, a common insect of which the honey-bee 
and bumblebee are the best known species. 
There are probably not less than 5000 species 
scattered over all parts of the world, but they are 
especially numerous in the tropics. Bees naturally 
divide themselves into two classes; solitary bees, 
which live in pairs, and those which live in 
colonies or societies. The carpenter-bee and 
mason-bee are good representatives of the first 
class. See Carpenter-Bee. 

The Honeybee. The honeybee has always 
been regarded as the most intelligent of insects, 


and it has been partially domesticated from the 
earliest times. Honeybees live in large colonies 
or societies, numbering from 10,000 to 60,000 
individuals. In bee culture such a colony is 
known as a swarm. In every swarm there are 
three kinds of bees: the queen, which is the 
female bee that lays the eggs from which the 
colony is bom; the males or drones, so called 
because of the low humming sound which they 
make, and the workers , which are by far the 
largest number. There is only one queen to a 
swarm, and the males may number several 
hundred, but at a certain season every year 
most of these are stung to death by the workers, 
who with the queen are provided with stings. 
It is upon the 
workers that the 
real strength of 
the swarm de¬ 
pends. They are 
the smallest, 
strongest and 
most active of 
the three classes. 

The queen dur¬ 
ing the season 
may lay as many 
as 300 eggs in a 
single day, but 
in cold weather 
the number is 
much less. The 
eggs first laid 
give birth to 
workers, and the 
later ones, to drones. The eggs are deposited in 
cells prepared by the workers, one to each cell. 
One set of cells is constructed for workers and 
another for drones, and the queen never makes a 
mistake in depositing the eggs. The eggs which 
are to develop into queens arc laid in cells much 
larger than the others, but they will not differ 
from those laid in the other cells, and the 
queen is developed by feeding the larva on a 
special food. 

The eggs are about one-twelfth of an inch 
long, of a bluish color and oblong in shape. 
They hatch in about three days. The larvae 
are fed by the workers for about five days, the 
food consisting of honey and pollen, called 
beebread. When the larva has grown so as to 
fill the cell, the workers seal it up and leave it for 
about two weeks, when the bee comes forth in 
the adult state. As the swarm becomes too 
large for the home in which it lives, a new queen 



Beech 

is allowed to appear, and in a short time after 
this, on a bright, warm day, the old queen leaves 
the hive with a large portion of the swarm and 
seeks a new hoine for herself or enters one that 
the bees have found beforehand.. In one season 
as many as three successive swarms may leave 
the same colony. During the winter the bees 
remain asleep, move about but little and eat 
little food. 

Bees obtain their food by entering flowers 
and sucking up and swallowing the nectar, 
which is stored in the stomach-like honeybag. 
The hind legs are also provided with little 
cavities, called baskets, in which the bees store 
pollen for transit to the home. The bee, after 
gathering what pollen and honey it can carry, 
rises into the air, flies in a circle for a few times 
around, then, having found its bearings, flies 
home in a perfectly straight line; hence the 
expression bee line. Bee hunters take advan¬ 
tage of this habit to locate swarms and stores of 
honey. They capture the bees, feed them on 
sugar and water and then watch the direction 
of their flight. 

Bees are liable to be destroyed by the larvae 
of a moth which enters the hives at night and 
lays its eggs. The larvae burrow out through 
the cells and sometimes kill an entire swarm. 
Occasionally in winter mice find their way 
into the hives and feed upon the bees and 
honey. Lice and several species of flies and 
birds also destroy bees. 

Bee keeping is an important industry in many 
parts of the United States. The bees are kept 
in well protected hives fitted with removable 
frames in which the bees may build their comb 
and store their honey, and so constructed that 
the bees will be protected from the cold during 
the winter, and at the same time receive sufficient 
ventilation. The industry is also made more 
profitable if sweet clover, buckwheat and other 
plants from which desirable honey can be 
obtained are raised in considerable quantities 
in the vicinity of the place where the apiary is 
located. When the comb is filled with honey 
and sealed, the frames are taken out and the 
honey is extracted. The empty comb is then 
returned to the hive to be again filled. The 
usual method of extracting is. to shave off the 
cap of the cells with a knife and set the frame 
in a machine that revolves rapidly. This throws 
out the honey and leaves the comb unbroken. 
Some of the best grades of honey, however, are 
sold in the comb, in which case they command 
a higher price 


Beecher 

On entering and leaving the flowers, bees get 
dusted with pollen, and as it is their habit to 
work but one species of flower at a time, they 
are important agents in the cross-fertilization 
of flowers; in fact, such plants as clover cannot 
be successfully grown without the aid of bees. 
See Apiary; Honey. 

Beech, the common name of trees well known 
in various parts of the world, including America, 
New Zealand and Terra del Fuego. The wood 
is hard and brittle, and if exposed to the air it is 
liable soon to decay. It is, however, peculiarly 
useful to cabinetmakers and turners, carpenters’ 
planes, furniture, sabots and other small articles 
being made of it. As it lasts well under water 
piles are often made from it. The fruits, small 
three-sided nuts, when dried and powdered, 
may be made into a wholesome bread; they have 
also occasionally been roasted and used as a 
substitute for coffee. They yield a sweet and 
palatable oil, used by the lower classes of Silesia 
instead of butter, but they are, however, chiefly 
used as food for swine, poultry and other animals. 
The leaves of the beech tree, collected in the 
autumn, before they have been injured by the 
frosts, are in some places used to stuff mat¬ 
tresses. The North American white beech is a 
handsome tree, identical with the European 
species. 

Beech'er, Henry Ward (1813-1887), an 
American preacher, third son of Lyman Beecher, 
bom in Litchfield, Conn. As a child he was 
diffident and sensitive, loved the ocean and was 
only prevented from going to sea by his admis¬ 
sion to the church in 1826. When but eleven 
years old he defeated an opponent in a debate 
on Paine’s Age of Reason. He showed marked 
talent as a debater in Amherst College, where 
he graduated in 1834. He studied theology 
under his father’s instruction in Lane Seminary, 
for a time was pastor of a Presbyterian church 
in Lawrenceburg, Ind. (1837-39), and at the 
same time was connected with an anti-slavery 
paper in Cincinnati. From 1839 to 1847 he 
preached in Indianapolis, contributing articles to 
an agricultural paper. In 1847 he took charge of 
Plymouth Church, Brooklyn, where his congre¬ 
gation, noted for generosity and intelligence, 
heartily sympathized with him in his efforts for 
reform, especially in his work for abolition of 
slavery and for temperance. 

Mr. Beecher’s opinion on all public questions 
was eagerly sought. He was original in treat¬ 
ment and choice of subjects for his sermons, 
and his delivery was eloquent, dramatic, pathetic 


Beecher 


Bee£ 


and witty. In power of physical endurance he 
was a marvel. Tender-hearted and charitable 
himself, any form of injustice called from him 
bitter denunciations. As an after-dinner 
speaker he was without a peer, and his popu¬ 
larity as a lecturer was almost unprecedented. 
Among his famous orations was one on Robert 
Bums; another was on Fort Sumter. He was 
a Republican and aided the cause of the party 



country. Through his influence and addresses, 
opinion in England concerning the Civil War 
was materially modified. His last public address 
was in Chickering Hall, New York, Feb. 25, 
1887, in favor of high license. After he came 
to Brooklyn he contributed his Star Papers to 
the Independent , of which he became editor in 
1861. He edited the Christian Union and was 
a frequent contributor to the Ledger. In 
Plymouth Pulpit are preserved the sermons 
preached from 1859 till his death. Among his 
many published works are a novel entitled 
Norwood; Lectures to Young Men and A Cir¬ 
cuit of the Continent. He married, in 1837, Eunice 
White Bullard, author of From Dawn to Day¬ 
light. 

Beecher, Lyman (1775-1863), an American 
clergyman, bom in New Haven, Conn. He 
graduated at Yale in 1797 and in the following 
year was licensed to preach and accepted the 
pastorate of the Presbyterian church in East 


Hampton, L. I. A sermon on dueling, sug¬ 
gested by the duel between Alexander Hamil¬ 
ton and Aaron Burr, made a great impression, 
and he soon became one of the best known 
preachers of New England. He was pastor of 
the Congregational church in Litchfield, Conn. 
(1810-1826), and of the Hanover Street church, 
Boston (1826-1832). From 1832 till 1851 he 
was president of the Lane Theological Semi¬ 
nary, Cincinnati, in which he was professor of 
theology, and from 1832 to 1842 was pastor of 
the Second Presbyterian church of Cincinnati. 
In 1835 Mr. Beecher was arraigned and tried for 
heresy by his presbytery, was acquitted by the 
general assembly and on the division of the 
Presbyterian church into two factions, he joined 
the new school. He returned to Boston and 
spent his time in publishing and revising his 
works. During his last ten years he lived in 
Brooklyn with his son, Henry Ward Beecher. 
He was married three times, and his five sons, 
William Henry, Edward George, Henry Ward,- 
Charles and Thomas Kinnicut became cler¬ 
gymen. 

Bee'-eater, a beautiful bird of southern 
Europe that winters in Africa. It is said to 
live almost entirely upon bees and wasps and 
consequently is an enemy of bee raisers. The 
bird has a chestnut back and crown, yellowish 
sides, white and black head, yellow throat and 
a greenish tint in the rest of its plumage. The 
bee-eaters nest in colonies, depositing their eggs 
at the end of a tunnel sometimes eight or nine 
feet long. The name bee-eater is sometimes 
given in America to the kingbird. 

Beef, the flesh of the ox or cow. It is one of 
the most nutritious and wholesome of meats and 
is extensively used in all civilized countries. 
Shorthorns and Galloways are the best breeds 
of cattle for producing beef (See Cattle). Most 
of the beef placed on the market in the United 
States comes from the great meat-packing estab¬ 
lishments, where the animals are slaughtered. 
When dressed the carcass is divided along the 
line of the back into halves. These are usually 
divided to form quarters, in which form most of 
the beef reaches the wholesale and retail dealers. 
By them it is cut to suit their customers. Porter¬ 
house, sirloin, prime, rib and round are the 
most valuable cuts. Only beef of the best 
quality is placed on the market as fresh meat. 
The inferior grades and the least valuable cuts 
from the best grades are made into canned meats 
or corned beef. Dried beef is from the best 
cuts and is made by first placing the fresh beef 









Beef 


Beethoven 


in a pickle, then smoking it and hanging it up to 
dry. Canned beef is cooked and then pressed 
into tin cans, which are soldered to make them 
air-tight. This beef can be shipped to any part 
of the world without injury. The United States 
produces a larger amount of beef than any other 
country in the world. See Meat Packing. 

Beef, Extract of, a fluid preparation of beef 
made by extracting the juice from the meat, then 
evaporating the water from the extract. The 
process is carried on in large kettles with dome¬ 
shaped covers. About two thousand pounds 
of meat are placed in a kettle, the lower half of 
which has an outer jacket. The space between 
this and the kettle proper is filled with water, 
which is heated to a high temperature. The 
heat extracts the juice from the meat. This is 
then drawn off and boiled for some time to expel 
the water. The extract is then run through a 
mill to mix it thoroughly and give it a uniform 
thickness. It is then put up in small jars and is 
ready for the market. One pound of extract 
contains the nutriment of forty-five pounds of 
beef. Beef extract is used for making broth, 
beef tea and some kinds of soup. 

Beef'eaters, a nickname given to the guard 
of the sovereign of Great Britain, stationed by the 
sideboard at great royal dinners, and dressed 
after the fashion of the time of Henry VII. 

Beelzebub, be el'ze bub, (the god of flies), the 
supreme god of the Syro-Phoenician peoples, in 
whose honor the Philistines had a temple at 
Ekron. The origin of this worship is probably 
to be sought in the scourge of flies to which the 
hot plain of Philistia has always been subject. 
In the New Testament he is the chief of demons 
{Matt, x, 25). 

Beer, in general, the name of any malt liquor, 
but as used in the United States and on the con¬ 
tinent of Europe, lager beer. In England beer 
usually means ale. Lager beer takes its name 
from the German lager, meaning storehouse, 
because it is kept in a storehouse for several 
months, to cure. Beer is usually made from 
barley malt and contains a small quantity of 
alcohol, from three to five parts in a hundred. 
For the process of manufacture, see Brewing. 

Porter is a dark-colored beer made by adding 
brown malt to pale malt. It is stronger than 
ordinary beer and is quite generally used in 
England. Stout is a strong porter. See Ale. 

Beersheba, be er'she ba (the well of the oath), 
the place where Abraham made a covenant with 
Abimelech, usually recognized as the southern¬ 
most limit of Palestine. It is now a mere heap 


of ruins near two large and five smaller wells, 
though it was a place of some importance down 
to the period of the Crusades. 

Bees'wax, a wax secreted by bees and obtained 
from the honeycomb. The process by which 
it is made is not well understood. It is obtained 
by boiling the comb, when the wax melts and 
rises to the surface of the vessel and can be dipped 
off. On cooling, it solidifies. As thus obtained, 
beeswax is of a dark yellow or brownish color 
and contains numerous impurities. These can 
be removed by remelting and filtering. By 
cutting the wax into thin sheets and exposing it 
to the air and sun for some days it is bleached so 
that it becomes a pure white. Most of the bees¬ 
wax placed upon the market is bleached. It is 
used in small quantities by seamstresses, also 
in the manufacture of candles, the preparation 
of ointments and cements and as a vehicle for 
colors. See Bee; Wax. 

Beet, a plant cultivated for its root, which is 
large and juicy and varies in color from white to a 
deep red or almost black. There are many 
varieties, each with some special merit. Beet 
roots are cooked and used as a table vegetable 
and for pickles, and the young leaves are used as 
greens. In some localities, beets are a valued 
food for cattle. The most important use of beets, 
however, is in the manufacture of sugar, about 
three-fifths of all the sugar produced in the 
world coming from this source. Germany, 
Austria, Russia and France are the leading 
countries in the beet sugar industry, but the 
cultivation of the sugar beet is rapidly spreading 
in the United States. This beet closely resembles 
the varieties ordinarily raised in gardens, and 
thrives best in a cool temperate climate, having 
a reasonable supply of moisture. It has been 
successfully raised by irrigation in California 
and Utah, but Michigan and Colorado are the 
leading states in its production. There are now 
over forty beet sugar factories in the United States 
and the annual production of sugar is about 
450,000 long tons of 2240 pounds each. See 
Sugar, subhead Beet Sugar. 

Beethoven, ba’to ven, Ludwig von (1770- 
1827), a great German musical composer, bom 
at Bonn. He studied under his father, a tenor 
singer, and at intervals under more noted 
teachers. He began to publish in 1783, became 
assistant court organist in 1785, and in 1792, 
was sent by the elector of Cologne to Vienna 
where he was the pupil of Haydn. There, in 
spite of many discouragements, he acquired a 
high reputation for pianoforte extemporization, 


Beetle 


Beetle 


though the merit of his written compositions was 
not recognized. In or near Vienna almost all 
his subsequent life was spent, his artistic tour 
in North Germany in 1796 being the most 
important break. His later life was rendered 
somewhat morbid by his deafness, of which the 
first signs appeared in 1797. However, his best 
works were published after 1800, two periods 
being observable: the first from 1800 to 1814, 



LUDWIG VON BEETHOVEN 


comprising Symphonies 2 to 8, the opera Fidelio 
(originally Lecmore), the music to Goethe’s 
Egmont and his most notable overtures; the 
second, comprising the Ninth Symphony and 
the more important of his sonatas, notably the 
Moonlight and Kreutzer sonatas. 

Beethoven’s name is inseparably connected 
with the symphony, for it was he who brought 
the form almost to perfection. His Fifth and 
Ninth symphonies are among the most beautiful 
compositions extant. 

Bee'tle, the common name of the Coleoptera, 
the largest order of insects, of which there are 
known to be at least 150,000 species. They have 
four wings, but the outer pair are hard and 
useless for flying. They are useful, however, as 
a double piece of armor to cover the soft back 
of the insect. In some species these wing covers 
are beautifully colored and brilliantly marked 
in varied designs. There are minute, almost 
microscopic forms of beetles, and large ones 
which may reach four inches in length. There 
is no uniformity in shape, as some are almost 


globular, others flat and round; some are long 
and slender, others thick and broad. The 
mouths of beetles are fittedjor biting and tearing, 
and in some species the mandibles or jaws are 
very large and strong. In some, the head is 
extended in a long beak not a part of the mouth. 
Beetles are found in the water, on the land, in 
flowers, in the ground, in the homes of other 
insects and even living as parasites in other 
animals. No parts of the world are free from 
them. Even the waters of hot springs and the 
ocean make homes for them. Their range of 
food is as wide as their habitations. Many 
species capture their food alive, while others 
prefer dead and decaying tissues. They have 
powerful compound eyes and sensitive antennae, 
which vary wonderfully in size and shape. 
Some are saw-like, others feathery, others long 
and smooth, some bearing leaf-shaped attach¬ 
ments, others terminating in knobs or catkin-like 
enlargements. Some beetles protect themselves 
by their mandibles, others by imitating their 
surroundings very closely, while some feign 
death and drop to the ground when disturbed. 
Some inoffensive species imitate wasps and 
hornets in their actions and so escape attack, 
while still other species protect themselves by 
shooting offensive odors at a pursuer. Their 
usefulness in fertilizing flowers and in burying 



BEETLES 


LADYBIRD APPLE-TREE GREAT WATER 

(3 times natural) borer _ scavenger 

size (natural size) (K natural size) 

JUNE BEETLE STAG-BEETLE LARVA OP GREAT 

(M natural size) (^natural size) water scavenger 

(H natural size) 

decaying substances, and, in some instances, 
in serving as food and medicine, cannot be denied; 
yet in general they are very destructive and some 
are terrible pests. They pass through a regular 
metamorphosis, and their larvae, which are 
usually rather thick and clumsy in shape, move 





Begonia 


Belfast 


about and are armed with strong mandibles, 
which they use viciously. The larvae are com¬ 
monly known as grubs. Their pupa state, 
which they pass in rude cocoons or cases, some¬ 
times lasts for several years. Very handsome 
collections of beetles can be easily made, because 
their hard wing-cases preserve their shapes, and 
no species is poisonous to handle. 

Bego'nia, alarge genus of juicy-stemmed herbs 
with fleshy, one-sided leaves of-various colors, 
and sometimes showy flowers, usually pink or 
red, and often variegated. Different species 
readily mix and many varieties have been 
raised from the tuberous-rooted kinds. From 
the shape of their leaves they have been called 
elephant's ear. 



BEGONIA 


Behring, ba'ring, Emil Adolf (1854- ), 

a noted German physician, born in Prussia. 
After graduation from the University of Berlin 
he was appointed surgeon in the army. His 
subsequent positions were professor in the 
University of Halle and director of the Hygienic 
Institute at Marburg. Behring was the dis- 
. coverer of the diphtheria serum, one of the most 
important steps in modern medical progress. 
One of his important works is Resistance to 
Infectious Diseases. 

Behring, Vitus. See Bering, Vitus. 

Beirut or Beyrout, ba'root or ba roof, the 
chief seaport of Syria, capital of a province of the 
same name, 60 mi. n. w. of Damascus. Its 
chief exports are olive oil, cereals, sesame, 
tobacco and wood; its manufactures are silk 
and cotton. In ancient times Beirut was a large 
and important Phoenician city. The Byzantine 
emperor Theodosius II raised it to the rank of a 


city, and it again rose to importance during the 
Crusades. It was bombarded and taken by 
the British in 1840. Population, estimated 
between 120,000 and 140,000. 

Bejapoor, beja por', formerly a great city of 
Hindustan, in the Bombay presidency, on an af¬ 
fluent of the Kistna, 245 mi. s.e. of Bombay. It 
was one of the largest cities in India until its cap¬ 
ture by Aurungzebe in 1686.. The ruins, of which 
some are in the richest style of Oriental art, are 
chiefly Mohammedan, the principal being Maho¬ 
met Shah’s tomb, with a dome visible for 14 
miles, and a Hindu temple in the earliest Brah- 
manical style. Population, about 17,000. 

Bel. See Baal. 

Belas'co, David (1862- ), an American 

playwright, born in San Francisco. He went 
upon the stage at the age of twelve and soon 
showed remarkable ability in adapting plays 
and stories to his use. He was connected with 
the Madison Square theater of New York City, 
later with the Lyceum theater, and during that 
time devoted himself chiefly to the writing of 
plays, among them being Lord Chumley, pro¬ 
duced for E. H. Sothem, The Girl I Left Behind 
Me (1893), The Heart of Maryland , a stirring 
melodrama of the Civil War, Zaza, Men and 
Women, Du Barry, Sweet Kitty Bellairs, The 
Darling of the Gods and Adrea. He has also 
been manager of some of the greatest of Ameri¬ 
can actors, notably Mrs. Leslie Carter and 
David Warfield. 

Belem, ba laN '. See Para. 

Belfast', a seaport of Ireland, principal 
town of Ulster and county town of Antrim. 
It is the second city of Ireland in population 
and the first in manufactures and trade. The 
chief educational institutions are the Queen’s 
College and the theological colleges of the 
Presbyterians and Methodists. The harbor and 
dock accommodation is now extensive, new 
docks having recently been added. Belfast is 
the center of the Irish linen trade and has the 
majority of spinning mills and power-loom 
factories in Ireland. The iron ship-building 
trade is also of importance, and there are brew¬ 
eries, distilleries, flour mills, oil mills, foundries, 
print works, tan yards, chemical works and 
rope works. The commerce is extensive. Bel¬ 
fast is comparatively a modem town, its pros¬ 
perity dating from the introduction of the cotton 
trade in 1777. Population in 1911, 385,492. 

Bel'fast, Me., a city in Waldo co., on Penob¬ 
scot Bay, 30 mi. s. w. of Bangor, at the terminus 
of the Maine Central railroad. The principal 


Belgium 

industries are the manufacture of shoes, doors, 
sashes, leather and boards, and ship-building. 
The surrounding country is agricultural and 
there are in the neighborhood granite quarries. 
Belfast was settled by the Scotch-Irish in 1770 
and became a city in 1853. Population in 
1910, 4618. 

Belgium, bel'je urn, one of the smallest 
countries of Europe, is situated between 49° 30' 
and 51° 30' north latitude and 2° 33' and 6° 6' 
east longitude. It is bounded on the n. by the 
Netherlands, on the e. by Prussia and Luxem¬ 
burg, on the s. by France and on the n. e. by 
the North Sea. Its greatest length is 165 miles, 
its greatest breadth 120 miles, and its area is 
11,400 square miles, or a little less than that of 
Maryland. 

Surface and Drainage. The surface 
resembles an inclined plane. The highest 
lands are in the southeast, and from these the 
country slopes gradually to the north and 
northwest, where it becomes a low, flat plain. 
The southern and eastern portions are broken 
and hilly. Extending through the central part 
of the country from north to south is a low 
swell which divides the basin of the Meuse 
from that of the Scheldt. North and west of 
this the land is low and level, and along the 
coast a sandy beach meets a shallow sea. This 
portion of the country is generally unattractive, 
but the southern and eastern portions are noted 
for the beauty of their scenery. 

Belgium is watered by the Meuse, flowing 
across the eastern, and the Scheldt, flowing 
across the western, part. Each of these rivers 
has numerous tributaries extending into all 
parts of the country. 

Mineral Resources. The southern and 
eastern provinces are rich in minerals, the most 
important being coal and iron. Lead, manga¬ 
nese and zinc are mined to some extent, 
and quarries of limestone, slate and marble are 
worked. The coal fields have an area of about 
500 square miles, and the annual output is 
about 22,000,000 tons. 

Agriculture. With the exception of the 
sandy plains in the north and some of the 
rocky regions among the mountains, the soil is 
fertile and well suited to agriculture. All 
tillable portions are occupied. The land is 
divided into small farms ranging from one and 
one-half to twelve and fourteen acres in size, 
and is cultivated with painstaking care. The 
low country in the north is generally devoted to 
raising live stock and to dairying. The hill 


Belgium 

farms in the southeast also raise live stock, 
principally horses, and in other localities large 
numbers of hogs are raised. The most impor¬ 
tant crops are flax, rye, oats, wheat, sugar beets, 
hops and tobacco. The interests of the farmers 
are carefully guarded by a government board of 
agriculture in each province. About one-seventh 
of the area of the country is covered with for¬ 
ests, but these are unevenly distributed, most 
of them being found in the hilly provinces of 
the southeast. Oak is the prevailing wood and 
furnishes considerable valuable timber. Agri¬ 
culture and forestry occupy the attention of 
about one-half of the people. 

Manufactures. Manufacturing is the most 
important industry, and the products are numer¬ 
ous and varied. Much of the work is done in 
small shops, in which the proprietor works alone 
or with one or two workmen, though large 
factories are numerous. The location of some 
of the chief industries is determined by the 
natural resources. The large iron works are in 
the southern and eastern provinces, near the 
coal and iron ore. They manufacture cast iron 
and steel and machinery of all kinds. Firearms, 
nails, shot, tinware and zinc are also important 
articles of manufacture. Flanders is the center 
of the flax industry, and this province has for 
centuries been noted for the superior quality of 
its linens. Liege, Verviers, Bruges and a num¬ 
ber of other towns are noted for their manu¬ 
factures of cotton and woolen goods. Lace is 
one of the most widely known of Belgian manu¬ 
factures. Much of this is made by hand and 
cannot be duplicated in any other country. 
The industry is distributed through nearly all 
the provinces. Belgium is also one of the lead¬ 
ing glass manufacturing countries of the world, 
and porcelain and other varieties of pottery 
ware of high grade are also made in some prov¬ 
inces. Brussels and Ghent are the centers of 
an important jewelry manufacture; in the agri¬ 
cultural district large quantities of sugar are 
made, and breweries and distilleries are 
numerous. 

Transportation. The Meuse and the 
Scheldt are navigable, and many of their tribu¬ 
taries have been canalized. Besides these, 
there are numerous canals, so that the country 
has a complete system of inland waterways, 
extending to all the important towns. The 
railway system is very complete and is neaily 
all under government control. Most of the sea¬ 
going trade is carried on through Ostend and 
Antwerp. 


Belgium 


Belgium 


The imports consist chiefly of food products 
and raw materials, such as cereals, cotton, flax, 
wool, lumber, minerals, chemicals and drugs; 
while the exports include cotton and woolen 
goods, laces, machinery and other manufac¬ 
tured products. France, Germany, the United 
Kingdom, the United States, Argentina and 
Russia are the leading countries connected with 
the foreign trade. 

Inhabitants and Language. The inhab¬ 
itants include two distinct types: a dark race 
which came from the south and is undoubtedly 
descended from the ancient Belgae; and the 
descendants of the Celts and Germans who 
entered the country from the north, and among 
whom the German language prevails. In the 
south both Flemish and French are spoken. 
For this reason nearly all places in the country 
have two geographical names, one Flemish and 
the other French. 

Education. A system of elementary schools 
is maintained either by the state or the local 
government. The smallest unit for the main¬ 
tenance of such a school is the commune. In 
addition to these, schools similar to our high 
schools are maintained by the government. 
Important state universities are located at 
Ghent, Liege and Brussels, and each of these 
contains schools of engineering and manufac¬ 
tures, arts and mechanics. There are also other 
industrial schools and normal schools. The 
Roman Catholic Church maintains a large 
number of parochial schools, which are esti¬ 
mated to equal the number of public elementary 
schools. 

Government and Religion. The govern¬ 
ment is a constitutional monarchy, and the 
crown is hereditary in the direct male line of 
descent. The king is assisted by the ministers, 
who are heads of the eight departments of state. 
The legislative power is vested in a national 
parliament, known as the Chambers, and con¬ 
sisting of a Senate and Chamber of Deputies. 
The Senate is composed of 102 members, 76 of 
whom are elected by citizens, and the remainder 
by provincial councils. The members of the 
Chamber of Deputies are elected by direct vote 
of the people. For the purpose of local govern¬ 
ment, the country is divided into nine provinces, 
each under a governor appointed by the king. 
Each province has its council, which is 
chosen by a direct vote for a period of eight 
years. These provinces are divided into arron- 
dissements, which are again subdivided into 
judicial arrondissements and cantons. 


There is no state church; all religions are 
tolerated and the state contributes to the sup¬ 
port of the clergy of all denominations; but 
Roman Catholicism is the prevailing belief and 
is embraced by about nine-tenths of the people. 

Cities. The important cities are Brussels, 
the capital, Antwerp, the principal seaport, 
Ostend, Ghent, Lifege and Bruges, each of 
which is described under its title. 

History. Belgium takes its name from the 
country inhabited by the ancient Belgae. which 
extended from the mouth of the Scheldt as far 
north as the Seine, and from the sea to the 
Vosges Mountains. From the time of the 
Roman occupation till early in the sixteenth 
century this portion of Europe was claimed 
first by one power and then by another. During 
the reign of Charles V it became a part of the 
kingdom of Spain. In the religious war waged 
by Philip II, the northern part of the country, 
or the Netherlands, secured its independence, 
but Belgium was left subject to Philip. By the 
Treaty of Utrecht, which closed the War of 
Spanish Succession, Belgium was given to 
Austria, but it was seized by France in 1744, 
only to be restored to Austria by the Treaty of 
Aix la Chapelle. During the career of Napo¬ 
leon, Belgium was closely united with France, 
and at the Congress of Vienna in 1815 it was 
united with the Netherlands under one govern¬ 
ment, but fifteen years later Belgium revolted 
and established the government which it now 
has. Under its present constitution the country 
has been placed in a prosperous condition. It 
is densely populated. Leopold II, the king, 
soon after the beginning of his reign, entered 
upon a policy of expansion, the result of which 
placed him at the head of the International 
African Association and made him ruler of the 
Kongo Free State (See Kongo Free State). 

In 1914, on the outbreak of the great Euro¬ 
pean War, Belgium became a vast battefield. 
Immediately after Germany had declined to 
respect Belgium neutrality, preparations were 
made to defend it by force. King Albert him¬ 
self took command of the army. So powerful, 
however, was the German invasion, that within 
a month practically the whole of Belgium, except 
Antwerp and the coast, was in the hands of the 
Germans, and in October Antwerp was taken. 
The government, which had first been trans¬ 
ferred from Brussels to Antwerp, was then trans¬ 
ferred to Ostend, and after the capture of Ostend, 
to Havre, France. See War of the Nations. 
Population in 1910, 7,516,730. 


Belgrade 


Bell 


Bel'grade, or Bel'grad, capital of Servia, 
on the right bank of the Danube, at the con¬ 
fluence of the Save. The principal buildings 
of the town are the king’s palace, the Metro¬ 
politan cathedral and the National theater. 
Belgrade is the seat of the Royal Servian Acad¬ 
emy of Sciences, to which belongs the National 
library, with about 100,000 books. The manu¬ 
factures are carpets, silk stuffs, hardware, cut¬ 
lery and saddlery, and the commerce is extensive. 
Being the key of Hungary, it was long an object 
of fierce contention between the Austrians and 
the Turks, remaining, however, for the most 
part in the hands of the Turks until 1867. In 1914 
it was taken by the Austrians after a four-months’ 
bombardment. Population in 1910, 90,890. 

Belial, be'le al or beel'yal, a word which by 
the translators of the English Bible is often 
treated as a proper name, as in the expressions, 
son of Belial, man of Belial. In the Old Testa¬ 
ment, however, it should be translated wicked¬ 
ness or worthlessness. To the later Jews, Belial 
seems to have become what Pluto was to the 
Greeks, the name of the ruler of the infernal 
regions; and in II Corinthians vi, 15, it seems 
to be used as the name of Satan, as the personi¬ 
fication of all that is bad. 

Belisa'rius, (505-565), the great general to 
whom the emperor Justinian chiefly owed the 
splendor of his reign. He obtained the chief com¬ 
mand of an army on the Persian frontiers, and in 
530 gained a victory over a superior Persian 
army. In 532 he checked the disorders in Con¬ 
stantinople and saved the life of Justinian. Suc¬ 
cessful wars were waged by him against the 
Vandals, the Goths and the Bulgarians, but in 
spite of all his services he was accused of treason 
and imprisoned. He was released before his 
death and restored to his honors. 

Belize, be leez', the capital and only trading 
port of British Honduras, situated at the mouth 
of the southern arm of the river Belize. It has 
no harbor, and steamers have to anchor a mile 
or more from the river mouth and land their 
cargoes by lighters. The exports are chiefly 
mahogany, rosewood, logwood, cedar, cocoanuts 
and sugar. Population in 1911, 10,478. 

Bell, a hollow, somewhat cup-shaped sound¬ 
ing instrument, made of a kind of bronze known 
as bell metal (See Bronze). Besides their use 
in churches, bells are employed for various 
purposes, the most common being to summon 
attendants or domestics in private houses, hotels 
and offices. Bells for this purposes are of small 
size and are either held in the hand and rung, or 


rung by means of an electric battery. The 
last method is now by far the more general. 

The Egyptians and Isrealites used a rude form 
of bells, and it is known that bells of considerable 
size were in early use in China and Japan, and 
that the Greeks and Romans 
also employed them for various 
purposes. One form, used in 
ancient Egypt and Greece, was 
known as the crotal. Bells are 
said to have been first intro¬ 
duced into Christian churches 
about 400 a. d. in Campania. 

From the combination of the 
names campania and nola, which 
were old names for bell, was 
obtained the name campanile, 
which means bell tower. Bells 
were introduced into France in queen mart.s 

, . HANDBELL 

550 and into England a little 
more than a century later. The oldest bells now 
existing in Great Britain and Ireland, such as 
the “bell of Saint Patrick’s Will” and Saint 
Ninian’s were four-sided and made of thin iron 



plates hammered and riveted together. 

Until the thirteenth century bells were of com¬ 
paratively small size, but after the casting of the 
Jacqueline of Paris (6| tons) in 1400, their weight 
rapidly increased. Among the more famous 
bells are the bell of Cologne, 11 tons, 1448; of 
Danzig, 6 tons, 1453; of Halberstadt, 7§, 1457; 
of Rouen, 16, 1501; of Breslau, 11, 1507; of 
Lucerne, 7\, 1636; of Oxford, 7\, 1680; of Paris, 
12Ve, 1680; of Bruges, 10*, 1680; of Vienna, l7f, 
1711; of Moscow (the monarch of bells), 193, 
1736; the Liberty Bell, at 
Philadelphia, 1752; three 
other bells at Moscow, rang¬ 
ing from 16 to 31 tons, and 
a fourth, of 80 tons, cast in 
1819; the bell of Lincoln, 

Great Tom, 5|, 1834; of 
York Minster, Great Peter, 
lOf, 1845; of Montreal, 13$, 

1847 the largest bell in 
America; of Westminster, Big Ben, 15$, 1856; of 
Saint Stephen, 13J, 1858; the Great Bell of 
Saint Paul’s, 17$, 1882. Others are the bells 
of Ghent, Gorlitz, Saint Peter’s in Rome, Ant¬ 
werp, Olmutz, Brussels, Novgorod and Peking. 

Bell, Alexander Graham (1847- ), a 

noted scientist and inventor, born in Edinburgh. 
He received his education in Edinburgh and 
London and in 1870 removed to Canada. Two 
years later he became professor of vocal physi- 



ANCIENT CROTAL 






BeU 


Bellaire 


ology at Boston University, where he introduced 
his father’s system of teaching the dumb to 
speak. His fame and fortune are due to the 
invention of the telephone, of which he holds 
the patent and which he exhibited at the Cen¬ 
tennial Exhibition of 1876. After Bell, a large 
number of experimenters appeared, suggesting 
endless modification, but no essentially new 
principle. The photophone, the joint work of 



ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELL 


Bell and Taintor, in which a vibratory beam of 
light is substituted for the electric current in con¬ 
veying speech, was introduced in 1880. Bell 
was also the inventor of the graphophone, which 
was the forerunner of the phonograph. He 
never gave up his interest in the education of 
the deaf, upon which he wrote much. 

Bell. Henry (1767-1830), a Scotch engineer, 
the first man successful in applying steam to the 
purposes of navigation in Europe. In 1798 he 
turned his attention specially to the steamboat, 
the practicability of steam navigation having 
been already demonstrated. In 1812 the Comet, 
a small thirty-ton vessel built at Glasgow under 
Bell’s direction and driven by a three-horse¬ 
power engine made by himself, commenced to 
ply between Glasgow and Greenock, and this 
was the beginning of steam navigation in Europe. 
Bell is also credited with the invention of the 
discharging machine used by calico-printers. 

Bell, John (1797-1869). an American states¬ 
man, bom near Nashville, Tenn. He graduated 
at what is now the University of Nashville in 1814, 


was admitted to the bar in 1816 and was elected 
to the state senate in 1817. He served in Con¬ 
gress as a Whig from 1827 to 1841, winning a 
reputation as a debater and especially as an 
ardent supporter of the protective tariff. He 
supported General Jackson as candidate for 
the presidency in 1832, and two years later was 
elected speaker of the House of Representatives. 
In 1841 Bell "was appointed secretary of war by 
President Harrison, and he was later in the United 
States Senate for ten years. He opposed the 
Texas annexation policy, advocated Henry 
Clay’s compromise of 1850, voted against 
the Kansas-Nebraska bill of 1850 and opposed 
the repeal of the Missouri Compromise. In 
1860, when secession was threatened by the 
Southern states, a convention of so-called “ Con¬ 
stitutional Union” men nominated him for 
president, and he received the electoral votes 
of Tennessee, Virginia and Kentucky. He, 
with other citizens of Tennessee, issued an 
address in favor of an armed neutrality in 
Tennessee in 1861, but he later supported the 
Southern policy. 

Bellacoo'la, a tribe of indians living in 
British Columbia. Though once a strong and 
important body of indians, their number has 
been reduced to a few hundred by diseases 
which they have gained from their acquaintance 
with the whites. They are a detached tribe of 
the Salishan group of indians. 

Belladon'na, the deadly nightshade, a plant 
native of Great Britain. All parts of the plant 
are poisonous, and the incautious eating of the 
berries has often produced death. The dried 
juice is commonly known by the name of extract 
of belladonna. It is narcotic and poisonous, 
but is of great value in medicine, especially in 
nervous ailments. It has the property of causing 
the pupil of the eye to dilate. The fruit of the 
plant is a dark, brownish-black, shining berry. 
The name signifies “beautiful lady” and is said 
to have been given because the juice was used 
to give a brilliant appearance to the eye. 

Belladonna Lily, so called on account of its 
beauty, a plant having delicate blushing flowers 
clustered at the top of a leafless flowering stem. 
It is a native of the Cape of Good Hope and of 
the West Indies. 

Bellaire, bel lair’, O., a city in Belmont go.. 
on the Ohio River, 5 mi. s. of Wheeling, W. Va., 
and on the Baltimore & Ohio, the Pennsylvania 
and other railroads. It is in a rich agricul¬ 
tural district, where coal, iron, cement, brick 
clays and limestone are also found in abundance. 








Bellamy 

The city has extensive manufactures of glass, 
steel, iron, nails and farm implements. It has 
water and gas works and electric lights. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 12,946. 

Bel'lamy, Edward (1850-1898), an American 
lawyer and author, born in Massachusetts. He 
was admitted to the bar in 1871, but subsequently 
entered journalism, being connected with the 
Springfield, Mass., and New York press. In 
1888 he published Looking Backward, a novel 
in which he outlines a dream or prophecy of 
perfect socialism. It is by this work that he is 
best known. 

Bell'bird, the name of a South American 
bird, so-called because of its peculiar notes, 
which sound like the tolling of a bell. From the 
forehead at the base of its beak grows a short 



BELLBIRD 


cylindrical projection of black skin dotted with 
small bunches of feathers. When the bird utters 
its note this projection slowly extends to per¬ 
haps five inches in length. 

Bell-crank, in machinery, a rectangular lever 
by which the direction of motion is changed 



through an angle of 90°, and by which its velocity 
ratio and range may be altered at pleasure by 
20 


Belleville 

making the arms of different lengths. The bell- 
crank is much employed in machinery; it is so- 
called because it is the form of crank usually 
employed in changing the direction of the wires 
of house bells. 

Belief ontaine. beVjontain, Ohio, the county- 
seat of Logan co., 45 mi. n. w. of Columbus, 
on the Detroit & Lima Northern and the 
Ohio Central railroads. It occupies the highest 
elevation in the state and is in an agricultural 
region. The city has extensive railroad shops 
and manufactures carriage-bodies, iron bridges 
and other articles. The place was first settled 
in 1818. Population in 1910, 8238. 

Belle Isle, bel eel', a rocky island at the 
eastern entrance to the Strait of Belle Isle, the 
channel between Newfoundland and the coast 
of Labrador. Here is a lighthouse 470 feet 
high. Steamers from Glasgow and Liverpool 
to Quebec, round the north of Ireland, commonly 
go by this channel in summer, as it is the 
shortest route. 

Belle Isle, Strait of, a channel between 
Labrador and Newfoundland, which connects 
the Gulf of Saint Lawrence with the Atlantic 
Ocean. It is the more northern of the two 
channels which connect these bodies of water, 
and is the shortest course between Great Britain 
and the Saint Lawrence. 

Bellerophon, be ler'o fon, in Greek mythol¬ 
ogy, the hero who slew the Chimaera. He had 
been sent on this quest by the king of Lycia, who 
wished to be rid of him, but he was assisted by 
Minerva in securing Pegasus, the winged horse, 
and with the aid of this steed he killed the 
monster. Legend says that in his later years he 
attempted to soar on Pegasus to the abode of 
the gods, and that for his presumption he was 
dashed to the earth and killed. 

Belleville, bel'vil, a city of Ontario, Canada, 
situated on Lake Ontario at the mouth of the 
Moira River, and on the Grand Trunk and 
Midlandnrailroads, 45 mi. w. of Kingston. It 
is in the midst of a fertile agricultural and dairy 
country, and its leading industries are commerce 
and manufactures. The most important manu¬ 
facturing establishments consist of ironworks, 
factories and sawmills. It has a good harbor 
and has steamer connection with all important 
ports on the lake. Albert University, which 
maintains separate colleges for men and women, 
and a large asylum for the deaf and dumb are 
located here. The town is also noted for its 
many beautiful churches. Population in 1911, 
9876.' 








Belleville 


Bell Rock 


Belleville, III., the county-seat of Saint Clair 
o., 14 miles s. e. of Saint Louis, on the Illinois 
Central, the Louisville & Nashville and other 
railroads. It is also connected with Saint Louis 
by electric railways. It is in an agricultural and 
coal mining region and has machine shops, iron 
foundries, stove works, glass and nail manu¬ 
factories and flour mills. The city has a public 
library, Saint Peter’s Cathedral, Saint Elizabeth’s 
Hospital and a commercial school. It was 
settled in 1814 and was incorporated in 1846. 
Population in 1910, 21,122. 

Bellevue, bel vu', Ky., a city in Campbell 
co., on the Ohio River, opposite Cincinnati, and 
on the Chesapeake & Ohio railroad. It was 
settled in 1866, incorporated in 1871 and is 
primarily a residence suburb of Cincinnati. 
Population in 1910, 6683. 

Bel'lingham, Wash., the county-seat of 
Whatcom co., 79 mi. n. of Seattle, on Belling¬ 
ham Bay, and on the Great Northern, the 
Northern Pacific and other railroads, making it 
an important railroad center. The surrounding 
region is fertile and also contains stone quarries 
and coal mines. The city has an excellent 
harbor and ships large quantities of fish, fruit, 
live stock and farm and dairy produce. The 
manufactures include lumber products, tin cans, 
boilers and engines, flour and feed, condensed 
milk and many other products. A state normal 
school is located here, and the city has churches, 
a public library, several hospitals, a city hall 
and a courthouse. The city is the commercial 
metropolis for the county and for a large sur¬ 
rounding territory, and is one of the most thriv¬ 
ing cities in the northern part of the state. It 
has street railways and electric lights. The 
town of Whatcom was settled in 1858 on the 
present site of Bellingham, and the city was 
formed in 1903 by the union of Whatcom and 
Fairhaven. Population in 1910, 24,298. 

Bellini, bel le'ne, Giovanni (about 1426- 
1516), the founder of the Venetian school of 
painting. His father, who excelled in portraits, 
and his older brother, Gentile, both painted 
with him and were worthy members of the 
school. Giovanni contributed much to make 
oil-painting popular and has left many note¬ 
worthy pictures. He was a colorist of the first 
order and did much to impart the marvelous 
golden tone to Venetian painting. Titian and 
Giorgione were among his pupils. Among his 
best known works are Peter Martyr, The Cruci¬ 
fixion, The Coronation of the Virgin and The 
Transfiguration. 


Bellini, Vincenzo (1802-1835), a celebrated 
composer, bom at Catania, Sicily, He was edu¬ 
cated at Naples and commenced writing operas 
before he was twenty, composing for the prin¬ 
cipal musical patrons of Europe. His most 
celebrated works are II Pirata (1829); La Sorn- 
nambula (1831), Norma (1832), his best and 
most popular opera, and I Purrtani (1834). 
His untimely death, at the age of thirty-three, 
cut short a career which promised much for 
musical art. 

Bello'na, the goddess of war among the 
Romans, often confounded with Minerva. She 
was the sister of Mars, or, according to some, 
his daughter or his wife. 

Bellows, bel'lus , a machine for producing 
and directing a strong current of air. The bel¬ 
lows is used to increase the heat of a fire by 



BELLOWS 


causing it to bum more rapidly. The common 
blacksmith bellows has three boards, the upper, 
lower and center. These are connected by 
flexible leather sides, which are air-tight. A 
weight is attached to the lower board. When 
it falls, air is drawn in through a valve. A 
lever is also attached to the board by which it 
is raised. When the lower board is raised the 
air in the lower chamber is forced through a 
valve in the center board into the upper cham¬ 
ber. A weight upon the upper board forces 
the air out through the nozzle, which is con¬ 
nected with the forge. Such a bellows produces 
a continuous current of considerable force. See 
Blowing Machine. 

Bellows Fish, also called the trumpet-fish, or 
sea-snipe , not uncommon in the Mediterranean 
and on the west coasts of Europe. It is from four 
to five inches long and has an oblong oval 
body and a tubular elongated snout, which is 
adapted for drawing from among seaweed and 
mud the minute animals on which it feeds. 

Bell Rock or Inch Cape, a dangerous reef 
in the North Sea, 12 miles from Arbroath, 
nearly opposite the mouth of the river Tay. 
The lighthouse on it was erected in 1810 by 
Robert Stevenson, at a cost of upward of 
$300,000. It rises to a height of 120 feet and 
has a revolving light showing alternately red 
and white every minute, and visible for 15 



Belmont 


Beluga 


miles. It also contains two bells, which are 
rung during thick w r eather. The reef is partly 
uncovered at ebb tides. 

Bermont, August (1816-1890), an American 
financier, born in Germany. He was employed 
by the Rothschilds in various capacities and 
represented them at New York 
after 1837. He was Austria’s 
consul general at New York 
from 1844 to 1850 and in 1854 
became American minister to 
Holland. He took an active 
interest in politics, being chair¬ 
man of the national Demo¬ 
cratic committee for twelve 
years, and he was also a liberal 
patron of the fine arts. 

His son, August Belmont 
(1853- ), also became a 

prominent capitalist, being an 
officer and director in many 
large railway, banking and 
manufacturing corporations, 
including the consolidated trac¬ 
tion lines of New York City. 

He is also a prominent Democratic politician. 

Beloit', Wis., a city in Rock co., 85 mi. s. w. 
of Milwaukee, on the Rock River and on the 
Chicago, Milwaukee & Saint Paul and the 
Chicago & Northwestern railroads. The river 
furnishes water power and the city contains 
foundries, paper mills and extensive manufac¬ 
tories of gas engines, windmills, agricultural 
implements and other articles. The city is the 
seat of Beloit College, a small Congregational 
institution of high standing. Beloit was first 
settled in 1824. Population in 1910, 15,125. 

Belshaz'zar, the last of the Babylonian kings, 
who reigned conjointly with his father Nabon- 
idus. He died in 538 b. c., during the success¬ 
ful storming of Babylon by Cyrus. This event 
is recorded in the book of Daniel. 

Belt or belting, a flexible endless band, or 
its material, used to transmit motion or power 
from one wheel, roller or pulley to another 
Driving belts are usually made of leather, india 
rubber or woven material but ropes and chains 
are also used for the same purpose 

There are a number of ways of lacing a belt, 
but every machinist has his own favorite method. 
One rather complex but effective way is to 
punch twenty-four holes, thirteen on one side 
and eleven on the other side. The lace is 
doubled in the center of its length and run 
through the middle hole of the second row on 


that side of the joint which contains eleven 
holes. The lace is passed over and under from 
side to side, bringing both ends of the lace out 
of the middle hole, and there the ends are tied 
on the outside of the belt. By this means there 
is no crossing of the lace on either side, and 
there can be no side play, and the lace will not 
creep. When a light belt is called upon to do 
little work, it is customary to lace the belt shoe¬ 
string fashion, back and forth through single 
rows of holes, always beginning the lacing in 
the center of the belt. Imperfectly adjusted 
belting is a fruitful cause of power waste, and 
a poorly laced joint is the principal cause of loss 
of transmitted energy. If a lace be crossed on 
the under side the belt is raised from the pulley 
every time the joint comes around, and not 
only is the power wasted, but the lace is soon 
worn through. Sometimes the lace on the other 
side is covered by a piece of belting, scraped 
thin and cemented to the joint In many cases 
the ends of the belt are scarfed, the laps cemented 
together and the whole strengthened by rivets 

Belt, The Great and The Little, the 
names of two straits of eastern Denmark, which 
connect the Baltic Sea with the Cattegat. The 
Great Belt runs between the islands of Zealand 
and Funen and is, on an average, about 15 miles 
wide, but its greatest breadth is 20 miles. The 
navigation of this strait is exceedingly dangerous, 
because of the numerous small islands and sand 
banks in the channel. The Little Belt runs 
between Funen and the coast of Jutland. In 
the narrowest place this strait is about a mile 
wide. A strong current often flows through 
both of these channels. 

Bel'tane, a sort of festival formerly observed 
in Ireland and Scotland, and still kept up in some 
remote parts. It is celebrated in Scotland on 
the first day of May, usually by kindling fires 
on the hills and eminences. In early times it 
was compulsory on all to have their domestic 
fires extinguished before the Beltane fires were 
lighted, and it was customary to rekindle the 
former from the embers of the latter. This 
custom no doubt derived its origin from the 
worship of the sun. 

Beluchistan, be loo'che stalin'. See Balu¬ 
chistan. 

Belu'ga, a kind of whale or dolphin, the 
white whale or white fish found in the northern 
seas of both hemispheres. It is from 12 to 18 
feet in length, and is pursued for its oil, classed 
as porpoise oil, and for its skin. In swimming, 
the animal bends jts tail under its body like a 



HOUSE 

Longitudinal sec¬ 
tion 
















Bemba 


Benevento 


lobster and thrusts itself along with the rapidity 
of an arrow. A variety of sturgeon found in the 
Caspian and Black Seas is also called beluga. 

Bem'ba. See Bangweolo. 

Benares, be nahr'ez, a town in Hindustan, 
on the left bank of the Ganges, 390 mi. n. w. 
of Calcutta. It lies along the Ganges for 
three miles, and the high bank has many broad 
flights of stairs leading to temples, mosques, 
palaces and other buildings. It is the head¬ 
quarters of the Hindu religion and contains 
about 1500 temples, to one of which is attached 
a large number of sacred monkeys. The Hindus 
consider Benares to be the most sacred place in 
the world, and throngs of pilgrims visit it, 
thinking that those of their faith who die there 
gain immediate admission into heaven. Benares 
carries on a large trade in the produce of the dis¬ 
trict, and manufactures silk shawls, embroidered 
cloth and jewelry. Population in 1911, 203,804. 

Benedict XV (1854- ), Giacomo della 

Chiesa, the successor of Pius X as Pope. His 
Holiness was born at Pegli, Italy, on November 
21, 1854, was ordained priest in 1878, and in 
1887 became secretary to Cardinal Rampolla, 
then the papal secretary of state. In 1907 he 
became one of the Advisers to the Holy Office, 
and later in the same year was appointed Bishop 
of Bologna. On May 30, 1914, he was created 
cardinal, and a few months later, on September 
3, was chosen Pope in a conclave which lasted 
only four days. This was the shortest conclave 
in the history of papacy, and no other Pope has 
been chosen after so short a service in the office 
of cardinal. 

Pope Benedict came to his high office after a 
brief but thorough training. While secretary 
to Cardinal Rampolla he was intimately con¬ 
nected with the negotiations between the papacy 
and the European powers, thus acquiring a 
knowledge of facts and diplomatic methods 
which must stand him in good stead in the 
delicate situations caused by the War of the 
Nations. Similarly, the Pope’s administration 
of the see of Bologne, one of the most important 
in Italy, proved invaluable experience for the 
administration of the greater office which he 
was later called upon to fill. A man of aristo¬ 
cratic birth and training, a noted scholar, 
famous for his fearlessness and moral courage. 
Pope Benedict is certain to occupy a prominent 
place in the history of his time. 

Benedictine, ben'e dik'tin, a strong liquor 
prepared in the same way since 1510, by the 
Benedictine monks of the abbey of Fecamp, in 


Normandy. France. While it is said to have 
medicinal properties, it is chiefly in use as a 
cordial after dinners. 

Benedictines, an order of monks noted for 
their following of the rules of Saint Benedict. 
The first monastery of the order was estab¬ 
lished at Monte Cassino by Saint Benedict, 
about 529. Benedict’s idea was that each mon¬ 
astery should be a separate organization, and 
that the monastery should, for the monk, take 
the place of the family. The order spread very 
rapidly, and after the sixth century the Benedic¬ 
tines were the leaders in the spread of Chris¬ 
tianity and civilization in the West. During 
the Dark Ages the order was very influential in 
preserving some of the traditions which the 
bishops had been instrumental in keeping alive, 
and their monasteries were the only places where 
the followers of the Church could find meeting- 
places in which they would be separate from the 
social classes. Because of the relation of the 
Benedictines to the Church and to the social 
classes, their monasteries became very large 
establishments, and their membership embraced 
not only monks but laymen. Within these estab¬ 
lishments various industries and trades were 
prosecuted, and some of the brothers were noted 
for their skill in dyeing, weaving cf cloth and 
tanning. It was also in these monasteries that 
many of the books written before the invention 
of the art of printing were made. The order 
has never lost its influence and has spread 
wherever the Roman Catholic Church is known. 
The Benedictines are noted for their piety and 
for theii fostering of education, many of the best 
colleges and other institutions of learning in the 
Catholic Church being under their control. 

Ben'efit Asso'cia'tions. See Fraternal 
Societies. 

Ben'efit of Cler'gy, a privilege formerly 
recognized in England, by which the clergy 
accused of capital offenses were exempted from 
the jurisdiction of lay tribunals and were left 
to be dealt with by their bishop. Though 
originally it was intended to apply only to the 
clergy or clerks, later every one who could read 
was considered to be a clerk. A layman could 
only receive the benefit of clergy once, however, 
and he was not allowed to go without being 
branded on the thumb, a punishment which 
later was commuted to whipping, imprisonment 
or transportation. The benefit of clergy was 
abolished in 1827. 

Ben'even'to (ancient Beneventum), a city of 
southern Italy, in a province of the same name. 



F 




Giacomo della Chiesa, born November 21, 1854, at Pegli.Italy. Ordained 
priest, 1878; made bishop of Bologna, 1907; created Cardinal, May, 1914, 
elected Pope, September 3, 1914. 




















































































Benevolence 


Benin 


on a hill between the rivers Sabato and Calore 
39 mi e. n. e. of Naples. Few cities have so 
many remains of antiquity, the most perfect 
being a magnificent triumphal arch of Trajan, 
built in 114. The cathedral is a building of the 
twelfth century, in the Lombard-Saracenic style. 
The chief manufactures are gold- and silver- 
plated ware, leather and parchment, and the 
trade in grain is important. The town has been 
the seat of an archbishop since the tenth century. 
Population in 1911, 24,314. 

Benev'olence, the name applied to certain 
forced loans or contributions which the kings 
of England sometimes demanded of their sub¬ 
jects when they were unable to obtain a sufficient 
revenue from Parliament. By the Bill of Rights 
in 1689 such forced loans were declared illegal. 

Bengal, ben gawl ', a lieutenant governorship 
of British India, situated at the head of the Bay 
of Bengal. Its greatest length is 475 mi., its 
greatest width, 350 mi., and its area, 151,543 sq 
mi., to which should be added the area of a num¬ 
ber of partially independent states which include 
58,500 sq. mi. Bengal is a large plain, sur¬ 
rounded by mountains and interested by many 
rivers, of which the Brahmaputra and the Ganges 
are the most important. The portion of the 
country around the Bay of Bengal is low and 
flat, and a large area of it is inundated during 
the rainy season each year. The soil is very 
fertile and supports a luxurious vegetation. 
Bengal is a rich agricultural country and about 
86,000 square miles are under cultivation. Of 
these, three-fourths are given to rice, about one- 
fifth to other cereals and the remainder to oil 
seeds, opium, indigo and a few other minor crops 
Silk is also grown, and the raising of jute is an 
important industry. The manufacturing inter¬ 
ests have suffered somewhat from the intro¬ 
duction of machine-made goods from Great 
Britain and other European countries, so that 
the delicate cotton and silk fabrics, formerly so 
common in Bengal, have nearly disappeared. 
Modem methods of manufacture have been 
introduced and large factories have been ejected 
in some of the cities and are supported by 
European capital. The commerce is very 
extensive, and most of it is carried on through 
the port of Calcutta. The imports are textiles, 
cotton, yarn, metal, sugar and machinery; and 
the exports, rice, opium, indigo, wheat and 
cotton. Most of the trade is carried on with 
Great Britain, China and Japan, and to some 
extent with the United States and Germany. 
The climate is very hot and during the rainy 


season is very unhealthful for any but the natives. 
The government is highly centralized. A 
lieutenant governor is the chief executive and 
is practically unassisted by any legislative body, 
though his authority is nominally shared by a 
council. Bengal is separated into nine divisions, 
each of which is under the administration of a 
board of commissioners. The different admin¬ 
istrative bodies are all under the supervision of 
the high court of Calcutta. Population in 1911, 
52,668,269. See India. 

Bengal, Bay of, that portion of the Indian 
Ocean which lies between Hindustan and 
Farther India, or Burmah, Siam and Malacca 
and which may be regarded as extending south 
to Ceylon and Sumatra. It receives the Ganges, 
Brahmaputra and Irrawaddy rivers. Calcutta, 
Rangoon and Madras are the most important 
towns on or near its coasts. 

Bengali, ben gah'le, one of the vernacular 
languages of India, spoken by about 50,000,000 
people in Bengal It is akin to Sanskrit, is 
written in characters that are evidently modified 
from that language, and it possesses many words 
borrowed from the Sanskrit. Large numbers 
of Bengali books and newspapers are now 
published. 

Benguela, ben ga'la, a district belonging to 
the Portuguese, situated on the west coast of 
South Africa and forming one of the three prov¬ 
inces of Angola. It has an area of about 150,000 
sq. mi. The region is well watered and produces 
abundant crops. The minerals include copper, 
silver, salt, sulphur and petroleum, but none 
of them is mined to any extent. In the earlier 
times it was a gerat market for slaves. The 
only town of importance is Benguela, the cap¬ 
ital, situated on a bay of the Atlantic in a beau¬ 
tiful valley. 

Beni, ba'ne, a river in Bolivia,South America. 
It rises in the eastern slopes of the Andes and, 
after a course of 900 miles, joins the Mamore 
to form the Madeira, which flows into the 
Amazon near Serpo. See Madeira River. 

Beilin, beneen', a negro country of West 
Africa, on the Bight of Benin, extending along 
the coast on both sides of the Benin River, 
west of the Lower Niger, and for some distance 
inland. The country, which gradually rises as 
it recedes from the coast, is well wooded and 
watered and is rich in vegetable productions. 
Cotton is a native product and is woven into 
cloth by the women; sugar cane, rice and yams 
are also grown. There is considerable trade in 
palm-oil. In consequence of a massacre of a 


Benjamin 

British mission, the king was deposed and the 
country was annexed by the British in 1897. 

Ben'jamin, Judah Philip (1811-1884), an 
American lawyer and statesman, born in the 
West Indies. When a young child he was taken 
to North Carolina; he later studied law in New 
Orleans and was elected United States senator 
for Louisiana in 1857. He was an able and 
earnest advocate of the Southern cause in the 
pre-Civil War era, and when the Confederacy 
was organized, he became attorney general in 
its cabinet, later becoming secretary of state. 
He proved remarkably capable, being widely 
known as “the brains of the Confederacy.” 
In 1865 he went to London, where he practiced 
law with great success until his death. 

Ben Lo'mond, a mountain in Scotland, in 
Stirlingshire, rising to a height of 3192 feet 
and giving a magnificent prospect of the vale of 
Stirling, the Lothians, the Clyde, Ayrshire, Isle 
of Man and the hills of Antrim. This mountain 
and the surrounding country occupy a prominent 
place in Scott’s Lady of the Lake. 

Ben Macdhui, mak doo'e, the second highest 
mountain in Scotland, situated in the southwest 
of Aberdeenshire, on the borders of Banffshire, 
forming one of a cluster of lofty mountains, 
among which are Brae-riach, Cairntoul and 
Cairngorm. Its height is 4296 feet. 

Ben'nett, -James Gordon (1795-1872), an 
American journalist, founder and editor of the 
New York Herald. He was born in Scotland 
and was educated for the Catholic priesthood 
in a seminary at Aberdeen, but the reading of 
Franklin’s Autobiography led him to emigrate 
to America in the spring of 1819. He spent a 
short time at Halifax, then went to Boston, 
where, after severe trials, he got employment in 
a printing office. In 1822 he went to New York. 
There he did subordinate work for various 
journals until in 1825 he made his first attempt 
to establish a journal of his own; the next ten 
years were occupied in a variety of similar 
attempts, all of which proved futile During 
that period, however, he became Washington 
correspondent of the Inquirer, and his letters, 
written in imitation of the letters of Horace 
Walpole, attracted attention. Finally, in 1835, 
appeared the first number of a small one-cent 
paper, bearing the title of New York Herald, 
and issuing from a cellar, in which the proprietor 
and editor played also the part of salesman. 
Through Bennett’s immense industry and 
sagacity, the paper became a great commercial 
success He was the first to employ European 


Bentham 

and financial correspondents, and he also was 
the first to introduce systematic sale by news¬ 
boys. Bennett continued to edit the Herald till 
his death. The successful mission of Stanley to 
Central Africa in search of Doctor Livingstone 
was undertaken by his desire, though carried 
out under his son’s direction. 

Bennett, James Gordon, Jr. (1841- ), 

an American journalist, son of the famous 
journalist of the same name. He is the pro¬ 
prietor of the New York Herald, the influence 
of which he maintained and extended by publish¬ 
ing London and Paris editions. At his father’s 
request he projected Stanley’s expedition to 
Africa in search of Livingstone. He was one of 
the founders of the Commercial Cable Com¬ 
pany. 

Ben Nev'is, the highest mountain of Great 
Britain, situated in Scotland, on Loch Eil, at 
the southern entrance of the Caledonian Canal. 
Its altitude is 4406 feet, and in clear weather 
one can obtain from its summit a view which 
extends nearly across the north of Scotland from 
sea to sea. The Scottish meteorological society 
has an observatory on the mountain. 

Ben'nington, Vt., a town and county-seat 
of Bennington co., 37 mi. n. e. of Troy. It has 
extensive manufactures of woolen and knit 
goods, machinery, shirts and collars. The Battle 
of Bennington was fought near here, and the 
town has a famous battle monument over 300 
feet high, commemorating this event. Popula¬ 
tion in 1910, 6,211. 

Bennington, Battle of, a battle of the 
Revolutionary War, fought near Bennington, Vt., 
Aug. 16, 1777, between a body of Hessians 
from Burgoyne’s invading force, supported by a 
few British soldiers, loyalists and indians and 
about 2000 New Hampshire militia under John 
Stark. The whole British force was either 
killed, wounded or captured. Reenforcements 
from the British camp were met by Green 
Mountain Boys under Seth Warner and suffered 
a loss of more than 200 killed and 700 wounded. 
These two battles cost Burgoyne nearly one- 
seventh of his force and caused many loyalists 
and indians to desert. A memorial monument 
was dedicated on the scene of the battle in 
August, 1891. 

Ben'tham, George (1800-1884), an English 
botanist, nephew of Jeremy Bentham. He early 
devoted himself to botany. He resided in south¬ 
ern France, where his father had an estate. In 
company with Sir J. D. Hooker he produced 
the great descriptive botany, Genera Plantarum, 


Bentham 


Benzene 


Bentham, Jeremy (1748-1832), an English 
philosopher and jurist, born in London and 
educated at Westminster School and Queen’s 
College, Oxford, from which he took the master’s 
degree when but seventeen years of age. After 
this he studied under Blackstone and prepared 
for the practice of law. He was, however, more 
strongly attracted by the theory and philosophy 
of law, to which he turned his attention. He 
became the greatest legal and political critic of 
his day. At the age of twenty-eight he pub¬ 
lished A Fragment on Government. ThL essay 
was so well written and showed evidence of such 
remarkable reasoning, that it at once placed 
Bentham in the foremost rank of legal critics. 
Two years later he published another essay, 
which criticised severely the mode of crimind. 
punishment then in existence and showed a 
reasonable and practical way of improving the 
same. It is considered that by this essay and 
writings that followed Bentham did more than 
all other writers and critics to revolutionize the 
systems of punishment then in vogue. 

In addition to his works on legal criticism, 
Bentham published a treatise'on ethics and a 
constitutional code which is considered one of 
his most important works. He favored uni¬ 
versal suffrage and was intensely practical in all 
his views, being guided by the motto, “The 
greatest happiness for the greatest number.” 
Like many other reformers, he failed to see that 
his reforms could be established only through 
growth in public sentiment, and he was there¬ 
fore impatient of delay. Many of his principles 
and theories have been put into practice and 
have conferred great benefit upon the English 
people. 

Ben'ton, Thomas Hart (1782-1858), an 
American statesman, born in Hillsborough, N. C. 
His education began at the University of North 
Carolina, but he removed to Tennessee and 
there studied law, being admitted to the bar of 
Nashville in 1811. He entered the army in the 
War of 1812, .serving as Andrew Jackson’s 
aid-de-camp, and he also raised a regiment, of 
which he was appointed colonel. When this 
was disbanded in 1813, he was made lieutenant 
colonel by President Madison. 

In 1815 he moved to Saint Louis, where he 
practiced law and founded The Missouri 
Inquirer, a journal of strong pro-slavery pro¬ 
clivities. He advocated the admission of Mis¬ 
souri as a slave state, and when it was admitted 
to the Union in 1820 he was chosen to the 
United States Senate, where he served for thirty 


years. He was closely connected with every 
important measure of his time and was especially 
loyal to Western interests, being an earnest 
advocate of the opening of mineral lands to 
settlement and of the construction of a trans¬ 
continental railroad. He took an active part in 
the discussions in regard to the Oregon boundary 
and the annexation of Texas, and he was in favor 



THOMAS HART BKNTON 


Qf the Mexican War. He opposed Henry Clay’s 
compromise measures in 1850, and this cost him 
his seat in the Senate. In 1852 he was elected 
to the House of Representatives, where he 
opposed the policy of President Pierce and the 
Kansas-Nebraska bill. In 1854 he was defeated 
for Congress by a coalition of his political oppo¬ 
nents. He then retired from public fife and 
devoted himself to completing his Thirty Years 
View, or a History of the Working of the Ameri¬ 
can Government from 1820 to 1850. 

Benton Har'bor, Mich., a city in Berrien 
co., on the Pere Marquette and other railroads. 
It is on the east side of Saint Joseph River and 
the Benton Harbor Ship Canal, 1§ mi. from 
Lake Michigan and 60 mi. n. e. of Chicago. 
Regular lines of steamers connect it with Chi¬ 
cago and Milwaukee. It has a large trade in 
grain and lumber, is a great fruit-shipping port 
and has large fruit-packing, pickle and canning 
factories. Population in 1910, 9185. 

Ben'zene, Ben-zine', or Ben'zol, a colorless 
liquid having a pleasant odor and obtained in 
large quantities from the distillation of coal tar. 
When cooled to freezing point, it solidifies, form- 




Beowulf 

ing crystals. It burns with a bright flame, and 
in liquid form dissolves india rubber, gutta¬ 
percha, fat and wax. It is used in the prepara¬ 
tion of varnishes, for cleaning gloves and for 
removing grease-spots from woolen and other 
cloths. When mixed with nitric acid, benzene 
forms nitrobenzene, from which aniline is ob¬ 
tained. Benzene is very inflammable, and its 
vapor when mixed with air is highly explosive. 
See Aniline; Petroleum. 

Beowulf, ba'o woolf, an Anglo-Saxon epic 
poem, the only existing manuscript of which 
belongs to the tenth century and is in the British 
Museum. It recounts the adventures of the 
hero Beowulf, especially his delivery of the 
Danish kingdom from the monster Grendel and 
his equally formidable mother, the slaughter of 
a fiery dragon and his own death from wounds 
received in the conflict. The character of the 
hero is attractive through his noble simplicity 
and disregard of self. The poem is the longest 
and most important in Anglo-Saxon literature, 
but the manuscript is obscure in many places. 

Beranger, ba rahN zha', Pierre Jean de 
(1780-1857), a famous French lyric poet. He 
applied in 1804 to Lucien Bonaparte for assist¬ 
ance and succeeded in obtaining from him a 
pension of 1000 francs and, five years later, a 
university clerkship. In 1828 a fourth collec¬ 
tion of his poems was published and this sub¬ 
jected him to a state prosecution, an impris r 
onment of nine months and a fine of 10,000 
francs. In 1833 he published his fifth and last 
collection. Despite the fact that his first popu¬ 
lar song, King of Yvetot, contained a gentle 
satire on Napoleon, Beranger was a sincere 
admirer of the emperor, and by his numerous 
songs he did much to implant in the hearts of 
the people the adoration for the genius of Bona¬ 
parte which lasted for generations. 

Berber, bur'bur, a people spread over nearly 
the whole of northern Africa, from whom the 
name Barbary is derived. Generally they are 
of about middle height; their complexion is 
brown and sometimes almost black, and they 
have brown and glossy hair. They are sparely 
built, but robust and graceful. They till the 
soil, raise herds of sheep, goats and camels, and 
live in tents or houses of stone or brick, as the 
country compels. Three distinct groups are 
recognized. 

Ber'gamo, a city in northern Italy, capital 
of the province of Bergamo, 39 mi. n. e. of 
Milan. The city is divided into two distinct 
parts, both of which afford beautiful scenery. 


Bergman 

It has a cathedral, a library, the Colleoni Chapel, 
a city hall and an academy of arts. There are 
also several manufactories, which carry on 
extensive business and furnish supplies of silk, 
woolen, iron goods and organs. Population in 
1911, 55,489. 

Bergamot, bur'ga mot, a fruit tree, variously 
classed with the orange or the lime or as a 
distinct species. It is probably of Eastern 
origin, though it is now grown in southern 
Europe. The fruit is pear-shaped, of a pale 
yellow color, and has a fragrant and slightly 
acid pulp. Its essential oil is in high esteem 
as a perfume. Bergamot is also a name given 
to a number of different pears and, in the 
United States, to several pleasingly fragrant 
plants of the mint family. 

Ber'gen, one of the chief seaports of Norway, 
situated at the head of a deep bay, 125 mi. n. w. 
of Christiania. The city has beautiful scenery, 
with a background of lofty mountains. The 
chief buildings are the cathedral, observatory, 
general museum, nautical school and public 
library. The leading manufactures are ship¬ 
building and barrel-making. Most of the inhab¬ 
itants are engaged in fishing, which is a very 
important industry. The city was founded 
about 1070. It was ravaged several times by 
pestilences. During the Middle Ages it was 
an important station of the Hanseatic League. 
Population in 1910, 76,867. 

Bergh, burg, Henry (1820-1888), founder 
of the American Society for the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Animals. After studying at Colum¬ 
bia College he went to Europe, where he spent 
twelve years, and in 1862 he was appointed secre¬ 
tary of the American legation in Saint Peters¬ 
burg. This position he resigned to devote his 
time to the protection of animals. The first 
American society was incorporated, with Mr. 
Bergh as its president, in 1866. In the face of 
ridicule and opposition he created a reform 
recognized as one of the beneficent movements 
of the age. In 1886 thirty-nine states of the 
Union, besides Canada, Brazil and the Argen¬ 
tine Republic, had adopted the original laws 
procured by him for the State of New York. 
He invented artificial pigeons for the sportsman’s 
gun, and he first established an ambulance for 
removing injured animals from the street. In 
1874 he rescued a little girl from brutal treat¬ 
ment, and this act led to the founding of a Society 
for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. 

Berg'man, Torbern Olof (1735-1784), a 
Swedish physicist and chemist. He succeeded 


Berhampur 

in the preparation of artificial mineral waters, 
discovered the sulphureted hydrogen gas of 
mineral springs and published a classification 
of minerals on the basis of their chemical char¬ 
acter and crystalline forms. His theory of 
chemical affinities greatly influenced the subse¬ 
quent development of chemistry. 

Berhampur, bur ham 'poor', the name of two 
towns of India. 1. A town and military station 
in the northeast portion of Madras presidency, 
the capital of Ganjam district. It has consid¬ 
erable trade in sugar and manufactures of 
silk. Population, about 25,000. 2. A municipal 
town and the capital of Murshidabad district, 
Bengal. It was the scene of the first open act 
of the Sepoy mutiny in 1857. Population, 
about 25,000. 

Beri-beri, ba're ba're, the local name of a 
disease often seen in parts of India, Ceylon, 
Japan and other eastern lands, characterized 
by paralysis, numbness, difficult breathing and 
other symptoms. Sometimes madness develops, 
the patient attacks his companions and often 
dies in paroxysms. Beri-beri is a form of 
neuritis, occurring everywhere. 

Be'ring or Beh'ring, Vitus (1680-1741), a 
famous Danish navigator. ' The courage he 
displayed as captain in the navy of Peter the 
Great during the Swedish wars led to his being 
chosen to command a voyage of discovery in 
the Sea of Kamtchatka. In 1728, and subse¬ 
quently, he examined the coasts of Kamtchatka, 
Okhotsk and the north of Siberia, ascertaining 
the relation between the northeastern Asiatic 
and northwestern American coasts. Returning 
from America in 1741, he was wrecked upon the 
desert island which bears his name, and died 
there. 

Bering Island, the most westerly island of 
the Aleutian chain, off the east coast of Kamt¬ 
chatka. It is uninhabited and contains no 
timber. 

Bering Sea, that portion of the North Pacific 
Ocean extending from the Aleutian Islands to 
Bering Strait and bounded on the west by the 
peninsula of Kamtchatka and what is known 
as the Chico country. During winter it con¬ 
tains floating and pack ice, and most of the 
year its waters are covered with a dense fog. 

Bering Sea Controversy, a dispute between 
Great Britain and the United States over the 
seal fisheries in the North Pacific Ocean. Since 
.1867, the United States had carefully regulated 
by license the killing of seals on the Pribilof 
Islands, receiving a royalty for each skin; but 


Berkeley 

after 1886 unlicensed fleets were organized to 
kill the seals during the winter months, when 
they are more than three miles from shore, or 
beyond the jurisdiction of the United States 
government. In order to restrict the unlicensed 
killing, the United States set up a claim that 
Bering Sea was a closed sea, that is, subject to 
the exclusive jurisdiction of the United States. 
This was protested by Great Britain, and by a 
treaty in 1892 the question was referred to 
arbitration. The tribunal, which consisted of 
one Englishman, one Canadian, two Americans 
(Justice John M. Harlan and Senator J. T. 
Morgan) and one representative each of 
France, Italy and Sweden and Norway, re¬ 
ported Aug. 15, 1893, a decision which was 
generally unfavorable to the United States. 
It led, however, to the adoption of other 
restrictions. These proved ineffectual, and, in 
spite of almost constant negotiations since that 
time, no satisfactory solution of the problem has 
been found. 

Bering Strait, the narrow channel separating 
Asia from North America and connecting the 
North Pacific with the Arctic Ocean. Its width 
at the narrowest point between Cape Prince of 
Wales and East Cape is about 36 miles. In 
depth it varies from 175 to 180 feet. During 
the winter it is frozen, and it is seldom free 
from fog or haze. It was discovered by Vitus 
Bering, but was first fully explored by Captain 
Cook in 1778. 

Berkeley, burlc'ly, Cal., a city in Alameda 
co., adjoining Oakland, on the Southern Pacific 
and Santa Fe railroads. It has a beautiful 
location on the heights overlooking San Francisco 
Bay. The University of California, the state 
agricultural college, the Berkeley Bible Seminary 
and several preparatory schools are located here, 
besides institutions for the deaf, dumb and 
blind. Population in 1910, 40,434. 

Berkeley, burlc'ly or bahrk'ly, George 
(1685-1753), bishop of Cloyne in Ireland, a 
celebrated philosopher who maintained that the 
belief in the existence of an exterior material 
world is false and inconsistent with itself; that 
those things which are called sensible material 
objects are not external, but exist in the mind 
and are merely impressions made on our minds 
by the immediate act of God, according to cer¬ 
tain rules termed laws of nature, from which 
he never deviates. Berkeley is well known for 
his verses, wherein occurs the expression, 
“Westward the course of empire takes its way.” 
Among his writings are Essay Toward a New 


Berkeley 


Berlin 


Theory of Vision and a Treatise Concerning the 
Principles of Human Knowledge. 

Berkeley, Sir William (1610-1677), a 
colonial governor of Virginia. He was born near 
London, studied at Oxford and became gov¬ 
ernor of Virginia in 1641. When Cromwell 
gained control of the British government, Gov¬ 
ernor Berkeley offered an asylum in Virginia to 
loyalists and kept the colony loyal to the king 
until 1651. In that year he was compelled to 
resign, but he was again chosen governor in 1660. 
Several harsh measures which he adopted caused 
dissatisfaction, particularly his faithlessness and 
obstinacy in dealing with the indians, and in 
1675 he was barely able to put down a rebellion 
in the colony (See Bacon s Rebellion). He 
was recalled and died of a broken heart. 

Berkshire, hurk'shir, Hills, the name applied 
to the hilly region in Berkshire co., Mass. The 
mountains are a continuation of the Green 
Mountains of Vermont and reach a height of 
over 3000 feet in Greylock. The scenery of this 
region is especially beautiful and renders it 
famous as a summer resort. 

Berlin, hurlin' or ber'lin, the largest city in 
Germany, capital of the Prussian dominions 
and of the German Empire, situated in the 
province of Brandenburg, on a sandy plain on 



both sides of the Spree. The original portion 
of the city lies on the right bank of the river, and 
is irregularly built. The more modern portion 
is regular in its plan, and the streets are lined 
with imposing and well-built edifices, mostly 
of white freestone or brick covered with a 
coating of plaster or cement. Of the numerous 
bridges, the finest is the Castle (Schloss) Bridge, 
104 feet wide, which has eight piers, surmounted 
by colossal groups of sculpture in marble. The 
principal and most frequented street, Unter den 


Linden, so called from its double rows of linden 
trees, is about two-thirds of a mile in length and 
160 feet wide. At the east end of this street, 
and round the Lustgarten (a square with which 
it is connected by the Schloss Bridge), are clus¬ 
tered the principal public buildings of the city, 
while at the west end is the Brandenburg Gate, 
after the pattern of the Propylaea at Athens, 
regarded as one of the finest portals in existence. 
Immediately beyond this gate is the zoological 
garden (thiergarten) , an extensive and well- 
wooded park containing the palace of Bellevue 
and places of public amusement. There are also 
several other public parks. The principal public 
buildings are the royal palace, or Schloss, a 
vast rectangular pile; the museum, opposite 
the Schloss, a fine Grecian building, with an 
extensive collection of sculpture and painting, 
and the royal theater, a fine Grecian edifice. 
The royal library and the palace of the emperor 
are united. The former contains 1,000,000 
volumes and 30,000 manuscripts and charts. 
The new cathedral, the university, the exchange, 
the Italian opera house, the principal Jewish 
synagogue, the town hall and the old archi¬ 
tectural academy are all beautiful structures. 
Among the most remarkable of modem monu¬ 
ments are the National Monument to Emperor 
WilliamT opposite the royal palace, the monu¬ 
ment to Frederick the Great, in Unter den 
Linden, and the Peace Monument of Victory, 
on the Konigs Platz. 

The literary institutions of the city are numer¬ 
ous and excellent, and Berlin ranks among the 
first cities as a center of learning. Besides the 
University of Berlin (See Berlin, University 
of), there are the academy of sciences, the 
academy of fine arts, the military academy, the 
royal school of agriculture and the technical 
high school or academy of architecture and 
industry. 

The manufactures of Berlin are various and 
extensive, including steam engines and other 
machinery, brass founding and various articles 
of metal, sewing machines, paper, cigars, pottery 
and porcelain, pianos and artificial flowers. 
Among its chief industrial establishments are 
the royal iron-foundry and the royal porcelain 
factory. The chief articles of commerce are 
grain, cattle, wool and timber. 

The government of Berlin is republican, but 
so disposed as to place the virtual control of the 
city in the hands of those who own property. 
The council, consisting of 126 members, is 
elected for six years, the term of one-third 









Berlin 


Bermuda Islands 


expiring every two years. The council elects 
the mayor and is the source of governmental 
authority in the city. The executive branch of 
the government is in the hands of the mayor, 
with a body of thirty-four magistrates, one-half 
of whom are salaried. 

The oldest parts of Berlin were originally poor 
villages and first rose to some importance under 
Markgraf Albert (1206-20); yet about two 
centuries ago Berlin was still a place of little 
consequence. The first important improvement 
was made by the great Elector Frederick William, 
who laid out the Unter den Linden, and in 
whose time the city numbered 20,000 inhabitants. 
Under his successors, Frederick I and Frederick 
the Great, the city was rapidly enlarged and 
improved. In 1871 Berlin became the capital 
of the German Empire; its growth since then has 
been marvelous. Population in 1910, 2,064,153. 

Berlin, bur'lin, a town of Ontario, Canada, 
about 60 mi. w. s. w. of Toronto, on the Grand 
River and on the Grand Trunk railroad. It has 
manufactures of furniture, leather, boots and 
shoes, pianos and gloves. It contains a Roman 
Catholic college and fifteen churches. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 15,192. 

Berlin, N. H., a city of Coos co., on the 
Androscoggin River and on the Grand Trunk 
and the Boston & Maine railroads. The city 
is beautifully located near the base of Mount 
Washington. It has valuable water power; one 
of the largest pulp mills in the United States is 
located here, and there are also paper mills, 
lumber yards and shoe factories. Population 
in 1910, 11,780. 

Berlin, Congress 'of. At the close of the 
Russo-Turkish War in 1878, Russia obtained 
from Turkey a treaty highly favorable to herself. 
The other European powers, however, were far 
from satisfied with it, as it gave too much power 
to Russia in southeastern Europe. A congress, 
therefore, of representatives from Germany, 
Austria, France, England, Italy, Russia and 
Turkey met at Berlin in June, 1878, to modify 
the terms of peace. The foremost statesmen of 
Europe were present, among them Beaconsfield 
and Salisbury from England, Prince Gortchakoff 
and Count Shuvaloff from Russia, Bismarck and 
General Von Biilow from Germany, Andrassy 
from Austria-Hungary, M. Waddington from 
France and counts Corti and de Launay from 
Italy. 

By the Treaty of Berlin, Russia was robbed 
of much that she had gained by her victory over 
Turkey. By the Treaty of San Stefano, Bul¬ 


garia and Eastern Rumelia had been created an 
independent state, but the Congress of Berlin 
made of the northern part of Bulgaria proper 
an autonomous state, and of the southern, 
Eastern Rumelia, a province under Turkish 
dominion. Servia, Montenegro and Rumania 
were allowed to remain independent, but Austria 
was given administrative control of Bosnia and 
Herzegovina. The principle emphasized by the 
Congress was that the Turkish Empire in Europe 
was not to be dismembered, and that questions 
concerning it were to be settled, not by any one 
power, but by all the powers in conference. 

Berlin, Treaty of. See Berlin, Con¬ 
gress OF. 

Berlin, University of, one of the most famous 
universities in the world, established at Berlin in 
1810, during the reign of Frederick William III, 
and at the suggestion of Wilhelm von Humboldt, 
who was then minister of education. The 
university includes departments of theology, 
jurisprudence, medicine and philosophy, which 
includes arts and sciences. It also has in con¬ 
nection with it several institutions, such as the 
institutes of physics and physiology, clinics, 
seminaries and museums. It is supported by the 
State, and is under the control of the minister 
of education. The instructors and professors 
number about 400, and the usual attendance is 
11,000. Students of all nationalities are admitted, 
and women, except those of Germany, are 
admitted to certain departments under some 
restrictions. The library contains 160,000 vol¬ 
umes, besides a large number of pamphlets and 
theses. See University. 

Berlin Decree. See Continental System. 

Berlioz, bare'le ose, Hector (1803-1869), a 
French composer, the leader of the modern, or 
Romantic, school of music in his native country. 
He forsook medicine to study music at the Paris 
Conservatoire, where he gained the first prize in 
1830, with his cantata, Sardanapale. There¬ 
after he achieved a wide reputation for the com¬ 
position of so-called program music, in which a 
story is realistically expressed by the music. 
His symphony, Herold, en Italie, his opera, Les 
Troyens and his dignified Te Deum are now 
considered masterpieces, though scarcely recog¬ 
nized during his lifetime. 

Bermu'da Grass, a grass cultivated in the 
West Indies, United States and Europe. It is a 
valuable fodder and lawn grass in warm climates 
where the soil is not very wet. 

Bermuda Islands or Somers Islands, a 
cluster of small islands in the Atlantic Ocean* 


Bern 


Bersaglieri 


belonging to Great Britain and having an area 
of about 20 sq. mi. They are farther north than 
any other islands of coral formation, due to the 
warm water of the Gulf Stream. They also 
differ from other atolls in containing hills, some 
260 feet high, formed of windblown coral sand, 
which rain has made into solid rock. The 
Bermudas were first discovered by Juan Ber¬ 
mudez, a Spaniard, in 1522, and the first settle¬ 
ment was made in 1609 by Sir George Somers, 
an Englishman. These islands form an impor¬ 
tant British naval and military station. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 18,994. 

Bern or Berne, bum, a town in Switzerland, 
capital of the canton of Bern, and, since 1848, 
of the whole Swiss Confederation. It is situated 
1700 feet above the sea and is nearly surrounded 
by the River Aar. No city in Switzerland excels 
it in beauty and it is among the most regularly 
built towns in Europe. Among the public 
buildings are the great Gothic cathedral, built 
between 1421 and 1502; the church of the Holy 
Spirit; the federal-council buildings, or parlia¬ 
ment house, commanding a splendid view of the 
Alps; the university; the town house, a Gothic 
edifice of the fifteenth century, and the mint. 
Bern has an academy, several literary societies 
and an excellent public library. The manu¬ 
factures are woolens, linens, silk stuffs, stockings, 
watches, clocks and toys. Bern became a free city 
of the Empire in 1218. In 1353 it entered the 
Swiss Confederacy. Population in 1910, 85,264 

Bemadotte, bur na dot', Jean Baptiste Jules. 
See Charles XIV John. 

Bernard, bur'rird or bur nahrd', Saint 
(1091-1153), of Clairvaux. one of the most 
influential ecclesiastics of the Middle Ages, bom 
at Fontaine, Burgundy. He became a monk 
at Citeaux, and was the first abbot of Clairvaux, 
the great Cistercian monastery near Langres. 
He secured the condemnation of Abelard for 
heresy. Seventy-two monasteries owed their 
foundation or enlargement to him, and he left 
439 epistles, 340 sermons, 12 theological and 
moral treatises and a few hymns. Luther said 
of him, “If there ever lived a God-fearing and 
holy monk, it was Saint Bernard of Clairvaux.” 

Bernhardt, Rosine, called Sarah (1844- 
), a noted French actress. She was of 
Jewish descent, but was baptized into the 
Christian faith according to her father’s wish, 
and spent the early years of her life in a convent. 
Upon entering the Paris Conservatory in 1858, 
she received second prizes in tragedy and comedy. 
Her professional d£but in 1862 was made in 


Racine's Iphegenie, but was not exceptionally 
successful. She then took up burlesque, but 
failed to attract attention. Her first real success 
was in Ruy Bias, in 1867. In 1872 Madame 
Bernhardt was recalled to the Theatre Franfais, 
where she had previously failed, and soon after¬ 
ward achieved a distinct triumph in Le Sphinx, 
and later as Dona Sol in Victor Hugo’s Hernani. 
She appeared in London in 1879 and aroused 
great enthusiasm, and shortly afterward she 
made a very successful tour through the United 



SABAH BEBNHABDT 


States. In 1882 she married Damala, a Greek 
actor, but was separated from him in the fol¬ 
lowing year. Thereafter she appeared succes¬ 
sively in Fedora, La Tosca, Gismonde and 
La Samaritaine and in 1900 took the parts of 
Hamlet and L’Aiglon. She toured the United 
States in L’Aiglon with Coquelin, with the same 
remarkable success that she had achieved on 
former visits. In 1912 and 1913 she made her 
last tours of the United States, appearing in 
Le Femme de Claude, Phedre, Magda, Sapho, 
La Dame aux Camelias, Fedora, La Tosca and 
Adrienne Lecouvreur. She visited all parts of 
the country, and the general verdict was that 
her work was on a higher plane than ever. Be¬ 
sides attaining a reputation for ability and re¬ 
markable versatility in her art, she has also pro¬ 
duced work of high excellence as painter, sculp¬ 
tor and author. On January 13, 1914, Mme. 
Bernhardt was admitted to the Legion of Honor, 
an honor never before accorded an actor. 

Bersaglieri, ber'sa lya're, a corps of Italian 
sharpshooters, organized early in the reign of 


Berthier 

Victor Emmanuel, by General Alessandro della 
Marmora. Two battalions took part in the 
Crimean War and distinguished themselves at the 
battle of Tchernaya (Aug. 16, 1855). They are 
the “show" soldiers of the Italian army, and at 
reviews they execute all movements at a sharprun. 

Berthier, bare tya! , Alexander (1753- 
1815), prince of Neuchatel and Wagram, mar¬ 
shal of the French Empire. He served in 
America with Lafayette, and after some years’ 
service in France he joined the army of Italy 
as general of division and chief of the general 
staff, receiving in 1798 the chief command. In 
this capacity he entered Rome, abolished the 
papal government and established a republic. 
He followed Bonaparte to Egypt as chief of the 
general staff, was appointed by him minister of 
war, accompanied him to Italy in 1800, and 
again in 1805, to be present at his coronation, 
and was appointed chief of the general staff of 
the grand army in Germany. After Napoleon’s 
abdication he was taken into the favor and con¬ 
fidence of Louis XVIII. 

Bertillon, bar teyoN', System, a system 
for the identification of criminals, invented by 
Doctor Bertillon in 1879 and published in 1885. 
The means used are of two forms, (1) anthro- 
pometrical, consisting of measurements of the 
human body, especially of the bones (since 
they never change in adults); (2) descriptive, 
giving general accounts of the prisoner’s appear¬ 
ance, including eyes, hair, complexion and 
special marks or deformities. These descrip¬ 
tions are classified and filed. 

Ber'yl, a colorless, yellowish, bluish or less 
brilliant green variety of emerald, the prevailing 
hue being green of various shades, but always 
pale. The crystals, which are six-sided, are 
usually longer and larger than those of the 
precious emerald, and its structure is more 
distinctly foliated. The best beryls are found 
in Brazil, in Siberia, Ceylon and in Dauria, on 
the frontiers of China. Beryls are also found 
in many parts of the United States. Some of 
the finer and transparent varieties of it are 
often called aquamarine. See Aquamarine. 

Berze'lius, John James, Baron (1779-1848), 
a Swedish chemist. He studied medicine at 
Upsala and was appointed lecturer in chemistry 
in the Stockholm military academy in 1806, 
and the following year professor of pharmacy 
and medicine. He discovered selenium and 
thorium, first exhibited calcium, barium, stron¬ 
tium, tantalum, silicium and zirconium in the 
elemental state, and investigated whole classes 


Bessarabia 

of compounds, as those of fluoric acid, the 
metals in such ores as platinum, tantalum, 
molybdenum, vanadium and sulphur salts. He 
also introduced a new nomenclature and classi¬ 
fication of chemical compounds. His writings 
include an important Text-book of Chemistry. 

Besancon, be'zaN'soN' , a city in France, 
capital of the department of Doubs, and for¬ 
merly of Franche-Comt<S, situated on the Doubs 
River. The .city was a Gallic stronghold in the 
time of Caesar, and it has several Roman 
remains, among which are a triumphal arch 
built by Marcus Aurelius, an amphitheater, an 
aqueduct and a theater. Prominent buildings 
are a cathedral, the prefecture, the palace of 
Cardinal Granvella, besides a college, a library 
and a museum. The manufacturing industry is 
important, the chief articles including watches, 
machinery, iron and steel ware and porcelain. 
Besan 9 on is very well built and is one of the 
strongest towns in France, being fortified with 
an apparently impregnable citadel and forts on 
all sides. The city was the ancient Vesontio, 
capital of the Sequani, whom Caesar, in 58 b. c., 
expelled. Population in 1911, 57,978. 

Besant, bezant ', Sir Walter (1836-1901), 
an English novelist and critic, born at Ports¬ 
mouth and educated at King’s College, London, 
and Christ’s College, Cambridge. After serving 
as senior professor of mathematics in the Royal 
College of Mauritius from 1861 to 1867, he 
returned to London and formed a literary 
partnership with James Rice. Among the 
novels which they produced together are Ready 
Money Mortiboy, The Golden Butterfly and 
The Seamy Side. Of the novels written by 
Besant after the death of Rice, the best known, 
All Sorts and Conditions of Men, dealt with life 
in the East Side of London and resulted in the 
building of the People’s Palace in East London. 
Dorothy Foster, The Orange Girl and The 
Alabaster Box are among his other novels. 
Besant was the founder of the Society of Authors, 
and the editor of the Author, the publication of 
the society. He was knighted by Queen Vic¬ 
toria in 1895. 

Bessara'bia, a Russian province between the 
Pruth and Danube and the Dniester, covering 
an area of 17,600 sq. mi. It came under the 
power of the Turks in 1503, was taken by the 
Russians in 1770 and was ceded to them by 
the Peace of Bucharest in 1812. The southeast 
extremity was given to Turkey in 1856, but it 
was restored to Russia by the Treaty of Berlin, 
1878, in exchange for the Dobrudsha. It is 


Bessemer 


Bethlehem 


fertile in grain, but is largely used for pasturage. 
The capital is Kishinev. Population, chiefly 
Wallachians, gypsies and Tartars, 2,400,000. 

Bes'semer, Ala., a city in Jefferson co., 11 
mi. s. w. of Birmingham, on the Louisville & 
Nashville, the Southern, the Georgia Pacific 
and other railroads. It was founded in 1887 as a 
manufacturing place, on account of the coal and 
iron deposits in its vicinity. There are now 
blast furnaces, coke ovens, machine shops and 
mills, while the making of fire brick is also an 
important industry. Among the cities of the 
state it is seventh in population and sixth in 
taxable property. Population in 1910, 10,864. 

Bessemer, Henry (1813-1898), an English 
engineer and inventor, born in Hertfordshire, 
chiefly known in connection with the celebrated 
process for making steel, which bears his name 
a process which has effected an entire revolution 
in the steel trade. This discovery was one of 
the most important of the nineteenth century, 
and to it is due the use of steel in the frames of 
buildings and in rails which are so constructed 
as to permit the present system of railway traffic. 
Bessemer distinguished himself by many other 
inventions and scientific improvements. He 
discovered a new process for the manufacture of 
bronze powder and made a number of important 
improvements in type-casting machinery. In 
1789 Bessemer received the honor of knight¬ 
hood. See Steel, subhead Bessemer Steel. 

Be'tel or Be'tle, the name of two different 
plants common in Asia. The betel palm is a 
graceful tree, usually forty to fifty feet high 
and 18 inches in circumference. It is the com¬ 
monest and most important of the areca palms. 
(See Areca.) Its fruit, the betel nut, is about 
the size of a small hen’s egg, with a fibrous 
shell. The seed, enclosed in the shell, is the 
betel nut which is chewed by the natives of 
Oriental nations. It has been estimated that 
one-tenth of the world’s population indulge 
in betel chewing. The seeds are boiled in 
water, cut into slices and dried in the sun. 
These slices are then wrapped in leaves of the 
betel vine, a creeping plant of the pepper family, 
and a small piece of shell lime, cardamom or other 
flavoring material is added. The pellet is hot 
and acrid, but has aromatic and astringent prop¬ 
erties. It tinges the saliva, gums and lips a 
brick-red, blackens the teeth and causes them to 
decay rapidly. It is doubtful if any good comes 
from its use, even as an aid to digestion, as 
claimed, but the custom is so universal with men, 
women and children, and so continuous, that 


the proper handling of betel is an important 
portion of the etiquette in every ceremonial 
meeting. The betel is too biting for pleasure to 
a person not used to it, and it makes one dizzy 
and sleepy. A number of different plants nearly 
related to the peppers, the leaves of which have 
similar properties, are extensively cultivated and 
are used by the natives in the same way. Where 
the climate is not suitable, because of dryness or 
cold, the vines are cultivated under sheds. 



BETEL PALM 


Beth' any, (now called El-Azariyeh or Laza- 
rieh), anciently a village of Palestine, at the 
base of Mount Olivet, about 2 mi. e. of Jeru¬ 
salem. It was the home of Martha, Mary and 
Lazarus and was near the place where the 
ascension of our Lord is said to have taken 
place. 

Bethesda, be thez'da, (house of meriy), a 
pool in Jerusalem, near Saint Stephen’s Gate 
and the Temple of Omar. It is 460 feet long, 
130 feet broad and 75 feet deep, and is now 
known as Birket Israel. See John v, 2-9. 

Beth'Iehem, Pa., a borough in Northampton 
co.. 57 mi. n'. of Philadelphia, on the Lehigh 
river and canal, and on the New Jersey Central, 
the Lehigh Valley and other railroads. The 


Bethlehem 


Bhutan 


4 


industries include extensive iron, steel, zinc and 
graphite works and silk and knitting mills. 
Bethlehem was settled by the Moravians in 1741 
and is the center of that sect in the United States. 
Here they have a theological seminary and a 
school for young ladies. Other points of interest 
are the public library, Saint Luke’s Hospital, 
the fine Church of the Nativity, and two bridges 
seven hundred feet long, spanning the river to 
South Bethlehem. Population in 1910, 12,837. 

Bethlehem (house of bread), a town of 
Palestine, memorable as the birthplace of 
Christ. 5£ mi. s. w. of Jerusalem. The modern 
town is Beit Lahm. There are three convents, 
one each for Catholics, Greeks and Armenians, 
and the Church of Saint Mary. A richly 
adorned grotto, lighted with silver and crystal 
lamps, under the choir of the fine church built 
by Justinian, is shown as the actual spot where 
Jesus was bom. The chief trade of the place 
is in crosses, beads and relics. Population, 
8000, most of whom are Christians. 

Beust, hoist, Friedrich Ferdinand, Count 
von (1809-1886), a Saxon and Austrian states¬ 
man. He adopted the career of diplomacy, 
and as a member of embassies or as ambassador 
for Saxony, he resided at Berlin, Paris, Munich 
and London. His influence was on the side of 
Austria against Prussia before the war of 1866, 
and after the war, finding his position in Saxony 
difficult, he entered the service of Austria as 
minister of foreign affairs, became president of 
the ministry and later, imperial chancellor. It 
is for his reorganization of the Empire while in 
this position that Beust is chiefly noteworthy. 
From 1871 to 1878 he was ambassador in Lon¬ 
don, and from 1878 to 1882, in Paris. 

Bev'eridge, Albert Jeremiah (1862- ), 

an American statesman, born on a farm in 
Ohio. He went with his parents to Illinois soon 
after the close of the Civil War, and later moved 
to Indiana, where he attended De Pauw Univer¬ 
sity, graduating in 1885. He studied law, and 
after his admission to the bar he rapidly 
attained prominence. From 1899 to 1911 he 
was United States senator from Indiana as a 
Republican, and was known as one of the most 
forceful speakers in that body. In 1912 he 
was the Progressive candidate for governor of 
Indiana, but was defeated. He has been a 
frequent contributor to magazines. 

Bev'erly, Mass., a city in Essex co., 2 mi. n. 
of Salem, on the Boston & Maine railroad. 
There are extensive manufactures of shoes, 
clothing, leather and carriages. The New Eng¬ 


land Institute for the Deaf and Dumb is located, 
here, and there are many handsome residences 
of Boston business men. Electric railways con¬ 
nect the city with the surrounding country. 
Population in 1910, 18,650. 

Bewick, bu'ik, Thomas (1753-1828), a cele¬ 
brated English wood-engraver, founder of modern 
wood-engraving. He established his fame by 
his History of Quadrupeds, the History of British 
Birds, his greatest work, and the engravings for 
Goldsmith’s Traveler and Deserted Village, 
Parnell’s Hermit and Somerville’s Chase. 

Beyrout, ba'root. See Beirut. 

Be'za, Theodore (1519-105), next to Calvin 
the most distinguished man in the early reformed 
church of Geneva. He was born of a noble 
family at Vezelay, Burgundy, and was educated 
in Orleans under Melchior Volmar, a German 
scholar devoted to the Reformation. In 1539 
Beza went to Orleans to study law, and to Paris, 
where he lived for a time a reckless life. Ten 
years later he became professor of Greek at 
Lausanne. He rendered service to the cause 
of the reformers at the court of the king of 
Navarre and in attendance upon Cond£ and 
Coligny. Among his many-works, his History 
of Calvinism in France from 1521 to 1563 and 
Theological Treatises are still esteemed, but his 
'theological writings are seldom read. He is 
most famous for his Latin translation of the New 
Testament. 

Beziers, bazya', a town in France, situated 
38 mi. s. w. of Montpellier and a short distance 
from the Mediterranean. It is surrounded by an 
ancient wall and has narrow streets, though it is 
quite well built. The cathedral, a Gothic struc¬ 
ture, is the most important building. The 
leading manufactures are woolens, silks, knit 
goods, spirits and chemicals. Early in the 
thirteenth century Beziers was the scene of a 
massacre of the Albigenses. Population in 
1911, 51,042. 

Bheel or Bhil, heel, a race inhabiting the 
hills of central India. The English subdued 
them, and during the Sepoy rebellion the Bheels 
favored the English. The hill Bheels wear little 
clothing and live precariously on grain, wild 
roots, fruits and vermin, but the lowland Bheels 
are showing interest in civilization. Their total 
numbers are about 750,000. 

Bhutan, b’hoo tahn', an independent state of 
Asia, situated in the eastern Himalayas, bounded 
on the s. by Bengal and on the n. and e. by 
Tibet. The mountains in this region are covered 
with extensive forests, and some parts of the 


Biafra 


Bible 


territory are fertile, the chief crops being millet, 
wheat and rice. The manufactures are coarse 
cloths, silks, arms and the production of musk. 
The inhabitants are allied to the Tibetans, and 
they are everywhere degraded. They are 
Buddhists and have two rulers, a spiritual ruler, 
the Dharm Raja, and a secular ruler, Del Raja. 
The capital is Punakha, or Dosen. In 1865 the 
part of Bhutan known as Duars was annexed 
by the British. Population, estimated at 200,- 
000 . 

Biafra be ah'fra, Bight of, an African bay 
running in from the Gulf of Guinea, having the 
Kamerun Mountains at its inner angle, and con¬ 
taining the island of Fernando Po. 

Bi 'as, one of the seven wise men of Greece. 
He lived about the middle of the sixth century 
b. c. and appears to have been in repute as a 
political and legal adviser. Many sayings of 
practical wisdom attributed to him have been 
preserved. 

Bible (books, from biblos, the inner bark of 
the papyrus, on which the ancients wrote), the 
collection of the sacred writings or Holy Scrip¬ 
tures of the Christians. Its two main divisions, 
one received by both Jews and Christians, the 
other by Christians only, are termed Testaments. 
The original languages of the Bible are Aramaic, 
Greek and Hebrew, the latter being the best 
adapted for the many styles of composition. 
The Jewish religion being represented as a com¬ 
pact between God and the Jews, the Christian 
religion was regarded as a new compact betweai 
God and the human race; and the Bible is, 
therefore, properly divisible into the Writings of 
the Old and New Covenants. The books of the 
Old Testament received by the Jews were divided 
by them into three classes: 1, The Law, con¬ 
tained in the Pentateuch. 2, The Prophets, com¬ 
prising Joshua, Judges, I and II Samuel, I and 
II Kings, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and the 
twelve minor prophets. 3, The Ketubim (holy 
writings ) containing the Psalms, Proverbs, Job, in 
one division; Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, 
Esther, the Song of Solomon, in another division; 
Daniel, Erza, Nehemiah, I and II Chronicles, 
in a third. These books are extant in the 
Hebrew language; others have been rejected 
from the canon as apocryphal by Protestants, 
and are found only in Greek or Latin. The 
whole Bible, including parts of the Apocrypha, 
is sacred to the Roman Catholics. 

The books of Moses, with other sacred writings, 
were deposited, according to the Bible, in the 
tabernacle near the ark. They were removed 


by Solomon to the temple, and on the capture of 
Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar they probably 
perished. According to Jewish tradition Ezra, 
with the assistance of the great synagogue, col¬ 
lected and compared as many copies as could be 
found, and from this collation an edition of the 
whole was prepared, with the exception of the 
writings of Ezra, Malachi and Nehemiah, added 
subsequently, and certain obviously later inser¬ 
tions in other books. When Judas Maccabaeus 
repaired the temple, he placed in it a correct copy 
of the Hebrew scriptures. This copy was carried 
to Rome by Titus. The exact date of the 
Hebrew canon is uncertain, but no work known 
to be written later than about 100 years after the 
captivity was admitted into it by the Jews of 
Palestine. The Alexandrian Jews, however, 
were less strict and admitted many later writings, 
forming what is now known as the Apocrypha, 
in which they were followed by the Latin Church. 
The Protestant churches at the reformation gave 
in their adherence to the restricted Hebrew canon, 
though the Apocrypha was long included in the 
various editions of the Bible. The division into 
chapters and verses, as it now exists, is of com¬ 
paratively modern origin, though divisions 
of some kind were early introduced. About the 
middle of the sixteenth century the verses were 
for the first time marked by numbers. 

The earliest and most famous version of the 
Old Testament is the Septuagint, or Greek 
translation, executed by Alexandrian Greeks, 
and completed probably before 130 b. c. This 
version was adopted by the early Christian 
church and by the Jews themselves and has 
always held an important place in the interpreta¬ 
tion and history of the Bible. The Syriac version, 
the Peshito, made early in the second century 
after Christ, is celebrated for its fidelity. The 
Coptic version was made from the Septuagint, 
in the third or fourth century. The Gothic 
version, by Ulphilas, was made from the Septua¬ 
gint in the fourth century, but mere insignificant 
fragments of it are extant. The most important 
Latin version is the Vulgate, executed by Jerome, 
partly on the basis of the original Hebrew, f*nd 
completed in 405 A. D. 

The printed editions of the Hebrew Bible are 
very numerous. The first edition entire was 
printed at Soncino in 1488. 

The books of the New Testament were all 
written in Greek, unless V be true, as some 
critics suppose, that the gospel of Saint Matthew 
was originally written in Hebrew. Most of these 
writings have always been received as canonical: 


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but the Epistle to the Hebrews, commonly ascribed 
to Saint Paul, that of Saint Jude, the second of 
Peter, the second and third of John and the 
Apocalypse, have been doubted. The three 
oldest manuscripts are: 1, the Sinai tic manu¬ 
script, discovered by Tischendorf in a convent 
on Mount Sinai in 1859, assigned to the middle 
of the fourth century; 2, the Vatican manuscript 
at Rome, of similar date; 3, the Alexandrian 
manuscript in the British Museum, assigned to 
the latter half of the sixth century. Each 
manuscript contains also in great part the 
Septuagint Greek of the Old Testament. The 
Vulgate of Jerome embraces a Latin translation 
of the New, as well as of the Old, Testament, 
based on an older Latin version. The division 
of the text of the New Testament into chapters 
and verses was introduced later than that of the 
Old Testament, but it is not precisely known 
when or by whom. 

Of translations of the Bible into modem 
languages the English and the German are the 
most celebrated. Considerable portions were 
translated into Anglo-Saxon, including the 
Gospels and the Psalter. Wycliffe’s translation 
of the whole Bible (from the Vulgate), begun 
about 1356, was completed shortly before his 
death, 1384. The first printed version of the 
Bible in English was the translation of William 
Tyndale, whose New Testament was printed 
in quarto at Cologne in 1525, a small octavo 
edition appearing at the same time at Worms. 
He also published the Pentateuch in 1530 and 
translated some of the prophetical books. Our 
translation of the New Testament is much 
indebted to Tyndale. A translation of the 
entire Bible, undertaken at the instance of 
Thomas Cromwell, was published by Miles 
Coverdale in 1535 and, being made from German 
and Latin versions, was inferior to Tyndale’s. 
The first Bible printed by authority in England 
was an edition with a preface by Cranmer, hence 
called Crammer's Bible. A royal proclamation 
in 1540 ordered it to be placed in every parish 
church. This continued, with various revisions, 
to be the authorized version till 1568. In 1557- 
1560 an edition appeared at Geneva, based on 
Tyndale’s—the work of Whittington, Coverdale, 
Goodman, John Knox and other exiles, and 
commonly called the Geneva, or Breeches, Bible, 
from “breeches” standing instead of “aprons” 
in Genesis m, 7. This version, the first printed 
in Roman letters, and also the first to adopt the 
plan, previously adopted in the Hebrew, of a 
division into verses, was for sixty years the most 
21 


popular in England and was allowed to be 
printed under a patent of monopoly in 1561. 
It omitted the Apocrypha, left the authorship 
of the Epistle to the Hebrews open and put words 
not in the original in italics. The Bishop's 
Bible, published 1568 to 1572, revised by Arch¬ 
bishop Parker and eight bishops, succeeded 
Cranmer’s as the authorized version, but did not 
commend itself to scholars or people. In 1582 
an edition of the New Testament, translated 
from the Latin Vulgate, appeared at Rheims, and 
in 1609-1610 the Old Testament was published 
at Douay. This is the version recognized by the 
Roman Catholic Church. 

In the reign of James I a Hebrew scholar, 
Hugh Broughton, insisted on the necessity of 
a new translation, and at the Hampton Court 
Conference (1604) the suggestion was accepted 
by the king. The work was undertaken by 
forty-seven scholars, divided into six companies, 
two meeting at Westminster, two at Oxford and 
two at Cambridge, while a general committee 
meeting in London revised the portions of the 
translation finished by each. The revision was 
begun in 1607 and occupied three years, the 
completed work being published in folio in 1611 
and known as King James's Bible. Through 
the general accuracy of its translation and the 
purity of its style, it superseded all other ver¬ 
sions. In response, however, to a wide-spread 
desire for a translation even freer from 
errors, the Convocation of Canterbury in 1870 
appointed a committee to consider the question 
of revising the English version. Their report, 
being favorable, two companies were formed, 
one for the Old Testament and one for the New, 
consisting partly of members of the Convocation 
and partly of outside scholars. Two similar 
companies were also organized in America, to 
work along with the British scholars. The 
result was that the revised version of the New 
Testament was issued in 1881; that of the Old 
Testament appeared in 1884. 

Bible Stories. The stories whch follow in¬ 
clude some of the most valued and best loved 
narratives of the Old Testament. This material 
gives a picture of the Israelitish people from the 
settlement of Abraham in the Land of Canaan 
to the period after the capture of Jerusalem by 
Nebuchadnezzar. No special attempt has been 
made to emphasize the moral teachings of these 
stories, for in most cases the lesson lies in the 
heart of the story. The literal language of the 
Bible has been replaced by a style which children 
and young people will understand and enjoy. 


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STORIES FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT 


EARLY STORIES OF THE HEBREWS 


Abraham and Isaac 

In the early days of Bible story there 
lived in the land of Ur of the Chaldees a man 
named Abram. Ur of the Chaldees was a 
city of Mesopotamia, which is the land be¬ 
tween the Euphrates and the Tigris rivers, 
in Western Asia. There is today a ruined 
temple on the west bank of the Euphrates 
River, at the place where a canal joins that 
stream and the Tigris, and Bible students 
tell us that in the time of Abram Ur lay at 
the point where the temple may be seen. 
Abram was a rich man; he owned large herds 
of cattle and flocks of sheep, and he had many 
servants. But there came a time when it 
was revealed to him that he must depart 
from the country of Mesopotamia and go to 
a land called Canaan, on the eastern shore of 
the Mediterranean Sea. It would be inter¬ 
esting to trace on a map that long, toilsome 
journey over desert, stream and mountain. 
After he had settled in his new home, God 
told him that he was to be the father of a 
chosen people, and that his descendants were 
to possess all the land of Canaan. Kings 
were to come from his race, and he himself 
was to be called Abraham, which means 
“father of a multitude.” A son, too, was 
promised him, for Sarah, his wife, was 
childless. 

When, at last, a little son was born to 
Abraham and Sarah, they were so happy 
they named him Isaac, for Isaac means 
“laughing.” The child became a great com¬ 
fort to his parents, and Abraham loved him 
above all other things. In those days men 
offered up sacrifices as a part of their religious 
duty. Very often they would kill a choice 
lamb out of the flock, and burn it on the 
altar as a sacrifice. One day God spoke to 
Abraham and said, “Take thy son Isaac, 
whom thou lovest, and go to the land of 
Moriah; thou must offer him there as a 
burnt offering, upon a mountain which I will 
tell thee of.” There is nothing in the Bible 
record to make us think that Abraham 
rebelled or complained when he received this 


strange command. Early in the morning he 
saddled his ass, gathered the wood for the 
offering, and departed with Isaac and two 
young men-servants. On the third day he 
saw a summit in th£ distance that he knew 
to be the place of sacrifice, and he said to his 
servants, “Wait here; I and the lad will go 
yonder and worship, and will come again to 
you.” 

Then Abraham and Isaac went on together; 
Isaac carried the wood, and his father bore 
the fire. The lad did not understand why 
they were going up to the mountain, and he 
said to Abraham, “Father, here is fire and 
wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt 
offering?” “My son,” was the reply, “God 
will provide himself a lamb for a burnt 
offering.” When they came to the place of 
sacrifice, Abraham built an altar, arranged 
the wood upon it, and then placed his boy 
on the wood. But just as he was about to 
lay his hand on him he heard a voice saying, 
“Abraham, Abraham.” He answered, “Here 
am I.” Then the voice said, “Lay not thine 
hand upon the lad: for now I know that 
thou fearest God.” And Abraham knew 
then that God was testing him, to see 
whether he was willing to give up the dear¬ 
est treasure he possessed. But he was not 
required to give up his son, for as he looked 
about him he saw a ram caught in a thicket 
by the horns, and he took the iam and 
offered it as a burnt offering. But because 
he had been obedient to the divine voice, 
and had not refused to give up that which 
he loved most dearly, Abraham received 
greater blessings than ever before. 

The Marriage of Isaac 

In the course of time Sarah died, and was 
buried in a cave which Abraham bought as a 
tomb for his family. Then, as he felt him¬ 
self growing old, and saw his son Isaac grow 
to manhood, he said to himself that he would 
like to have Isaac married. Now most of 
the people who lived in the land of Canaan 
worshiped idols, and Abraham decided that 





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his son ought to seek a wife in Mesopotamia, 
where several of their kindred still lived. 
These far-away kinsmen believed in the true 
God, whom Abraham and Isaac worshiped. 
So Abraham called his oldest servant, the 
one who took care of his flocks and herds, 
and bade him go into that country and find 
there a wife for Isaac. Then the servant 
took ten of his master’s camels and some 
beautiful gifts, and journeyed to the land in 
which Abraham had lived so many years 
before. 

After a time the servant came near to a 
city in Mesopotamia which had a well out¬ 
side the gate. It was just at the close of 
day, and the women were coming out of the 
city to draw water. The servant had his 
camels kneel down by the well to rest, and 
then he prayed to God to show him which 
one of the women that came to draw water 
should be Isaac’s wife. It was revealed to 
him that he should ask one of them for water 
to drink, and if she answered kindly he 
would know she was the one to be chosen. 
While he was praying, a beautiful, dark-eyed 
girl named Rebekah, carrying a pitcher on 
her shoulder, came up to the well. And 



THE SERVANT MEETS REBEKAH 


when she had filled her pitcher the servant 
ran up to her and said, “Let me, I pray, 
drink a little water out of thy pitcher.” 


She answered, “Drink, and I will draw 
water for the camels also.” Then she let 
down the pitcher from her shoulder and 
gave the servant a drink, and afterward she 
carried water to the camels. When Rebekah 
had performed these services the servant 
gave her a gold earring and two gold brace¬ 
lets. He inquired whose daughter she was, 
and asked whether he and his men could 
sleep at her father’s house. The young 
woman told him that she was the daughter 
of Bethuel, and that there was room at their 
house for all, and food for the camels. The 
servant rejoiced greatly when she told him 
these things, for he knew that Bethuel was 
a kinsman of Abraham, and that God must 
have guided him to their place. 

Then Rebekah ran home and told her peo¬ 
ple all that had happened. Her brother 
Laban, when he saw the earring and brace¬ 
lets, hastened at once to the well and invited 
the servant to come to their house and to 
bring his camels and their keepers. And 
they were all treated most kindly and made 
welcome. But before the servant would 
accept any food he told Rebekah’s family 
who he was and why he had come to their 
city. And he begged them to say at once 
whether they would let Rebekah go home 
with him. As Bethuel and Laban listened 
to the story they felt that it was God’s will 
that Rebekah should be the wife of Isaac, 
and they at once consented to her going 
away. The happy servant, on hearing these 
words, brought out costly jewels of gold and 
silver and beautiful garments, and he gave 
Rebekah and her mother and brother many 
handsome gifts. Then they had a merry 
feast, and the next morning the travelers 
departed, taking with them Rebekah and 
her nurse. 

As they were passing through the land of 
Canaan one evening, they came near to the 
place where Isaac was. He had gone into 
the fields to walk about by himself, and 
when he saw the train of camels he hastened 
toward the travelers. As he came nearer 
Rebekah noticed him and said to the servant, 
“Who is this njan walking to meet us?” 
When the servant told her that it was Isaac, 
she covered her face with a veil, and as soon 
as he came up to her she climbed down from 
her camel and Isaac took her into the tent 


















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his mother had lived in. He made her his 
wife, and he loved her so dearly that he was 
comforted for the loss of his mother. After 


the marriage Abraham gave all his herds and 
flocks to his son, and when he died Isaac 
buried him in the cave where Sarah rested. 


THE TWO BROTHERS 


The Story of Forgiveness 

Jacob and Esau were the twin sons of 
Isaac and Rebekah. The two boys were 
very different in looks and in character, and, 
as sometimes happens in families today, one 
was the favorite of his father, and the other 
the favorite of his mother. Esau, the elder, 
was a rough, hairy fellow who grew up to be 
a famous hunter, while Jacob was content to 
stay at home and take care of his father’s 
flocks. Esau would go into the fields and 
kill deer, and then bring back to his father 
the delicious venison. But the homeloving 
Jacob was the favorite of his mother. In 
those days the eldest son was the most impor¬ 
tant of all the children. He received the 
greater share of the cattle and other property 
when the father died, and was favored above 
all the other sons. This special favor was 
called the birthright. As Esau was older 
than Jacob, he was entitled to the birthright, 
but he did not appreciate it as he should have 
done. One day, after he had been out hunt¬ 
ing, he came home faint and hungry. Jacob 
had just cooked a savory vegetable food 
called pottage, and when his brother saw it 
he said, “Give me, I pray, the pottage to 
eat, for I am very faint.” But Jacob said, 
“Sell me this day thy birthright.” Now 
Esau thought only of satisfying his hunger, 
and he said to himself, “If I do not get food 
-o eat at once I will die, and what good will 
my birthright be to me then?” Thus he 
weakly yielded to the temptation and sold 
his precious birthright. 

As the years passed by Isaac became feeble 
and his sight grew very dim. One day he 
said to Esau, “Take thy bow and kill a deer, 
that I may taste again the venison that I 
love. Then I will give thee my farewell 
blessing.” This special blessing was be¬ 
stowed in those days, on the eldest son, and 
was one of the privileges of the birthright. 
Esau gladly departed to do his father’s 
bidding. Rebekah, however, had overheard 
Isaac’s words, and she was displeased that 


Esau should be placed above her favorite, 
Jacob. Therefore, as soon as Esau was out 
of sight, she told Jacob to bring to her two 
small goats from the herd. When he had 
done so she cooked the m€at and made it 
taste like the venison of which Isaac was so 
fond. Then she had Jacob dress himself in 
Esau’s clothes, and she put the skins of the 
goats on his hands and his neck, that he 
might seem to be a hairy man like his brother. 
When Jacob told her he feared that a curse 
would come upon him for deceiving his 
father, Rebekah replied, “Upon me be thy 
curse, my son: only obey my voice.” Then 
Jacob presented himself to Isaac, and the 



JACOB RECEIVING THE BLESSING 


aged man felt of the hairy hands and believed 
that his eldest son was before him, though 
his voice was the voice of Jacob. When he 
had eaten of the meat which Rebekah had 
prepared, Isaac drew his son close to him, 
smelled of his garments, which had the smell 
of woods and fields, and gave him the prized 
blessing. 















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i 


On Esau’s return from the hunt he pre¬ 
pared a savory piece of venison for his father, 
and offered it to him, begging for his blessing, 
as had been promised. Trembling and dis¬ 
mayed, the old man cried out, “Who art 
thou?” And when Esau told him that he 
was his first born son, Isaac knew that Jacob 
had stolen his brother’s blessing. Exceedingly 
bitter was Esau’s sorrow when he found out 
that he had been cheated, and in his anguish 
he cried, “Bless me, even me also, O my 
father.” Isaac was indeed glad to bless him, 
but he had promised the best things to Jacob, 
and he dared not revoke his solemn words. 
Esau could not control his feelings of disap¬ 
pointment and anger, and it was soon 
reported to Rebekah that he had threatened 
to kill his brother. Therefore the mother 
advised Jacob to go away to the home of her 
brother Laban, in another country. And in 
due time Jacob departed. So we see that 
his selfishness and greed sent him into 
exile and separated him from all that 
he loved. 

It was many years before the brothers met 
again. At the home of Laban Jacob received 
a kindly welcome, and he fell deeply in love 
with Rachel, the younger of his uncle’s two 
daughters. Laban promised him that if he 
would serve him for seven years he could 
have Rachel for his wife, and so great was 
Jacob’s love for her that the seven years of 
service seemed short, indeed. But when 
the time was up Laban consented to the 
marriage only when Jacob promised to serve 
him another seven years. As time passed 
by Jacob prospered greatly, and many sons 
were born to him. Then, at the end of 
twenty years, he decided to return to his own 
country. So he gathered together his flocks 


and herds, and departed with his family and 
servants. 

In all these years Jacob and Esau had 
never been reconciled, and as Jacob ap¬ 
proached the place where his brother was 
living he sent men ahead with a friendly 
message, for he still feared his anger. The 
messengers told Esau of Jacob’s prosperity 
during his sojourn with Laban, and of his 
hope that the past might be forgotten, but 
they returned with bad news. Instead of a 
message of friendship they came with a report 
that Esau was planning to meet his brother 
with four hundred men. That night Jacob 
prayed earnestly to God to save him from 
his brother’s wrath, and the next day he 
sent his servants ahead of him with presents 
of goats and camels. When Jacob saw Esau 
approaching with the four hundred men he 
ran to meet him alone, and bowed down on 
the ground before him. All of Esau’s anger 
melted away at sight of his brother, and he 
embraced him tenderly. Then they wept 
for joy that all was made right between them, 
and Jacob had his children come forward 
and greet their uncle. Esau asked about the 
droves and herds which had been sent ahead, 
and when Jacob told him they were gifts for 
him, he replied, “I have enough, my brother; 
keep that thou hast unto thyself.” But 
Jacob insisted that he keep them, for he 
wanted his brother to know that the old 
spirit of greed had left his heart. The same 
day Esau departed to his own home, but 
Jacob journeyed on and came finally to 
Hebron, in Canaan, where his old father, 
still alive, was sojourning. The land of 
Canaan became his home once more, and 
there he reared twelve sons who became 
founders of the Twelve Tribes of Israel. 


THE ISRAELITES DELIVERED FROM BONDAGE 


The Descendants of Jacob in Slavery 

During a time of famine the patriarch 
Jacob and all his people left the land of 
Canaan and took up their abode in Egypt. 
Jacob was then a very old man, and when 
he died his sons carried his body back to the 
old home and buried it there. But the chil¬ 
dren and grandchildren of the patriarch, to 


the number of about seventy, remained in 
the land of the Egyptian kings, who were 
known as Pharaohs. As the years passed by, 
the Hebrews, or Children of Israel, as they 
are usually called, grew to be a great multi¬ 
tude of people, and the land of Egypt was 
filled with them. The Pharaoh who ruled 
in Jacob’s time was kind and just to the 
Israelites, but later a king came to the 







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throne who made slaves of them. "Behold,” 
he said, "the people of the Children of Israel 
are more and mightier than we. We must 
keep them from multiplying or they will join 
our enemies and. fight against us.” So he 
set taskmasters over them, who treated them 
cruelly and forced them to build cities and 
labor in the fields. But they continued to 
grow in numbers. 

Then Pharaoh told the women who took 
care of the little children of the Israelites to 
kill all the boy babies as soon as they were 
born, but they refused to do so wicked a 
thing. Next he ordered the Egyptians to 
cast into the river all the little boys who 
were of the despised race. 

The Story of Moses 

Among the Israelites there was a woman 
named Jochebed, who had a beautiful child 
that she was determined to save. She kept 
him hidden until he was three months old, 
and then, fearing that he would be discovered 
by Pharaoh’s servants, she made a little ark 
out of some weeds that grew by the river. 
She covered the ark with asphalt and pitch, 
so that water could not enter it, and in it 



THE FINDING OF MOSES 


she placed her baby boy. Then she set the 
boat down among the rushes by the water’s 


edge, and told her little daughter to watch 
it carefully. Not long afterwards Pharaoh’s 
daughter and some of her maids came 
down to the river to bathe. As the prin¬ 
cess walked along the bank she noticed 
the queer little .boat, and ordered one of 
her maids to bring it to her. When she 
opened it and saw the tiny child within 
she was moved to pity, for the little fellow 
began to cry. "This,” she said, "is one of 
the Hebrew children.” Then Miriam, the 
baby’s sister, ran up and said, "May I not 
go and call one of the Hebrew women to 
nurse the child for thee?” "Go,” said the 
princess, and Miriam ran to her own mother 
with the joyful news. Then when Jochebed 
came to Pharaoh’s daughter the princess told 
her to take the child home and nurse it, and 
promised that she would pay for its keep. 
Later the boy was placed in the royal palace 
and was brought up as the adopted son of 
Pharaoh’s daughter. She named him Moses, 
because that word means "drawn out,” and 
she had drawn him out of the water. 

When Moses had grown to manhood he 
did not forget his own people. As he went 
among them and saw the burdens they had 
to bear he longed to help them, and he felt 
that it w r as a greater honor to be one of the 
Children of Israel than to be the rich and 
powerful son of a princess. It so happened 
that he went one day to a place where some 
Israelites were working, and saw an Egyptian 
cruelly beating a Hebrew. He could not 
bear to see one of his blood so mistreated, 
and he struck the Egyptian down and killed 
him. This act was reported to Pharaoh, and 
when he heard of it Moses had to flee for his 
life. After wandering for some time he came 
to the land of Midian, which lay in the 
Arabian desert. As he sat down by a well to 
rest, seven sisters came to the place to draw 
water for their father’s flock. A band of 
rough shepherds tried to drive them away, 
but Moses came to the rescue of the sisters 
and also helped them water the sheep. These 
young women were the daughters of a priest 
named Jethro. When they arrived at home 
they told their father that an Egyptian had 
saved them from the shepherds, and had 
drawn water for them, and he bade them 
return to the well and invite the stranger to 
eat with them. It came to pass that Moses 













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remained in the home of Jethro and helped 
him care for the flocks, and in the course of 
time he married one of Jethro’s daughters. 

During the time that Moses was in exile a 
new Pharaoh came to the throne of Egypt, 
but he was even more cruel than the king 
before him. And as the Children of Israel 
cried aloud in their misery, God heard them 
and took pity upon them. One day as Moses 
was tending the sheep on Mount Horeb, far 
out in the wilderness, he heard the voice of 
God speaking to him from a burning bush. 
He was told that God has seen the sorrows 
of the Israelites, and that he had been 
chosen to lead them out of the land of bond¬ 
age into the country where Abraham and 
Isaac and Jacob had dwelt. This was 
Canaan, the Promised Land. Now, Moses 
was a modest man, and he feared that he 
would not be able to carry out so mighty an 
undertaking. But God promised to be with 
him at every step of the way, and to send 
his brother Aaron to help him. Aaron was 
a man of eloquence, and it would be his duty 
to tell the people what God should reveal to 
Moses. When he had heard these words, 
Moses returned to the home of Jethro and 
obtained leave to go to Egypt to see his 
people. 

Then it was revealed to Aaron that he 
should go into the wilderness to see his 
brother, and he found him on Mount Horeb. 
When Moses had told Aaron all that had 
been shown him, the brothers departed to 
Egypt to fulfil their mission. Many trials 
and discouragements awaited them there. 
First they had to gain the trust of the chief 
men of the Israelites, and then win the con¬ 
fidence of the people themselves. After this 
they went to Pharaoh and said, “The Lord 
God of Israel asks that his Children be per¬ 
mitted to go into the wilderness .for three 
days to offer up a sacrifice.” These words 
made Pharaoh very angry, and he not only 
refused to let the people go, but he added to 
their burdens. At this time the Israelites 
were digging clay out of the earth, and form¬ 
ing it into bricks. These bricks were dried 
and hardened in the sun. Now the clay had 
to be mixed with straw to make the bricks 
tough and strong, and the straw was collected 
in the fields by men who brought it to the 
workers. In his anger Pharaoh made a rule 


that the tri'ckmakers were to go into the 
fields and gather the* straw themselves, but 
they must make just as many bricks as before. 
Of course the Israelites could not work so 
fast when they had to wander about the 
fields in search of straw, and their task¬ 
masters called them idlers and beat them 
cruelly when they fell short of the required 
number. 

The Escape from Egypt 

When Moses heard of this he prayed to 
God for guidance, and was given a new 
promise that the people would surely be 
delivered from their bondage. But Pharaoh 
was hard and stubborn, and before he would 
consent to let the Israelites depart he saw 
his own people afflicted by terrible plagues, 
sent by God as a punishment. The first 
plague was that of waters of blood. Aaron, 
at Moses’ command, lifted up his rod and 
smote the water in the river, and at once the 
waters all over the land were changed into 
blood. Then all the fish died, and the 
people sought in vain for water to drink. 
For seven days this curse was on the land, 
but Pharaoh’s heart remained hard, and he 
would not let the Israelites go. Then came 
the plague of frogs. God told Moses to have 
Aaron stretch forth his rod over the streams 
and rivers, and as he did so multitudes of 
frogs came up out of the waters and covered 
the land from one end to the other. 

Then Pharaoh grew fearful and asked 
Moses and Aaron to intreat the Lord to 
remove the plague. And he said, “I will let 
the people go, that they may do sacrifice 
unto the Lord.” But the next day, when 
he saw that all the frogs had died, he hard¬ 
ened his heart and would not keep his prom¬ 
ise. Many other plagues tormented the 
land before Pharaoh repented. Men and 
beasts were covered with loathsome creeping 
things; swarms of flies filled the houses of 
the people; the cattle and horses and sheep 
were afflicted by a deadly disease; and there 
were plagues of boils, of hail and fire, of 
locusts and of black darkness. But God 
protected the Children of Israel from these 
dreadful things, and afflicted only the 
Egyptians. 

At last the time came when the people 
were to depart from the land of bondage. 







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Pharaoh still refused to let them go, and he 
had to suffer one final punishment for his 
stubbornness. Moses told him that at 
midnight the angel of death would pass 
through the land and smite the eldest son in 
each household; that the king’s eldest son 
would die, and the eldest son of each of his 
servants, and all over the land there would 
be cries of grief; but not one of the Israelites 
would be harmed. 

Everything came to pass as Moses proph¬ 
esied. A few days before the night of 
sorrow every man among the Children of 
Israel was commanded to take a lamb from 
the flock and keep it four days. Afterward 
he was to kill it in the evening, and to dip 
in its blood a bunch of the hyssop plant. 
Then he was to strike the plant upon each 
side of his door and above it, so that there 
would be three marks of blood on the outside 
of every house among the Israelites. And 
the lambs which had been killed were to be 
roasted, and the people in each house were 
to feast. The Israelites obeyed all of these 
commands, and at midnight of the night on 
which they feasted the death angel went 
through the land and caused the first born 
son in every Egyptian family to die. But 
he passed over the houses with marks of 
blood on the door, and in honor of this the 
supper of the lamb was called the Feast of 
the Passover. 

When Pharaoh heard the cries of grief in 
his own house, and knew that there was 
sorrow in every Egyptian home in the land, 
he could bear no more. Therefore he called 
for Moses and Aaron and told them to go 
out of Egypt and to take all the Children 
of Israel with them. And in the morning 
the great host of people departed, with all 
their flocks and herds. 

There were two ways to travel toward the 
Promised Land—a short way through the 
country of the Philistines, and a longer route 
by way of the Red Sea. God showed Moses 
that he was to lead the people across the 
Red Sea, for it would be dangerous to go 
through the land of the warlike Philistines. 
As they journeyed they were guided during 
the day by a cloud that always went before 
them, and seemed like a tall pillar reaching 
to heaven; but at night the pillar glowed like 
fire and gave them light. 


It came to pass that after the Israelites had 
departed Pharaoh began to feel sorry that 
he had let them go. So he gathered together 
a great host of men in chariots and on horses, 
and they followed after the Israelites and 
overtook them on the shores of the Red Sea. 
When the people saw the great army coming 
towards them they were badly frightened 
and cried out to Moses, “Because there were 
no graves in Egypt must we be carried here 
to die in the wilderness?” But Moses calmed 
them and told them that God would not 
desert them. Then the cloud which traveled 
before the Israelites was moved that night 
from its place and came between them and 



MOSES AGAIN STRETCHED HIS HAND OVER 
THE WATERS 


Pharaoh’s army, and the side of it which 
was turned towards the Egyptians grew dark, 
so that they could not see their way. But 
on the side toward the Israelites it glowed 
like fire. Then God commanded the Israel¬ 
ites to move forward, and Moses was com¬ 
manded to lift up his rod and stretch out his 
hand over the sea. As he did so a strong 
east wind came up and blew all night, and 
the water of the sea swept back so that a 
dry path was left for the people to walk upon. 
And in the morning they walked across the 
path with a wall of water on the right of 


























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them and one on the left, and all came 
safely to shore on the other side. 

When the Egyptians discovered that the 
Israelites had escaped them they followed 
them eagerly, but the wheels of their chariots 
came off, and they could not go fast. While 
they were on the path in the sea Moses 
again stretched his hand over the waters, 
and the waters that were piled up on either 
side came together. Then all of Pharaoh’s 


army perished. On the other side of the 
Red Sea were the Israelites, and when they 
saw how they had been delivered they sang 
a song of thanksgiving, which began, “I will 
sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed 
gloriously; the horse and rider hath he 
throwp into the sea.” Thus were the de¬ 
scendants of Jacob delivered from the land of 
bondage, after they had suffered in Egypt 
for many long years. 


THE ISRAELITES ENTER THE PROMISED LAND 


After the Children of Israel escaped from 
their bondage in the land of Egypt, they 
wandered for forty years in the Wilderness 
between the Red Sea and the Jordan River. 
Before they passed over the river into the 
Promised Land of Canaan, Moses, their 
devoted leader, died, but God chose a new 
guide for them—Joshua, the son of Nun— 
and they were not left leaderless. As the 
people came near to the boundaries of 
Canaan, Joshua sent two men ahead to view 
the country they were to occupy. These 
men crossed over the Jordan and went into 
the city of Jericho, which was the first place 
the Israelites were to capture. There they 
found refuge in the home of a woman named 
Rajiab. It happened that someone told the 
king of Jericho that two spies from the 
Israelites were hidden in Rahab’s house, and 
he sent word to the woman to deliver them 
up. But she took them up to the roof of her 
house, and hid them under some stalks of 
flax which were spread out to dry. And 
when the king’s messengers came to take the 
spies away they could find no one. After 
the messengers had departed Rahab went up 
to the roof and told the men what she had 
done. She said she knew that the Children 
of Israel were about to take possession of 
Jericho, and she begged, them to remember 
her kindness when their soldiers entered the 
place. The spies answered her kindly and 
suggested that she fasten a scarlet thread in 
the window of her house, so that when the 
Israelites came to take the city they would 
know which house was hers. 

Jericho, like many other ancient cities, was 
surrounded by a wall. Rahab’s house was 
built close to the wall and had a window 


overlooking it. It was therefore an easy 
matter for her to let down a rope from the 
window and help the two men to escape; for 
the gates of the city were shut and locked 
by the king’s servants, and the spies could 
not go out in the usual way. Then, following 



THE RETURN OF THE SPIES 

Rahab’s advice, they hid in the mountains 
for three days, to wait until the search for 
them had ceased. And at the end of that 
time they crossed the Jordan and reported 
to Joshua in the camp of Israel. 

Early one morning Joshua and his people 
marched to the banks of the Jordan and 
camped there for three days. On the morn¬ 
ing of the fourth day they began to march 





















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across the river, with the priests at the head 
carrying the Ark of the Covenant. And as 
soon as the feet of the priests touched the 
water it parted before them, and the^ walked 
out on dry ground into the middle of the 
stream. There they stood with the Ark, 
waiting until the people had all passed over 
to the opposite shore, and after the passage 
had been made the waters flowed together 
again. The Israelites were now in the land 
of Canaan, not far from the city of Jericho, 
which the Lord desired they should possess. 

God revealed to Joshua that the city was 
to be captured after seven days, and this 
is how they took possession of it: Once a 
day for six days the soldiers marched around 
the city, and marching with them were 


priests carrying the Ark. In front of these 
were other priests bearing trumpets made 
of ram’s horns. On the seventh day they 
marched around the city seven times, but 
the last time the priests blew a loud blast on 
their trumpets and the people uttered a 
great shout, and at the sound the walls of 
Jericho fell down. Then the Israelites en¬ 
tered and took possession, but not one per¬ 
son was harmed in the house which had the 
scarlet thread in the window. Thus, after 
many years of hardship, the Children of 
Israel established themselves in the land 
which God had promised to the descendants 
of Abraham, hundreds of years before. And 
in the course of time God raised up men to 
rule o^er them who were called judges. 


RUTH AND NAOMI 


A Story of Loyalty 

In the days when Israel was ruled by 
judges there lived in the city of Bethlehem 
a man named Elimelech. During a period 
of famine he and his wife, Naomi, and their 
two sons departed from their home and 
journeyed eastward to the land of Moab, 
beyond the Jordan River and the Dead Sea. 
After they had settled in their new home 
Elimelech died, but his two sons married 
women of the land of Moab, and they and 
Naomi remained in that country for about 
ten years. Then trouble came, for both of 
the sons died. In her loneliness and grief 
Naomi turned her thoughts to her old home, 
where there was again food in abundance. 
So one day she and her two daughters-in-law, 
Orpah and Ruth, started for Bethlehem. 
Before they had passed over the border of 
Moab, however, Naomi suggested to her 
companions that they turn back. She 
pictured to them the loneliness awaiting 
them in a strange country, and urged them 
to return before it was too late. As they 
talked and wept together Orpah decided to 
return to her people, but Ruth could not be 
persuaded to desert her old mother-in-law. 
In answer to Naomi’s words she said, “Intreat 
me not to leave thee, or to return from 
following after thee: for whither thou goest 
I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge; 


thy people shall be my people, and thy God 
my God.” 

So Naomi and Ruth journeyed on together 
and came finally to the home in Bethlehem. 



RUTH AND NAOMI 


There was much excitement among the 
neighbors when they saw Naomi, but when 
they questioned her she told them not to 
call her Naomi, but Mara, which means 


















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bitter. She meant that the Lord had dealt 
very bitterly with her, for she had lost her 
husband and her two sons. It was truly 
a sad homecoming. In those days it was 
the custom for the poor to go into the harvest 
fields and pick up the grain which the reapers 
left behind them. When Naomi and Ruth 
arrived at Bethlehem it was just at the time 
of the barley harvest, and Ruth suggested 
that she go into the fields to glean, that they 
might have food to eat. Naomi gave her 
consent, and it happened that Ruth gleaned 
in the field owned by a rich kinsman of 
Elimelech, a man by the name of Boaz. 
When, as was his custom, he came into the 
field to watch his reapers, he noticed the 
strange young woman, and inquired who she 
was. The chief servant related her story, 
and Boaz was deeply moved by her loyalty 
to the lonely mother-in-law. He spoke very 
kindly to her, telling her to continue to glean 
in his field, and promising that no harm 


should come to her. At mealtime they sat 
side by side, and Boaz gave her parched 
corn to eat. When she returned to her work 
he told his reapers to let some handfuls of 
grain fall on purpose for her. 

Naomi was made very happy that evening 
when Ruth came home with a goodly supply 
of grain, and described the great kindness 
of Boaz. She told her daughter that their 
benefactor was one of their kindred, and 
that she must do all that he said. So Ruth 
returned to the field of Boaz and gleaned 
there until the end of the harvest. When 
the harvest was over Boaz asked her to be 
his wife, and a happy marriage was the 
reward of her faithfulness. In time a little 
son was born to her. In this new life none 
was happier than Naomi, especially when 
she became the nurse of the baby boy, whom 
theycalledObed. It is interesting to knowthat 
years later Obed became the father of Jesse, 
whose son David was one of Israel’s kings. 


THE STORY OF SAMUEL 


A Boy Who* Was Obedient 

When Eli was the high priest at the taber¬ 
nacle in Shiloh, he noticed one day that a 
woman, who was much troubled, came to 
the place to pray. She wept as she prayed, 
but she spoke so softly he could not under¬ 
stand her. At first he thought she had been 
drinking too much wine and he rebuked her, 
but when she told him that she was sorrowing 
because of a blessing denied her, he told her 
to go in peace, -and assured her that God 
would answer her prayer. Then she returned 
to her home in Ramah, greatly comforted. 
This woman’s name was Hannah. She was 
the wife of a good man named Elkanah, and 
she was grieving because she had no children. 
When she prayed in the tabernacle she made 
a vow that if a son came to her she would 
consecrate him to the service of the Lord. 
In the course of time her prayer was answered, 
and a baby boy was born to her, whom she 
named Samuel. As soon as he was old 
enough Hannah and Elkanah brought 
the child to the tabernacle and showed 
him to Eli. “I am the woman that prayed 
here,” she said, “and this child is the 


blessing I asked for. Therefore I have given 
him back to the Lord, and he shall belong to 
the Lord as long as he lives.” So she left 
him there and every year she visited him and 
brought him a new coat. 

Little Samuel was very happy in his life 
at the tabernacle, and he became a great 
help and comfort to Eli, who was growing 
old. Eli had two sons who were priests in 
the tabernacle, but they were not good men, 
like their father, and their evil ways kept 
people from the house of worship. Eli 
rebuked them, but he did not take any 
steps to punish them, nor did he put good 
priests in their place. One night after 
Samuel had gone to bed he heard a voice 
calling, “Samuel.” At once he answered, 
“Here am I,” and ran to Eli to see what he 
wanted. But Eli said, “I did not call. Lie 
down again.” Again the boy heard a voice 
calling him, and once more ran to Eli. But 
the high priest answered as before, “I called 
not, my son; lie down again.” A third time 
Samuel heard the voice, and again he ran to 
Eli, saying, “Here am I, for thou didst call 
me.” Then Eli knew that it was the voice 











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of the Lord speaking to the child. So he said 
to him, “Go, lie down; and if He call 
thee, say, ‘Speak, Lord, for thy servant 
heareth.’” 

Samuel returned to his bed, and when he 
heard the voice he cried out, “Speak, for thy 
servant heareth.” Then there was revealed 
to him something that must have made him 
feel very sad. He was told that the Lord 
was going to do a thing which would make 
everyone who should hear of it afraid; that 
he would punish Eli and his sons, because 
the sons were wicked and their father had 
not kept them from their evil ways. In the 
morning Samuel rose up and opened the 
doors of the tabernacle, as was his custom, 
but he dreaded *to meet Eli and disclose 
what he had heard. The high priest, how¬ 
ever, called him at once, and said, “Samuel, 
my son, what is the thing that the Lord 
hath said unto thee? I pray thee hide it 
not from me.” Then Samuel told him every 
word, keeping nothing back. Eli realized 
that he deserved God’s displeasure, and he 
said, “It is the Lord; let Him do what 
seemeth Him good.” 

Some time after this the Israelites were 
defeated in a great battle with their bitter 
enemies, the Philistines. When the soldiers 
came back to their camp, the chief men 
began to ask why this disaster had come 
upon them. Then they decided to have the 
precious Ark of the Covenant, which con¬ 
tained the Tables of the Law, brought to 
the camp from the tabernacle at Shiloh. 
“For,” they said, “when it is among us it 
may save us from our enemies.” Now, this 
was a wrong thing to do, because they did 
not wait for guidance from God in the 
matter. They sent to Shiloh for the Ark at 
once, and it was carried to the camp by the 
sons of Eli. When the people saw it they 


shouted for joy, so that the Philistines heard 
the noise in their own camp, and asked the 
reason for the uproar. The news that their 
enemy had taken the holy Ark into their 
camp did not discourage the Philistines, how¬ 
ever, and that day they defeated the Israe¬ 
lites in another great battle and took from 
them the Ark. Among those slain in the 
battle were the sons of Eli. 

When the battle was over a messenger ran 
from the camp of Israel to Shiloh, to carry 
to the people the terrible news; as was cus¬ 
tomary in those days, he showed his grief 
by tearing his garments and putting earth 
on his head. Now as Eli was sitting upon 
a seat by the wayside, waiting for news of 
the Ark, he heard a great tumult in the city. 
This was the cry of despair that went up 
from the people when the messenger told 
them that the battle was lost and the Ark 
captured. Then as Eli turned his sightless 
eyes toward the city, the man came running 
up and broke the news to him. The aged 
priest could bear to hear tidings of the 
defeat of the army and the death of his 
sons, but when he learned of the fate of the 
Ark he fell from his seat and was killed. 
Thus was fulfilled the prophecy that Samuel 
had heard in the night. 

Samuel, all this time, had been growing 
and increasing in knowledge and goodness, 
and when Eli died he became judge over all 
the people. The Ark was restored to the 
Israelites after seven months, but it was not 
brought back to the tabernacle at Shiloh. 
Samuel returned to Ramah, his birthplace, 
and made that his home, and he built an 
altar there and offered up' sacrifices. He 
was the last of the judges of Israel, for in 
his old age the people demanded that their 
next ruler should be a king. And Samuel 
anointed Saul to be the first king of Israel. 


DAVID AND JONATHAN 


A Story of Friendship 

The story of David and Jonathan belongs 
to that period when the Israelites had come 
under the rule of a king. David was the 
youngest son of Jesse, a rich sheep owner of 
Bethlehem, and Jonathan was the son and 
heir of Saul, the king of Israel. When we 


first hear of David he was a strong, manly 
lad of about sixteen, with reddish hair and a 
countenance “very goodly to look upon.” 
One day, while he was engaged in his daily 
task of guarding his father’s flocks, he was 
visited by messengers of King Saul. Now, 
the king at times would fall into moods of 







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deep melancholy, and he had asked his ser¬ 
vants to find someone who would drive away 
his brooding by playing upon the harp. One 
of the attendants said that he knew of a 
skilled harpist, and the king sent his mes¬ 
sengers to bid him come to court. This 
harpist was none other "than the boy shep¬ 
herd of Bethlehem, and so it came to pass 
that he found himself in the court of a king. 
Saul was delighted with the comely lad, and 
he received refreshment and healing in listen¬ 
ing to his playing. 

Not long after David was brought to court 
the Israelites were threatened by a neigh¬ 
boring people, the Philistines. Saul gathered 



DAVID PLAYING BEFORE SAUL 


together an army to fight them, but his 
youthful harpist returned home to take up 
again his duties as tender of his father’s 
sheep. Three of David’s brothers entered 
the army of Israel, and one day Jesse, their 
father, sent his youngest son to the camp 
with food for them. He found the Israelites 
sorely terrified by a great champion of the 
Philistines—a giant named Goliath—who 
daily strutted before the soldiers of Saul and 
dared them to send a champion against him. 
Not ohe of the king’s warriors had the 
courage to accept his challenge, and it was 
therefore with amazement that Saul heard 
David asking that he himself be permitted 


to fight the giant. “Thou art but a youth,” 
said the king. But David persisted, and, 
refusing to put on the helmet and coat of 
mail that Saul offered him, he went out to 
battle armed with a sling and five smooth 
pebbles. Eagerly he ran forward to meet 
the Philistine, who scoffed at him and 
ridiculed his appearance, but the first stone 
hurled from his sling smote the giant in the 
forehead and killed him. And when the 
Philistines saw that their champion was 
dead they fled in dismay. 

Of course this astonishing deed made 
David a great hero. He was brought again 
before the king, and we can imagine the 
wonder in Saul’s voice as he questioned this 
mild-faced lad whom he know only as a 
gentle harpist. David’s modest bearing and 
his simple reply to Saul’s question as to who 
he was, “I am the son of thy servant Jesse, 
the Bethlehemite,” deeply impressed one per¬ 
son who listened to the conversation. This 
was Jonathan, the king’s son. When the 
interview was over “Jonathan’s soul was 
knit with the soul of David, and he loved 
him as his own soul.” Then there began a 
beautiful friendship between the young men. 
And as was the custom in those days, Jona¬ 
than gave to David his royal robe, his sword, 
his girdle and his bow. Saul thep made 
David one of his generals. 

The story of Jonathan’s loyalty to his 
friend is one we all love to think about. 
The young prince was everything that a 
king’s son should be—strong, brave, hand¬ 
some and generous. He was true to David 
at the price of arousing his father’s bitter 
anger, for. as time passed by Saul grew very 
jealous of David, and his ill-will increased 
until he determined to kill him. At last 
David was forced to flee for his life. One 
day he met Jonathan in a secret place, and 
the two talked together long and earnestly. 
Jonathan had tried to bring about a recon¬ 
ciliation and to pacify his father, but David 
could not believe that the king had given 
up his evil plans. “I will absent myself 
from the king’s table at the feast of the new 
moon,” he said, “and when he asks about 
me tell him that I have gone to Bethlehem 
to attend a sacrifice. Thou wilt know from 
his manner of receiving this news whether 
my life is still in danger.” Then the friends 



























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agreed that at the end of three days David 
should conceal himself by the stone of Ezel, 
and that Jonathan should go into the field 
and shoot three arrows. Then he would 
send a lad to find the arrows and would say 
to the boy, “Behold, the arrows are on this 
side of thee,” or “Behold, the arrows are 
beyond thee.” If David heard the words 
beyond thee he was to know that the king 
still sought to kill him. 

On the day following the new moon Saul 
inquired of Jonathan where David was. 
When he heard Jonathan’s reply he turned 
on his son savagely, warning him that so 
long as David was alive their right to the 
throne was in peril. In shame and sorrow 
the young man left his father, and on the 
morning of the next day he went to keep his 
appointment with his friend. To him, sim¬ 
ple faith was more precious than a royal 
throne. And when David saw the arrows 
fall and heard the words which had been 
agreed upon, he knew that his life was still 
in danger, and, creeping from his hiding 


place, he fell on his face before his friend. 
Then the two young men wept and bade 
each other a tender farewell. 

One other meeting is recorded. This took 
place sometime later, on a wooded hill about 
three miles south of Hebron, where David 
had intrenched himself with a small army of 
devoted followers. Though Saul’s army had 
almost surrounded the hill, Jonathan suc¬ 
ceeded in reaching his friend, and in giving 
him sorely needed words of comfort. He 
told him to have no fear, that Saul would 
not succeed in his plots, and that the next 
king of Israel would be named David, and 
not Jonathan. This was the last time the 
friends saw each other. Jonathan, loyal to 
Israel to the last, fell in battle on the field 
of Gilboa, in a fight against the Philistines. 
And when David heard of his death he 
uttered this beautiful lament: 

“How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the 
battle. O Jonathan, thou wast slain in thine high 
places. 

“I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan. 
Very pleasant hast thou been unto me: thy love to 
me was wonderful, passing the love of women.’’ 


STORIES OF THE PROPHET ELIJAH 


During the reign of Solomon, son of David, 
the Children of Israel grew dissatisfied and 
unhappy because they were heavily taxed 
and harshly treated. Therefore, when Solo¬ 
mon died and his son Rehoboam came to the 
throne, the people demanded that their new 
king show them greater kindness than his 
father had done. But Rehoboam answered 
them roughly and told them that whereas 
his father had chastised them with whips, 
he would chastise them with scorpions. By 
this he meant that he would add to their 
burdens and outdo his father in cruelty. 
Thus it came to pass that a part of the 
Children of Israel rebelled, and ten of the 
tribes set up a separate kingdom in the 
northern part of the country, under Jero¬ 
boam. This king did many evil things, and 
the kings who followed him were as wicked 
as he. But Ahab, seventh king of Israel, was 
more wicked than all the others, for he 
married a heathen woman, Jezebel, and 
openly set up in the kingdom the worship 
of the god Bael. He even built a temple for 


this idol in the city of Samaria, which was 
the capital of the ten tribes. 

Then God raised up the prophet Elijah to 
rebuke the king and to teach the people how 
to live righteously. One day Elijah went 
before Ahab and said, “As the Lord God of 
Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there 
shall not be dew nor rain in the land of 
Israel until the Lord commands me to ask 
for it.” These words made the king very 
angry, and it was revealed to Elijah that he 
should flee away where Ahab could not find 
him. “Go,” the Lord said, “and hide thyself 
by the brook Cherith, which flows into the 
Jordan. Thou shalt drink of the water of 
the brook, and I have commanded the ravens 
to feed thee there.” So Elijah did as he was 
told, and he stayed by the brook for some 
time. Every morning and every evening 
the ravens brought him meat and bread to 
eat, and he drank every day from the water 
in the brook. 

Now all this time there was no rain in the 
land, as Elijah had foretold, and before very 







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long the water in the brook dried up. Then 
the Lord commanded Elijah to go to a city 
called Zarephath; in that place, he was told, 
a woman who was a widow would feed him. 
When the prophet arrived at the gate of the 
city he saw the woman gathering sticks, and 
he said to her, “Give me, I pray thee, a 
little water to drink.” As she was about to 
go for the water he added, “Bring me, too, 
a piece of bread to eat.” Then the woman 
told him that she was very poor, and had 
nothing in the house but a handful of meal 
in a barrel and a little oil in a cruse, or flask. 
“I am gathering sticks now,” she said, “that 
I may go home and bake a cake for me and 
my son. After that we must starve to 
death.” But Elijah told her to have no 
fears, for after she had baked a cake for him 
and one for herself and son, there would still 
be meal in the barrel and oil in the cruse. 
The woman did as he told her, and it came 
to pass that as long as the famine lasted the 
meal in the barrel and the oil in the cruse 
became no less. 

After there had been more than three years 
of famine, it was revealed to Elijah that he 
was to go to King Ahab and tell him that 
rain would be sent again to the suffering land. 
On his way home he met the king’s chief 
servant, Obadiah, who was wandering about 
in search of pasturage for the horses and 
mules that were still alive. And he told 
Obadiah to go to King Ahab and say that 
Elijah had come. When the king and 
prophet met Ahab rebuked Elijah for 
troubling the people of Israel, but Elijah 
told him that the famine was sent as a pun¬ 
ishment because of their worship of Bael. 
Then Elijah proposed a test to show which 
was the true God, whether it was Bael or 
the God whom the prophet worshiped. And 
he told Ahab to have all the people gather at 


Mount Carmel and to bring there the four 
hundred and fifty prophets of Bael. When 
they had all gathered at the mountain 
Elijah called out to the people, “How long 
will ye be in deciding whom ye will 
serve?” But the people answered not a 
word. 

After this he had the prophets of Bael kill 
a bullock and lay it on an altar, and they 
placed wood on the altar ready for burning. 
But they were not permitted to put any fire 
under it. Instead, Elijah told them to pray 
to Bael to send down fire from, heaven to 
consume the offering. Then the prophets 
cried out to their idol from morning until 
noon, but no fire came down from heaven 
to burn up their offering. And Elijah 
mocked them, saying, “Call louder upon 
your god; he may be talking to someone, or 
perhaps he is asleep and must be wakened.” 
But though they called out until evening, 
there came ao answer. 

Then Elijah told the people to come close 
to him. And he took twelve stones and 
built up the altar of the Lord which had 
been broken down, and he dug a trench 
around it. Then he laid wood on the altar 
and made a bullock ready for the sacrifice, 
and he had the people pour barrels of water 
over the sacrifice until it ran down and 
filled the trench. It was now evening, and 
just at the hour when the priests were accus¬ 
tomed to offer up a lamb in the temple. 
Elijah prayed to God, asking that the people 
might be shown who was the true God. 
Then fire fell down from heaven upon the 
altar. It burned up the bullock and the 
wood, and even the stones of which the 
altar was made, and it licked up the water 
in the trench. When the people saw this 
wonder they bowed down on the ground and 
cried, “Thy Lord, he is God.” 


THE HEALING OF THE SYRIAN CAPTAIN 


After Elijah’s work was finished Elisha 
prophesied in his place. In those days the 
Syrians invaded Israel and carried away into 
captivity a little girl who was made a servant 
of the wife of Naaman. Now Naaman was 
the captain of the Syrian army, and he was 
greatly honored by the king for his bravery. 


Yet he had one trouble that kept him from 
enjoying all this honor; he suffered from 
the terrible disease of leprosy. The little 
captive maid in his household knew about 
his trouble, and one day she said to her 
mistress, “If my master will go to see the 
prophet that lives in Samaria, he will cure 







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him of his leprosy.” When the king heard 
of this he said to Naaman, “Thou shalt go 
to Samaria, and I will give thee a letter to 
the king of Israel who lives there.” 

Soon afterwards Naaman departed with 
money and costly garments, which he in¬ 
tended to give to the man who cured him. 
On arriving at Samaria he proceeded to the 
palace of Jehoram, king of Israel, and 
delivered to him the letter written by the 
king of Syria. And when Jehoram read the 
words—“I have sent Naaman, my servant, 
to thee, that thou inayest cure him of his 
leprosy”—he was greatly troubled. For he 
knew of no cure of leprosy, and he feared 
that the king of Syria was seeking an excuse 
to quarrel with him. This matter was 
reported to Elisha, the prophet, and he sent 
word to Jehoram to have no fear. “Let the 
man come now to me,” ran his message, 
“and he shall know that there is indeed a 
prophet in Israel.” m 

Then Naaman went to the house of Elisha 
and stood before the door. And the prophet 
sent out a messenger who said, “Go, wash 
seven times in the River Jordan, and thou 
shalt be made well.” This message greatly 
vexed Naaman, for he had expected that the 


prophet would come out and pray for him, 
and put his hand on him. Said he, “Are 
not the rivers in my own country better than 
all the rivers in the land of Israel? Could I 
not wash in them and be cured?” As he 
was departing in anger his servants came up 
to him and said, “Master, if the prophet 
had told thee to do some great thing wouldst 
thou not have done it? Is it not better to do 
as he bids thee when thou hast only to wash 
in the river?” 

Then Naaman, heeding the counsel of his 
servants, dipped himself seven times in the 
Jordan River, and the dreadful disease left 
him and his skin became as rosy and clean 
as that of a little child. Then he and all his 
company returned to the house of Elisha, and 
Naaman said to the prophet, “Now I know 
there is no other God in all the earth but the 
God of Israel.” He offered Elisha gifts of 
raiment and money, but Elisha could not be 
persuaded to accept anything, for he wished 
God to have all the glory for the healing of 
the leprosy. And this is how a great captain 
of the Syrians was brought to acknowledge 
the God of Israel through the words of a 
little captive maid. 


STORIES OF DANIEL 


Loyalty to Principle 

When Nebuchadnezzar reigned as king of 
Babylon he captured the city of Jerusalem 
and carried away into captivity large num¬ 
bers of Jews. While he was in Jerusalem 
this king commanded his chief officer to 
select a number of captive youths, who were 
to be given special instruction for three years 
and be trained for service in the royal palace. 
None should be chosen, the king ordered, 
who had any faults, but only such as were 
young and attractive, and quick to learn. 
Among those selected was a boy named 
Daniel. He had been carefully trained in 
the religion of his forefathers, and when he 
was brought to Babylon he resolved that he 
would not forget his early teachings. 

Now King Nebuchadnezzar had ordered 
that the captive children should be given 
meat to eat and wine to drink from his own 


table, for he wished to have them well 
nourished. The people of Babylon, who 
were called Chaldeans, worshiped idols and 
offered up sacrifices of animals and made 
offerings of wine to them, and they ate the 
flesh of animals and drank the wine. So 
Daniel decided that it would be a sinful 
thing for him to eat meat and drink wine 
used for such purposes, and he asked the 
chief officer to excuse him and three special 
companions of his from partaking of that 
food. The officer was fond of the lad, but 
he dared not disobey the king, for he knew 
he would be very angry if the young captives 
should appear pale and thin. So the youths 
were given over to the care of the steward, 
who had orders to serve them meat and wine. 

Then Daniel said to the steward, “Try us, 
I pray thee, ten days, and give us only 
vegetables to eat and water to drink. At 







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the end of that time compare our faces with 
those of the young people who have eaten 
of the king’s food, and if we do not look as 
well as they, then give us whatsoever thou 
thinkest best.” The steward consented to 
make this test, and at the end of the ten 
days their faces were fatter and their skin 
clearer than the faces and skin of those who 
had eaten meat and drunk wine. So Daniel 
and his three friends continued to eat vege¬ 
table food and to drink water, and when, at 
the end of three years, they came before the 
king, they were found superior to all the 
other captives, both in looks and in know¬ 
ledge and understanding. 

The Interpretation of the King’s 
Dream 

One night Nebuchadnezzar had a dream 
that troubled him greatly. \Jhen he awoke 
he could not remember it, and so he called his 
wise men together and told them that they 
must not only recall the dream to his mind, 
but explain what it meant. The wise men 
protested that no man on earth could bring 
back a forgotten dream, but they said they 
would interpret the dream if the king would 
tell it to them. Then Nebuchadnezzar grew 
very angry and ordered all the wise men of 
Babylon to be killed. Now, Daniel was 
reckoned as one of the wise men, and when 
the news of the decree was brought to him 
he went into the palace and intreated the 
king to give him more time. He promised 
Nebuchadnezzar that he would reveal the 
meaning of the dream, and the king prom¬ 
ised to give him the time he asked for. 

Now this was the dream that Daniel 
recalled for Nebuchadnezzar. He said: 
“Thou sawest in thy dream, O king, a great 
image. The form of it was terrible, and it 
shone with exceeding brightness as it stood 
before thee. Its head was made of fine gold, 
its breast and arms were of silver, the rest 
of its body was of brass; its legs were of 
iron, and its feet were part of iron and part 
of clay. As thou beheld it there came a 
stone cut out of a mountain, that struck the 
image upon its feet and broke them to pieces. 
Then the image fell, and the iron, the brass, 
the silver, the gold and the clay were all 
broken up together by the stone, into pieces 
as small as the dust which is left on the 


threshing floor after the farmer has been 
threshing his grain; and the wind blew 
them away, no one could tell where. After¬ 
ward the stone that had broken the image 
grew to be a great mountain and filled all 
the earth.” 

Then Daniel told the king that his dream 
was a warning of things to come. The gold, 
the silver, the brass, the iron and the clay, 
he said, all meant different kingdoms. The 
head of gold meant Nebuchadnezzar himself, 
because he was greater than all the other 
kings. After he died, new kingdoms would 
arise, and these were typified by the silver, 
the brass, the iron and the clay. Last of all 
the Lord would set up a kingdom which 
never would be destroyed, but which would 
break in pieces all the kingdoms that were 
before it, just as the stone had broken the 
image. This stone typified the kingdom of 
Christ. When Daniel finished speaking the 
king fell on his face before him and acknowl¬ 
edged the power of the true God. And 
afterwards he made Daniel ruler over the 
province of Babylon and chief of all his 
wise men. 

The Handwriting on the Wall 

After many years Nebuchadnezzar died, 
and his son Belshazzar reigned in Babylon. 
One night Belshazzar gave a royal banquet 
for a thousand of his lords. They drank 
wine out of gold and silver vessels which had 
been taken out of the temple in Jerusalem, 
and they feasted and joined in noisy revelry. 
While they were making merry there suddenly 
appeared on the wall of the banquet room a 
man’s hand, which wrote words in a language 
no one understood. As the king watched 
the mysterious hand he grew pale with fear, 
and he trembled until his knees knocked 
against each other. Then he cried aloud to 
his servants, bidding them bring in his wise 
men. To them he said, “Whoever shall read 
this writing and interpret it shall be clothed 
in scarlet and have a chain of gold about his 
neck, and shall be the third ruler in the 
kingdom.” But not one of the wise men 
could read the mysterious writing. 

This matter was made known to the queen, 
and she came in before the king and said, 
“Be not troubled, O king. There is a man 


22 






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in thy kingdom who has the wisdom and 
understanding of the gods, and was made 
chief of all the wise men by thy father, 
Nebuchadnezzar. Let this man Daniel be 
called; he will give the interpretation.” 
When Daniel was called in before the king, 
Belshazzar said to him, “Art thou that 
Daniel who was brought captive with the 
Children of Israel, out of Judah? I have 
heard of thy wisdom and understanding, 
and am told that thou canst interpret secret 
things. Read and interpret this writing for 
me and thou shalt be clothed in scarlet and 
have a chain of gold about thy neck.” But 
Daniel answered, “Keep thy gifts for thy¬ 
self and give thy rewards to another. I will 
read and interpret the writing for the king.” 

Then he reminded Belshazzar of the pomp 
and glory that had been Nebuchadnezzar’s 
and recalled how he had forgotten the true 
God and lost all his kingly glory. And he 
continued, “Thou, his son, hast not humbled 
thine heart, but hast been proud and sinful. 
Behold the golden vessels of the temple of 
God, which thou and thy lords have filled 
with wine. Because thou hast done these 
things and hast honored idols of wood and 
stone, God hath sent this writing, and these 
are the words of it: Mene, Mene, Tekel, 
Upharsin. And the interpretation is—God 
hath numbered thy kingdom and finished it. 
Thou art weighed in the balances and art 
found wanting. Thy kingdom is given to 
the Medes and Persians.” When Daniel 
had finished speaking the king ordered him 
to be clothed in scarlet, and he made a decree 
that he should be the third ruler in the king¬ 
dom. But that same night Babylon was 
stormed by the Medes and Persians and 
Belshazzar was slain. Then the kingdom 
was taken over by Darius, the Mede. 

In the Lions’ Den 

After Darius became king he chose one 
hundred and twenty princes to govern the 
kingdom. Over these he set three presidents, 
and he made Daniel the chief of the presidents 
because he trusted and admired him. But 
the other presidents and the ruling princes 
grew jealous of Daniel because of the greater 
honor given him, and they plotted against 
him. When they found that they could 
bring the king no evil report of him, they 


remembered that he worshiped the God of 
the Jews, and they decided to use this 
against him. So they said to the king, 
“King Darius, live forever. All the chief 
men of thy kingdom have consulted together, 
and want a law made that whosoever asks 
help of any god or man, for thirty days, 
other than of thee, O king, shall be cast into 
a den of lions. Now, O king, put this law 
into writing and sign it, so that it cannot be 
changed; for the laws of the Medes and 
Persians never change.” Seeing then no 
objection to the decree, Darius had the law 
written, and he signed it. 

Now it was Daniel’s custom to kneel in 



THE LIONS’ MOUTHS WERE CLOSED 


prayer in his own room three times a day. 
He always prayed with the windows opened 
toward Jerusalem, and so this habit was 
known to everybody. When he heard of 
the decree he went as usual to his room, and 
prayed openly, as was his custom. No 
sooner did his enemies see him in this act 
than they hastened to the king and reminded 
him of the decree he had signed. But when 
they told him that Daniel had disregarded 
the law by praying to his own God, Darius 
was very much displeased with himself for 
having signed such a law. He labored all 
the rest of the day, till sundown, to find a 























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way to deliver his trusted servant, but it 
was not possible even for a king to change 
a law of the Medes and Persians. 

Then at last he gave the order to have his 
servant cast into the den of lions, but as 
Daniel w r as led away the king said to him, 
“Thy God, whom thou servest continually, 
he will deliver thee.” Then Darius returned 
sorrowfully to his palace and spent the night 
in fasting. Early in the morning he hastened 
to the den of lions and called out fearfully, 
“O Daniel, thou servant of the living God, 
is thy God able to deliver thee from the 


lions?” And to his great joy he heard a 
voice saying, “O king, live forever. My God 
has sent his angel and shut the lions’ mouths 
so that they have not harmed me. For I 
have not sinned against my God, nor have 
I done wrong to thee, O king.” Then the 
happy king ordered the captive released, and 
they found him unhurt. After this Darius 
made a new decree that men in every part 
of the kingdom should honor the God of 
Daniel. And Daniel prospered in the reign 
of Darius, and in the reign of Cyrus, who 
followed him. 


ESTHER, THE BEAUTIFUL QUEEN 


In the third year of his reign, Ahasuerus, 
king of Persia, gave a magnificent feast for 
his nobles and attendants, in the garden of 
the royal palace of Shushan. At the same 
time the king’s wife, Vashti, gave her friends 
a feast, in the women’s part of the palace. 
On the seventh day, when the king had 
drunk much wine and was feeling merry, 
he ordered his queen to appear before his 
guests, that they might see how beautiful 
she was. But Vashti did not care to display 
her beauty in this manner, and she refused 
to obey his husband. 

Ahasuerus was very angry, and he said to 
his wise men, “What shall w T e do to Queen 
Vashti, because she has not obeyed the 
commandment of the king?” One of the wise 
men answered, “Vashti has wronged not only 
the king but all the princes and all the people 
in the kingdom; for if the women hear that 
the queen refuses to obey the king, they will 
no longer obey their husbands. Therefore, 
O king, make a decree that Vashti shall come 
no more before thee, and let this decree be 
known to all the people, that the wives 
throughout the land may know that they 
must obey their husbands.” This advice 
pleased the king very much, and he had the 
decree published throughout the length and 
breadth of the land. Then the royal ser¬ 
vants came to their master, saying, “Let the 
king send officers to all the provinces of the 
kingdom, that they may gather together all 
the beautiful young women of Persia into 
the palace at Shushan. And let the one who 
pleases the king best be queen instead of 


Vashti.” This advice, too, pleased the king, 
and he ordered the thing done. 

Among the servants in the palace there 
was a Jew by the name of Mordecai. He 
belonged to the tribe of Benjamin, and had 
been carried away into captivity from Jeru¬ 
salem, many years before. This good man 
had brought up as his own child an orphan 
girl named Esther, the daughter of one of 
his uncles. At the time of our story Esther 
was a young woman, and she was as good as 
she was beautiful. In accordance with the 
king’s commandment young maidens were 
brought to the palace and Esther was among 
them. Her beauty was noticed by the king’s 
officer, and he treated her very kindly, giving 
her maids to wait on her, and placing her in 
the best part of the palace. And until it 
was time for Esther to go before the king, 
Mordecai walked every day before the court 
of the women’s quarters, to find out how his 
beautiful cousin was faring. At last she w r as 
brought before the king. As soon as Ahasue¬ 
rus saw her he knew that he loved her, and 
he set the royal crown upon her head, and 
made her his queen in place of Vashti. 

Soon after Esther became queen two of 
the king’s officers plotted to kill the king. 
Mordecai, who was a watchman at the 
palace gate, overheard what they said, and 
told Esther. She warned the king, and so 
saved his life. And what Mordecai had 
done was written down in a book. 

Among the servants in the palace was a 
man named Hainan. He won the favor of 
King Ahasuerus, and was exalted above all 







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the noblemen and attendants at the court. 
The king’s servants who watched at the gate 
were commanded to bow down to Haman, 
and everyone obeyed this order except Mor- 
decai. When the other servants told Haman 
of Mordecai’s defiance he formed a plot to 
kill all the Jews in the kingdom, for the ser¬ 
vants reported that Mordecai was one of 
that race. First he tried to poison the king’s 
mind by speaking ill of the Jews. He said 
that they had laws of their own, and would 
not obey the laws of Persia. The king 
listened to what Haman said, and gave him 
a ring which he used in sealing his writing 
whenever he made a decree. By this he 
meant that Haman could issue a decree 
against the Jews and could seal it with the 
ring; in this way it would have the king’s 
sanction. Haman therefore had a decree 
written that on the thirteenth day of the 
twelfth month the people of Persia should 
kill all the Jews in the kingdom, from the 
oldest to the youngest. This cruel decree 
was sealed with the king’s ring, and copies 
of it were sent by messengers to the rulers 
of all the provinces in Persia. 

As soon as Mordecai heard the dreadful 
news he rent his clothes and put on sackcloth, 
which was a token of bitter sorrow. And all 
through the land there was mourning among 
the Jews, and fasting and crying. Queen 
Esther knew nothing of the decree, but her 
maids told her that Mordecai was mour nin g 
bitterly and had put on sackcloth, and she 
sent one of the servants to find why he sor¬ 
rowed. Mordecai told the servant all that 
had taken place, and he gave him a copy of 
the decree to show to Esther. He begged 
him also to ask the queen to intercede for the 
Jews before the king. 

Then Esther, when she received the mes¬ 
sage, sent the servant back to Mordecai with 
this reply: “Whoever goes into the inner 
court of the king without being called is 
liable to be put to death. Such a one is 
saved only when the king holds out his 
golden sceptre. I have not been called to 
come in unto the king for thirty days.” But 
Mordecai returned this answer: “Think not 
that thou shalt escape any more than the 
other Jews. For if thou wilt not try to 
save thy people at this time, some one else 
will save them, but thou and thy relations 


shalt be destroyed. Who knows but what 
thou hast been made queen for the express 
purpose of delivering thy people?” Then 
Esther hesitated no longer, but sent word to 
Mordecai to gather the Jews in the city 
together, and have them fast for three days. 
“I and my maidens also will fast,” she said, 
“and then wilL I go in unto the king. And 
if I perish, I perish.” 

At the end of three days Esther dressed 
herself in royal robes and went into the inner 
court and stood where the king, seated on 
his throne, could see her. When he looked 
at her he felt kindly towards her, and held 
out the golden sceptre. So she drew bear 
and touched the top of the sceptre. Then 
the king said, “What is it thou desirest, 
Queen Esther? It shall be given thee even 
unto half of my kingdom.” She answered, 
“If the king be willing I want the king and 
Haman to come today to a banquet which I 
have made ready.’*' Then Ahasuerus at once 
sent word to Haman to make haste to come 
to the queen’s banquet. When they were 
at the table the king asked Esther what 
thing she desired of him, for he knew that 
she had a wish still unuttered. But she 
answered, “My desire is that the king and 
Haman come to another banquet tomorrow. 
Then I will tell the king what it is I would 
ask of him.” 

As Haman left the banquet room he felt 
very proud and happy to be so honored, but 
when he saw Mordecai, as he passed through 
the palace gate, he burned with indignation. 
For the Jew gave no sign that he saw him. 
At home that day he boasted to his wife and 
friends of his riches and honors. Yet he told 
them that even an invitation to the queen’s 
banquet did not console him when he remem¬ 
bered the J ew sitting at the gate. So his wife 
and friends said, “Let a gallows be made 
fifty cubits high, and tomorrow ask the king 
to have Mordecai hanged upon it.” This 
idea pleased Haman very much, and he 
ordered the gallows to be built at once. 

That night the king was restless and could 
not sleep, and he had his servants read to 
him out of the book of records. When they 
came to the part which described the loyalty 
of Mordecai in reporting the plot to kill the 
king, Ahasuerus said, “What honor has been 
done to Mordecai, because he did this ser- 













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vice for me?” They answered, “Nothing 
has been done for him.” While they were 
thus talking together, Hainan came into the 
outer court. He w r as on his way to ask the 
king that Mordecai be hanged upon the 
gallows he had ordered built. When the ser¬ 
vants told Ahasuerus that Haman waited 
outside to speak to him, he said, “Let him 
come in.” As Haman stood before him, the 
king said, “What shall be done for the man 
whom the king desires greatly to honor?” 

Then the boastfvd Haman thought to him¬ 
self, “I am the man whom the king wishes to, 
honor.” But aloud he said, “Let the royal 



ESTHER BEFORE THE KING 

robes that the king wears, and the horse that 
he rides, and the crown that is set on his 
head be brought to the man that the king 
loves to honor. Let him wear the robes and 
the crown, and let him ride upon the king’s 
horse. And let one of the king’s most noble 
princes lead the horse through the streets of 
the city, and cry out to all the people, ‘Thus 
shall it be done to the man whom the king 
delighteth to honor!’” 

When the king heard these words he said 
to Haman, “Make haste and take the robes 
and the horse and the crown, and do to 
Mordecai, the Jew, as thou hast said; leave 
nothing that thou hast spoken undone.” 


Though he was almost overcome with 
humiliation and disappointment by this com¬ 
mand, Haman did not dare disobey his 
master, and he carried out his orders com¬ 
pletely. But after he had led Mordecai’s 
horse through the streets of the city he 
hastened home bowed down with shame and 
with his face covered. While he was telling 
his wife and friends what had taken place, a 
messenger came to bring him to the queen’s 
banquet. 

When they were at the table the king said, 
as before, “What is thy petition, Queen 
Esther? For it shall be given thee, even 
unto half of my kingdom.” Esther replied, 
“If the king be pleased with me, this is my 
request, that the king will save my life, and 
save my people from destruction. For an 
enemy hath spoken against us, and we are 
to be slain.” “Who is the man that hath 
dared to do these things?” cried the king. 
And Esther answered, “Our enemy is this 
wicked Haman.” Then the king arose in 
great anger and hastened into the palace 
garden, but the frightened Haman bowed 
before the queen and begged her to save him. 
When the king returned to the banquet room 
one of his servants said, “A gallows fifty 
cubits high is ready by the house of Haman; 
he had it built for Mordecai, who saved the 
king’s life.” And Ahasuerus said, “Hang 
Haman upon it.” So the wicked man died. 

Then Esther told the king who Mordecai 
was, and of their kinship, and the king sent 
for him and gave him the ring with the seal. 
Haman’s house had been presented to Esther, 
and she made Mordecai ruler over it. But 
the queen was still troubled, for the decree 
that the Jews must perish had not been 
recalled. Therefore she again presented her¬ 
self before the king and again he held out to 
her the royal sceptre. Then she begged that 
the decree of Haman might be changed, so 
that her people should not perish. In Persia 
in those times a law once published could not 
be changed, and Ahasuerus himself was 
unable to revoke the cruel decree. But he 
told Esther and Mordecai that they might 
issue a new decree giving the Jews the right 
to defend themselves. And it came to pass 
that on the thirteenth day of the twelfth 
month the Jews took their swords and 
defeated all who sought to kill them. 


























Bibliography 


Bicycle 




Bibliog'raphy, the knowledge of books, in 
reference to the subjects discussed in them, 
their different degrees of rarity, reputed and real 
value, the materials of which they are composed 
and the rank which they ought to hold in the 
classification of a library. The subject is some¬ 
times divided into general, national and special 
bibliography, according as it deals with books 
in general, with those of a particular country 
or with those on special subjects or of a special 
character, as early printed books or anonymous 
books. A subdivision of each of these may be 
made into material and literary, according as 
books are viewed in regard to their mere exter¬ 
nals or in regard to their contents. For Ameri¬ 
can books, the American Catalogue is the most 
comprehensive bibliography, while other impor¬ 
tant ones are Scribner’s Bibliographical Guide 
to American Literature (1856) and Duyckink’s 
Cyclopaedia of American Literature. 

Biblioma'nia, a passion for collecting rare 
and curious books. Bibliomania has mani¬ 
fested itself to a remarkable extent during the 
last hundred years. With the bibliomaniac, or 
more properly bibliophile, the utility of a book 
is of secondary importance, while its rarity is the 
first, and sometimes only, requisite. First copies 
of books, scarce editions, the first publications 
of authors afterwards famous, and editions de 
luxe, are among the treasures sought by the 
bibliophile. Books of the early printers, espe¬ 
cially the Gutenberg, Caxton, Aldine and Elzevir 
books, bring enormous prices. A Bible, sup¬ 
posed to date from the year 1450, and to be one 
of the oldest printed books in existence, sold in 
1911 for $50,000. There are in different coun¬ 
tries a number of clubs of booklovers, such as the 
Grolier Club in New York, which reprint rare 
works for the use of the members only. The 
beautiful and costly books from the Kelmscott 
Press of the late William Morris in England 
are in great demand among collectors of artis¬ 
tically prepared editions. 

Bibliotheque Nationale, be ble o tek' no- 
syo naV, the French national library in Paris. 
This is the largest library in the world, and 
contains over 2,500,000 printed volumes and 
maps, about 100.000 manuscripts, more than 
250,000 engravings and 150,000 coins and 
cameos The fact that there are so many 
printed volumes is due to the decree of 1536, 
that one copy of every book printed in France 
shall be deposited in the national library. 

Bichat, be sha', Maria Francois Xavier 
(1771-1802), a French anatomist and physi¬ 


ologist, bom at Thoriette. Bichat was the first 
who recognized the identity of the tissues in the 
different organs, and he is justly considered the 
founder of general anatomy. 

BP cycle, a light vehicle having two wheels, 
one behind the other, attached to a frame upon 
which a seat is mounted, and propelled usually 



MODERN BICYCLE 


by the rider’s feet acting upon cranks or levers. 
The first bicycle was invented in 1816 and was 
known as the draisine, from its inventor, Baron 
von Drais. It had two wheels connected by a 
bar, and the rider propelled the machine by 
kicking the ground alternately with his right 
and left foot. An improvement upon the drai¬ 
sine was the curricule, also called hobby horse 
and dandy horse, invented by one Johnson of 
England. This was followed by the velocipede, 
which in form and principle of construction 
resembled quite closely the modern bicycle, but 
the frame and wheels were of wood, the machine 
was propelled by the forward wheel and in con¬ 
struction was somewhat clumsy. The veloci¬ 
pede was introduced into the United States in 



1866, and in the next three years velocipede¬ 
riding became very popular. 

The velocipede gave way to the high bicycle 
or ordinary, which was introduced in 1873, and 
for about ten years was in general use in America 
and Europe, when it was displaced by the 
modem safety bicycle. With the advent of the 


























Biddeford 


Bienville 


safety, bicycling became very general, and 
between 1888 and 1900 the manufacture of 
bicycles in the United States developed into a 
very important industry. During these years 
the wheel was used more as an instrument of 
sport and pleasure than as a vehicle for business. 
After 1900 the popularity of the bicycle declined, 
and it was used almost wholly as a business 
convenience. As such it is now in quite general 
use in all towns and in many places on country 
roads. A motor cycle consists of the ordinary 
bicycle fitted with a gas engine for propelling 
it. Since 1903 these machines have come into 
quite common use. 

The bicycle is a convenient vehicle, since it 
affords easy, quick and cheap transportation on 
city streets and in the country, where the roads 
are good. Its extensive use, together with the 
influence of the League of American Wheelmen, 
has accomplished considerable in promoting 
the good roads movement throughout the 
country. 

Bid'deford, Me., a city in York co., 15 mi. 
s. w. of Portland, on the Boston & Maine 
railroad and on the Saco River, 6 mi. from the 
ocean. The falls in the river furnish water 
power for manufactures, which include cotton 
goods, boxes and lumber. The city also exports 
a fine quality of granite. It derives its name 
from Bideford, England, was settled under a 
patent in 1630 and was given a city charter in 
1855. The place now has a wide reputation 
as a summer resort. There are many churches, 
a public library and an electric line to Old 
Orchard Beach. Population in 1910, 17,079. 

Bid'die, James (1783-1848), an American 
naval officer. He was educated at the University 
of Pennsylvania, entered the navy as a mid¬ 
shipman in 1800, served in the war with Tripoli 
and w T as captured in the frigate Philadelphia 
and confined for four months. During the War 
of 1812 he was on the Wasp and led in the 
action against the Frolic , which he commanded 
after its capture. Both vessels were taken by 
the British ship Poitiers and were conveyed to 
the Bermudas. After his exchange in March, 
1813, he was given command of a flotilla of 
gunboats on the Delaware and was then trans¬ 
ferred to the Hornet. He captured the Penguin 
in March, 1813, for which Congress gave him 
a gold medal. In 1815 he became captain. 
During his command of the Mediterranean 
squadron he negotiated a commercial treaty 
with Turkey, and he was engaged in diplomatic 
service in China in 1845. 


Biddle, John (1615-1662), founder of the 
modern English Unitarian church. He was edu¬ 
cated at Oxford and became master of a free 
school at Gloucester. He was repeatedly impris¬ 
oned for his views. A general act of oblivion 
in 1652, by the order of Oliver Cromwell, 
restored him to liberty, when he immediately 
disseminated his opinions by his Twofold Scrip¬ 
ture Catechism. He was again imprisoned and 
was to be put to death, but Cromwell banished 
him to Saint Mary’s Castle, Scilly, and assigned 
him one hundred crowns annually. Here he 
remained three years, and after his release he 
continued to preach his opinions till after the 
Restoration, when he was fined one hundred 
pounds. Being unable to pay the fine, he was 
put into prison, wherj he remained till his 
death. 

Bidwell, John (1819-1900), an American 
statesman, born in Chautauqua co., N. Y., 
and educated at Kingsville Academy, Ohio. He 
taught school for a time, but migrated to Cali¬ 
fornia in 1841 and later served in the Mexican 
War, attaining the rank of major. He was 
chosen to the legislature in 1849 and to Congress 
in 1864. He joined the Prohibition party at its 
organization, and became its nominee for the 
presidency in 1892. 

Biela’s Comet, be'lahz kom'et, discovered by 
Wilhelm von Biela, an Austrian officer, in 1826. 
Its periodic time was determined as six years 
and thirty-eight weeks. It returned in 1832, 
1839, 1846 and 1852. On the latter two occa¬ 
sions it was in two parts, each having a distinct 
nucleus and tail. It has not since been seen as 
a comet; but in 1872, 1879 and 1885, when the 
earth passed through the comet’s track, immense 
flights of meteors were seen, which were thought 
to be parts of the broken up and dispersed comet. 

Bienville, byaN veeV, Jean Baptiste le 
Moyne, Sieur de (1680-1758), a French governor 
of Louisiana. He accompanied Iberville in his 
explorations of the Mississippi and settled at 
Biloxi in 1699. He explored the country and 
erected a fort 54 miles above the mouth of the 
river in 1700. In 1701 he became director of 
the colony and removed its capital to Mobile, 
but was discharged from his office in 1707. A 
new colony having been formed by Law’s Mis¬ 
sissippi company, Bienville was made its gov¬ 
ernor; he founded the city of New Orleans in 
1718 and transferred the capital of Louisiana 
to the new town in 1723. He was removed from 
his post on Aug. 9, 1726, but in 1733 he was 
again made governor of Louisiana, with the 


Bierstadt 

rank of lieutenant general. He published a 
code which prohibited every religion except the 
Roman Catholic and banished Jews from the 
colony; this remained in force until Louisiana 
was purchased by the United States 

Bierstadt, beer’staht, Albert (1830-1902), 
a German painter, born in Dusseldorf, Ger¬ 
many. He came to America when a child. 
Though he studied art in Europe, he chose 
California and Colorado as the field for his 
work. His favorite subjects contained mountain 
scenery, and he painted Laramie Peak, Lander’s 
Peak, Mount Hood and other peaks of the 
Rockies and the Sierra Nevada with great suc¬ 
cess. He was a member of the National Acad¬ 
emy and of the Saint Petersburg Academy of 
Fine Arts. 

Big'amy. See Polygamy. 

Big Beth'el, a small village in Virginia, 
situated on the peninsula between the James 
and York rivers. It is especially noted for its 
historical associations, being the place where an 
unsuccessful attempt was made by the 
Federals under General E. W. Pierce to 
attack and dislodge the Confederates who 
were stationed there under General Ma- 
gruder in 1861. 

Big Black River, a river in Mississippi 
which rises in Choctaw co. and enters the 
Mississippi River at Grand Gulf. It is 
nearly 250 miles long and is navigable 
for 50 miles to Bovina. The river flows 
through a rich country, which produces 
abundant crops of cotton. An important 
battle in Grant's Vicksburg campaign was 
fought upon its banks in 1863. 

Bigelow, big'e law, John (1817-1911). 
an American author and journalist, born 
in Malden, N. Y. He graduated at Union 
College, was admitted to the bar, became -"‘y 
with William Cullen Bryant part owner -f- 
of the New York Evening Post in 1849 
and managed the paper until 1861 . In 
that year he was sent to Paris as consul - 
and was United States minister there from 
1865 to 1867. In 1867 he became a Dem¬ 
ocrat and was elected secretary of state of 
New York. He wrote biographies of Fremont, 
Bryant and Tilden and edited Franklin s auto¬ 
biography and Tilden’s speeches. 

Bigelow, Poultney (1855- ), an author, 

bom in New York, the son of John Bigelow 
After study in America, France and Germany, 
where he became a personal friend of the German 
emperor, he graduated at Yale and at the 


Bighorn River 

Columbia Law School. He practiced onlv a 
few years, however, and then began to travel 
extensively. He sailed around the world, was 
shipwrecked on the coast of Japan,visited China, 
Africa, the East and West Indies and made 
canoe trips over Europe. H: is a member of 
various American and English societies and has 
lectured on mode n history and colonial admin¬ 
istration at several American universities. His 
journalistic experience includes his work as 
editor of Outing, as London correspondent of 
Harper’s Weekly and as Spanish-American War 
correspondent of the London Times. He has 
written The Border Land of Czar and Kaiser, 
investigation for which led to his expulsion from 
the Russian Empire; A History of the German 
Struggle for Liberty, and other works, which have 
generally been translated for European use. 

Big'horn, the wild sheep of the Rocky Moun¬ 
tains, named from the size of its horns, which are 
three and a half feet long, the animal itself being 
of the same height at the shoulder. It is grayish 





ROCKY MOUNTAIN GOAT] 

brown, with a lighter face, a whitish patch on 
the rump and a dark line running along the spine. 
These animals go in herds of twenty or thirty, 
frequenting the craggiest and most inaccessible 
rocks, and are wild and untamable. The big¬ 
horn is also called the Rocky Mountain goat. 

Bighorn River, a tributary of the Yellow¬ 
stone, which rises in Wyoming, near Fremont’s 


Bignonia 


Billiards 


Peak, and flows northeasterly, entering the 
Yellowstone near Blakely, Mont. The upper 
part of its course is noted for the grandeur of 
the mountain scenery. Its length is 400 miles, 
and it is navigable for a portion of this distance. 

Bigno'nia, a genus of plants of many species, 
inhabitants of hot climates, usually climbing 
shrubs furnished with tendrils. The flowers are 
mostly in clusters at the ends of stems or in the 
axils of the leaves. As the beautiful corolla is 
trumpet-shaped, the name of trumpet-flower is 
commonly given to these plants. All the species 
are splendid plants when in blossom, and many 
of them are cultivated in gardens. 

Big Rap' ids, Mich., county-seat of Mecosta 
co., on the Muskegon River and on the Pere 
Marquette and the Grand Rapids and Indiana 
railroads, 55 mi. n. of Grand Rapids. Big 
Rapids is an important lumber market, and it 
has foundries, mills and furniture factories. 
Ferris Institute, whose president was elected 
governor of Michigan in 1913, is located here. * 
Population in 1910, 4519. 

Big Sand'y or Sandy, an affluent of the Ohio 
River, formed by the junction of the Tug Fork 
and the Louisa Fork. The Tug Fork rises in 
West Virginia and, flowing northwest, forms, 
with the Big Sandy, the southern boundary 
between West Virginia and Kentucky. The 
Louisa Fork rises in southwest Virginia and flows 
northwest into Kentucky, then northeast to join 
the Tug Fork. The river is navigable for small 
boats for about 100 miles. 

Bilbao, a city in Spain, capital of the province 
of Biscay. The city lies on both banks of the 
river Nervion, 8 mi. from the Bay of Biscay, 
and is one of the leading ports of Spain. It is a 
great railway center and its manufactures of iron 
and steel are world-famous. It has the largest 
dry-dock in Spain. Population in 1910, 93,536. 

Bilboes, bil'boze, an apparatus formerly used 
by the Spaniards for confining the feet of offend¬ 
ers on board ships. It consisted of a long bar 
of iron, with shackles sliding on it and with a 
lock at one end to keep them on. 

Bile, a yellow, bitter liquid, separated from 
the blood by the cells of the liver and collected by 
the biliary ducts, which unite to form the hepatic 
duct. Bile passes from this into the duodenum, 
or by the cystic duct into the gall bladder, to be 
retained there till required for use. The flow 
of bile is continuous, but the amount varies 
during the twenty-four hours, being most abun¬ 
dant during digestion. The use of the bile is 
to aid in the digestion of fatty substances and to 


convert the chyme into chyle. It probably 
retards or prevents the decaying of food and may 
stimulate muscular action in the intestines. 
When bile is not secreted in due quantity from 
the blood, the unhealthy condition known as 
biliousness results. 

Bill, a written or printed paper containing a 
statement of particulars; for instance, the 
itemized statement of accounts due to merchants, 
or a printed proclamation or advertisement. In 
legislation a bill is a draft of a proposed statute, 
submitted to a legislative assembly for approval, 
but not yet enacted and made law. When 
passed and approved it becomes an act. In 
court proceedings the term bill has several signi¬ 
fications. It is a general term denoting various 
forms of beginning actions; a bill of indictment 
in a criminal case is a written accusation sub¬ 
mitted to a grand jury. 

Bill’iard Balls are made usually from ivory. 
When a tusk reaches the manufacturer, it is 
examined very carefully for flaws. If found 
perfect, the tusk is measured into proper lengths, 
which are two and one-half or three inches, 
according to the size of the ball desired, and the 
blocks are then turned into balls. In order to 
save the corners, the turners cut a ring at each 
end and slowly deepen it until a rough ring drops 
off. Two rings are cut from each billiard ball 
block, after which it is almost round. It is then 
laid aside to dry for about six months. When 
it has been seasoned it is chiseled down smooth 
and exactly round. The ball is then polished by 
means of a machine and is treated to a rubbing, 
first with chalk and chamois skin, and finally 
with a plain, soft leather. Every particle of saw¬ 
dust and shavings from the ivory is carefully 
saved. These are treated with chemicals, sub¬ 
mitted to an enormous hydraulic pressure and 
molded into small articles so perfect that only 
an expert can tell them from solid ivory. 

Billiards, a well known indoor game of skill, 
played on a rectangular table with ivory balls, 
which are driven against one another by means 
of an ash rod, or stick, called a cue, according to 
certain defined rules. Of the origin of billiards 
comparatively little is known—some considering 
that the game was invented by the French, and 
others that it was improved by them out of an 
ancient German diversion. Even the French 
themselves are doubtful on the point, some of 
their writers ascribing the game to the English. 
The strokes are all made with a cue gradually 
tapering to the end, which is tipped with 
leather and rubbed with chalk to prevent its 


Billiards 


Billings 


slipping off the surface of the ball struck. The 
cue is taken in the right hand, generally between 
the fingers and the thumb, and not grasped in 
the palm. With the left hand the player makes 
a bridge, by resting the wrist and the tips of the 
arched fingers on the table and extending the 
thumb in'such a way as to allow a passage in 
which the cue may slide. The shape of the table 
has varied from time to time. At first it was 
square, with a hole or pocket at each comer to 
receive the balls driven forward with a cue or 
mace; then it was lengthened and provided with 
two other pockets, and occasionally it has been 
made round, oval, triangular or octagonal, with 
or without pockets, according to the game 
required. It is covered with a fine green cloth and 
is surrounded by elastic india-rubber cushions. 
The table must be perfectly level and sufficiently 
firm to prevent vibration; the usual height of the 
surface from the floor is three feet. 

The game as played in America has taken a 
distinctive character, in regard to both the tables 
and the manner in which it is played. The 
older American game was the four-ball game 
(now rarely played by experts), and it was at 
first played on a six-pocket table, after the 
English pattern, then on a four-pocket table 
and finally on a pocketless table. The points 
of the game number usually thirty-four, fifty or 
one hundred. A point is made whenever the 
cue ball in a single shot touches the two object 
balls. At the commencement of the game, the 
players bank for lead, which is done by both 
simultaneously driving their balls against the 
bottom cushion; the ball approaching and resting 
nearer to the head cushion on the rebound 
decides the winner, both as to choice of balls and 
as to order of play. The table has two spots, 
one near each end of the table. A red ball is 
placed on the spot at the foot of the table, and the 
ball of the player who lost the bank for lead is 
placed on the spot near the head of the table. 
The leader places his ball anywhere nearer the 
head of the table than his opponent’s ball, and 
he tries to hit the red ball in such a way that his 
ball will strike, on its return, the ball of his 
opponent. If the leader succeeds, he has made 
a point, or carom, and he continues to play his 
ball at either of the others until he misses. 
Then his opponent plays his own ball, from 
where it lies, at either ball, under the same rules 
and conditions, until he misses a point. In 
this way the players alternate till the end of the 
game. If a ball jumps off the table after count¬ 
ing, the count is good and the ball must be 


spotted. When the cue ball is in contact with 
another, the balls are respotted and the player 
plays his own ball as at the commencement of 
the game. 

The cushion carom game is a highly scientific 
play, it being necessary to a successful carom 
that the cue ball shall, in the course of the stroke, 
strike not only both object balls, but the cushion 
as well. The balk line is another limitation 
w r hich has been imposed on the older game; in 
this form of the game a balk line eight, fourteen 
or eighteen inches from the rail is established, and 
the player is compelled to drive one or both 
object balls outside the line in order to count. 
In match games various handicaps are agreed 
upon, and strict rules concerning the manner of 
play are adopted. In social play, however, the 
rules are variously modified and fouls are rarely 
counted. The four-ball game is similar to the 
one described, except that there are two red balls 
besides the ones of the players. 

In the English game the object of the player 
is to drive one or other of the balls into one or 
other of the pockets, or to cause the striker’s ball 
to come into successive contact with two other 
balls. This game resembles the American game 
of pool more than billiards. 

Bil'lings, Mont., the county-seat of Yellow¬ 
stone co., 240 mi. s. e. of Helena, on the Yellow¬ 
stone River and on the Northern Pacific and the 
Burlington railroads. The city exports con¬ 
siderable live stock, is one of the largest inland 
wool markets in the country and has a valuable 
trade and a large sugar beet factory. The 
Yellowstone Valley is provided with irrigation 
ditches, and it produces grain, fruits and vege¬ 
tables. There are deposits of coal, marble and 
limestone in the vicinity. Population in 1900, 
3221, and in 1910, 10,031. 

Bil’lings, John Shaw (1839-1913), an 
American surgeon, born in Indiana. After 
studying at Miami University and the Ohio 
Medical College, he became assistant surgeon 
in the Federal army at the beginning of the 
Civil War and in 1876 was made surgeon in the 
regular army, with rank of major. Later he 
was medical adviser in Johns Hopkins Hospital 
and was lecturer on municipal hygiene in the 
Johns Hopkins University. Doctor Billings was 
the American member of the permanent com¬ 
mittee of the International Congress of Hygiene, 
and for some time he was professor in the Uni¬ 
versity of Pennsylvania. From 1896 until his 
death he was director of the New York Public 
Library. He wrote a number of books on medical 


Billings 


Bill of Rights 


subjects and compiled several'important biblio¬ 
graphies of medical books. 

Billings, Josh. See Shaw, Henry Wheeler. 

Bil'lingsgate, the principal fish market of 
London, on the left bank of the Thames, a little 
below London Bridge. From the character, 
real or supposed, of the Billingsgate fish dealers, 
the term billingsgate is applied to coarse and 
violent language. 

Bill of Attain'der, a legislative enactment 
involving capital punishment, or the confisca¬ 
tion of property, of persons accused of high 
offenses. These bills were formerly commonly 
passed by the British Parliament, especially in 
cases of particularly prominent persons, as 
Thomas Cromwell, the earl of Strafford and 
William Laud. Such a bill considered matters 
belonging wholly to the judiciary and was 
passed in a most irregular manner, without 
allowing the accused a trial and upon evidence 
which was generally insufficient and often inad¬ 
missible. Bills of attainder were abolished in 
England in 1870 and are prohibited by the 
Constitution of the United States (Article I, 
Section 9). See Attainder. 

Bill of Costs, in America an itemized list of 
the fixed costs of an action at law, which is filed 
by the successful party. After being verified 
and allowed by the clerk of the court, the amount 
is added to the judgment. 

Bill of Exchange, a written order by one 
person to another, requiring the second to pay to 
a third person, or to his order or to bearer, at 
a certain or determinable time, a sum of money. 
Bills of exchange are foreign and inland, or 
domestic. A foreign bill is one drawn in one 
state or country upon a person in another. A 
domestic bill is one drawn and payable within 
one state. The following are common forms: 
Inland: 

$1000 Chicago, Ill., March 6, 1906. 

Ninety days after date pay A. B. or order, 
one thousand dollars, with interest at the rate of 
of six per cent per annum, and charge to account 
of C. D. 

To E. F., Springfield, Ill. 

Accepted, E. F. 

Foreign: 

$1000 London, England, March 6, 1906. 

At sight of this first of exchange (second and 
third unpaid) pay to A. B. or order, one thou¬ 
sand dollars, and charge to account of 

C. D. 


Some states require the words “for value 
received” or their equivalent to be inserted in 
the bill. In the foreign bill the words “first of 
exchange” are inserted by reason of the fact 
that three duplicate bills are drawn, numbered, 
respectively, first, second and third, the first 
being given to the 'payee, that is, the one to 
whose order the bill is drawn, one being sent 
to the drawee, that is, the one who is to pay the 
money, and one being retained by the drawer, 
that is, the one who signs the bill. The drawee 
is under no obligation to pay a bill until he 
signifies his acceptance of it, which he may do 
in some states orally, but in most states only 
by signing his name across the bill. After 
accepting the bill the drawee is absolutely 
bound to pay it and is liable to suit. The 
drawer is liable for the amount of the bill, 
provided the drawee does not accept it. The 
bill can be transferred from the payee to any 
other person, provided the signature of each one 
to whom it is transferred is written upon its 
back. The persons whose names are thus 
signed become liable, in order, to all those who 
have signed subsequently, for the full amount of 
the bill, and thus they guarantee its payment. 
In actual business affairs to-day the indorsements 
are often made without the transference of the 
bill, but merely as an accommodation to the 
holder. See Negotiable Instruments; Notes. 

Bill of Health, a certificate or instrument 
signed by consuls or other proper authorities, 
certifying the state of health at the time that 
ships sail from ports suspected of being subject 
to infectious diseases. 

Bill of La'ding, a memorandum of goods 
shipped on board a vessel, signed by the master 
of the vessel, who thereby acknowledges the 
receipt of the goods and promises to deliver 
them in good condition at the place directed, 
subject to the ordinary accidents of a sea voyage. 
Similar bills are issued by other common car¬ 
riers for the receipt of freight, but they are 
usually known as way bills. In both cases the 
bills are issued in duplicate or in sets of three, 
one being retained in the offices of the carrying 
company, one by the master of the conveyance 
and one by the person shipping the goods. 
They can be transferred by indorsement. See 
Freight. 

Bill of Rights, a phrase used in a variety 
of meanings, to denote an enactment or agree¬ 
ment embodying a fundamental right or prin¬ 
ciple. Thus, a bill of rights has been inserted 
in the constitutions of most of the states of the 


To E. F., Chicago, Ill. 


Accepted, E. F. 


Bill of Sale 


Bindweed 


United States enumerating rights of the people 
which shall not be infringed and limitations 
upon the rights of the state. The same 
name has been given to the first ten amend¬ 
ments to the United States Constitution, which 
were added to satisfy the objection of some of 
the states, that the Constitution did not cover 
specifically enough certain inalienable rights of 
the people. In English history the Bill of 
Rights is an act of Parliament passed in 1689, 
embodying the principles of political liberty 
now established in the English system of gov¬ 
ernment. It is one of the three great instru¬ 
ments of the British constitution. Bill* of rights 
have frequently been enacted in French history, 
especially after the Revolution of 1789. 

Bill of Sale, a formal statement for the sale 
or transfer of personal property. It is often 
given to a creditor as security for borrowed 
money and empowers the receiver to sell the goods 
if the money is not repaid at the appointed time. 

Bilox'i, Miss., a city in Harrison co., 60 mi. 
s. w. of Mobile, Ala., on the Louisville and 
Nashville railroad and on Biloxi Bay, which 
opens into the Gulf of Mexico. The place is a 
popular winter resort, on account of its exten¬ 
sive beach, well-paved streets and beautiful 
buildings. It is principally engaged in the 
canning of oysters, fish, fruits and vegetables, 
but it also has shipyards and various factories. 
In 1669 Iberville established a settlement across 
the bay from the present city and named it 
from the Biloxi indians; about 1712 a perma¬ 
nent settlement was made on the present site, 
which was the first within the limits of Missis¬ 
sippi. It was incorporated as a town in 1872 
and as a city in 1896. Population in 1910, 7988. 

Bimet'allism, that system of money in which 
coins of two metals (silver and gold) are legal 
tender to any amount; or in other words, the 
concurrent use of coins of two metals as a circu¬ 
lating medium, the ratio of value between the 
two being arbitrarily fixed by law. It is con¬ 
tended by advocates of the system that by fixing 
a legal ratio between the value of gold and silver, 
and using both as legal tender, fluctuations in 
the value of the metals are in part avoided, and 
the prices of commodities are therefore rendered 
more stable; also, that exchanges with countries 
using one or the other metal as a single standard 
are facilitated. Monometallists reply that bimet¬ 
allism will not work, that the cheaper metal will 
always drive the dearer from use, whatever is 
the legal ratio (See Gresham’s Law). Further, 
they assert, there is no reason to believe that if 


it did work it would cure the evil of fluctuations 
in prices, since the combined output of both 
metals might fluctuate as well as the output of 
one alone. 

Bind'ing Twine, a twine made especially for 
use in self-binding harvesters (See Reaping 
Machines). The best varieties are made from 
manila hemp, obtained from the Philippine 
Islands. The hemp fiber is from two to six 
feet in length. This is switched and dusted, 
to comb out the valueless fiber, after which 
that to be made into twine is carded and straight¬ 
ened, then made into a narrow, flat ribbon of 
such size that when twisted it will produce a 
twine of the desired diameter. The ribbon is 
twisted by spindles, and from these the twine 
is wound on large bobbins holding 650 feet 
each. From the bobbins it is wound into balls, 
when it is ready for packing for shipment. 
These balls are so made that they unwind from 
the inside. Numerous attempts have been made 
to manufacture binding twine from straw and 
grass, but none has been successful. The 
large quantity of wheat and other grains raised 
in the United States makes the manufacture of 
binding twine an important industry. 

Bind'weed, a genus of plants of the morning 
glory family, generally having creeping, twining 



BINDWEED 

stems and milky juice. The flowers are large 
and beautiful, but the plants of some species 




Bingen 

are extremely troublesome weeds, particularly 
the so-called English bindweed. This grows 
not only by its seeds, but also by slender creep¬ 
ing rootstocks, which make it particularly trouble¬ 
some in grain fields and among hoed crops. If 
the plant is prevented from seeding and the 
land is cultivated in the late fall, the weeds may 
be reduced to control in a few seasons. Coal 
oil applied to the roots will kill them. The 
hedge bindweed lives in richer soil and has 
larger flowers a little later in the season. Some¬ 
times the common morning glory runs wild and 
becomes a weed. 

Bing'en, a town of Germany, in the grand 
duchy of Hesse, at the confluence of the Nahe 
with the Rhine. The district is noted for the 
culture of the vine, and the exquisite Riide- 
sheimer is produced in the neighborhood. 
There are manufactures of tobacco, glue, starch 
and leather. A tower, the Mausethurm, in the 
middle of the Rhine, erected probably about 
the year 1000, is celebrated in legend as the 
scene of the destruction by rats of the hard¬ 
hearted Bishop Hatto in 969. Restored in 1856, 
the tower now serves as a beacon, warning ships, 
by means of a flag, if the Binger Loch is clear. 
On the opposite bank of the Rhine is the Nieder- 
wald Monument, erected in commemoration of 
the victories of the war with France, 1870-1871. 
Population in 1910, 10,200. 

Bin'gham, John Arende (1815-1900), an 
American lawyer and legislator, bom in Mercer, 
Pa. He was educated in Ohio and was elected 
to Congress from that state as a Republican, 
serving from 1855 to 1863. He took part in the 
trial of Lincoln’s assassins and returned to 
Congress in 1865. During this period he pre¬ 
pared and introduced the Fourteenth Amend¬ 
ment and was one of the managers of the 
impeachment proceedings against Andrew 
Johnson. He was minister to Japan from 1873 
to 1885. 

Bing'hampton, N. Y., the county-seat of 
Broome co., 50 mi. e. of Elmira, at the junction 
of the Chenango and Susquehanna rivers and 
on the Lackawanna, the Delaware & Hudson 
and the Erie railroads. The city has a pic¬ 
turesque location and has sometimes been called 
the Parlor City. Some of the special attractions 
are Ross Park, Bennett Grove, the driving parks 
and the fair grounds. The prominent buildings 
include Central High School, Stone Opera House, 
the Y. M. C. A. and Y. W. C. A. buildings, 
several hospitals and children’s homes and the 
courthouse, city hall and post office. The exten- 


Biography 

sive manufactures of the city include cigars, 
wearing apparel, wagons, electrical apparatus, 
patent medicines, engines and furniture. It was 
settled in 1787. The original name of the town 
was Chenango Point, and the present name was 
given about 1800 in honor of William Bingham, 
who owned the land in the vicinity. It was 
incorporated as a city in 1867. The municipality 
built the waterworks the same year and now 
operates them. Population in 1910, 48,443. 

Binoc'ular. See Microscope. 

Bino'mial, in algebra, a quantity consisting 
of two terms or members, connected by the 
sign -f- or —. The binomial theorem is the 
celebrated method, devised by Sir Isaac New¬ 
ton, for raising a binomial to any power, or for 
extracting any root of it, by forming a series 
of terms whose coefficients and exponents 
increase and diminish regularly, according to a 
certain law. 

Biobio, be'o be'o, a Chilean river, which rises 
in the Andes, flows in a northwest direction for 
180 miles and falls into the Pacific at the city 
of Concepcion. It is navigable for 100 miles. 

Biogenesis, bi'o jen'e sis, literally the genesis 
or source of life, a biological term for the theory 
that living organisms, from the lowest to the 
highest, whether animal or vegetable, come into 
existence only from pre-existing life forms of 
like nature with themselves. This is now the 
generally accepted theory; the opposite view, 
known as spontaneous generation or abiogenesis, 
being generally discarded. The accepted theory, 
however, is not free from difficulties, since it 
leaves us confronted with an insoluble mystery— 
the origin of life itself. 

Biog'raphy, that department of literature 
which treats of the lives of men and women. This 
species of writing has existed from very ancient 
times, and specimens of it in its simple forms 
are to be found in the Old Testament accounts 
of the patriarchs. The legends of the Greeks 
and Romans were for the most part but bio¬ 
graphical accounts of the lives of their gods and 
heroes. Biography received no great develop¬ 
ment among the ancient peoples, and it was, 
even among the later Greeks and Romans, 
little more than an account of the happenings 
in the life of a man. Plutarch’s Parallel Lives, 
written in the first century after Christ, is the 
most important of the early biographical works 
which have come down to us. Although during 
the Middle Ages many lives of saints and matryrs 
were written, biography in its modern sense may 
be considered to date from the seventeenth 


Biology 


Birds 


century, since which time individual biographies 
have multiplied enormously. 

The ancient method of giving a mere chronicle 
of events has been greatly modified; selection of 
the more important events, emphasis on their 
relation to character and criticism, and even 
philosophical digressions, have made of biog¬ 
raphy a much less simple form of literature. 

As examples of noteworthy biographies may 
be mentioned Boswell’s Life of Dr. Johnson, 
the most famous of English biographies; Lock¬ 
hart’s Scott, Mrs. Gaskell’s Life of Charlotte 
Bronte, Forster’s Dickens, and Tennyson, by his 
son. The life of a person written by himself is 
called an autobiography, and as an example of 
this kind of writing Franklin’s Autobiography 
may be mentioned. There have been many 
dictionaries of biography, among the best of 
which are Lippincott’s Pronouncing Biographical 
Dictionary, the English Dictionary of National 
Biography and Appleton’s Cyclopedia of Ameri¬ 
can Biography. 

Biol'ogy, the study of living things and the 
phenomena of life. It deals with the whole 
organic world and tries to determine the laws 
which separate this field from the inorganic 
world. Beginning with the simpler forms of 
one-celled plants and animals, that can be 
studied only by 1 the aid of a microscope, it 
includes the more complicated forms of both 
plants and animals and all the relatio that 
exist between them. To show what life, present 
and future, really is, and what man’s relation is 
to the entire world, are the purposes of biology. 
Biology, then, must include all such sciences as 
botany, zoology and ethnology, and is so extended 
and comprehensive that no one man can master 
the whole of it. The ordinary student interests 
himself solely in a small section of the field. 
The results of the work of many investigators 
are viewed from time to time by such men as 
Lamarck, Darwin and Haeckel, who generalize 
upon the knowledge the others have garnered 
and draw out the general principles of universal 
biology. Although in recent years a general 
advance has been made in the study of biology, 
yet many problems aro still unsolved. In the 
public schools the name biology is applied to 
the study of the lower orders of plant and animal 
life and usually includes such work as compels 
the use of the microscope. See Botany; 
Zoology. 

Birch, burch, a genus of trees which comprises 
only the birches and alders, and which inhabits 
North America, Europe and northern Asia. 


The common European birch is extremely hardy, 
and only one or two other species of trees ap¬ 
proach so near to the north pole. The wood of 
the birch, which is light in color and firm and 
tough in texture, is used for chairs, tables, bed¬ 
steads and the woodwork of furniture generally, 
also for fish-casks and hoops, as well as for 
many small articles. In France wooden shoes 
are made of it. The bark is whitish in color, 
smooth and shining, separable in thin sheets 
or layers. In some countries it is made into 
hats, shoes, boxes and other small articles. 
Fishing-nets and sails are steeped with birch 
bark to preserve them. In Russia the oil 
extracted from the birch is used in the preparation 
of Russia leather and imparts the well-known 
scent to it. The sap, which may be drawn from 
the tree during warm weather in the end of 
spring or beginning of summer, is so sweet that 
an agreeable wine can be made from it. The 
dwarf birch, a low shrub not more than two or 
three feet high at most, is a native of all the most 
northerly regions. 

In the United States the white or paper birch 
is a fine tree, with valuable, close-grained wood. 
It was from the bark of this tree that indians 
made their birch canoes, and the thin, clean 
layers of the bark have been used instead of paper 
to write upon. The yellow birch is a large tree 
with yellowish bark. Both species are common 
in the north. 

Bird'lime, a sticky substance used for entan¬ 
gling birds so that they can be easily caught. It 
is prepared from holly-bark, being extracted by 
boiling, also from the berries of the mistletoe. 
It is spread on twigs in places which the birds 
frequent. 

Birds, warm-blooded animals, easily dis¬ 
tinguished from the other vertebrates by their 
shape, by the feathers that cover their bodies 
and by their wings. Birds usually live in pairs, 
rearing their young in homes which they make 
themselves, though there are some remarkable 
exceptions to this rule (See Nest). All birds 
lay eggs from which young are hatched (See 
Egg). In the higher orders the young are 
naked when they break from the shell and must 
be cared for and fed by the parents, but in some 
of the lower species the little ones are covered 
with tiny hairs and in others covered with a com¬ 
plete suit of feathers before they hatch. In the 
latter case the young are able to take partial care 
of themselves very soon after they appear.. The 
eggs vary in number from two to several dozen, 
seeming to be proportioned to the dangers the 



1, Cerulean Warbler. 

2, Bluebird. 

3, American Goldfinch. 


COMMON AMERICAN SONGSTERS 

4 White-Throated Sparrow. 7, Cardinal Bird. 

5. Baltimore Oriole. 8. House Wren. 

6. Blackburnian Warbler. 9. Redstart. 











Birds 


Birds 


WONDER QUESTIONS ABOUT BIRDS 


Why do some birds wear brilliant plumage 
and others sober colors? 

Coloration among birds usually bears an important 
relation to their habits and mode of life. Certain 
birds which nest on the ground and are preyed upon 
by various enemies have plumage which so blends 
with the background of weeds and grasses that the 
birds are rendered inconspicuous. This is an exam¬ 
ple of protective coloration, or natural “camouflage.” 
Some of the plovers and sandpipers wear such a 
plumage during the summer months, and in winter 
change it for a garment that blends with the shores 
and beaches. Tanagers, toucans, parrots and many 
other brilliantly-colored birds which live in trees are 
less exposed to danger than ground-nesting birds, 
and it is supposed that the former rely on their 
native haunts for protection. There is another 
theory that some naturalists accept. It has been 
noticed that the males of many species which have 
bright plumage are poor singers, while many dull 
colored birds are famous songsters. From this it is 
argued that the soberly-clad male woos his mate by 
his sweet singing, while his more handsome brother 
relies on his gay feathers. This is a subject that 
ought to prove of special interest to those who enjoy 
bird study and observation. 

Why do birds eat so much? 

Did you ever try to feed a family of orphan baby 
robins? One bird lover who did so reported that 
each bird ate forty-one per cent more than its own 
weight in twelve hours. At this rate man would 
eat about seventy pounds of flesh a day, and drink 
five or six gallons of water. Anyone who has 
observed birds to any extent will agree that they 
seem to be eating all day long. The reason for this 
is that they are exceedingly active and very warm 
blooded, and they need an extraordinary amount 
of food to sustain their high temperature and bodily 
activity. Nature has made incessant eating possible 
for them by giving them adequate digestive powers. 
The reports of* various naturalists show that the 
voracious appetites of birds have a distinct economic 
value. In the stomach of a single cedar waxwing 
were found one hundred canker worms; a scarlet 
tanager was observed to devour 630 gypsy moth 
caterpillars in eighteen minutes; a Maryland yellow 
throat ate plant lice at the rate of over 5,000 an hour. 
Birds also devour weed seeds, field mice and refuse. 
It is evident then that the help they give the agricul¬ 
turist far offsets the damage they may do to fruit 
and grain crops. 

How can birds hear, when they have no ears? 

Birds have no visible ears, but they possess an inter¬ 
nal apparatus that enables them to hear acutely. 
Robins seem to listen for the sounds made by 
crawling worms, and woodpeckers can detect by 
sound the presence of the grubs of boring snails. 
A word uttered in a low voice or the crackling of a 

_____ --- 


twig will throw a whole flock of birds into an uproar. 
The tufts of feathers on the heads of such birds as 
the screech owl are not ears, though they are some¬ 
times mistaken for organs of hearing. It is inter¬ 
esting to know that birds not only hear acutely, 
but they can distinguish between different tones and 
pitches. 

Do birds talk to one another? 

There is no doubt but that birds communicate with 
one another through various kinds of notes. Num¬ 
erous species have a special call note which summons 
the individuals to form into a flock, and when flocks 
are making their way to another climate, the call 
note is sounded again and again to keep the line 
unbroken. Calls of alarm and of hunger aie uttered 
by young birds of a number of species. Some birds 
are able to convey to their young, by means of cer¬ 
tain notes, the fact of threatening danger and a 
warning to keep very quiet. This gift of language 
is more highly developed in some species than in 
others. The crows and jays, for example, have a 
really extended vocabulary, while the cormorants 
and water turkeys make only a few elementary 
sounds. In the case of the former there is a regular 
development of the range of notes from the nesting 
period to maturity. 

How do birds find their way back home when 
they are thousands of miles away? 

There is evidently some special faculty that directs 
birds over vast stretches of land and water, and 
causes them to return to the same yard or even the 
same tree on almost the same date, year after year. 
It is true that they make use of sight, hearing, 
memory and the power of association, but this sum¬ 
mary does not tell the whole story. Undoubtedly 
birds possess in a marked degiee what we may call 
a sense of direction. This instinct keeps them on 
the straight route in the darkness of night and 
where familiar landmarks are lacking. Homing or 
carrier pigeons have this sixth sense developed to a 
remarkable degree. 

What repulsive animals were the birds’ first 
ancestors? 

Strange as it may seem, the beloved songsters of our 
woods are descendants of the reptilian class, to which 
belong the most hated of all animals. Ages ago 
there existed reptiles which could fly, and the first 
bird had reptilelike claws, toothed jaws and a long, 
lizardlike tail. Its front limbs, however, were 
adapted for flying, and the animal was covered with 
feathers. Modern birds and modern reptiles have 
many points in common in respect to structure. 
But how' far apart they are in the affection they 
awaken in human hearts! 

How fast do young birds grow? 

They grow at a rate quite out of proportion to their 
size. One naturalist tells of a cedar waxwing that 






Birds 


Birds 


doubled its weight the first day, trebled it on the 
second, and almost quadrupled it on the third. On 
the twelfth day, when it left the nest, it had increased 
its weight thirteen-fold. He adds, “At a corre¬ 
sponding rate of growth, a ten-pound baby would 
weigh 134 pounds at the age of twelve days.” This 
astonishing rate of growth keeps the parents con¬ 
stantly occupied to find food to satisfy the increas¬ 
ing appetite. 

Do birds use their wings for anything besides 
flying? 

Yes, the wings of birds serve a variety of purposes. 
Penguins, Arctic birds that find it easier to swim 
than to fly, use their short wings in the water as 
oars; on land, the wings serve as forefeet when the 
penguins crawl on the ground. The young of 
numerous birds are gathered under the parents’ 
wings when the little ones need shelter or protection, 
and frequently the mother bird spreads her wings 
over the nest to guard the eggs. Fighting birds, 
including aggressive domestic poultry, find the 
wings a strong weapon of attack. Birds also give 
vent to various emotions by flapping, spreading and 
fluttering the wings. Everyone, too, is familiar 
with the bird’s habit of tucking its head under its 
wings when it goes to sleep. 

How high in the air do migrating birds fly? 

The height at which birds travel at such times varies 
from a few yards to nearly three miles. We know 
that the calls of traveling birds may be frequently 
heard at night, and that in the daytime migrating 
flocks are often visible, so it is reasonable to suppose 
that a good many birds seek only moderate alti¬ 
tudes. Another evidence of this is the large number 
of birds that are killed at night through striking 
against obstacles. On the other hand, observers 
who have watched migrations through telescopes 
report that numerous birds fly so high one cannot 
discern them with the naked eye. 

Do birds put away stores of food like the 
squirrels? 

No, birds very rarely store up supplies for the future. 
In fact, they seem to spend most of their time search¬ 
ing for food to satisfy present demands. In tropical 
regions food is abundant the year round, and there 
is no occasion for storing it up; in less favored 
localities the bird inhabitants leave when the food 
supply gives out, and migrate to warmer climes. 

Why do birds return to their northern homes 
in the spring? 

One might think that the birds would prefer to 
remain in the sunny Southland all the year round, 
where the food supply is never endangered by ice 
and snow. We must remember, however, that if 
all the birds built nests and reared their families in 
the same part of the world the warm regions would 
be so thickly populated with birds that even there 
the food supply would run short. And, Just as 
human beings emigrate from crowded countries to 
new and unsettled lands, so birds keep the southern 


regions from becoming overcrowded by their yearly 
journeys northward. 

How do birds keep their balance when on 
the wing? 

Birds have a special organ of balance which keeps 
them from falling over when they are flying. This 
organ consists of semicircular canals in the head; 
the canals are filled with a fluid that communicates 
with delicate nerve fibers, and the fibers are the 
ends of a nerve of balance. Human beings have a 
similar organ in the head, and when it is not acting 
normally they may lose their equilibrium. In birds 
the organ of balance is developed to a very high 
degree. 

How does it happen that some birds, such as 
the ostrich and emu, cannot fly? 

It is probable that the flightless birds of today are 
the descendants of birds which originally could fly, 
but lost that power through not exercising it. Birds 
which had to escape from swift, powerful enemies 
developed great powers of flight, while those which 
were not preyed upon by savage beasts and found 
their food on the ground had no need to exercise 
their wings. In course of time the wings lost the 
power of carrying the birds in the air, and the 
latter became flightless. It is interesting to know 
that a number of such birds are now extinct. 

Why do some birds rear one brood a season, 
and others two or more broods? 

We can only partially answer this question, because 
we do not understand fully many of the habits of 
birds. But we know that some birds, such as the 
English sparrow and the robin, hatch their eggs in 
less than two weeks, and the young stay in the nest 
a comparatively short time. The parents are there¬ 
fore freed from their parental duties in about a 
month after the eggs are laid, and there is ample 
time to rear more than one brood. The fish hawks, 
on the other hand, incubate their eggs a month, and 
the young do not fly until they are about six weeks 
old. Accordingly the parents have time to rear but 
one brood a season. There are other birds whose 
habits in this matter cannot be explained. 

Are birds ever albinos? 

Yes, albinism is by no means a rare occurrence 
among birds, and may affect any species. Perfectly 
white crows are sometimes seen; they are examples 
of complete albinism. This peculiarity is caused by 
absence of pigment in the feathers. Birds which are 
abnormally black have, on the other hand, an excess 
of pigment. More frequently than otherwise, birds 
are affected by partial albinism, in which case only 
a portion of the plumage is white. Usually, if one 
feather in a wing is affected, the corresponding 
feather in the other wing will have the same marking. 
Another form of abnormal coloring, called dichroma¬ 
tism, is the occurrence of two phases of color in the 
same species. It is illustrated by the screech owl 
species, which contains both reddish and gray 
individuals. 





Birds 


Birds 


young are to meet, but being practically the same 
number at every sitting of each species. The 
eggs which are hatched by heat are sometimes 
buried in rotting vegetation, or in the sand under 
the hot sun, but more frequently they are laid 
in artificial nests or in some natural receptacle, 
and are there brooded and kept warm by the 
body of the female until the chick matures and 
emerges This is usually a period of from two 
to three weeks. 

Nothing is more wonderful than the flight of 
birds. Their wing power is extraordinary,'but 
the speed with which they fly has doubtless been 
exaggerated Their endurance is much more 
surprising. Seme of the smallest and apparently 
feeblest of birds, that usually confine their flight 
to short dashes from bush to bush, may during 
theii migrations cover in a single flight distances 
ranging from five hundred to two thousand miles 
(See Migration of Animals). In order that 
the body, relatively so heavy, may be carried 
through the air, the muscles which move the 
wings must be very strong and have a strong 
frame for their attachment. The frame is fur¬ 
nished by the wide breast bone. But strong 
muscles alone would be insufficient, were there 
not in the body air cavities, which sometimes 
extend even into the bones and feathers. The 
wings, which are the chief organs of flight, are 
modified fore limbs, corresponding to the arms 
of a human being. From the body of the wings 
grow strong feathers with heavy quills, making 
a broad surface with which the bird can beat the 
air. The heavy quills are covered both above 
and below with short feathers, which prevent the 
air from passing through and make it slide 
readily off. The tail does not help much in 
flight, but it is rather a rudder by which the bird 
steers itself and holds . its body level. The 
feathers which cover the entire body are small 
and overlap, but they do not grow uniformly 
everywhere, being distributed in certain definite 
patches or areas. 

The food of birds varies widely according to the 
species. No living bird has teeth, but the beak 
of each species is fitted to handle the food which 
it eats. No arrangement provides for the 
chewing of the food, so the bird’s organs of 
digestion are peculiar. After the food is swal¬ 
lowed it finds lodgment first in the crop, a large 
sack at the bottom of the gullet. Here the food 
is soaked and softened for some time and then 
passed on to the gizzard, a kind of stomach, with 
exceedingly strong muscular walls and tough, 
hard, wrinkled lining. Here the food is ground 
23 


fine by vigorous rubbing, sometimes aided by 
small pebbles and gravel eaten by the bird. 
Naturally the meat-eating birds have smaller 
gizzards, with thinner muscular coats, and in 
some species there is no gizzard at all. The 
quantity of food required by birds is enormous 
and in this necessity lies their chief value to the 
horticulturist. 

Their sense of sight is keen, and in some 
species it is little less than marvelous. The eye 
is very much like that of a human being, but it 
has a third lid, which can be drawn at will so as 
partially to shut out the light. The nostrils open 
through the upper part of the beak, and in some 
birds the sense of smell is exceedingly keen. 
Although birds have no external ears, yet most 
of them are extremely sensitive to sound. The 
senses of taste and touch are dull, yet both are 
possessed by the bird. While not a large num¬ 
ber of birds can be said to sing, yet songs are 
among the most pleasing and attractive of their 
characteristics. Some are able to utter only 
discordant, disagreeable notes, but others, like 
the crow, seem to have developed a language of 
their own, and not a lew can be taught to speak 
words. Ordinarily, only the male birds can 
sing, and those which are most brilliant in 
plumage are the poorest singers. In general, 
the singing birds are small and lively, living 
principally upon grains and fruits. A remark¬ 
able trait of birds is their mstinct for returning 
directly to their homes after having been away, 
as may be seen in the return of the homing 
pigeon and the return of many species from the 
winter migration to old homes in the north. The 
toes of a bird are fitted for clinging to twigs and 
branches, for scratching in the ground, for 
clasping and holding prey and, when bordered 
by a broad margin or connected by webs, for 
swimming. The muscles in the legs of perching 
birds are so arranged that when the bird sits, 
its toes are bent and cannot be opened until the 
bird rises again. This arrangement prevents 
it from falling from the twigs while asleep. 
Most young birds are fed upon insect food, and 
as they appear when insect pests are at the very 
worst, man is usually much benefited by their 
hearty appetites. The incredible number of 
insects eaten in a single day show how great a 
difference a few birds make. But the benefits 
conferred upon man by the birds are not confined 
solely to the extermination of insects. Many 
are excellent and even delicious food, and from 
the wild birds have come various domestic 
fowls which, because of their eggs and flesh, are 


Birds 


Birds of Paradise 


among man’s most valuable living possessions. 
The pleasure given by the beautiful colors, 
charming habits and sweet songs of the birds 
deserves more than a passing mention. 

Many systems of classification have been 
offered and the one best known and still most 
generally in use, though not the latest, nor 
perhaps in all respects the best, is that which 
divides the class into the seven following groups: 

L Raptores, or birds of prey (See Eagle; 
Vulture; Hawk; Owl), 

II. Insessores, or perching birds. This is 
the most numerous group and includes all of our 
singing birds. 

III. Scansores , or climbers (See Parrot; 
Woodpecker; Toucan). 

IV. Rasores , or scratchers. In this group 
are included the domestic fowls (See Fowl; 
Grouse; Pheasant; Pigeon). 

V. Cursores, or runners (See Ostrich; 
Emu; Cassowary). 

VI. Grallatores, or waders (See Crane; 
Heron; Snipe; Sandpiper), 

VII. Natatores, or swimmers, web-footed 
birds (See Duck; Goose; Gulls). 

These orders are represented in the accom¬ 
panying color plate. 

A very late and now generally accepted scheme 
divides all birds into two sub-classes, in the first of 
which is placed alone the earliest fossil form (See 
Archaeopteryx) . The second sub-class is divid¬ 
ed into three great sections, of which the first con¬ 
tains those birds unfitted for flying; the second, 
fossil forms having blunt teeth, and the third 
and greatest division of all, the birds of flight. 
This last group is separated into thirteen orders. 

Recent years have seen the publication of a 
large number of very interesting books on the 
subject of birds, some of them dealing principally 
with their habits and manner of life, while 
others give simple descriptions of the birds in 
such a way that a person may name them on 
sight. Not a few of these books are beautifully 
illustrated with colored pictures, which show 
vividly the striking characteristics of the birds. 
Besides the local books which deal with the 
birds of the regions around large cities or in 
certain restricted localities, there are such gen¬ 
eral books as Frank M. Chapman’s Color Key 
to North American Rirds and Birds of the 
Eastern United, States, which are excellent for 
beginners in bird study. Olive Thorne Miller’s 
Bird Ways, In Nesting Time and Our Home 
Pets, Mabel Osgood Wright’s Bird Craft and 
Citizen Birds , are books of a different type that 


are charming reading, whether one studies the 
birds in the field or not. 

Bird Reservations are tracts of land, par¬ 
ticularly islands and marshy reaches along rivers 
and shores, set aside by the government as re¬ 
treats for native wild birds, where they can nest 
in safety, secure from the depredations of hunters. 
The first reservation was established by Presi¬ 
dent Roosevelt in 1910, when he set aside Pelican 
Island, Indian River, Fla., as a home for the peli¬ 
cans that nested there. Since then there have 
been more than fifty others added, varying in 
size from a few acres to a territory larger than 
the state of Massachusetts. They are located in 
all parts of our domain, from Porto Rico on the 
south and east to Alaska on the north, along the 
Gulf and Atlantic shores, midland in Nebraska 
and South Dakota, westward in Oregon; while 
in mid-Pacific is the Hawaiian Island Reserva¬ 
tion, the largest of America’s bird sanctuaries. 

Birds’ Nests. See Nest. 

Birds of Par'adise, the familiar name for a 
family of birds noted everywhere for the splen¬ 
dor of their plumage. About forty species live^ 



RED BIRD OF PARADISE 


in Australia, New Guinea and the other islands 
of the Pacific. They live almost entirely in the 
tree tops, eating seeds, fruits and insects and 
building their rather flimsy nests. In all species 
the plumage of the male especially is brilliant 
and velvety, but it is not alone in brilliancy of 
color that the birds of paradise are remarkable. 
The males have wonderfully long and graceful 
plumes, which in some species grow from the 
shoulders, in others from the tail or from the 
head. In one species the shoulder tufts are so 
long and fine that they fall far below the body, 
and even below the tail, in a showery mass of 
brilliantly colored, delicate, thread-like feathers. 
The plumes of the tail in one species are long, 
slender quills, which on the very tip bear a 
small rounded vane. It is difficult to describe 
the varieties in feathers or the tints and shades 



ORDERS OF BIRDS 


Scratchers Climbers Perchers Waders Swimmers 

1 and 2, Domestic Fow's. 4, Woodpecker. 6, Bobolink. 8. Sandpiper. 10, Swan. 

3, Golden Pheasant. Birds of Prey Runners 9, Heron. 11, Domestic Duck. 

S, Eagle. 7. Ostrich. 










Birmingham 

of color to be found, even on a single bird, and 
it is quite impossible to give any idea of the 
varied and brilliant family. The smallest are 
about the size of the sparrow, and the largest 
are nearly as big as a crow. The males often 



the birds are excited by their performances, 
that the native hunters kill them for the market. 

Bir'mingham, Ala., county-seat of Jefferson 
co., 97 mi. n. w. of Montgomery, on the Central 
of Georgia, the Louisville & Nashville, the 
Southern and other railroads. It lies in a 
region rich in iron, coal and limestone. The 
chief industry is the manufacture of iron and 
steel in various forms. There are also cotton 
mills, packing houses, cottonseed-oil mills and 
extensive iron and coal mining and lumber 
interests. The city was laid out in 1871. It 
did not progress rapidly until 1880, when the 
natural resources of the surrounding country 
began to be developed. It is now one of the 
most prosperous cities of the South. It has 
beautiful parks, several fine public buildings 
and various charitable and educational in¬ 
stitutions. The city has grown very rapidly. 
Population in 1910, 132,685. 


Biscay 

Birmingham, a large manufacturing city of 
England, in the county of Warwick, 103 mi. 
n. w. of London and 78 mi. s. e. of Liverpool. 
The principal buildings are a grammar school 
of Edward VI, Saint Philip’s and Christ’s 
churches. Queen’s College, the town hall, a 
theater and an art gallery. The industries are 
very important and employ one hundred thou¬ 
sand people. It is one of the chief centers of 
the world for the manufacture of brass, iron 
and hardware goods. Other manufactures are 
gold and silver plated, bronze and japanned 
wares, papier-mach£ goods, jewelry, buttons, 
glass and tools. Birmingham returns seven 
members to Parliament. Population in 1911, 
525,960. 

Birnam, bur'nam, a hill in Perthshire, Scot¬ 
land, 12 mi. w. n. w. of Dunsinane. It is 1324 
feet high and was once covered by the royal 
forest made famous by Shakespeare in Macbeth. 

Birney, bur'ny, James Gillespie (1792- 
1857), an American politician and reformer, 
born in Danville, Ky. He graduated at Prince¬ 
ton in 1810, studied law and began practice in 
Danville in 1814. He was soon elected to the 
legislature and, having removed to Alabama, 
served in the legislature of that state. He 
gradually turned his attention to the study of 
the slavery question and became the leader of 
the conservative wing of the Abolitionists. In 
1833 he returned to Danville, freed his own 
slaves and from that time forward devoted 
himself to the cause of gradual emancipation. 
He organized the Kehtucky Anti-slavery Society 
in 1835, and in the following year he moved to 
Cincinnati and issued the first number of an 
anti-slavery paper. During the next few years 
he often suffered from the violence of mobs, 
but he gradually gained in public esteem in the 
North. In 1840 and again in 1844 he was the 
candidate of the Liberty party for the presi¬ 
dency, but received comparatively few votes. 
The last twelve years of his life he was an 
invalid, but he continued to write for the press. 

Birs Nim'rud, a famous mound in Babylonia, 
on the west side of the Euphrates, 6 mi. s. w. 
of Hillah, generally identified as the remains of 
the Tower of Babel. 

Bis'cay, Bay of, that part of the Atlantic 
which lies between the projecting coasts of 
France and Spain, extending from the French 
island of Ushant to Cape Ortegal. It receives 
the rivers Loire, Charente, Adour and Gironde. 
The principal ports on the bay are Nantes, 
Bordeaux, Bayonne, San Sebastian and Gijon. 


Biscuit 


Bismarck-Schonhausen 


The tides of the Bay of Biscay are among the 
highest known, and navigation is very difficult. 

Biscuit, bis'kit, a kind of hard, dry bread, 
which is not liable to spoil when kept. Biscuits 
are either fermented or unfermented, the kinds 
in ordinary use being generally fermented, while 
the unfermented biscuit is much used at sea, 
and hence is called sear-biscuit. More than a hun¬ 
dred different sorts of biscuit are manufactured, 
and, owing to the immense demand, manual 
labor has long since been superseded in the 
larger works by machinery. In making sea- 
biscuit the flour is mixed with water, converted 
into dough by a revolving shaft armed with 
knives, kneaded with rollers, cut, stamped, con¬ 
veyed on a framework drawn by chains through 
an oven open at both ends, and thence passed 
to a drying room—all without being touched by 
hand. Two thousand pounds of biscuits can 
thus be turned out of a single oven in a day of 
ten hours. In many fancy biscuits the process 
is of course more elaborate, but even these are 
now made entirely by machinery. Sea-biscuit 
should continue sound for eighteen months or 
two years. Meat biscuits . are made of flour 
mixed with the soluble elements of meat. The 
popular American name for most varieties of 
biscuits is crackers. See Bread. 

Biscuit, in pottery, a term applied to porce¬ 
lain and other earthenware, after the first firing 
and before glazing. At this stage the ware is 
very porous. See Pottery. 

Bishop, bish'up, the title of an overseer or 
superintendent over a number of local churches, 
which constitute his diocese. The Anglican, 
Roman Catholic, Greek and some other eastern 
churches consider the office of bishop to have 
descended in an unbroken line from the twelve 
apostles. Most Protestant denominations, how¬ 
ever, do not accept this order of succession. 
The Methodist Episcopal Church recognizes 
the authority of a bishop, but not an 
ecclesiastical supremacy. In this Church the 
office is elective, and bishops are placed upon the 
retired list by vote of the general conference. 
The duties of the bishop vary with different 
denominations. In general, the bishop has 
oversight over the clergy and various church 
interests within his diocese. He may call con¬ 
ventions of the clergy, at which he presides, 
appoint clergymen to churches and for cause 
may remove them from their positions. 

Bismarck, biz'mahrk, N. D., the capital of 
the state and the county-seat of Burleigh co., 
194 mi. w. of Fargo, on the Missouri River and 


on the Northern Pacific and the Minneapolis. 
Saint Paul & Sault Sainte Marie railroads. The 
state capital, which cost half a million dollars, 
is the most prominent building, and another is 
the state penitentiary, located about a mile from 
the city. The city is an important base of sup¬ 
plies for Indian agencies and military forts. 
There is an extensive trade in coal, grain and 
general supplies. It is the see of the Catholic 
diocese of Bismarck. Bismarck was settled 
about 1873, was made the capital of Dakota 
Territory ten years later and became the capital 
of the state in 1889. Population in 1910, 5443. 

Bismarck Archipelago, ahr'ki pel'a go, the 
name given by the Germans to New Britain, 
New Ireland and other islands in the Pacific, 
about 56 mi. e. of New Guinea. The area is 
about 18,200 square miles. The chief articles 
of export are copper and trepang. Population, 
about 200,000. 

Bismarck-Schonhausen, bis'mahrk short 
how zen, Karl Otto Eduard Leopold von. 



PRINCE VON BISMARCK 


Prince (1815-1898), chancellor of the German 
Empire and one of the greatest statesmen of 
the nineteenth century. He was born at Schon- 
hausen, of a noble family, studied at Gottingen 
and Berlin and entered the army. After a brief 
interval devoted to his estates and to the office 
of inspector of dikes, he became in 1846 a mem¬ 
ber of the provincial diet of Saxony, and in 1847 
of the Prussian diet. In 1851 he was appointed 


Bismuth 


Bissagos 


representative of Prussia in the diet of the 
German Federation at Frankfort, where with 
brief interruptions he remained till 1859, exhibit¬ 
ing the highest ability in his efforts to checkmate 
Austria and place Prussia at the head of the 
German states. From 1859 to 1862 he was 
ambassador to Saint Petersburg, and in the 
latter year, after an embassy to Paris of five 
months’ duration, he was appointed minister 
of foreign affairs and president of the Prussian 
cabinet. The Lower House persistently refusing 
to pass the bill for the reorganization of the army, 
Bismarck at once dissolved the diet, closing it 
for four successive sessions until the work of 
reorganization was complete. When popular 
feeling had reached its most strained point, the 
Schleswig-Holstein question acted as a diver¬ 
sion, and Bismarck, by the skillful manner in 
which he added the duchies to Prussian terri¬ 
tory, checkmated Austria and excluded her 
from the new German confederation, became 
the most popular man in Germany (See 
Prussia; Schleswig-Holstein; Seven Weeks’ 
War). 

Prussia now held the chief place in Germany, 
and as a result a struggle between Germany 
and France appeared to be sooner or later 
inevitable. Bismarck, having made full prep¬ 
arations, brought matters to a head on the 
question of the Hohenzollem candidature for the 
Spanish throne (See Franco-German War). 
After the successful issue of the war, Bismarck 
became chancellor and prince of the new Ger¬ 
man Empire. He formed with Austria and 
Italy the Triple Alliance, not with the intention 
of entering upon further war, but with the pur¬ 
pose of making Prussia so strong that other 
powers would not dare attack her. Subsequently 
he alienated the Roman Catholic party by his 
opposition to the doctrine of the pope’s infalli¬ 
bility, and was for a long time involved in a 
conflict with the Church. He held his position 
of chancellor until in March, 1890, he disagreed 
with the emperor and tendered his resignation. 
In March, 1895, on the celebration of his eight¬ 
ieth birthday, the emperor visited him. 

Bismuth, biz'muth, a metal of a yellowish or 
reddish-white color and of a plate-like texture. 
It is somewhat harder than lead and cannot be 
worked with a hammer when cold, being so 
brittle as to break easily into powder. Its 
internal face or fracture exhibits large shining 
plates variously disposed. It fuses at 476° F. 
and expands considerably as it hardens. It is 
often found in a native state, crystallized in 


eight-sided forms, or in the form of thin plates 
in the ores of other metals, particularly cobalt. 
Bismuth is used in making pewter and printers’ 
types and in various other metallic mixtures. 
Eight parts of bismuth, five of lead and three of 
tin constitute the fusible metal sometimes called 
Newton’s, which melts at 202° F., and may be 
fused over a candle in a piece of stiff paper 
without burning the paper. Bismuth forms the 
basis of a sympathetic ink. The nitrate of bis¬ 
muth is used as a medicine, while the oxychlo¬ 
ride is used as a paint and as a cosmetic, under 
the name of 'pearl-white or pearl-powder. 

Bi'son, the name applied to two species of 
ox. One of these, the European bison or aurochs , 
is now nearly extinct, being found only in the 
forests of Lithuania and the Caucasus. The 
aurochs is a fierce- animal, dark brown in color, 
about six feet in height and having large tapering 
horns. The other species, or American bison , 
improperly termed buffalo, was found formerly 
over the whole western half of North America in 
enormous herds, but has almost become extinct 
in the wild state. A few herds are preserved 
by individuals, a few others are in zoological 
gardens and a herd is kept in the Yellowstone 
National Park. The destruction of the American 
bison is one of the worst of the many cruel and 
wanton acts of hunters, for countless hundreds 
of animals were killed, and their hides, flesh and 
bones were left to decay where they fell. The two 
species of bison resemble each other, the Ameri¬ 
can bison, however, being for the most part 
smaller. The bison is remarkable for the great 
hump or projection over its fore shoulders, at 
which point the adult male is almost six feet in 
height, and for the long, shaggy, rust-colored 
hair over the head, neck and fore part of the body. 
In summer, from the shoulders backward the 
surface is covered with a very short fine hair, 
smooth and soft as velvet. The tail is short and 
tufted at the end. Its flesh is rather coarser 
grained than that of the domestic ox, but it was 
considered by hunters and travelers as superior 
in tenderness and flavor. The skins, dressed in 
the indian fashion, with the hair on, made 
admirable defenses against the cold, but buffalo 
robes have become almost a thing of the past. 

Bissagos, bis sah’goz, or Biju'ga Islands, a 
group of small volcanic islands near the mouth 
of the Rio Grande River, off the west coast of 
Africa. The islands have several good harbors 
and are densely populated with negroes, who are 
in an uncivilized state. The inhabitants culti¬ 
vate maize and tropical fruit and raise cattle. 


Bissell 


Bitumen. 


Orange is the largest island, and Bulama,'on the 
island of the same name, is the chief town. The 
islands are inclosed by a reef, and with few 
exceptions they are densely wooded. 

Bis'sell, Wilson Shannon (1847-1903), an 
American statesman, born in Rome, N. Y. He 
graduated at Yale College in 1869, began prac¬ 
tice at Buffalo and was Grover Cleveland’s law 
partner when the latter became mayor of Buffalo. 
Bissell became well known as a corporation 
lawyer. He was made postmaster general in 
Cleveland’s cabinet in 1893, but resigned in 
1895 and became chancellor of the University 
of Buffalo in 1902. 

Bistre, bis'tur, a •warm brown pigment, a 
burned oil extracted from the soot of wood, 
especially beech. It furnishes a fine transparent 
wash, but it is chiefly employed in the same 
fashion as sepia and India ink in painting. 

Bit. See Bridle and Bit; Boring Machine. 

Bithynia, hi thin'y ah, an ancient country of 
Asia Minor, bounded by the Propontis, Bosporus 
and Euxine on the north, Mysia on the west, 
Phrygia and Galatia on the south and Paphla- 
gonia on the east. It was settled by Thracians 
and was conquered by King Croesus of Lydia. 
Later it fell to the Persians, and afterward it 
was subdued by Alexander the Great. The 
Bithynian kingdom was founded by Nicomedes I 
about 278 b. c. and remained independent until 
74 b. c., when Nicomedes III ceded it to the 
Romans, who placed Pliny the Younger as ruler 
over it. Its chief cities were Chalcedon, Hera- 
clea,Nicaea, Nico- 
media and Brusa. 

In 1298 the Turks 
broke into the 
country and con¬ 
quered it. Brusa 
was for some time 
thereafter a Turk¬ 
ish capital. 

Bit'ter-ash. 

See Quassia. 

Bit'tern, the 
name of several 
wading birds of the 
heron family. The 
common bittern of 
the United States 
is a dull yellowish 
brown, with spots 
and bars of black 
or dark brown. It has a short tail and long 
and loose breast feathers. It is remarkable for 


its curious booming or bellowing cry. It has a 
great variety of common names, such as mire- 
drum, fly-up-the-creek and stake driver. If 
wounded the bird fights vigorously. Although 
it is a harmless and night-hunting bird that 
lives upon the small animals of the swamps, 
people all seem prejudiced against it. 

Bittern, the syrupy residue from evaporated 
sea water, after the common salt has been taken 
out of it. It is used in the preparation of Epsom 
salt (sulphate of magnesia),, of Glauber’s salt 
(sulphate of soda), and contains also chloride of 
magnesium, iodine and bromine 

Bit'ternut, the swamp hickory, a tree of 
North America which produces small and some¬ 
what egg-shaped fruits, with a thin, fleshy rind; 
the kernel is bitter and unpleasant. See 
Hickory. 

Bit'terroot, a plant of Canada and north¬ 
western United States, so called from its edible 
root, which is esteemed as a delicacy by whites 
as well as indians. From its tobacco-like odor 
while cooking, it is called tobacco root. From 
the root, which is long, fleshy and tapering, grow 
clusters of juicy green leaves, with a fleshy stalk 
bearing a handsome solitary rose-colored flower, 
rising in the center and remaining open only in 
sunshine. Bitterroot is the state flower of 
Montana. 

Bitter Spar, the crystallized form of dolomite 
or magnesian limestone, so named by the Ger¬ 
mans because the magnesia gives it a bitter taste. 
See Dolomite. 

Bitu'men, a mineral substance composed 
principally of hydrogen and carbon, and appear¬ 
ing in a variety of forms, which pass into one 
another and are known by different names, from 
naphtha, the most fluid, to petroleum and mineral 
tar, which are less so, thence to maltha or mineral 
pitch, which is more or less cohesive, and lastly 
to asphalt and elastic bitumen, which are solid 
It bums like pitch, with much smoke and flame. 
Bitumen is found in the earth, occurring princi¬ 
pally in the secondary, tertiary and alluvial 
formations. It is a very widely spread mineral, 
and it is now largely employed in various ways. 
As the binding substance in mastics and cements 
it is used for making roofs, arches, walls and 
cellar floors water-tight, and for street and other 
pavements. It is also used, in some of its forms, 
for fuel and for illuminating purposes. The 
bricks of which the walls of Babylon were built 
are said to have been cemented with bitumen, 
which gave them unusual solidity. See As¬ 
phalt; Coal, subhead Bituminous Coal. 



Bituminous Coal 


Blackbird 


Bitu'minous Coal. See Coal. 

Bituminous Shale or Schist, shist, a clay 
shale impregnated with bitumen and very com¬ 
mon in the coal measures. Much of this rock 
contains so much coal and bitumen that it is 
used for fuel. See Coal. 

Bizet, be za', Alexandre Cesar Leopold 
(1838-1875), a French composer, chiefly known 
for his light opera, Carmen, considered one of 
the best of its kind extant. He showed remark¬ 
able musical genius at an early age, and while 
studying in Italy received many prizes for com¬ 
positions. Returning to France, he adopted 
the methods of the extreme romantic school, but 
his work was not warmly received and as a last 
resort he wrote Carmen. This was a failure at 
first, but it soon won recognition, though Bizet 
died before its success was assured. 

Bjornson, byom'son, Bjornstjerne (1832- 
1910), a Norwegian novelist, poet and dramatist. 
He was educated at the University of Christiania 
and shortly after leaving the university became 
known as a contributor of articles and stories to 
newspapers, and as a dramatic critic. From 
1857 to 1859 he was manager of the Bergen 
theater, and he produced during that time his 
novels Synnove Solbakken and Arne, and his first 
drama, Between the Battles. He was editor or 
associate editor of several periodicals, traveled 
and lectured in the United States and spent 
considerable time abroad. In spite of this last 
fact, however, he was intensely national, and he 
was the leader of the Norwegians in many popu¬ 
lar movements. Among his tales and novels, 
besides those mentioned above, are The Fisher- 
maiden, A Happy Boy, The Bridal March, Dust 
and In God’s Way; while among his dramas are 
The Newly Married Couple, Mary Stuart in 
Scotland, A Bankruptcy, The King and A 
Glove. 

Black, Jeremiah Sullivan (1810-1883), an 
American jurist and statesman, born in Penn¬ 
sylvania. After receiving a good education, 
he studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1831 
and became prosecuting attorney of his county. 
In 1842 he was raised to the bench and became 
justice of the state supreme court in 1851. In 
1857 he was called to the cabinet by President 
Buchanan as attorney general and succeeded 
General Cass as secretary of state in December, 
1860. In this post he labored earnestly for the 
cause of the Union. He became repor er of the 
United States Supreme Court for a short time, 
after which he returned to the practice of his 
profession in York, Pa., and was one of the 


counsel for President Johnson in his impeach¬ 
ment trial. He was a member of the Penn¬ 
sylvania constitutional convention in 1873 and 
was a conspicuous advocate of Tilden’s claims 
before the electoral commission of 1876. 

Black, William (1841-1898), a Scottish 
novelist, bom in Glasgow. His first novel, 
Love or Marriage, was moderately successful, but 
In Silk Attire, Kilmeny and, especially, A 
Daughter of Heth, gained him an increasingly 
wide circle of readers. Among his later works 
are The Strange Adventures of a Phaeton, A 
Princess of Thule, Green Pastures and Piccadilly, 
Macleod of Dare, White Wings, Judith Shakes¬ 
peare, Madcap Violet and In Far Lochaber. 
Black is decidedly at his best when dealing with 
the Scotch Highlands, where most of his scenes 
are laid. 

Black'berry, a thorny shrub bearing a fruit 
consisting of several small drupes or berries, 
arranged around a receptacle. The blackberry 
is cultivated in most fruit-growing localities. It 
also grows wild in cool climates, and in the 
United States it is found as far north as Canada. 
It is a choice small fruit. 

Black'bird, a common bird of which about 
twelve species are known in the United States. 
The males are usually wholly or in part black, 



RED-WINGED blackbird 


but the females are brownish, commonplace 
birds. The red-winged blackbird is a handsome 
inhabitant of the marshes that wears a bright 
scarlet epaulette on each shoulder. In the West 
Central states is a handsome species, whose head 
and neck are a bright yellow or orange. In 
Europe the word blackbird is applied to the 
merle, a well known thrush which has a rich, 
mellow and flute-like song. See Cowbird: 
Crow Blackbird; Grackle. 





Blackburn 


Black Hills 


Black'burn, an important manufacturing 
city of England, situated 21 mi. n. w. of Man¬ 
chester. The important buildings include the 
town hall, municipal offices, exchange, county 
court, county police station, an opera house, a 
library and a museum, all of which are con¬ 
structed on the most approved modern plans. 
The city has two parks and is an important 
railway center. A grammar school located here 
was founded by Queen Elizabeth in 1557. 
Next to Manchester, Blackburn is the most 
important cotton manufacturing city of England. 
It contains over 140 factories, and the annual 
output of textiles is valued at about $25,000,000. 
Population in 1911, 133,064. 



BLACK HAWK 


Black Death. See Plague. 

Black'fish or Tautog, taw tog', a fish caught 
on the American coast, especially in the vicinity 
of Long Island, whence large supplies are 
obtained for the New York market. Its back 
and sides are of a bluish or crow black; the 
under parts, especially in the males, are white. 
It is plump in appearance, and much esteemed 
for the table, varying in size from 2 to 12 pounds. 

Black'foot, a tribe of indians once living in 
the United States and Canada, from the Yellow¬ 
stone to Hudson Bay. About 5000 are now in 
existence, those of the United States being on 
reservations in Montana. This name was given 
by the whites, who first saw them with leggins 
blackened by the burned grass of the prairies. 

Black Forest, a chain of European moun¬ 
tains in the southwestern part of Germany, in 
Baden and Wvjrttemburg, running almost par¬ 


allel with the Rhine for about 85 miles. The 
Danube, Neckar, Kinzig and other streams rise 
in the Black Forest, which is rather a chain of 
elevated plains than of isolated peaks. The 
highest summit is Feldberg, 4900 feet. The 
principal mineral is iron, and there are numerous 
mineral springs. The forests are extensive, 
chiefly of pines and similar species, and yield 
much timber. The manufacture of wooden 
clocks, toys and musical instruments is the most 
important industry, employing about 40,000 
persons. The inhabitants of the forest are 
quaint and simple in their habits, and the whole 
district preserves its old legendary associations. 

Black Friday. See Gould, Jay. 

Black Gum, an American tree yielding a 
tough, close-grained, useful wood. The leaves 
are handsome and turn a bright crimson in 
autumn. The fruit is blue-black in color, 
whence it seems to get its name of black, but 
there is no gum about the tree. It is called 
sour gum, pepperidge and tupelo, and has been 
introduced into Europe as an ornamental tree. 

Black Hawk (1767-1838), a chief of the Sac 
and Fox tribes of indians, who was bom in 
Kaskaskia, Ill. He earned his position as head 
chief of the allied tribes by his successful expe¬ 
ditions against the Osage and Cherokee tribes. 
In 1804 the Sacs and Foxes agreed to cede to 
the United States lands extending about 800 
miles along the Mississippi River. This con¬ 
tract Black Hawk repudiated, claiming that the 
chiefs had been made drunk before they signed 
the documents. During the War of 1812 Black 
Hawk, tempted by British agents, joined them 
with about 500 warriors, but soon retired from 
British service. In 1823 most of the Sacs and 
Foxes, under the leadership of Keokuk, removed 
to their reservation beyond the Mississippi 
River; but Black Hawk, with part of the tribe, 
refused to emigrate and fought with the whites 
what is known as the Black Hawk War. After 
several encounters, the indians were defeated, 
and Black Hawk and his two sons became cap¬ 
tives. The three were confined in Fortress 
Monroe until 1833. 

Black Hills, a somewhat mountainous region 
located in the southwestern part ‘of South 
Dakota and extending into Wyoming. The 
Black Hills are known as one of the best mining 
regions in the United States. The territory was 
purchased of the indians in 1876, and mining 
operations were begun the year following. 
Gold, silver, copper, lead, iron and a number 
of valuable building stones are obtained in the 



Blacking 

region. The annual output of gold is about 
$4,000,000 and of silver about $3,000,000. See 
South Dakota. 

Black'ing, a dressing for boots and shoes, 
usually containing for its principal ingredients 
oil, vinegar, ivory or bone black, sugar or 
molasses, strong sulphuric acid and sometimes 
rubber gum and gum-arabic. It is used either 
as liquid or in the form of paste, the only differ¬ 
ence being that in making the paste a portion 
of the vinegar is withheld and more lamp black 
or ivory black is added. 

Blacklist, a printed and secretly distributed 
list of names of persons considered objectionable 
from the point of view of the compilers. As used 
in connection with labor problems the term refers 
to lists of persons considered undesirable as work¬ 
men by either employers or labor unions. Em¬ 
ployers often object to prospective employes be¬ 
cause of their activity in the cause of unionism, 
while the unions object to men for exactly oppo¬ 
site reasons, viz., that such persons have refused 
to join the union or to obey its orders, or have 
lent their assistance as strike breakers. Laws 
against the use of blacklists have been passed by 
Congress and by about twenty-five states, but 
these laws are hard to enforce, because it is easy 
to’conceal the exchange of information on which 
blacklists are based, and also because the em¬ 
ployers may discharge workmen without giving 
any reason except that their services are no 
longer needed. 

Black'mail, a certain amount of money, com, 
cattle or the like, anciently paid, in the north 
of England and in Scotland, to certain men 
who were allied to robbers, for protection by 
them from pillage. The modern use of the 
term applies to money extorted from persons 
under threat of exposure for an alleged offense. 

Black'more, Richard Doddridge (1825- 
1900), an English novelist, born at Longworth, 
Berkshire, and educated at Tiverton school and 
Exeter College, Oxford. In 1852 he was called 
to the bar at the Middle Temple, and he prac¬ 
ticed law until his health failed. While living 
on a fruit farm a short distance from London, 
he began his literary career by the publication 
of a volume of poems. Blackmore wrote a 
number of novels, among which are Cradock, 
The Maid of Sker, Alice Lorraine, Cripps the 
Carrier, Erema, Mary Anerley and Kit and 
Kitty. His fame rests almost entirely on Loma 
Doone, a story of Exmoor and the neighboring 
district. This work, with its stirring plot and 
beautiful descriptions, is written with a con- 


Blackstone 

vincingness which makes it hard for a reader 
to believe that it is but fiction. 

Black Mountains, a ridge of mountains 
located in North Carolina and the northern 
part of Georgia and Alabama, and extending 
approximately east and west. The Black Moun¬ 
tains form the culmination of the Appalachian 
system and contain the highest peaks east of 
the Rocky Mountains. The mpst noted of these 
are Mount Mitchell, 6710 feet, Clingman’s 
Peak and Guyot’s Peak, both of which exceed 
6500 feet in altitude. See Appalachians; Blue 
Ridge. 

Black Prince The. See Edward, The 
Black Prince. 

Black Sea (ancient Pontus Euxinus), a sea 
situated between Europe and Asia and mainly 
bounded by the Russian and Turkish dominions, 
being connected with the Mediterranean by the 
Bosporus, Sea of Marmora and Dardanelles, 
and by the Straits of Kertsch with the Sea 
of Azov, which is, in fact, only a bay of 
the Black Sea. It has a length of 750 
miles, a greatest width of 380 miles and a 
greatest depth of 7000 feet. The water is not 
so clear as that of the Mediterranean, and 
it is less salt, on account of the many large 
rivers flowing into it, among which are the 
Danube, Dniester, Dnieper and Don. The 
tempests on it are very violent, as the land 
which confines its agitated waters gives to them 
a kind of whirling motion, and in the winter 
it is scarcely navigable. During January and 
February the shores from Odessa to the Crimea 
are ice-bound. The Black Sea contains few 
islands and those of small extent. The most 
important ports are Odessa, Kherson, Sebastopol, 
Batum, Trebizond, Sinope and Varna. The sea 
is of great commercial importance to Russia, as 
it furnishes an outlet for the agricultural region 
of the south. 

Black Snake or Blue Racer, a common 
snake in North America, reaching a length of 
five or six feet, and exceedingly agile and swift. 
It has no poisonous fangs and therefore is com¬ 
paratively harmless, though it possesses power 
of destroying its prey by the contraction of its 
folds. It is a deadly enemy of the rattlesnake, 
in destroying which it shows great skill. The 
blacksnake is usually bluish above and slate 
color beneath, though in the South it becomes 
an olive-green. Birds’ eggs and small animals, 
like mice, frogs and birds, comprise its food. 

Black'stone, Mass., a town in Worcester co., 
about 2 mi. n. w. of Woonsocket, R. I„ on 


Blackstone 

the Blackstone River and on the New York, 
New Haven & Hartford railroad. It supports 
a public library and has manufactures of cotton, 
woolen, rubber and other goods. The place 
was settled about 1700, separated from Mendon 
in 1845 and named in honor of William Black¬ 
stone, the first settler on the site of Boston. 
Population in 1910, 5648. 

Blackstone, Sir William (1723-1780), an 
eminent English jurist. He was admitted to 
+ he bar in 1746, but soon gave up the law and 
established a course of lectures at Oxford on 
the law and constitution of England. His lec¬ 
tures attracted much attention, and he was soon 
after appointed to the chair for the study of the 
common law of the country. After resigning 
his professorship, he published his lectures as 
Commentaries on the Laws of England. The 
merits of this book made it for a long time the 
principal text-book of English law, and all subse¬ 
quent American and British commentaries have 
been based on it. 

Black'well, Elizabeth (1821-1910), the 
first woman who ever obtained a medical diploma 
in the United States. She was bom in England 
and in 1831 settled with her parents in America, 
where she was engaged in teaching for several 
years. After numerous difficulties she was 
admitted to the College of Geneva, N. Y, and 
graduated in medicine in 1849. She afterward 
studied in Paris, and on her return to America 
commenced practice in New York, where she 
afterwards chiefly resided. In 1854, with her 
sister Emily, she opened a hospital for women 
and children in New York. 

Blackwell’s Island, a narrow island in the 
East River, a part of New York City. It is 
between Manhattan Island and Long Island 
and measures about 1J miles long and \ mile 
wide. On this island are the penal institutions 
and hospitals of New York City. 

Blackwood or Indian Rose'wood, a tree of 
Hindustan, the timber of which is highly valued 
and much used in the manufacture of fine 
furniture. The Australian blackwood is an 
acacia. 

Black'wood, William (1776-1834), an 
Edinburgh publisher. He began as a bookseller 
in 1804 and soon became a publisher. The first 
number of Blackwood’s Magazine appeared in 
April, 1817, and soon gained the popularity 
which it has kept until the present. Scott, 
Lockhart and De Quincey were among its early 
contributors. After the death of William 
Blackwood, the business, which had developed 


Blaine 

into a large publishing concern, carried on 
by his sons. 

Blad'der. See Kidneys. 

Blad'demut, a name of shrubs or small 
trees, natives of Europe, Asia and North Amer¬ 
ica, the fruits of which consist of an inflated 
bladdery capsule, containing the seeds. 

Blad'derwort, the common name of curious 
slender aquatic plants, species of which are 
natives of Britain and the United States. They 
grow in ditches and pools, and they are named 
from having little bladders or vesicles that fill 
with air at the time of flowering and raise the 
plant in the water, so that the blossoms expand 
above the surface. The bladders have small 
openings in which insects are sometimes caught, 
and if the ditch or pool dries up, the vesicles 
hold moisture and keep the plant alive for some 
time. 

Bla'densburg, Md., a town of Prince George 
co., 6 mi. n. e. of Washington, D C. It was 
the scene of a battle Aug. 24, 1814, where the 
British invaders, under General Ross, defeated 
a force of American militia. See War of 1812. 

Blaine, James Gillespie (1830-1893), an 
American statesman, born at West Brownsville, 



JAMES G. BLAINE 


near Pittsburg, Pa., Blaine was educated at 
Washington College, from which he graduated 
when only seventeen years of age. He taught 
school and studied law for several years, was 
married in 1851 and three years later went to 




Blair 


Blake 


Augusta, Maine, where he began editorial work 
on the Kennebec Journal, a weekly newspaper. 
He soon was offered a more influential position 
on the Portland Daily Advertiser, He joined 
the Republican party at its formation, early 
became its leader and practical dictator in 
Maine, was elected to the state legislature, where 
he served until 1862, and in 1863 took his seat 
in the House of Representatives. He was made 
speaker of the House in 1869, which position he 
held until 1875. While in Congress he made a 
number of important speeches on financial 
questions and participated in many celebrated 
debates, becoming known as a national leader 
of his party. He was later sent to the Senate, 
where he remained five years. 

In 1875 he was accused of corrupt practices 
in securing legislation in favor of certain rail¬ 
road projects in which he was interested. The 
charge was agitated by his political opponents 
and, together with certain parts of his record 
in Congress, made so many enemies that his 
great ambition to become president of the 
United States was never realized. He was 
unsuccessful in his candidature in 1876 and 
again in 1880, but became secretary of state 
under Garfield. After the death of Garfield, 
Blaine resigned and began his Twenty Years 
in Congress, a voluminous and valuable work. 
In 1884 he was nominated for president, but 
was defeated by Cleveland. When Harrison 
was elected president, Blaine was made secretary 
of state for the second time and fulfilled the 
duties of the office with distinction, dealing with 
several trying foreign questions with the utmost 
tact and ability. He was for years the leading 
exponent of the doctrine of reciprocity in com¬ 
mercial relations. He resigned from Harrison’s 
cabinet and became a candidate for the nomi¬ 
nation for president in 1892, but was defeated 
in the convention, 

Blair, Francis Preston (1791-1876), an 
American statesman, bom in Virginia. Though 
originally a Whig, he was editor of the Washing¬ 
ton Globe, the organ of Jacksonian Democracy, 
from 1829 to 1845; in 1856 he was active in the 
organization of the Republican party, presiding 
over the convention which nominated Fremont. 
He was a leader in the Chicago convention of 
1860, which nominated Lincoln. He opposed 
the reconstruction measures after Lincoln’s 
death, and became a Democrat. 

Blair, Francis Preston, Jr., (1821-1875), son 
of Francis Preston Blair (1791-1876), born in 
Lexington, Ky. He served in the Mexican War, 


edited the Missouri Democrat and sat in the 
legislature of Missouri from 1852 to 1856. In 
the latter year he joined the Republican party 
and was elected to Congress, being reelected in 
1860 and 1862. He entered the volunteer army 
as a colonel and became major general in 1862. 
He commanded a division at Vicksburg, fought 
at Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge 
and marched with Sherman to the sea. After 
the war he returned to the Democratic party and 
was candidate for vice-president on the ticket 
headed by Horatio Seymour. In 1870 he was 
elected to fill a vacancy in the United States 
Senate, retiring in 1873. 

Blair, Henry William (1834- ), an 

American lawyer and statesman, born in New 
Hampshire. He served in the Civil War, and 
from 1866 to 1868 was in the state house of 
representatives and senate. He was in Congress 
from 1875 to 1879, became United States senator 
in 1879 and was reelected in 1885. Blair, while in 
Congress, was a strong advocate of prohibition and 
woman suffrage, was the author of a bill providing 
for national support of common schools, in those 
states where it is not provided, and was sponsor 
for other important reform legislation. He was 
again a member of Congress from 1893 to 1895, 
when he retired. 

Blair, John Insley (1802-1899), an Ameri¬ 
can capitalist and philanthropist, born in New 
Jersey. He founded the Lackawanna Coal and 
Iron Company, built the Delaware, Lacka¬ 
wanna & Western railroad, organized the 
railroad system of Iowa and constructed 2000 
miles of railroad in that state and Nebraska. 
He was one of the original directors of the Union 
Pacific. He gave nearly $1,000,000 for schools 
and churches. 

Blair, Montgomery (1813-1883), son of 
Francis P. Blair, Sr., bom in Kentucky. He 
graduated at West Point in 1835 and served in 
the Seminole War. In 1842 he became mayor 
of Saint Louis. In 1852 he moved to Maryland, 
becoming prominent in Democrat politics. He 
was counsel for the defendant in the Dred Scott 
case, joined the Republican party at its organi¬ 
zation and became postmaster general in Lin¬ 
coln’s cabinet. During his term money orders, 
free delivery in cities and distribution of mail on 
cars were introduced. He resigned in 1864 and 
returned to the Democratic party. 

Blake, Edward (1833-1912), a Canadian 
lawyer and statesman, bom in Ontario. He 
graduated from University College in 1857, in 
1867 became a member of the Canadian Parlia- 


Blake 


Blast-furnace 


ment and was soon a leader of the Liberals, 
becoming in 1871 premier of Ontario. In 1873 
he became a member of the Canadian cabinet 
and was chosen leader of the Liberal party in 
place of Mr. Mackenzie in 1880. He was one of 
the ablest speakers in the Dominion, and, going 
to England, he was elected to Parliament for an 
Irish constituency, as a pronounced Home Rule 
candidate. In 1896 he was appointed to the 
privy council. 

Blake, Robert (1599-1657), a famous 
British admiral. He did not enter public life 
until, at the age of forty-one, he was sent to 
Parliament, where he won a name for himself 
in a short time. When the civil war broke out 
between the king and Parliament he raised a 
company of soldiers and took part in a number 
of land actions, winning great applause. In 
1649 he was made a general of the sea, and he 
soon proved that this was his true sphere. He 
destroyed the squadron of Prince Rupert and 
wre ted from the royalists Guernsey, Jersey and 
the Scilly Isles. As a reward for these services 
he was made sole admiral, and he proved his 
fitness for the position by defeating the Dutch 
Admiral Tromp. Cromwell appointed him 
in 1654 to the command of the English fleet in 
the Mediterranean, and here he succeeded in 
upholding the dignity of the British flag in con¬ 
tests with the Dutch, the Spanish and the French. 
He attacked Tunis, the dev of which had insulted 
the British flag, and routed an army of three 
thousand Turks. At Algiers and at Tripoli 
he set free all the English slaves, and in 1657 
he defeated the Spaniards at Santa Cruz. 

Blake, William (1757-1827), an English 
engraver and poet. His first two books of 
poems, Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experi¬ 
ence, were illustrated with etchings by himself 
and the drawings were as singular as the poems 
Although throughout his life his work was 
laughed at as that of a madman, Blake was 
never shaken in his belief that he was a true 
poet and held converse with the souls of departed 
poets. Since his death he has met with much 
greater appreciation than during his life; Charles 
Lamb regarded him as one of the most extraor¬ 
dinary men of his age, and Swinburne has 
characterized him as ‘ the single Englishman 
of supreme and simple poetic genius of his time.” 

Blanc, blahN, Jean Joseph Louis (1812- 
1882),. a French author and socialist. His 
theory was that all products of labor, material 
and intellectual, should be controlled by the 
government and portioned out to individuals 


according to their needs. Edward Bellamy in 
Looking Backward has presented this doctrine. 
Blanc wrote a History of the French Revolution, 
in twelve volumes, and a number of other works 
of considerable importance. 

Blanc, Mont. See Mont Blanc. 

Blan c-mange, blah mahNzh', in cookery, the 
name of different preparations of the consistency 
of a jelly, variously composed of dissolved 
isinglass, arrow-root, maize-flour and other 
substances, with milk and flavoring. 

Bland, Richard Parks (1835-1899), an 
American statesman, bom near Hartford, Ky. 
He practiced law in Missouri, California and 
Nevada, where he was also interested in mining. 
He was a member of Congress from Missouri 
from 1874 to 1895 and from 1897 to his death, 
gaining special prominence as an advocate of the 
free coinage of silver and as author of the Bland- 
Allison bill of 1878. He was a prominent 
candidate for the Democratic nomination for 
president in 1896. 

Blank Verse, verse without rhyme, first intro¬ 
duced into English poetry by the earl of Surrey, 
in the first half of the sixteenth century. The 
most common form of English blank verse, that 
which is used in the dramas of Shakespeare, is 
the line of five iambic feet. There is often an 
extra syllable in a line, and sometimes the accent 
is on the first syllable of the foot. From Shakes¬ 
peare’s time blank verse has been almost univer¬ 
sally used by poet dramatists, although D.ryden 
wrote his dramas in rhyme. The first use of 
the term blank verse is said to be in Hamlet, n, 2: 
“The lady shall say her mind freely, or the blank 
verse shall halt for’t.” The term is not applied 
to the Anglo-Saxon and early English alliterative 
unrhymed verse. 

Blar'ney, a village in Ireland, 4 mi. n. w. of 
the city of Cork, with Blarney Castle in its 
vicinity. A stone called the Blarney Stone, near 
the top of the castle, is said to confer on those 
who kiss it the peculiar kind of persuasive elo¬ 
quence termed “blarney,” alleged to be char¬ 
acteristic of the natives of Ireland. 

Blast'-furnace, the name given to the com¬ 
mon smelting-furnace, used for obtaining iron 
from its ores with the aid of a powerful blast of air. 
This air-blast, which is propelled by a powerful 
blowing-engine and is now invariably heated to 
a high temperature (600° to 900° F.), is injected 
by pipes called tuyeres, situated in the lowest part 
of the furnace, near to the hearth. The conical 
part next above the hearth is termed the boshes, 
and the interior is continued upward, sometimes 


Blast-furnace 



in a tapered body or cone, sometimes as a per¬ 
pendicular cylinder, which is surmounted by an 
opening for the introduction of the materials. 
The exterior consists of massive masonry of stone 
or firebrick, the body part being lined with two 
shells of firebricks, separated by a thin space to 
allow for expansion, this space being generally 
filled with sand, ground fire-clay or the like, to 
hinder the radiation of heat to the outside. When 
the body rises in the form of a perpendicular 
cylinder, it is called the barrel. The cone or 
barrel is sometimes clasped round on the outside 
by numerous strong iron hoops, or is cased with 
iron plates fas¬ 
tened to the ma¬ 
sonry by iron 
bolts. The bosh¬ 
es are lined with 
firebrick or fire¬ 
stone, and the 
hearth is built 
with large blocks 
of stone which 
will resist the 
heat. A gallery 
is built around 
the top, and to 
this, material for 
charging the fur¬ 
nace is hoisted 
by an elevator. 

The charging ^ 
of the furnace 
goes on day 
and night, one 
charge consist¬ 
ing of a barrow¬ 
load of coal and 
a barrow-load of BLAST furnace 

i i- A , stack; B , boshes; H , hearth; C , 
ore and lime- charging hopper. I , tuyeres. 

stone, the last 

mineral acting as a flux. These charges 
are constantly passing downward and under¬ 
going a change as they come nearer the hotter 
parts of the furnace. Toward the lower part 
the earthy matter of the ore unites with the 
limestone and forms a slag, which finally escapes 
at an opening below the tuyeres or pipes through 
which the blast is supplied, and the molten 
metal drops down and fills the lower part, to be 
drawn off at stated periods. This is done usu¬ 
ally twice in twenty-four hours, by means of a 
round hole called a tap. The furnace is con¬ 
stantly kept filled to within about two feet of 
the top. The ore put in at the top takes about 


Blasting 

thirty-six hours before it comes out as iron. In 
the newer forms of furnaces the top is closed, 
and the gases formerly burned at the top are 
conveyed by pipes, to be utilized as fuel in heat¬ 
ing the blast and in raising steam for the blow¬ 
ing-engine. The principle adopted is to close 
the top by a bell-and-cone arrangement, which 
is opened and shut at pleasure by hydraulic or 
other machinery. The height of furnaces varies 
from fifty to eighty feet, and in some cases to 
upward of one hundred feet, and the greatest 
width is about one third of the height. 

On the Egyptian tombs at Thebes metal¬ 
workers are represented as using the blow-pipe 
more than 2000 years before Christ, and Indian 
and other Oriental workers in metals still use 
a primitive bellows for smelting. This was the 
germ of the blast furnace. Roman historians 
say that iron was employed by the Britons in 
manufacturing spears and lances, which required 
some sort of blast. The Romans themselves, 
when they occupied Britain, employed iron to 
a considerable extent, as is evidenced by cinder 
heaps in the Forest of Dean, in Gloucestershire 
and elsewhere. But so rude was their process 
that those heaps in the Forest of Dean furnished 
the chief supply of ore for twenty furnaces during 
200 or 300 years. The English iron founders 
who employed these remains melted them in 
furnaces of a simple form, called air-bloomeries , 
which they erected on the tops of hills, in order 
to obtain the greatest possible blast of wind. 
See Iron. 

Blast'ing, the operation of breaking up 
masses of rock or other hard substances, by 
means of explosives. In ordinary operations 
holes from 1 to 6 inches in diameter are bored 
into the rock by means of a steel-pointed drill. 
After tlie hole is bored to the requisite depth, 
it is cleaned out, the explosive is introduced, 
the hole is tamped or filled up with broken 
stone, clay or sand, and the charge is exploded 
by means of a fuse or by electricity. In larger 
operations, mines or shafts of considerable 
diameter take the place of the holes above 
described, and the excavations are made by 
machinery. Shafts are sunk from the top of 
the rock to various depths, sometimes upward 
of 60 feet. This shaft joins a heading, or gal¬ 
lery, driven in from the face, if possible, along 
a natural joint; and from this point other gal¬ 
leries are driven some distance in various direc¬ 
tions, with headings at intervals, returning 
toward the face of the rock and terminating in 
chambers for the charges. Enormous charges 


















Blavatsky 


Blesbok 


are frequently made use of, upward of twenty 
tons of gunpowder having been fired in a single 
blast. 

One of the greatest blasting operations ever 
attempted was the removal of the reefs in the 
East River, near New York, known as Hell 
Gate. An entrance shaft was sunk on the 
Long Island shore, from which the reef pro¬ 
jected. From this shaft nearly twenty tunnels 
were bored in all directions, extending from 200 
to 240 feet, and connected by lateral galleries. 
Upward of 52,000 pounds of dynamite, rend- 
rock and powder were used, and millions of tons 
of rock were dislodged. See Dynamite; Gun¬ 
powder; Nitroglycerine. 

Blavatsky, bla vakts'ke, Helena Petrovna 
Hahn-Hahn (1831-1891), a Russian theoso- 
phist, bom in Ekaterinoslav. She traveled 
extensively and gained considerable reputation 
through her dealings with occult science and 
spiritism. She became thoroughly familiar 
with the Buddhist philosophy and other doc¬ 
trines of the East and established in Bombay 
the Theosophist. Later investigations proved 
her pretended miracles impostures, and she lost 
her prestige. She was a voluminous writer. 
The most important of her works is Isis 
Unveiled, which is the text-book of her fol¬ 
lowers. 

Bleach'ing, the art of freeing textile fibers 
and fabrics from their natural color and render¬ 
ing them white. The ancient method of bleach¬ 
ing was by exposing the fabrics to the action 
of the sun and frequently wetting them. This 
method was employed by the Egyptians, Baby¬ 
lonians and other peoples of antiquity. Modern 
bleaching seems to have originated with the 
Dutch, and for a long time they held a monopoly 
of the business for Europe. Their method was 
similar to that employed by the ancients and 
usually required an entire season for bleaching 
linen. The cloth was repeatedly steeped in 
lye, soaked in buttermilk, washed and spread 
upon the grass to whiten. Because of the great 
skill attained by these people, the name Hollands 
was applied to the best grades of linen and is 
still retained; because of the method of bleach¬ 
ing the finest fabrics, by spreading them on the 
best plots of grass land, such fabrics were called 
lawns. 

,The Dutch method of bleaching has now 
been displaced by what is known as the chlorine 
process. This consists of cleaning the cloth, 
then boiling it for about twelve hours in a 
solution of water and slaked lime, to which a 


small quantity of caustic soda is added. After 
the boiling the cloth is washed, then passed 
through a pure solution of hydrochloric acid, 
washed again and then soaked for from two to 
four hours in a bleaching solution. This is 
prepared by dissolving bleaching powder (chlo¬ 
ride of lime) in water, and adding a quantity 
of this to the bath. When taken from the 
bleaching solution, the cloth is again washed, 
then placed in a weak solution of sulphuric acid, 
which completes the process. After bleaching, 
the cloth is passed through a wash containing 
bluing; it is then starched, dried, calendered 
and packed for the market. In large bleaching 
houses the work is all done by machinery. 

Blende, blend, an ore of zinc, a mineral 
composed of zinc and sulphur and constituting 
the ore from which most of the zinc of commerce 
is obtained. It occurs in both massive and 
crystallized forms, and in color it is yellowy 
brown or black. In the United States, deposits 
of blende occur in Illinois, Iowa, Missouri and 
Wisconsin. The most valuable European depos¬ 
its are in Cornwall, England, in Saxony and in 
the Hartz Mountains. See Zinc. 

Blenheim, blen'im,, a village in Bavaria on 
the Danube, 23 mi. n. n. w. of Augsburg. Near 
it was fought in 1704, during the War of the 
Spanish Succession, the famous Battle of Blen¬ 
heim, in which the allied forces of England and 
Germany, under the duke of Marlborough and 
Prince Eugene, gained a victory over the French 
and Bavarians. The residence of the dukes of 
Marlborough at Woodstock, Oxfordshire, was 
named from this victory. 

Blen'nerhas'sett, Harman (1764-1831), a 
wealthy English-American, chiefly noted for his 
connection with the plot of Aaron Burr to found 
an independent empire in the southwest. He 
was bom at Hampshire, England, educated at 
London and at Trinity College, Dublin, but 
came to the United States in 1797 and settled 
on an island in the Ohio River below Parkers¬ 
burg. Here, in 1805, he entertained Aaron Burr, 
who induced him to join in his treasonable 
conspiracy. When the scheme fell through, 
Blennerhassett was tried for treason, and though 
he was finally discharged he lost his property. 
See Burr, Aaron. 

Bles'bok, an antelope of South Africa, with 
a white marked face, a general purplish-choco¬ 
late body and a saddle of a bluish color. It was 
formerly found in great numbers in the Trans¬ 
vaal and Orange Free State, but has been too 
much hunted. 


Blessington 

Bles'sington, Marguerite, Countess of 
(1789-1849), an English author and society 
leader. After the death of her second husband, 
the earl of Blessington, Lady Blessington, who 
was noted all over the continent for her beauty 
and brilliant conversation, held a little court of 
her own at her family mansion, Gore House, in 
London. Here she gathered about her the most 
distinguished men of her time. On the acces¬ 
sion to power of Louis Napoleon, she went to 
France. Her most valuable literary work is the 
Conversations with Lord Byron. 

Blight, blite, a generic name commonly 
applied to denote the effects of disease upon 
plants, or any other circumstance which causes 
them to wither or decay. It has been vaguely 
applied to almost every disease of plants from 
any cause whatever. The term is frequently 
limited, however, to disease in cereal crops, and 
botanists confine it to diseases originating from 
bacteria or parasitic fungi. 

Blind, Education of the. The first book 
calling attention to the duty of educating the 
blind was published in Italy in 1616. While 
\arious attempts had been made to relieve the 
sufferings of these unfortunate persons, it was 
not until the latter part of the eighteenth cen¬ 
tury that any attempt was made to give them 
systematic instruction. The first school for 
this purpose was founded by Valentin Hauy in 
Paris in 1784. A similar school was estab¬ 
lished in England in 1791, and the success of 
these institutions was such that within the next 
twenty years schools for the blind were estab¬ 
lished in all of the leading countries of Europe. 
The first school in the United States was estab¬ 
lished in Massachusetts in 1829, as the New 
England Asylum for the Blind. From the start 
this school received aid from the state, and the 
other New England states availed themselves 
of the advantages it offered by sending, at state 
expense, their blind to this institution. The 
New England Asylum was later changed to the 
Perkins Institute and Massachusetts Asylum 
for the Blind, which, under the direction of 
Dr. Samuel G. Howe, became the leading insti¬ 
tution of its kind in the country, and now, w r ith 
the Pennsylvania Institution at Philadelphia, 
ranks among the most noted in the world. 
Soon after its founding, the Perkins Institute 
gave exhibitions by its pupils before the legis¬ 
latures of a number of different states, and the 
influence of this work was such as to secure the 
establishment of like institutions in many parts 
of the country. The work has spread until now 


Blind 

nearly every state includes institutions for the 
education of the blind in its school system. 

The education given is along three lines: 
literary, including the branches taught in most 
high and secondary schools, with the exception 
that less attention is given to foreign languages; 
musfcal, including instruction on the piano, 
organ and other instruments, musical compo¬ 
sition and the training of the pupils for giving 
lessons upon the different instruments; indus¬ 
trial, training in those occupations in which the 
blind can successfully engage, such as broom¬ 
making, basket-making, mattress-making, and 
sewing, knitting, crocheting, carpet-weaving and 
piano-tuning. In these lines many of the stu¬ 
dents become experts. For a long time the 
pianos in the public schools of Boston have been 
kept in tune by members of the Perkins Insti¬ 
tute. 

Since the blind obtain the greater part of 
their knowledge through the sense of touch, 
special books and apparatus are necessary for 
giving them a literary education. The first 
attempts at teaching the blind to read were by 
the use of raised letters, which in form were 
similar to the ordinary letters of the alphabet. 
They learned the forms of the letters by run¬ 
ning the fingers over them, and in this way 
learned to read. Another system, known as the 
point system, is now in very general use. By 
this, different numbers of dots indicate the 
different letters of the alphabet. The advan¬ 
tage of this system over the other is that it 
enables the blind to write as well as read. The 
point is written by the use of an apparatus con¬ 
sisting of a board with a grooved surface, over 
which a frame is fitted. The paper is placed 
on a board, the frame is laid upon it, and the 
points are made by the use of a stiletto, which 
is used with an abbreviated metal rule. The 
writing is from right to left, since the paper is 
reversed for reading. In all of the best schools 
both the point and the alphabet system are in 
use. The advantage of the alphabet system is 
that it enables blind children to learn to read 
either at home or in the public schools, before 
they are old enough to enter an institute. Geog¬ 
raphy is taught by the use of relief maps, in 
which the towns are indicated by metallic points, 
the boundaries by raised lines, and the moun¬ 
tains, valleys and rivers in the ordinary manner 
of relief maps. Natural history is taught by the 
use of life-size models and mounted specimens 
of animals and birds, while botany is taught in 
a similar manner, only the models are larger 


Blindfish 


Blizzard 


than the plants which they represent, in order 
that the parts may be ascertained by touch. 

In some large cities kindergartens for the 
blind have been provided, and the work is very 
successful, all of the kindergarten occupations, 
except those in which the blending of colors is 
required, being taught. 

Special printing establishments are maintained 
at Louisville, Ky., and in connection with the 
Perkins Institute in Boston. Through these, a 
library of about 100,000 volumes of the choicest 
works has been printed, and in the Con¬ 
gressional Library at Washington a special 
reading room has been provided, in which copies 
of these books are found. Copies are also 
distributed through the different institutes, so 
that reading matter is provided not only for those 
in the schools but for others. 

Blindfish, the name of several species of 
fish inhabiting American caves. They are all 
small, the largest not exceeding five inches. In 
the typical species of the Mammoth Cave of 
Kentucky, the eyes are reduced to a useless rudi¬ 
ment hidden under the skin, the body is trans¬ 
lucent and colorless and the head and body are 
covered with numerous rows of sensitive pro¬ 
jections, or papillae, which form very delicate 
organs of touch. 

Blindness, the lack of, or the deficiency in, 
the sense of sight. Blindness may vary in degree 
from the slightest impairment of vision to total 
loss of sight; it may also be temporary or per¬ 
manent. It is caused by defect, disease or 
injury of the eye, of the optic nerve or of that 
part of the brain connected with it. Old age is 
sometimes accompanied by blindness, occasioned 
by the drying up of the humors of the eye, or by 
the opacity of the cornea or the crystalline 
lens. There are several causes which produce 
blindness from birth. Sometimes the eyelids 
adhere to each other, or to the eyeball itself; often 
a membrane covers the eyes; sometimes the 
pupil of the eye is closed, or adheres to the cornea, 
or is not situated in the right place, so that the 
rays of light do not fall in the middle of the eye. 
The blind are often distinguished for a remark¬ 
able mental activity and for a wonderful develop¬ 
ment of the intellectual powers. Their touch 
and hearing, particularly, become very acute. 
See Blind, Education of; Keller, Helen. 

Blind'worm or Glass Snake, a reptile, form¬ 
ing a connecting link between the lizards and the 
snakes. It is snake-like in form, has no appear¬ 
ance of external limbs, is about a foot in length 
and is of nearly equal thickness throughout. 


Its eyes, though brilliant, are small, and hence 
its common name. It is common in Great 
Britain and over almost the whole of Europe, 
western Asia, northern Africa and the United 
States. It is perfectly harmless, and when 
frightened it stiffens its muscles to such an extent 
that its tail may be snapped off by a slight blow. 
Blindworms live upon worms, insects and snails 
and hibernate during the winter. 

Bliss, Cornelius Newton (1833-1911), an 
American merchant and statesman, born in 
Massachusetts. He engaged in business in 
Boston, but in 1866 moved to New York City, 
where he was a member of the dry goods house 
of Bliss, Fabian & Co. He arose to political 
prominence as treasurer of the Republican 
national campaign committee in every election 
from 1892 to 1904. President McKinley ap¬ 
pointed him secretary of the interior in 1897, but 
he resigned in December, 1898. 

Bliss, Philip Paul (1838-1876), an American 
evangelist, bom at Clearfield, Pa. In company 
with the evangelist Dwight L. Moody, he held 
mission services in all parts of the United States, 
leading in the singing of hymns of his own com¬ 
position. Hold the Fort, Pull for the Shore, 
Hallelujah, ’Tis Done are the best known 
of these. He was killed in the terrible Ashta¬ 
bula, O., railroad wreck. 

Blis'ter, an application which, when employed 
on the skin, raises the cuticle in the form of a 
sac, which fills with serous fluid. The Spanish 
fly blister operates most certainly and most 
quickly and is commonly used; but mustard, 
croton oil, ammonia and other subtances are 
also used. 

Blister-steel. See Steel. 

Bliz'zard, the name given to a severe storm 
accompanied by a strong, cold wind and fine, 
dry snow or spicules of ice. The term applies 
particularly to storms of this character which 
are common during the winter in the northern 
part of the Mississippi basin, especially in the 
Dakotas and Minnesota, though they may 
extend as far south as the Ohio River, The 
blizzard is usually preceded by a short period of 
warm weather and comes without apparent 
forewarning, often causing loss of life among 
people who are far from home. During the 
storm the condition of the atmosphere is such 
as to make it exhausting both to men and animals, 
while the air is so completely filled with fine 
snow that it is impossible to see objects at a 
distance of more than a few feet. The weather 
bureau is now usually able to forecast the ap- 


Block 


Blood 


proach of these storms, so as to warn the inhab¬ 
itants in time to enable them to find shelter 
before the storm breaks. 

Block, a mechanical contrivance consisting 
of one or more grooved pulleys, mounted in a 
casing or shell, which is furnished with a hook, 
eye or strap by which it may be attached to an 
object, the function of the apparatus being to 
transmit power or change the direction of motion 
by means of a rope or dhain passing round the 
movable pulleys. Blocks are single, double, 
treble or fourfold, according as the number of 
sheaves or pulleys is one, two, three or four. A 
running block is attached to the object to be 
raised or moved; a standing block is fixed to some 
permanent support. Blocks also receive different 
names from their shape, purpose and mode 'of 
application. They are made of either iron or 
wood. By the use of blocks heavy weights can 
be raised with comparatively little power. 

Blockade', the closing of the seaports of a 
country to the shipping of its enemy. By the 
law of nations, announcement must be made of a 
blockade, so that neutral nations may have 
notice of it. If then any attempt is made to 
trade with a blockaded port, the vessels and 
cargoes are confiscated if captured. In a wider 
sense, the term blockade is applied to land 
operations which entirely cut off communication 
of any city with the surrounding world, although 
siege is a more common word to describe this 
latter method of reducing a city. 

Block'house. In early times, and in locali¬ 
ties where danger from enemies was always 
present, houses were built of heavy logs or blocks 
of hewn timber and were fitted with loopholes 
for musketry. When of more than one story, 
the upper stories were made to overhang those 
below, and in the overhanging floors loopholes 

were cut so that 
the defenders 
might fire down 
upon an enemy 
who undertook 
to break into 
the house or 
burn it. Such 
blockhouses 
were in general 
use among the 
American colo¬ 
nists in their 
wars with the indians, and saved many lives. 

Bloemfontein, bloom’fon tine, the capital and 
chief town of Orange River Colony, South 

24 


Africa, situated on the Modder River, 600 mi. 
n. e. of Cape Town and 95 mi. e. of Kimberley. 
The city is built on a plateau, about five thousand 
feet above sea level, in a very healthful region. 
Among the fine buildings are the Anglican 
cathedral, the Dutch Reformed church, the 
town hall, a library, a national museum and the 
council chamber for the legislature. The city 
also has several educational institutions, a 
government hospital and an asylum for the 
insane. It is on the main line of the Cape-to- 
Cairo railway, and it has direct connection by 
rail with Cape Town. Bloemfontein was an 
important military town and one of the strong¬ 
holds of the Boers in the South African War. 
Population in 1910, 14,760. 

Blondel, bloN del’, a French minstrel and poet 
of the twelfth century, the confidential servant 
and instructor in music of Richard the Lion- 
hearted. While his master was the prisoner of 
the duke of Austria, Blondel, according io the 
story, went through all parts of Germany in 
search of him. He sang the king’s own favorite 
lays before each keep and fortress till the song 
was at length taken up and answered from the 
windows of the castle of Durrenstein, where 
Richard was imprisoned. 

Blondin, bloN daN’, Charles Emile Gra- 
velet (1824-1897), a noted French gymnast. 
In 1851 he joined the famous Ravel family of 
acrobats and came with them to America, and 
during his travels on this continent he visited 
Niagara. He took up his abode near the falls 
to study the practicability of crossing the river 
over the falls on a tight wire. He bridged the 
distance with a hempen cord, eleven hundred 
feet in length, at an altitude of one hundred 
sixty feet above the river. On August 17, 1859, 
he made the trip in the presence of fifty thousand 
spectators. Not content with simply walking 
across, he elaborated his performance; he made 
other trips blindfolded and with a man on his 
back. 

Blood, bind, the fluid which circulates through 
the arteries and veins of the human body and is 
essential to the preservation of life and the 
nutrition of the tissues. The blood in the veins 
is a dark red, but in passing through the lungs it 
absorbs oxygen and becomes a bright scarlet 
color, as seen in the arteries. The normal 
temperature of the blood is 98£° F. When 
ordinary blood stands for a time it separates 
into two portions, a red coagulated mass con¬ 
sisting of the fibrin and corpuscles, and a yellow¬ 
ish watery portion, the serum. The blood 




Blood 


Bloomfield-Zeisler 


corpuscles are minute red and white bodies 
floating in the fluid of the blood. The red 
ones, round, flattish discs, give color to 
the fluid and carry oxygen to the tissues. 
The white or colorless corpuscles are spher¬ 
ical and rather larger than the red ones. 
Their use is not perfectly known. See Cir¬ 
culation. 

Blood has come to have many commercial 
uses. The Scandinavians, the first people who, 
when they butchered animals, preserved the 
blood, used it in making blood-cake and blood- 
sausage All the large packing houses now 
save the blood, manufacturing it into fertilizers 
that sell at from $32 to $45 a ton. 

Blood is. also used in the manufacture of 
sugar, to collect all the floating products in the 
sugar and carry them to the bottom of the tank. 
Many of the dark, rich-colored buttons are made 
of blood pressed into the proper form by means 
of hydraulic machines. Imitation tortoise shell 
articles are composed largely of blood, and it 
is used extensively by the Japanese in lacquer 
work. Nearly all drug stores keep blood from 
which the fibrin has been taken, and many 
physicians prescribe it in cases where the 
patient’s blood is “thin,” or lacks the necessary 
amount of red corpuscles. 

Blood, Avenger of, the name applied to 
one who executes vengeance on the slayer of a 
kinsman. In primitive society, when a man was 
killed or seriously injured, the punishment of the 
person committing the crime devolved, by the 
so-called right of blood feud, upon the next of 
kin of the injured person. As society advanced, 
there was gradually developed the right of sanc¬ 
tuary, and places of refuge were provided where a 
manslayer might be safe for a time from the aven¬ 
ger of blood. Still later, it was provided that the 
criminal might gain exemption by payiftg a fine, 
which the avenger was compelled to accept. 

Blood'hound, a variety of dog with long, 
smooth, hanging ears, remarkable for the acute¬ 
ness of its smell. It takes its name from its 
habit of following the trail of wounded prey by 
the scent of the blood. Among the several 
varieties of this animal are the English, the 
Cuban and the African bloodhound, most of 
which are tawny in color, with black noses. In 
former times bloodhounds were not only trained 
to the pursuit of game, but also to the chase of 
man. In America they were occasionally 
employed in hunting fugitive slaves, but they are 
now only used once in a while for tracking 
criminals and escaped convicts, 


Blood'-money, the compensation paid by a 
manslayer to the next of kin of the person slain, 
securing the offender and his relatives against 
vengeance. It was once common in Scandi¬ 
navian and Teutonic countries and is still seen 
among the Arabs. Certain crimes, such as 
killing a sleeping person, were regarded as too 
heinous to be atoned for by a money pay¬ 
ment, and the criminal was turned over to 
the vengeance of thfi relatives of the man 
slain. 

Blood'root, a plant of Canada and the 
United States, belonging to the poppy order, 
so named because its rootstock yields a sap of 
a deep orange color. The leaves are heart- 
shaped and deeply lobed, and come from the 
ground singly, folded around the flower stalk, 
which bears one white or rose-tinted blossom. 
The plant has acrid narcotic properties and has 
been found useful in various diseases. 

Blood'y Assi'zes, the term of court held by 
the English Judge Jeffreys in 1685, after the 
suppression of Monmouth’s rebellion. Upward 
of three hundred persons were executed after 
short trials; very many were whipped, impris¬ 
oned and fined, and nearly one thousand were 
sent as slaves to the American plantations. 

Bloom'er Costume, a style of dress for 
women, consisting of a jacket with coat sleeves, 
a pair of full, loose trousers gathered into bands 
at the ankles, and a skirt reaching a little below 
the knees. This style originated in 1849 in 
America and was adopted by Mrs. Bloomer of 
New York, whence the name. An improvement 
of this costume has gained popularity among 
woman bicyclists and golf players, and has also 
been much worn in the gymnasium. 

Bloom'field, N. J., a town in Essex co., 
near Newark and 10 mi. n. w. of New York 
City, on the Erie and the Lackawanna rail¬ 
roads and on the Morris canal. There are 
important manufactures, including organs, 
woolen and rubber goods, electric elevators, 
saddlery and hardware. The residences of 
many New York business men are located here, 
and it is the seat of the German Theological 
Seminary of Newark. Other interesting features 
are the Jarvie Library, the Westminster and 
First Presbyterian churches, and a public park 
which was the Common, used during the Revo¬ 
lution as a training ground. The place was 
settled in 1685 as Watsessing. Population in 
1910,15,070. 

Bloomfield-Zeisler, bhom'jeeld zise'lur, 
Fanny (1866- ), an American pianiste, 


Bloomington 

born in Austrian Silesia. Her parents removed 
to Chicago, Ill., in 1868 and there provided 
liberally for their daughter’s musical education. 
When she was eleven years old, her playing 
attracted the attention of eminent foreign 
musicians, and in the following year she began 
to study with Leschetizky. Before she was 
twenty years old she had played with success 
in most of the European musical centers, and 
soon after, returning to America, attained 
instant popularity, being considered one of the 
foremost pianists of the time. 

Bloom'ington, III., the county-seat of 
McLean co., 126 mi. s. w. of Chicago, on the 
Chicago & Alton, the Illinois Central, the 
Big Four and other railroads. The city con¬ 
tains railroad shops and manufactories of 
machinery, stoves and agricultural implements, 
flour mills, furnaces and brick-yards. There 
are also extensive coal-mining, pork-packing 
and fruit-canning industries. Illinois Wesleyan 
University is located here and the Illinois State 
Normal School is at Normal, two miles north. 
Bloomington has a marble courthouse, a 
fine city hall and a public library; it owns 
and operates its waterworks and electric¬ 
lighting plant. It was settled in 1831 and 
became a city in 1850. Population in 1910, 
25,768. 

Bloomington, Ind., the county-seat of 
Monroe co., 50 mi. s. w. of Indianapolis, on 
the Chicago, Indianapolis & Louisville rail¬ 
road. The city is the seat of the Indiana State 
University; it has vast limestone quarries, furni¬ 
ture, leather and hardware factories. The first 
settlement was made about 1818. Population 
in 1910, 8838. 

Blooms'burg, Pa., the county-seat of Colum¬ 
bia co., 40 mi. s. w. of Wilkesbarre, on the 
Susquehanna River and the Pennsylvania canal 
and on the Lackawanna, the Philadelphia & 
Reading and other railroads. The city is in a 
region producing iron, and it has furnaces, 
foundries, textile works, lumber mills and wood¬ 
working factories. Bloomsburg is the seat of 
one of the state normal schools. Population in 
1910, 7413. 

Blouet, bloo ay', Paul. See O’Rell, Max. 

Blouse, blowz, a light, loose upper garment, 
made of linen, cotton or woolen and worn by 
men as a protection from dust, or in place of a 
coat. A blue linen blouse is the common dress 
of French workmen. It is also a sort of coat 
forming a part of the undress uniform of the 
United States army. 


Blowing Machine 

Blow'fly, a large blue and black fly, that 
lays its eggs upon meat or dead animals. These 



BLOWFLY 


eggs are called fly blows, and hatch very quickly 
into maggots, which destroy the meat. 

Blow'ing Machine, a device for supplying a 
continuous current of air under pressure. Blow¬ 
ing machines are used in connection with smelt¬ 
ing furnaces for iron, in blowing glass and for 
ventilating mines and large buildings. The 
simplest and oldest pattern of blowing machine 
consists of a pair of cylinder and piston bellows. 
In this the downward stroke of the piston forces 
the air through the pipes into the fire or other 
place where it is needed. Since the pistons act 
alternately, a continuous current of air is main¬ 
tained (See Bellows). But the blowing 
machine now generally used is the fan or fan 
blast machine. In its most common form the 
fan consists of four spokes of a rimless wheel, 
tipped with vanes and made to rotate in a 
cylindrical chest, in which it has often a slightly 
eccentric position. There are openings on both 
sides round the spindle for admission of air, 
which, sucked in by the centrifugal action of 
the fan as it quickly rotates, flows toward the 
vanes, and is driven through an exit pipe attached 
to another part of the cylinder. A new form of 
blower has a chamber in which three drums of 
equal size are enclosed, two in a line below and 
one above; the upper one is provided with 
wings, and the two lower have wide slots along 
their entire length, allowing the wings to enter 
in the course of rotation. The function of the 
two lower drums is to supply alternately abut¬ 
ments to prevent the escape of the air. They 
are caused to revolve in proper relation with the 
motion of the upper drum by spur-wheels on the 
journals, which mesh into another spur-wheel 
on the shaft of the upper drum. In the moving 
parts of this machine there are no parts that 
come into actual contact except the teeth of the 
spur-wheels. 


Blowpipe 


Bluebird 


Blow'pipe, an apparatus for driving a current 
of air through the flame of a lamp, candle or gas 
jet, and directing it upon any substance desired. 
In its simplest form the blowpipe is merely a 
conical tube of brass or glass, usually seven 
inches long and one-half inch in diameter at the 
larger end and tapering so as to have a very small 
aperture at the smaller end. Within about two 
inches of the smaller end the pipe is bent nearly 
to a right angle, so that the stream of air may be 
directed sidewise to the operator. The flame, 
if turned to a horizontal direction, takes a conical 
shape and consists of two different parts, each 
recognized by its peculiar color. The greatest 
heat is obtained at the tip of the inner or blue 
flame, if the substance subjected to it is burned 
or oxidized. For instance, a small piece of lead 
or copper placed at this point is soon changed 
to lead or copper oxide, and hence the name of 
this flame is the oxidizing flame. By moving 
the substance to the interior blue flame, which 
contains no oxygen, the oxide will be removed 
and the pure metal will be left. For this reason 
t his has been called the reducing flame. Many 
minerals can be either oxidized or reduced at 
pleasure, and the blowpipe forms a ready test 
in the hands of the mineralogist. The current 
of air is often produced by bellows instead of the 
breath, this instrument being fixed in a frame 
for the purpose. 

The oxy-hydrogen pipe is an apparatus for 
burning oxygen and hydrogen in the proportions 
in which they form water. The gases are con¬ 
fined in copper cylinders under great pressure. 
The blowpipe consists of two tubes, one within 
the other, and having a common small opening. 
The hydrogen is lighted; then the oxygen is 
introduced into the center of the flame, making 
a small, blue, needle-pointed flame which 
produces intense heat. In the production of 
lime light, illuminating gas usually takes the 
place of hydrogen. See Lime Light. 

Blub'ber, the fat of whales and other large 
sea animals, from which train oil is obtained. 
The blubber lies under the skin and over the 
muscles. It is eaten by the Eskimo and the 
sea-coast races of the Japanese islands. The 
whole quantity yielded by one whale ordinarily 
amounts to from two to four tons. 

Blucher, bluK'ur, Gebhard Leberecht von, 
prince of Wahlstadt (1742-1819), a distinguished 
Prussian general. He entered the Swedish ser¬ 
vice when fourteen years of age and fought 
against the Prussians, but he was taken prisoner 
in his first campaign and was induced to enter 


the Prussian service. He commanded with 
distinction against the French on the Rhine in 
1793 and 1794, took possession of Erfurt and 
Miihlhausen in 1802, and in 1806 fought at 
the Battle of Auerstadt. After the Peace of 
Tilsit he was employed in the department of 
war at Konigsberg and Berlin. In the campaign 
of 1812, when the Prussians assisted the French, 
he took no part, and Napoleon, realizing Bluch- 
er’s hatred of France, had him removed from his 
command. When seventy years old, he was 
appointed commander in chief of the Prussians 
in the renewed struggle against France, and 
his heroism was shown in the battles of Liitzen 
and Bautzen. He led the Prussian army which 
invaded France early in 1814 and entered the 
capital of France, and on the renewal of the war 
in 1815 the chief command was again committed 
to him, and he led his army into the Netherlands. 
Napoleon threw himself upon him, and Blucher, 
on June 16, was defeated at Ligny. In the 
Battle of Waterloo Blucher arrived at the most 
decisive moment and assisted materially in com¬ 
pleting the great victory of the allies. His 
energy and rapid movements procured for him 
the name of “Marshal Vorwarts” (Forward). 

Blue, one of the seven primary colors, seen in 
nature in the clear sky and the sea. The various 
shades of blue are most brilliantly displayed in 
the sapphire and the turquoise. In the arts 
blue is used as a dye and is derived from products 
of the vegetable, animal and mineral kingdoms. 
Indigo is the most common vegetable material 
for producing it. The principal blues used in 
painting are ultramarine, Prussian or Berlin, 
Bremen and cobalt. 

Blue'beard, the hero of a well known tale, 
originally French, which was introduced into 
England in the seventeenth century. Though 
Bluebeard is a fictitious character, it is believed 
that his story was founded on the enormities of a 
certain Gilles de Laval, Baron de Retz, who 
lived in the fifteenth century. 

Blue'bird, one of the favorite wild birds of 
the United States, lovable because of its bright 
color and pretty ways and its sweet song. The 
bluebird appears among the earliest of the birds 
that go north in the spring, and, if undisturbed, 
it stops in the Northern states and builds its nest 
fearlessly in a hollow stump, fence post or other 
retreat very near houses and people. The same 
pair will nest year after year in a place that they 
find to their liking. They are fine songsters, and 
their cheerful notes may be heard throughout 
the entire season, though most frequently in 


Blue Books 


Blue Print 


early spring. The bluebird is a sman tnrush, 
with bright blue back, reddish throat and breast 
and white under parts. The bluebird is fre¬ 
quently disturbed by the English sparrow, and 
has been practically driven from some localities. 

Blue Books, the official reports, papers and 
documents printed for the British government 
and laid before the Houses of Parliament, so 
called from being stitched up in dark-blue paper 
wrappers. They include bills presented to, and 
acts passed by, Parliament; all reports and 
papers called for by members, or granted by 
government on particular subjects, and the 
reports of committees. The name is also given 
in America and England to a book containing 
the names of persons holding public offices. 

Bluefield, W. Va., is situated on the Norfolk 
& Western Railroad, 100 mi. w. of Roanoke, Va. 
The city is the center of an extensive coal 
industry. Population in 1910, 11,188. 

Bluefields, a city of Nicaragua, situated on 
the Mosquito Coast near the mouth of the 
Bluefields River. It has a land-locked harbor, 
and is connected with Galveston and New 
Orleans by direct lines of steamers. It is the 
seat of a United States Consular Agency and 
a Moravian Mission. Population about 5,000. 

Blue'fish, a sea fish, common on the eastern 
coasts of America, allied to the mackerel, but 
larger, growing to the length of three feet or 
more, and much esteemed for the table. It is 
very destructive to other fishes. Bluefish are 
taken in nets and by hook, furnishing by the 
latter method great sport. New York City alone 
uses $250,000 worth of bluefish in a year. 

Blue Grass, an American pasture grass of 
great excellence, especially abundant in Ken¬ 
tucky, which is known as the Blue Grass State. 
Blue grass thrives best on clay soils overlying 
limestone, and it is excellent for lawns. 

Blue Island, III., a city of Cook co., on the 
Calumet River and on the Illinois Central, the 
Rock Island, the Grand Trunk and other rail¬ 
roads. It is a suburb of Chicago, about two 
miles south of the city limits, and is an important 
railroad center. There are smelting works, oil- 
works, breweries brick-yards and stone-quarries. 
Blue Island was settled in 1833 and was incor¬ 
porated in 1872. Population in 1910, 8043. 

Blue Jay. See Jay 

Blue Laws, a name for certain laws formerly 
believed to have been made in the early govern¬ 
ment of New Haven, Conn., but now known to 
have been the product, in large part, of the brain 
of Rev. Samuel Peters, a minister who was driven 


from the colony to England, and who thereafter 
devoted himself to ridiculing the Americans. 
Among those which he declared had been passed 
were the following: 

“No food or lodging shall be offered to a 
Quaker, Adamite or other heretic. 

“No one to cross a river on Sunday but an 
authorized clergyman. 

“No one shall run on the sabbath day, or walk 
in his garden, except reverently to and from 
meeting. 

“No woman shall kiss her child on the sab¬ 
bath or fasting day. 

“No one shall buy or sell lands without per¬ 
mission of the selectmen. 

“Whoever wears clothes trimmed with gold, 
silver, or bone lace above two shillings by the 
yard, shall be presented by the grand jurors, and 
the selectmen shall tax the offender at 300 pounds 
estate. 

“No one shall read common prayer, keep 
Christmas or saint-days, make minced pies, 
dance, play cards, or play on any instrument of 
music, except the drum, trumpet and Jew’s-harp. 

“Every male shall have his hair cut round 
according to a cap.” See Connecticut, sub¬ 
head History. 

Blue Mountains, the name applied to 
several ranges of mountains in different parts of 
the world: (1) The Blue Mountains of New 
South Wales, which run nearly parallel to the 
coast and form a part of the mountain system 
of Australia. This range extends from Wilson’s 
Promontory on the south to Cape York on the 
north, and has an altitude of over 4000 
feet. (2) The Blue Mountains of Jamaica. 
These form the most important range of the 
island and traverse it nearly its entire length. 
Their greatest altitude is nearly 8000 feet. (3) 
The Blue Mountains of New York, New Jersey 
and Pennsylvania, more properly known as the 
Kittatinny. These mountains are east of the 
Blue Ridge and should not be confounded with 
them. (4) The range of mountains in Oregon 
and Washington. They separate the Columbia 
River from the Great Basin and have an alti¬ 
tude of from 8000 to 9000 feet. Their sides 
are heavily wooded. 

Blue Pe'ter, a blue flag having a white 
square in the center, used to signify that the ship 
on which it is hoisted is about to sail. In the 
United States navy the sailing signal is a flag 
called the cornet. 

Blue^ Print, a photographic picture obtained 
by the use of a cyanide. The process is in com* 


Blue Ridge 


Boar 


mon use by architects and engineers for copying 
plans. The sensitive paper is prepared by brushing 
it over with a solution of oxalic acid and iron and 
then treating it with a solution of potassium 
ferrocyanide. When this paper is exposed to 
light under the drawing, which is made on vellum 
or other very translucent paper, a photograph 
is imprinted upon the sensitive paper. On 
washing in pure water, this is developed in the 
form of a blue print. The lines of the drawing 
protect the cyanide from the action of light, and 
in washing those portions are dissolved, leaving 
upon the picture white lines in place of the black 
lines in the drawing. Sunlight or electric light 
may be used for the process. Blue prints of 
photographic negatives can be made in the same 
manner. 

Blue Ridge, the most easterly ridge of the 
Alleghany or Appalachian Mountains. It 
extends from West Point, N. J., to the northern 
boundaries of Alabama and Georgia. In the 
southern portion it is crossed by several ranges, 
the most important being the Black Mountains, 
the Nantahala and the South Mountains. The 
name Blue Ridge proper refers to that portion 
of the range which crosses Virginia and separates 
the Piedmont region from. the Great Valley. 
The most elevated summits are the Peaks of 
Otter (4000 feet), in Virginia. 

Blun'derbuss an old-fashioned smooth-bore 
gun, the barrel of which terminated in a some¬ 



what bell-shaped muzzle. Several bullets could 
be put in at one load. It made an effective 
weapon at short range. 


Blush'ing, or the reddening of the face and 
neck through modesty, confusion or shame, is a 
local modification of the circulation of the blood, 
brought about by the nerves refusing to act on 
the muscular coat of the tiny arteries, which 
thus become larger and allow more blood to 
flow through them. The cheeks become red, or 
the flush may extend to the roots of the hair or 
“all over.” Terror may make the face pale, 
and the skin may grow cold, by over-stimulating 
the nerves, which thus cause the tiny blood¬ 
vessels to contract and lessen the amount of 
blood. 

Bo'a, a genus of South American serpents of 
great size and enormous strength. They seiz-> 


and crush in the folds of their strong bodies 
animals as large as sheep and deer, and, having 
broken the bones, they are able to swallow the 
animals entire, the neck stretching to many 
times its own diameter. After eating, the snake 
remains sometimes for several weeks without 
motion and seemingly more than half asleep. 
The boa constrictor, which rarely exceeds twenty 
feet in length, is not one of the largest of the boas, 
but the name boa constrictor is often given by 
the public to any large serpent of similar habit; 
consequently, the term in common .speech 
includes the pythons of the Old World and the 
anaconda and other large serpents in America. 
The only members of the boa family in the United 
States are two or three small species found in 
and around Arizona. See Python; Anaconda. 

Boadicea, bo'ad, i se'ah, ( ?-62 a. d.), queen 
of a tribe of early Britons. Having been treated 
in the most ignominious manner by the Romans, 
she headed a general insurrection of the Britons, 
attacked the Roman settlements, reduced Lon¬ 
don to ashes and put to the sword all strangers 
to the number of seventy thousand. Suetonius, 
the Roman general, defeated her in a decisive 
battle, and Boadicea, rather than fall into the 
hands of her enemies, put an end to her own life 
by poison. 

Boar, bor, the wild hog of Europe and North 
Africa. The boar-hunt on foot, with spears foi 
weapons, was once the favorite amusement in 
England and northern Europe. The 
boar was very strong, fierce and fleet, 
and was armed with curving tusks, 
which could inflict dangerous wbunds. 
The chase was therefore very exciting. 
In India a popular sport is to hunt the 
native boar on horseback. Boars are much 
larger than domesticated hogs and are cov- 



WILD BOAR 


ered with short hair and stiff bristles, 
which form a crest along the spine. They feed 
in the night time on vegetables of different 
kinds. 




Boardman 


Board of Trade 


Board'man, George Dana (1828-1903), an 
American Baptist clergyman, born in Burma 
and educated at Brown University and Newton 
Theological Seminary. In 1864 he became 
pastor of the First Baptist Church in Philadelphia 
and held the position for thirty years. Later 
he established the lectureship known as the 
Boardman Foundation in Christian Ethics at 
the University of Pennsylvania. He was presi¬ 
dent of the Christian Arbitration Peace Society 
and the American Baptist Missionary Union, 
and was one of the most influential men in the 
denomination. Among his published works are 
Titles of Wednesday Evening Lectures, The 
Problem of Jesus, The Disarmament of Nations, 
The Two Bibles and The Golden Rule. 

Boards of Health. See Health, Boards of. 

Board of Trade, an association of merchants, 
traders, producers and other persons engaged in 
commercial pursuits for the purpose of facil¬ 
itating hade by united action, of providing a 
court of arbitration in commercial questions, and 
generally of attaining, by combination, advan¬ 
tages in trade beyond the reach of individual 
enterprise or responsibility. Marseilles, in 
France, was the first city in the world to establish 
a board of trade. This partook partly of a 
political character, and it shared in the control 
of municipal affairs. In 1700 the Chamber of 
Commerce of Paris was established. The 
Chamber of Commerce of Glasgow is the oldest 
in Great Britain, having been established in 1783. 
The London Chamber of Commerce, or the 
Royal Exchange, is the grand center of the com¬ 
merce of the Old World. Next to it in impor¬ 
tance stands the Liverpool Exchange, with which 
American commercial dealers have the most 
direct connection. The Manchester, Hull, Leeds 
and other exchanges do an immense business and 
exercise a great influence over trade. 

The Chamber of Commerce of New York was 
established in 1768 and was an important adjunct 
of the municipal government. At the present 
time the order in rank as to financial importance 
of the great metropolitan grain and produce 
exchanges of the country is about as follows: 
1, New York; 2, Chicago; 3, Boston; 4, Phila¬ 
delphia; 5, Baltimore. The Chicago Board of 
Trade was organized in 1848, with 82 members. 
The principal boards of trade in the West in 
regard to volume of business rank, after the 
Chicago board, as follow: : 1, St. Louis; 2, Mil¬ 
waukee; 3, Detroit; 4, Cleveland; 5, Toledo; 
6, Cincinnati; 7, Buffalo. 

The practice of so-called trading on “margins” 


has grown to be a leading feature of the business 
of all boards of trade in this country and, to a 
large extent, also, of those in the Old World. 
According to this method of dealing, the trader 
deposits with his broker a sufficient amount to 
cover the ordinary fluctuations of the security, 
and the broker furnishes the rest of the necessary 
capital. For instance, in January the trader 
wishes to buy 5000 bushels of wheat for delivery 
in February. If the present price is $1 a bushel, 
he advances his broker $250, which is a margin 
of five cents a bushel. If the price of wheat 
advances, he can order the broker to sell it, and 
if he chooses, withdraw his margin as well as a 
profit, according to the extent of the rise. If the 
price recedes below $.95 or below the point 
where his margin will cover the loss, he must 
either deposit enough margin with his broker to 
cover the falling off or lose what he has advanced. 

Most boards of trade have their own clearing 
houses, and at the end of each business day all 
parties who have been trading on the board 
must send reports of sales and purchases to the 
clearing house. Those whose reports show net 
loss must send certified checks for the amount, 
and those who have made net gains are paid. 
By common consent a basis of grading and 
inspection of grains and provisions has been 
established throughout the United States, in 
which all the boards of trade unite. White 
winter wheat is divided into Numbers 1, 2, 3 and 
4; long red winter into Numbers 1 and 2; hard 
winter wheat into Numbers 1, 2, 3 and 4; red 
winter wheat into Numbers 1, 2, 3 and 4, and 
Colorado wheat into Numbers 1, 2 and 3. There 
is also the Turkish red winter wheat. Spring 
wheat is classed as Numbers 1 and 2, northern 
spring; Numbers 1, 2, 3 and 4, spring; Numbers 
1, 2, 3 and 4, white spring, Black Sea and Flinty 
Fife wheat, and frosted wheat. The same close 
discrimination is made with regard to corn, 
oats, rye, barley and all other articles. 

The most stringent regulations are made to 
prevent fraudulent practice on the board. The 
smallest fraud on the part of any member, 
however prominent he may be, is punished by 
immediate suspension, and his trial is prosecuted 
with a rigid impartiality not surpassed by the 
courts of law. There is a widespread misunder¬ 
standing in regard to transactions on the board, 
many persons believing that no property is trans¬ 
ferred in purchases and sales on margins, whereas 
the rules of the board not only contemplate the 
delivery of all property bought and sold on the 
floor, but express provision has been made there 


Boat 


Bobbin 


for, and strict penalties are prescribed for all 
damages that may arise in case of nondelivery 
upon the maturity of a contract. A board of 
trade contract matures on the last day of the term 
mentioned in it, and all transactions between 
members for purchases or sales on the floor of the 
board are strictly contracts under its rules. 

The distinction between so-called long and short 
transactions is as follows: In the former, the 
trader buys, expecting a later advance in price 
to net him a profit; in the latter, he sells, expect¬ 
ing a subsequent decline. 

A comer is an artificial scarcity in a commodity, 
created by a combination organized for the pur¬ 
pose of holding the article affected off the market, 
in order to extort abnormally high prices. The 
most memorable attempted wheat corners on the 
Chicago Board of Trade occurred in May, 1867, 
when the price of wheat was forced to $2.85; 
in September, 1888, when wheat sold as high as 
$2.00: and in May, 1898, when it went to $1.85 
on account of the Leiter deal. 

In the midst of all the noise and confusion 
which the outsider observes on the floor of the 
board during the hours when it is in session, 
there is a vast and thoroughly systematized 
volume of business being transacted with a 
facility and celerity utterly incomprehensible to 
the uninitiated. The brokers on the Chicago 
Board of Trade, for example, have a sign 
language peculiar to themselves, by which they 
can make themselves understood above the din 
constantly prevailing. A sign made with the 
open hand of the broker toward the person he 
is in communication with, signifies “sell”; if 
he shows the back of his hand, it means “buy”; 
one finger raised means 5000 bushels or other 
units of the article dealt in; two fingers raised 
signifies 10,000 bushels, and so on. The circular 
platform or depression where the business is 
transacted is called the “pit/'* 

Boat, bote, a small open vessel or water craft 
usually moved by oars, though some of them 
carry a light sail. Boats vary so much in form, 
dimension and use that it is impossible to 
describe them. There are many special names 
applied to special kinds, as, for instance, the 
punt and dory, flat bottomed boats; cutters, 
which are narrow and swift, usually with a 
square-cut stem, including such varieties as 
dingey, launch, gig and barge; whale boat and 
lifeboat, sharp at both ends; racing shell, long, 
narrow and offering the least possible resistance 
to the water and fitted with sliding seats to give 
the oarsmen greater power. Since the invention 


of steam and gasoline engines and electric motors, 
the making of small motor boats has developed 
rapidly, and some of these are capable of as 
high a speed as 40 miles an hour. Every passen¬ 
ger ship is required to carry a number of boats, 
proportional to its size and to the number of 
passengers. Among such boats are a longboat, 
a fully equipped lifeboat and numerous smaller 
boats, some of which are of canvas and collapsible 
so that they occupy but little room on the decks. 
A ship’s boats are raised or lowered by derricks 
or davits which overhang the ship’s side. The 
boats belonging to a ship of war are the launch 
or longboat, which is the largest, the barge, 
pinnace, yawl, cutters, jolly-boat and gig. See 
Canoe; Ship; Yacht. 

Boat’ bill, a South American heron which 
differs from its relatives in having a broad, heavy 
bill and rather short legs. The bill itself is not 
unlike a boat with the keel uppermost, and on 



BOATBILL 


the lower side is a pouch in which food can be 
carried. The boatbill lives in South America 
and takes its food from the streams, which it 
watches from an overhanging limb. 

Boat'swain, a warrant-officer in the navy, who 
has charge of the sails, rigging, colors, anchors, 
cables and cordage. His office is also to sum¬ 
mon the crew to their duties and this he does 
by a shrill whistle. In the United States navy the 
boatswain has from $1200 to $1800 a year while 
in active service, and after he has served ten years 
he becomes chief boatswain and ranks with the 
ensigns. In the merchant service; the boat¬ 
swain is one of the crew who has charge of the 
rigging and oversees the men. 

Bob’bin, a small spool used for winding yarn 
or thread. The bobbin is used in spinning; in 
this operation it is placed on a spindle and the 



Bobolink 

thread is unwound from it as needed. Small 
bobbins used in lace-making and in sewing 
machines are made of iron. Bobbins used in 
spinning have only one head, while those upon 
which thread is wound for the market have two 
heads and are called spools. 

Bob'olink, in the United States one of the 
most pleasing of the song birds that nest in the 
North. The male is a handsome fellow, gener¬ 
ally black, but wearing a buff cap, shoulder 
straps and band across the back. The female, 
who is dull and streaked with yellow, builds her 
nest on the ground in the tall grass. She tends 
the nest, but the male protects her and sings 
almost without stopping from the tops of brush 



When the nesting season is over, the bobolink 
loses his brilliancy and, joining with others of 
his kin d in large flocks, flies to the reeds and 
marshes of the seacoast and inland waters. Here 
he becomes very fat, and his flesh is esteemed as 
the greatest of delicacies. He loses, too, the 
name of bobolink and is known to the hunters 
and to epicures as a reed bird, or rice bunting, 
when he feeds in the rice fields. Because of its 
being hunted so much in the South, the bobolink 
is rapidly disappearing. William Cullen Bryant’s 
Robert of Lincoln is a charming and popular 
little lyric that imitates in part the song of the 
bobolink. 

Boccaccio, bok kah'cho, Giovanni (1313— 
1375), an Italian novelist and poet, son of a 
Florentine merchant. The boy was remarkably 
precocious and wrote verses before he was 


Boeotia 

seven years of age. Nevertheless, by his father’s 
wish, he spent some years unprofitably in the 
study of the canon law; he was able to devote 
himself entirely to literature only after he had 
taken his degree in law. In 1331 Boccaccio fell 
in love with Maria, daughter of King Robert of 
Naples, and his first work, a romantic love tale 
in prose, Filocopo, was written at her command. 
The Decameron, on which his fame rests, con¬ 
sists of one hundred tales, supposed to have been 
related in ten days by a party of ladies and 
gentlemen who had withdrawn to a country 
house near Florence, while the plague was raging 
in that city. These stories, told swiftly and 
vividly, are full of wit and beauty, but they are 
marred by their licentious tone. For this, how¬ 
ever, the age, which ‘ permitted and even 
demanded such things, is to blame, rather than 
Boccaccio himself. 

Bocklin, bok'lin, Arnold (1827-1901), a 
Swiss painter. His studies were carried on in 
Brussels, Paris and Rome. In his later life he 
spent his time mostly in Germany. His works 
are original and are attractive because of the 
fantastic and imaginative subjects and the 
excellent color-tones. Among his best pictures 
are Castle by the Sea, Surprised by Corsairs, 
Chase of Diana, Venus Reposing, The Isle of 
the Blessed and Sea Idyl. 

Bodleian, bod'lean, Library, a famous 
library at Oxford, founded by Sir Thomas 
Bodley in 1598 and opened in 1602. It claims 
a copy of all works published in Britain, and for 
rare works and manuscripts it is said to be second 
only to the Vatican. It contains over 1,500,000 
volumes. 

Boehmeria, bom e'ri ah, a genus of plants 
closely resembling the stinging nettle. A num¬ 
ber of the species yield tenacious fibers, used for 
making ropes, twine, net and sewing thread. 
One speoies is the Chinese grass, the Malay 
ramie, which is shrubby and three or four feet 
high. It is a native of China, southeastern Asia 
and the Asiatic Archipelago, and it has long been 
cultivated there and in India. The cultivation 
of certain species of the plant has been intro¬ 
duced into parts of the United States, Algeria, 
France and other parts of Europe. (See illus¬ 
tration on next page.) 

Boeotia, be o'shah, in ancient times a division 
of central Greece lying between Attica and 
Phocis. The surface is generally level and 
forms a basin in which lies Lake Copais, into 
which the Cephissus flows. South of the lake 
are the famous Helicon Mountains, the seat of the 







Boer 

ancient worship of the Muses. The earliest 
settlers were Pelasgians and Phoenicians. They 
were conquered in 1124 b. c. by an alien people 
calling themselves Boeotians. These people 
organized the Boeotian League, a confederacy 
consisting of fourteen independent cities with 
Thebes at its head. In the Persian Wars 
Boeotia sided with Persia, and during the Pelop¬ 
onnesian War it was the bitterest enemy of 



BOEHMERIA 


Athens, though from 456 to 487 B. c. it had 
belonged to the Athenian League. The Boeo¬ 
tian League was at the height of its power under 
Epaminondas and Pelopidas and fought des¬ 
perately against Macedonia. The League was 
finally dissolved by the Romans in 171 B. c. 
At present Boeotia forms with Attica a nom- 
archy of Greece. The Boeotians were always 
regarded as coarse and stupid, and most of them 
cared but little for culture. 

Boer, boor, a Dutch word which means peas¬ 
ant, and which is applied to settlers of Dutch 
descent in South Africa. See Transvaal 
Colony; South African War. 

Boerhaave, boor'hah!ve, Hermann (1668- 
1738), a Dutch physician, born near Leyden. 
He first took up the study of theology, but gave 
this up and began at the age of twenty-two the 
study of medicine. His first work, which was 


Bogota 

in anatomy, was not of special importance, but 
later, by his careful and discriminating study, 
he contributed much to the improvement of that 
science. In 1701 he was appointed lecturer at 
the University of Leyden, and here his remark¬ 
able methods attracted students from all parts 
of the world. In 1714 he was made director 
of the university. He is noted as being the first 
one to introduce the practice of lecturing to his 
students at the bedside of his patients, and so 
was the father of modern clinics. As professor 
of botany he contributed much to the knowledge of , 
that science and published catalogues of the plants 
in the garden at Leyden, describing a number 
of new species. One of his greatest works is 
Elements of Chemistry, which is still of value, 
though changes have been made in the science 
be reason of more recent discoveries. 

Boer War. See South African War. 

Bog, a piece of wet, soft and spongy ground, 
where the soil is composed mainly of decaying 
and decayed vegetable matter Such ground 
is valueless for agriculture until reclaimed by 
drainage, but often yields abundance of peat for 
fuel or muck for fertilizer. See Marsh. 

Bogar'dus, James (1800-1874), an American 
inventor, born in Catskill, N. Y. Among his 
inventions were the ring-flyer or ring-spinner 
used in cotton manufacture, the eccentric mill, 
an engraving machine and the first dry gas 
meter. In 1839 he gained the reward offered 
by the British government for the best plan for 
carrying out the penny postage system by the 
use of stamps. Bogardus built the first complete 
cast-iron structure in the world in 1847, and the 
first wrought-iron beams were made from his 
design. His delicate pyrometer and deep-sea 
sounding machine also were valuable additions 
to scientific instruments. 

Bog Oak, trunks and large branches of oak 
found imbedded in bogs, and so preserved that 
the grain of the wood is little affected by the 
many ages during which it has lain interred. 

It is of a shining black or ebony color and is 
frequently converted into ornamental pieces of 
furniture and smaller ornaments, as brooches, 
earrings, and the like. 

Bogota, bo go tah f , the capital of Colombia, 
South America. The location is pleasant and 
healthful, and the water supply is obtained 
from mountain streams. Among the important 
public buildings are those of the university, the 
capitol, a public library, a museum and the 
National School of Fine Arts. Bogota is the 
largest center of internal trade of the country, 


Bogue 


Bohemia 


and it has manufactures of soap, cloth and 
leather, though these are not of great impor¬ 
tance. The city was founded in 1538 and 
soon became the capital of the province 
of New Granada. When the Republic of 
Colombia was established in 1819, Bogota be¬ 
came the capital of the new state. Population 
in 1910, 103,496. 

Bogue, bohg, David (1750-1825), the origi¬ 
nator of the London Missionary Society. He 
studied at Edinburgh and was licensed as a 
preacher of the Church of Scotland. In 1771 
he was employed as usher in London, and he 
afterw ard became minister of an Independent 
chapel at Gosport, where he formed an insti¬ 
tution for the education of young men for the 
Independent ministry. He then began the 
formation of the grand missionary scheme 
which afterward resulted in the London Mis¬ 
sionary Society, and took an active part in the 
foundation of the British and Foreign Bible 
Society and the Religious Tract Society. 

Bohe'mia, a principality situated in the 
northwest part of Austria. It is bounded on the 
n. w. by Saxony, on the n. e. by Silesia, on the 
s. e. by Moravia and Lower Austria and on 
the s. by Upper Austria. Its area is about 
20,000 square miles, or a little less than that of 
New Hampshire and Vermont combined. 

Bohemia is surrounded by mountains. The 
surface of the country is in the form of a basin. 
The central portion contains minor elevations, 
and the general slope of land is toward the 
north. The country is drained by the Elbe and 
its tributaries, the most important of which are 
the Moldau and the Ager. 

TJie climate is temperate and healthful, the 
mean annual temperature of the interior being 
about 49°, with a range varying from 97° to 16°. 
The higher altitudes are cold, and the summits 
of the highest mountains are covered with snow 
during a considerable portion of the year. The 
rainfall is sufficient for agriculture and is quite 
evenly distributed. 

The country is rich in mineral resources, but 
mining is not as important an industry as it 
was in former centuries, since many of the 
older mines have been exhausted. Extensive 
deposits of lignite and coal, beds of iron ore 
and some deposits of copper, cobalt, nickel and 
antimony exist. There are extensive beds of 
kaolin of excellent quality, and sand of the 
highest value in the manufacture of glass also 
occurs. Coal-mining is the most important of 
the mining industries. 


Agriculture is the leading industry, and it is 
estimated that 99 per cent of the land is pro¬ 
ductive. The land is divided into small farms 
and intensive farming is practiced. The rais¬ 
ing of wheat and other cereals, of live stock and 
poultry, and the cultivation of the sugar beet 
are the most important of agricultural industries. 
Silk culture is of some value in the warmest 
regions, and bee-keeping is profitable. About 
one-fifth of the country is covered with forests, 
and in some sections lumbering furnishes occu¬ 
pation for a large number of people. 

The manufacturing industries are important 
and varied. Small factories and the mills of 
large corporations are found in all parts of the 
land. Bohemian glass is known throughout the 
world for its beauty and excellence, and over 
50,000 people are engaged in its manufacture. 
Other important manufactures are beet sugar, 
malt and distilled liquors, cotton and woolen 
goods, paper, agricultural implements and 
machinery. Bohemia is the most important 
manufacturing province of Austria-Hungary. 

Transportation facilities are good. The 
country is well supplied with railroads, the Elbe 
furnishes water communication with the sea, 
the Moldau and other rivers have been canal¬ 
ized and there are numerous canals connecting 
these streams. The commerce is almost wholly 
with neighboring European states The exports 
are glass and other manufactures, and the 
imports, raw material and manufactured goods. 

The inhabitants are principally Czechs, a 
branch of the Slavs. Next to these in number 
are the Germans, and the remainder are Jews. 
The Germans and Czechs control the social 
and political life of the country, and both lan¬ 
guages are maintained. The school system 
contains a large number of public schools and 
the German and Czech universities at Prague. 
There are also secondary and industrial schools 
for those who desire to extend their education 
beyond the primary school. 

The province has a local legislature, consisting 
of an upper and a lower chamber. Members of 
the former comprise the archbishop of Prague, 
bishops of the church, rectors of the univer¬ 
sities and representatives elected by the large 
landowners, by chambers of commerce and by 
rural communities. The lower house consists 
of members elected by the people.. The fran¬ 
chise is restricted by a small property quali¬ 
fication. Most of the inhabitants profess the 
Roman Catholic faith. The important cities 
are Prague, the capital, Pilsen and Reichenberg. 


Bohemian Forest 


Boiler 


History. Bohemia was first settled by the 
Boii, who were driven out by the Germans 
during the first century B. c. In the ninth cen¬ 
tury Christianity was introduced by the Ger¬ 
mans, and soon after this Bohemia became a 
part of the Moravian kingdom of Svatopluk. 
From the early part of the tenth century to the 
fourteenth the country was tributary to Ger¬ 
many, and during this time its interests were 
greatly advanced. From 1278 to 1305 Bohemia 
was one of the most powerful kingdoms of 
Europe and extended its sway from the Elbe to 
the Adriatic. Soon after this the control passed 
to the House of Luxemburg, where it remained 
for more than a century, and several of the 
kings of Bohemia were emperors of Germany. 
About 1400 the religious movement inaugurated 
by John Huss occurred, and this brought on 
wars which lasted for a number of years, and 
during which the Czechs were enabled to stay 
the influence of the Germans. In 1526 the 
country came under the rule of the Hapsburgs. 
It was thus attached to Austrian territory, 
and has since remained under Austrian control. 
Population in 1910,6,774,309. Consult Maurice’s 
Bohemia from the Earliest Times to 1620. 

Bohemian Forest, a mountain ridge in cen¬ 
tral Europe, extending from the Fichtelgebirge 
southward toward the confluence of the Ilz 
and the Danube rivers, and separating Bavaria 
from Bohemia. The highest peaks are the 
Arber (4320 feet) and the Rachel. 

Boies, boiz, Horace (1827- ), an Ameri 

can lawyer and politician, born at Aurora, Erie 
co., N. Y. He moved to Wisconsin terri¬ 
tory in 1844, worked on a farm for six years, 
later studied law in New York state and was 
admitted to the bar, beginning practice at 
Buffalo in 1849. He was elected to the legis¬ 
lature in 1858 as a Republican, but moved in 
1861 to Waterloo, Iowa. There he left the 
Republican party, owing to opposition to a high 
tariff, and in 1890 was elected governor, being 
the only Democratic governor of the state since 
the Republican party was organized. He was 
a prominent candidate for the Democratic 
nomination for president in 1896 and was 
defeated for Congress in 1902. 

Boil, a small, painful swelling of a conical 
shape on the surface of the body. Its base is 
hard, while its apex is soft and of a whitish 
color. Boils are generally indicative of depressed 
health, intemperate habits or disorder of the 
digestive organs. They are caused by poison¬ 
ous bacteria, which find their way under the 


skin. In consequence, the discharges from a 
boil should be carefully kept from contact with 
the skin and should be burned with all the 
cloths used about the diseased part. 

Boileau-Despreauz, bwah lo'da prao', Nich¬ 
olas (1636-1711), a French poet and critic. 
He studied first for the priesthood, then 
entered the legal profession, but soon left it to 
devote himself entirely to literature. In 1660 
appeared his first satire on the vice of Paris, 
and this was followed at intervals by twelve 
others. In 1664 he wrote his prose Conver¬ 
sation between the Heroes of Romance, and his. 
epistles appeared at various times from 1669 
onward. His masterpieces were the Poetic 
Art, in which he laid down literary canons, 
and Le Lvirin, published in 1673. In many 
respects his writings determined the trend of 
subsequent French poetry, and he left, through 
his influence upon Dryden, Pope, and their 
contemporaries, a permanent mark upon Eng¬ 
lish literature. 

Boil'er, a strong vessel made of iron, steel 
or copper plates riveted together and used for 
producing steam un¬ 
der pressure. Boilers 
are used for supply¬ 
ing engines with 
steam, warming build¬ 
ings and for certain 
manufacturing proc¬ 
esses. Since they gen¬ 
erate steam under 
high pressure, the 
first essential of boil¬ 
ers is that they be 
of great strength. 

They are usually of 
cylindrical form, with 
ends curving outward. 

The greatest care is 
observed in their con¬ 
struction, and strict 
attention is given to 
the minutest details 
of design in order to 
ensure safety. 

The essential parts 
of a boiler are the 
shell, or envelope; the 
flues, or tubes through VERTICAL FIRE - TXIBE boiler 
which the gases from the fire pass; the furnace, 
which holds the fire; the grate, on which the fire 
is built; the ash pit, which is under the grate and 
receives the ashes, and the steam dome, which 

































Boiling Point 


Bojador 


is on top of the boiler and is used to collect the 
steam. Large boilers have numerous accessory 
parts which vary according to the size and pat¬ 
tern of the boiler. Certain accessory parts are 
necessary to all boilers. Among these are the 
safety valve, which is gauged to blow off when 
the steam has reached a given pressure; the 
water gauges, which indicate the height of water 
in the boiler; the steam gauge (See Gauge, 
Steam), which shows the pressure of steam, 
and the pump or indicator, which supplies the 
boiler with water. 

There are many varieties of boilers, each of 
which is specially adapted to certain conditions. 
According to structure, boilers are classified 
into tubular, flue and water tube boilers, and 
according to their positions, as horizontal or 
upright. Flue boilers have one or more large 
flues passing through the interior. The heated 
gas passes through the flues, which are sur¬ 
rounded by water, thus bringing the heat into 
contact with all the water at nearly the same 
time. Tubular boilers differ from flue boilers 
only in having a large number of small tubes 
instead of one or two large ones. These 
utilize more heat than the flue boilers and are in 
general use on locomotives, for stationary engines 
and for heating large buildings. The water 
tube boiler is constructed so that the water is 
in tubes which are surrounded by the fire and 
burning gases. These boilers are considered 
safer than the old style tubular boiler; they 
generate steam very rapidly and secure a high 
pressure; consequently, they are in quite general 
use where high pressure is required. 

Marine boilers and most small boilers used on 
land are vertical, but large boilers on land are 
horizontal. The vertical boiler is often con¬ 
venient because it occupies less space that 
might be used for other purposes. See Steam 
Engine. 

Boil'ing Point, the temperature at which a 
liquid boils. The boiling point for water at 
sea level is 212° F. or 100° C. Ether boils at 
about 96°, alcohol at about 173° and mercury 
at 662°. Under the same conditions the boiling 
point for the same liquid is .always the same. 
The boiling point is raised by increasing the 
pressure on the surface. Practical application 
of this principle is seen in cooking meat and 
vegetables by boiling. A tight cover on the 
kettle increases the pressure upon the surface 
of the water and raises the boiling point so that 
the cooking is accomplished much more quickly. 
The boiling point is lowered with the decrease 


of pressure. Since the pressure of the atmos¬ 
phere is greatest at sea level, the boiling point is 
lowered with the increase of altitude, and on 
the high mountains it is so low that vegetables 
and meat cannot be cooked by boiling in an 
open kettle. This principle is used in the con¬ 
struction of vacuum pans, which are enclosed 
vessels connected with air pumps that exhaust 
the air and vapor from over the surface of the 
boiling liquid and thus reduce the pressure, 
making it possible to boil the liquids at a low 
temperature. This principle can be illustrated 
by a simple experiment. Take a round-bottom 
flask or a common soda water bottle, fill it 
about half full of water, then place it in a kettle 
of water and gradually bring this to the boiling 
point. When the water in the bottle has 
reached the same temperature, remove the 
bottle, cork it tightly and invert it. Place a 
damp cloth on it, and upon this pour cold 
water. The cold water condenses the steam, 
and the water in the bottle immediately begins 
to boil. By taking care the water can be made 
to boil three or four times. Placing salts or 
other substances in water usually raises the 
boiling point, while the injection of gases into 
a liquid usually lowers the boiling point 

Bois de Boulogne, bwah de boo lo'ny’, a 
pleasant grove near the gates on the west side 
of Paris, so named after the suburb Boulogne- 
sur-Seine. Its trees were more or less destroyed 
during the Franco-German War. It is still, 
however, one of the pleasantest Parisian holiday 
promenades and one of the most beautiful parks 
of the city. 

Boise, boi'ze, Idaho, the capital of the state 
and county-seat of Ada co., on the Boise River 
and the Union Pacific railroad. It is in an 
agricultural and mining district and is one of 
the largest wool markets in the United States. 
Water is derived from the river for irrigation 
and for power in manufacturing. Natural hot 
water gushes forth from a flowing well and' is 
extensively used for heating buildings. Other 
important institutions are a natatorium, a public 
library, several academies and a high school, 
the United States assay office, the state capitol, 
the penitentiary and a soldiers’ home. Boise 
occupies the site of an old trading post of the 
Hudson Bay Company and was settled in 1863. 
Population in 1910, 17,358. 

Bojador, bo zkah dor', a cape on the west 
coast of Africa, one of the projecting points of 
the Sahara, till the fifteenth century the southern 
limit of African navigation. 


Boker 


Bolingbroke 


Bo'ker, George Henry (1823-1890), an 
American poet and man of letters. He pub¬ 
lished several volumes of poems, notably war 
songs, and was the author of the tragedies 
Calaynos , Anne Boleyn and Francesca da 
Rimini. In 1871 he became United States 
minister at Constantinople, and in 1876 he was 
sent to Saint Petersburg, where he remained 
for two years. His last literary work, a volume 
of sonnets, appeared in 1886. Of his war poems 
the most famous is that of the Black Regiment , 
founded on an incident in the Civil War. 

Bokhara, bo kah'ra, a Russian dependency 
of central Asia, situated between Russian Tur¬ 
kestan and Afghanistan. It has an area of 
about 100,000 square miles, and a population 
of 2,500,000. It is bordered on the north by 
the Hindu Kush Mountains, and on the east 
by the Bolor Tagh. Most of the region is a 
level plateau, covered with dry steppes and 
sandy wastes. The important rivers of Bok¬ 
hara are the Amu or Oxus, and the Samarcand. 
The climate is temperate, the rainfall light, and 
along the banks of the streams the land is fer¬ 
tile. The most important crops are cotton, 
rice, wheat, barley, fruits, silk and tobacco. 
The inhabitants are chiefly engaged in raising 
live stock, especially camels, goats and horses. 
The manufactures are few and limited. They 
include silk fabrics, gold and silver ornaments, 
firearms and sabers. The country has consid¬ 
erable commerce with Russia. The population 
consists of a mixture of races, nearly all of 
whom profess the Mohammedan religion. 
Bokhara was a part of the ancient Bactria and 
was conquered by Genghis Khan in 1219. 
About three centuries later it passed under the 
rule of the Uzbegs. In 1864 it became subject 
to the Russian authorities and has continued as 
a dependency of the Russian Empire. The 
important towns are Bokhara, the capital, and 
Karshi. 

Bo'las. See Slings. 

Boleyn, bull'en, Anne (1501?—1536), second 
wife of Henry VIII of England. She went to 
France with Mary, sister of Henry, at Mary’s 
marriage with Louis XII, and on her return to 
England about 1522, became lady of honor to 
Queen Catharine. The king, who soon grew 
fond of her, without waiting for the official 
completion of his divorce from Catharine, 
married Anne in January, 1533, having pre¬ 
viously created her marchioness of Pembroke. 
Then Cranmer declared the first marriage void 
and the second valid, and Anne was crowned 


at Westminster with unparalleled splendor. In 
September, 1533, she became the mother of 
Elizabeth. She was speedily, however, in turn 
supplanted by her own lady of honor, Jane 
Seymour. Suspicions of infidelity were alleged 
against her, and in 1536 the queen was brought 
before a jury of peers on a charge of treason 



ANNE BOLEYN 


and impropriety of conduct. Smeaton, a musi¬ 
cian, who was arrested with others, confessed, 
and on May 17 she was condemned to death. 
The clemency of Henry went no further than the 
substitution of the scaffold for the stake, and 
she was beheaded on May 19, 1536. Whether 
she was guilty or not has never been decided; 
that she was exceedingly indiscreet is certain. 

Bolingbroke, bol'ing brook , Henry Saint 
John, Viscount (1678-1751), a famous English 
statesman. In 1701 he obtained a seat in the 
House- of Commons, attaching himself to the 
Tories. He became secretary of war in 1706, 
retired with the ministry in 1708 and in 1710 
became secretary of state for foreign affairs. 
In 1712 he was called to the House of Lords 
with the title of Viscount Bolingbroke, and in 
the following year he concluded the Peace of 
Utrecht. Queen Anne made Bolingbroke prime 
minister, but she died a few days later, and 
Bolingbroke, dismissed by King George, fled 
to France to escape the inevitable impeachment 
which he knew would be the result of the Peace 








Bolivar 


Bolivia 


of Utrecht. James Stuart, the Pretender, 
invited him to Lorraine and made him his 
secretary of state, but dismissed him in 1716. 
on a suspicion of treachery. In 1723 he was 
permitted to return to England. He withdrew 
entirely from politics, spent several years at 
Battersea and finally returned to France. Pope 
was indebted to him for suggestions for his 
Essay on Man. He was clever and versatile, 
but unscrupulous and insincere. 

Bol'ivar, Simon (1783-1830), a leader in the 
South American struggle for independence. 
He studied law in Madrid, returned to South 
America in 1809 and in the following year took 
part in a revolutionary rising in Caracas. In 
the struggles of New Granada, Venezuela, 
Bolivia and Peru for freedom from Spanish rule, 
he was the most prominent man, and when in 
1819 New Granada and Venezuela were con¬ 
solidated into a republic under the name of 
Colombia, Bolivar was made president. In 
1823 he became dictator of Peru, but he held 
the office only two years. The constitution of 
Bolivia, which he framed, excited in the minds 
of his enemies the fear that he wished to 
make himself perpetual dictator over Colombia, 
Peru and Bolivia, and he lost some of his influ¬ 
ence. The presidency of Colombia he held 
until a few months before his death. 

Boliv'ia, a country of South America, situated 
between 8° and 22° 50' south latitude, and 58° 
and 73° 20' west longitude. It is bounded on 
the e. by Brazil, on the s. by Paraguay and 
Argentina, on the w. by Chile and Peru. Its 
greatest length is 950 miles, its greatest width is 
800 miles, and its area is 729,000 square miles, 
or a little less than the combined area of Texas, 
California and Oregon. 

Surface and Drainage. The western part 
of the country is traversed by two parallel 
ranges of the Andes, which extend from the 
northwest to the southeast. Of these the eastern 
range is much the higher, and it contains sev¬ 
eral peaks exceeding 20,000 feet in altitude. 
Among the peaks of the western range is the 
volcano Sajma, which reaches an altitude of 
21,000 feet. Between these ranges lies the 
Bolivian plateau, having an altitude of from 
12,000 to 13,000 feet and traversed by a number 
of small ranges. In this plateau is located 
Lake Titicaca, which has an elevatian of 12,000 
feet (See Titicaca, Lake of). East of the 
mountains the country consists of a plain which 
descends by a gradual slope from the foothills to an 
elevation of about 300 feet at the eastern boundary. 


The principal rivers traverse this plain, flow¬ 
ing into the Madeira, which waters the northern, 
and the Paraguay, which waters the southern, 
part of the country. The largest of these 
streams are the Bermejo and the Pilcomayo in 
the south, and the Bene Itenez and Marmore 
in the north. All of these are navigable. 

Mineral Resources. Since its discovery 
Bolivia has been noted for its mineral wealth. 
A part of the gold which the Spaniards found in 
the possession of the Incas was taken from mines 
of Bolivia, but after the conquest these mines 
were not worked until the Spaniards enslaved 
the natives and compelled them to labor, and 
at no time since the conquest has the output 
of gold been proportional to the richness of the 
mines. Silver now constitutes the most impor¬ 
tant mineral product, and Bolivia ranks fifth 
among the silver-producing countries of the 
world. Other important metals are tin, copper, 
lead and zinc. Valuable deposits of borax and 
salt also exist, but none of the deposits is yet 
developed. 

Climate. The country has three climatic 
regions, the warm or semi-tropical region, occu¬ 
pying the lowlands of the east, the temperate 
region, found in the intermediate altitudes, 
and the cold region of the mountains and the 
Bolivian plateau. The rainy season lasts 
through December, January and February, and 
during this time rains and hailstorms are of 
frequent occurrence. The most desirable cli¬ 
matic region is that of the middle latitudes, where 
the climate is temperate and salubrious. There is 
in most sections sufficient rainfall for agriculture. 

Agriculture. The great plain east of the 
mountains contains some of the most fertile 
land in the world; nevertheless agriculture is 
almost entirely neglected, and the methods 
employed in cultivating the soil are of the most 
primitive sort. The land is owned by the 
indians or by wealthy whites who reside in 
towns. All work is by the natives and is done 
by hand labor, and because of the inefficient 
methods the returns are poor. The chief crops 
are alfalfa, barley, sugar cane, coffee, cacao, 
potatoes and cereals. Extensive areas are given 
to grazing, and large herds of llamas, vicunas, 
alpacas and sheep, and in some localities horses 
and cattle, are found. The forests cover, large 
areas, and from them Peruvian bark and rubber 
are obtained. There are practically no manu¬ 
factures. 

Transportation. The mountain roads are 
constructed for pack animals only. Carriage 


Bolivia 

roads are few and poor, and nearly all of the 
merchandise is transported by pack animals. 
A railway extends from Antofagasta, on the 
Pacific coast, to La Paz, and another extends 
eastward and connects with lines from Argen¬ 
tina. The rivers communicating with the 
Atlantic furnish an outlet for those sections of 
country through which they flow, but the dis¬ 
tance to the seaport is so great that the expense 
of transportation precludes any extensive traffic. 
For these reasons the commerce of the country 
is limited and amounts to about $20,000,000 
annually. 

Inhabitants and Language. The inhab¬ 
itants include whites and indians, the latter 
constituting by far the greater part of the popu¬ 
lation. The whites are mostly Spaniards and 
their descendants. The indians are divided 
between two nationalities, the Quichuas and the 
Aymaras. The latter are descendants from the 
Incas, who occupied the territory previous to 
the Spanish conquest, and live in the high plains 
to the east of the mountains, where they are 
engaged in agriculture and in raising live stock. 
The Quichuas are employed in working the 
mines and as domestic servants, and some 
engage in tilling the land. The whites hold ail 
public offices of importance and fill the leading 
professional and commercial positions. Most 
of the small tradesmen are known as Mestizos, 
and are persons of mixed indian and white 
blood. Spanish is the prevailing language, but 
the indians maintain their native tongue. 

Education. Theoretically the government 
provides a system of public schools and makes 
education compulsory, but the laws are not 
enforced. The schools are entirely inadequate 
to the demands and are of very poor quality, 
and a large proportion of the inhabitants is 
illiterate. A few high schools and industrial 
schools are maintained, and there are six univer¬ 
sities and eight colleges in the country. Schools 
for the indian children are also maintained by 
missions of the various churches. 

Government. The government is repub¬ 
lican in form. The executive power is vested 
in the president, elected by the people for four 
years. He is assisted by two vice-presidents, 
elected in the same way and for the same term, 
and by five ministers. The legislative depart¬ 
ment consists of a national assembly of two 
houses, the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies. 
The Senate is composed of 18 members, elected 
for six years, and the Chamber of 64 members, 
elected for four years. For the purpose of 


Bologna 

local government the country is divided into 
eight departments, and each of these is sub¬ 
divided into provinces and cantons. The 
courts consist of one Supreme Court and a num¬ 
ber of superior and inferior courts. The judges 
of these are nominated by the Chamber of Depu¬ 
ties and confirmed by the Senate. Nearly all 
of the inhabitants are Roman Catholics. 

Cities. The important cities are La Paz, the 
capital, Sucre, Cochabamba and Potozi, each 
of which is described under its title. 

History. Bolivia was a part of the ancient 
empire ot the Incas. • It was conquered by the 
Spaniards under Pizarro in 1538. During the 
following century and a half, the Spaniards 
subdued and enslaved the natives. In 1780 an 
indian uprising occurred, which caused consid¬ 
erable trouble. The country remained under 
Spanish rule until 1825, when it gained-its inde¬ 
pendence, organized a republican form of gov¬ 
ernment and , adopted a constitution proposed 
by General Bolivar, for whom the country is 
named. Since that time Bolivia has been 
harassed by rebellions and revolutions to such 
an extent as to paralyze its industries and pre¬ 
vent either social or civic development. As a 
result of the war in which Bolivia and Peru 
combined against Chile in 1884, Bolivia was 
compelled to relinquish the portion of its terri¬ 
tory bordering upon the sea, and since that 
time it has been a land-locked nation. Popu¬ 
lation, 1908, estimated at 2,268,000. 

Boll Weevil. See Cotton. 

Bologna, bo lo'nyah, an important city of 
Italy, capital of the province of the same name, 
83 mi. n. of Florence. Among the principal 
buildings are the Palazzo Pubblico, the Palazzo 
del Podest&, and the church or basilica of San 
Petronio. Among the hundred other churches 
are San Pietro, San Domenico, San Giovanni, 
in Monte and San Giacomo Maggiore, all pos¬ 
sessing rich treasures of art. The leaning towers, 
Degli Asinelli and Garisenda, dating from the 
twelfth century, are among the most remarkable 
objects in the city. An arcade of 640 arches 
leads to the church of Madonna di San Lucca, 
situated at the foot of the Apennines, near 
Bologna, and is the resort of pilgrims from all 
parts of Italy. Bologna is one of the great 
centers of learning in Italy and has long been 
renowned for its university, founded as early as 
1088, and having a library of over 200,000 
volumes and 9000 manuscripts. The Academy 
of Fine Arts has a rich collection of paintings 
by native artists, such as Francia, and those of 


Bologna 


Bomb 


the later Bolognese school, of which the Caraccis, 
Guido Reni, Domenichino and Albano were the 
founders. The city has important manufactures 
of silk goods, velvet, chemicals, paper and 
sausages. Bologna was founded by the Etrus¬ 
cans under the name of Felsina. It became in 
189 B. c. the Roman colony Bononia, passed into 
the hands of the Franks later and was made a 
free city by Charlemagne in 800 A. d. In the 
twelfth and thirteenth centuries it was one of 
the most flourishing of the Italian republics, 
but the feuds between the different parties of 
the nobles led to its submission to the papal 
sec in 1514. Several attempts were made to 
throw off the papal yoke, one oi which, in 1831, 
was for a time successful. In 1849 the Austrians 
obtained possession of it. In 1860 it was annexed 
to the dominions of King Victor Emmanuel. 
Population in 1911, 172,639. 

Bologna, University of, one of the most 
famous universities of the world, situated at 
Bologna, Italy. The origin of this school is 
unknown, but some consider it to extend back 
to 425 a. D., and its continuous existence is 
known to date from the organization of the law 
school in the eleventh century. In the four¬ 
teenth century a school of theology was added 
to the schools of law, medicine and liberal arts. 
The early prominence of the institution was due 
to the work of Imerius, who compiled a body 
of civil law, and also to Gratian, who compiled 
the body of canonical law. The influence of 
, this work upon the civil and ecclesiastical organi¬ 
zation of Europe during the Middle Ages was 
beyond measure, and the present civil code of 
Germany is based upon the work of Irnerius. 
The university also became prominent in scien¬ 
tific investigations and discoveries, and it was 
here that Galvani made his discovery, which 
led to what was later known as Galvanic elec¬ 
tricity (See Electricity). The university also 
admitted women as students and at one time 
had a number of women on its faculty. At 
present the school maintains departments of 
philosophy and letters, mathematics and science, 
jurisprudence, medicine and surgery, pharmacy, 
veterinary surgery, engineering, drawing, and 
architecture, political science and commercial 
law. The enrollment is about 1500, and the 
library contains 170,000 volumes, besides a large 
number of pamphlets and manuscripts. 

Bolognese, bo lo nyeez’, School of Painting. 
See Painting. 

Bolom'eter, an instrument for detecting 
and measuring minute quantities of heat. It 
25 


consists of an electric apparatus known as 
Wheatstone’s Bridge, one arm of which has a 
small strip of platinum upon the back, and the 
other arm of which is connected with a sensitive 
galvanometer. If the platinum arm is exposed 
to rays of heat, a current of electricity is devel¬ 
oped, the strength of which is indicated by the 
deflection of the needle in the galvanometer. 
The instrument is so delicate that bringing the 
hand near the platinum arm will cause a deflec¬ 
tion of the galvanometer needle. The bolometer 
is used in astronomy to measure the heat from 
the sun and other heavenly bodies. It was by 
the use of this instrument that the amount of 
heat received from the moon’s rays was deter¬ 
mined. 

Bolt, a pin, usually of iron or copper, used 
in fastening together parts of machinery, ships, 
carriages, stoves and many other structures. 
The bolt has a head at one end and may be 
fastened at the other by a key which passes 
through a slot, or by a nut which turns on a 
thread. The latter method is the more common. 
Bolts used in shipbuilding are made of copper, 
so they will not rust. Screw bolts have a square 
head and a large thread. They are screwed 
into the wood and do not have any nut. 

Bolton, bole'ton, or Bolton-le-Moors, a 
manufacturing town of Lancashire, England, 
10 mi. n. w. of' Manchester, on the river Croal. 
The city is divided into two parts. The most 
important public buildings are the town hall, 
the market hall and Saint Peter’s church. 
There are six free public libraries and four public 
parks. Bolton is one of the chief cities in Eng¬ 
land in the manufacture of cotton goods, and it 
contains some of the largest cotton mills in the 
world. There are also numerous foundries, 
engineering works, chemical works and collieries. 
The city is one of the oldest in England, being 
designated as a market town as early as 1256. 
Population in 1911, 180,885. 

Bo'ma, the seat of government of the Kongo 
Free State, situated on the right bank of the 
Kongo River, not far from the coast. The town 
is an important commercial port and contains 
well built business and residence sections, in 
the latter of which are found the government 
buildings. See Kongo Free State. 

Bomb, bom or bum, a large, hollow iron bail 
or shell, filled with explosive material and fired 
from a mortar. The charge in the bomb is 
exploded by means of a fuse filled with powder 
and other inflammable materials, which are 
ignited by the discharge of the mortar. Conical 


Bombardier Beetle 


Bona 


shells shot from rifled cannon have supplanted 
the older bomb. The name bomb is also given 
to small bales filled with explosives and thrown 
by hand or laid where they will explode when 
disturbed. The use of bombs and mortars is 
said to have been invented in the middle of the 
fifteenth century. 

Bombardier, bom'bur deer ', Beetle, a small 
ground beetle which has a remarkable power 
of discharging at its pursuers an offensive secre¬ 
tion, which burns and leaves a stain like nitric 
acid. 

Bombard'ment, the attack of a fort, city or 
other field position by continued fire from can¬ 
non. Small and unimportant cities are rarely 
attacked, as it is too expensive a process to be 
used except in highly important emergencies. 
Prior to the bombardment of a city, about 
twenty-four hours’ notice is usually given in 
order that non-combatants may move themselves 
and their property out of range. The usefulness 
of bombardment is limited, and its chief function 
is to drive gunners away and open breaches in 
walls, so that the infantry may advance. It is 
quite possible to prevent great loss of life from 
bombardment, by constructing underground 
and bomb-proof retreats within the walls. Port 
Arthur, for example surrendered only after 
General Nogi had moved his troops by continued 
assaults so far forward that they were able to 
command the whole interior of the Russian 
fortifications. 

Bombay', a presidency of British India, 
extends along the west coast from Punjab on 
the north to about the fourteenth parallel of 
latitude on the south, and has an area of about 
184,000 sq. mi., nearly 123,000 of which are 
under direct administration of the British gov¬ 
ernment. The surface is mountainous, the 
Western Ghatz running parallel to the coast 
for nearly the entire length of the territory. 
The principal rivers are the Indus, the Tapti and 
the Nerbudda, all flowing into the Arabian Sea. 
The climate is hot and, during the rainy season, 
unhealthful. The soil is fertile, and when the 
rainfall is sufficient abundant crops are raised; 
but the northern portion is unproductive, and 
if the rain fails in any section, a famine usually 
occurs. The leading agricultural products are 
cotton, rice, wheat and millet. Bombay is the 
largest cotton-producing district of India and 
furnishes nearly one-fourth of the entire crop. 

The manufactures are cotton and silk fabrics, 
leather and brassware. The commerce is exten¬ 
sive, large quantities of cotton being exported. 


The other important exports are .tea, sugar and 
wool. Most of the trade is with Great Britain 
and passes through the Suez Canal. 

The government is in the hands of a gov¬ 
ernor and executive council, who hold office by 
appointment, *and the legislative functions are 
discharged by a legislature consisting of the 
governor, the executive council and members 
appointed from the natives and the European 
residents. For local administration the presi¬ 
dency is divided into four divisions, the Northern, 
Central, Southern and Sind. There are several 
native dependencies within the territory, each 
of which is controlled by a chief, who is subject 
to the governor of the presidency and is assisted 
by a British agent residing at his court. The 
presidency contains 6500 miles of railway, has 
good schools and an annual revenue of about 
$75,000,000. Population in 1911, about 18,000,- 
000. See India. 

Bombay (Portuguese, “good harbor”), the 
chief seaport of the west coast of India, cap¬ 
ital of the presidency of the same name. 
Bombay has many handsome buildings, both 
public and private, as the cathedral, the univer¬ 
sity, the library, the secretariat, the new high 
court and the post and telegraph offices. Various 
industries, such as dyeing, tanning and metal¬ 
working, are carried on, and there are large 
cotton factories. The commerce is very exten¬ 
sive, exports and imports of merchandise reach¬ 
ing a total value of over $300,000,000 annually. 
The harbor is one of the largest and safest in 
India, and there are commodious docks. There 
is a large traffic with steam vessels between 
Bombay and Great Britain, besides regular 
steam communication with China, Australia, 
Singapore and Mauritius. The island of Bom¬ 
bay, on which the city is situated, is about 11 
miles long and 3 miles broad. It was formerly 
liable to be overflowed by the sea, to prevent 
which substantial walls and embankments have 
been constructed. After Madras. Bombay is 
the oldest of the British possessions in the East, 
having been ceded by the Portuguese in 1661. 
Population in 1911, 979,445. 

Bombazine, bom ba zeen a mixed tissue off 
silk and worsted, the first forming the warp, 
and the second the weft. It is fine and light in 
the make, and may be of any color, though black 
is now most in use. Since 1816 it has been 
manufactured extensively in Norwich, England. 

Bo'na, a seaport and fortified city of Algeria, 
85 mi. n. e. of Constantine. Bona was occu¬ 
pied by the French in 1832, since which time 


Bonanza 


Bonaparte 


it has been much improved. There are manu¬ 
factures of burnooses, tapestry and saddles, and 
a considerable trade. The city has one of the 
best harbors on the African coast. Population 
in 1911, 42,039. 

Bonan'za (Spanish “fair weather” or a “favor¬ 
ing wind”), a term applied in the United States to 
an abundance of precious metal or rich ore in 
a mine. It is also applied to any good fortune 
or successful enterprise. 

Bonaparte, bo'napahrt, the French form 
which the great Napoleon was the first to give 
to the original Italian name Buonaparte , borne 
by his family in Corsica. As early as the 
twelfth and thirteenth centuries there w r ere 
in northern Italy families of this name, mem¬ 
bers of which received some distinction as 
governors of cities or envoys. The connection 
between the Corsican Bonapartes and these 
Italian families is not clearly established, though 
probably the former were descended from a 
Genoese branch of the family, which transplanted 
itself about the beginning of the sixteenth cen¬ 
tury to Corsica, an island then under the juris¬ 
diction of Genoa. From that time the Bona¬ 
partes ranked as a distinguished patrician family 
of Ajaccio. About the middle of the eighteenth 
century there remained three male represent¬ 
atives of this family at Ajaccio, the archdeacon 
Lucien Bonaparte, his brother Napoleon and 
the nephew of both, Carlo, the father of the 
emperor Napoleon I. Carlo or Charles 
Bonaparte (1746-1785) studied law at Pisa 
university, and on his return to Corsica, mar¬ 
ried Letizia Ramolino. He fought under Paoli 
for the independence of Corsica, but when fur¬ 
ther resistance was useless he went over to the 
side of the French and was included by Louis XV 
among the Corsican families who were to have 
rights in France as noble. In 1777 he went to 
Paris, where he resided for several years, pro¬ 
curing free admission for his second son 
Napoleon to the military school of Brienne. 
He died at Montpellier. By his marriage with 
Letizia Ramolino he left eight children: Joseph, 
king of Spain; Napoleon I, emperor of the 
French; Lucien, prince of Canino; Maria Anna, 
afterward called Elisa, princess of Lucca and 
Piombino and wife of Prince Bacciocchi; Louis, 
king of Holland; Carlotta, afterward named 
Marie Pauline, princess Borghese; Annunciata, 
afterward called Caroline, wife of Murat, king 
of Naples; and Jerome, king of Westphalia. 

Bonaparte, Charles Joseph (1851- ), 

an American lawyer and politician, born in 


Baltimore, Md., the grandson of Jerome Bona¬ 
parte, king of Westphalia and brother of Napo¬ 
leon I. He graduated from Harvard and from 
the Harvard Law School and began practice in 
Baltimore, attaining distinction in his profession 
and becoming prominent in many reform move¬ 
ments, especially in civil service reform. He 
became secretary of the navy in 1905, and from 
1906 to 1909 was attorney-general. 

Bonaparte, Jerome (1784-1860), youngest 
brother of Napoleon I, born at Ajaccio. He 
was educated in the college of Juilly, and after¬ 
ward beeame a naval lieutenant. He was, sent 
out on an expedition to the West Indies, but 
the vessel, being chased by English cruisers, 
w T as obliged to put in to New York. During 
his sojourn in America Jerome Bonaparte 
became acquainted with Elizabeth Patterson 
and married her in spite of the protests of his 
brother. Two years later he separated from 
her at Napoleon’s command. After considera¬ 
ble service, both in the army and navy, in 1807 
he was created king of Westphalia and was 
forced to marry Catherine, princess of Wiirt- 
temberg. His government was not wise or 
prudent, and his extravagance and his brother’s 
increasing exactions nearly brought the state to 
financial ruin. The Battle of Leipzig put an 
end to Jerome’s reign, and he was obliged to 
take flight to Paris. He remained faithful to 
his brother through all the events that followed 
till the final overthrow at Waterloo. After that, 
he resided in different cities of Europe, but 
latterly chiefly at Florence. After the election 
of his nephew, Louis Napoleon, to the presi¬ 
dency of the French Republic, in 1848, he 
became successively governor general of the 
Invalides, a marshal of France and president of 
the Senate. # Of Jerome Bonaparte’s first mar¬ 
riage remained one son, Jerome Napoleon; of 
his second marriage two children remained, 
Prince Napoleon Joseph, who assumed the name 
of Jerome, and the Princess Mathilde. 

Bonaparte, Joseph (1768-1844), the eldest 
brother of Napoleon I, born in Corsica and 
educated in France at the college of Autun. 
He returned to Corsica, in 1785, studied law 
and in 1792 became a member of the new 
administration of Corsica, under Paoli. In 1793 
he emigrated to Marseilles and married the 
daughter of a wealthy banker there; and later, 
with the rise of his brother to fame after the 
brilliant campaign of Italy, Joseph began a 
varied diplomatic and military career. At length, 
in 1806, Napoleon made him king of Naples, 


Bonaparte 


Bone 


and two years afterward transferred him to 
Madrid as king of Spain. His position there, 
entirely dependent on the support of French 
armies, because almost intolerable; he was 
twice driven from his capital by the approach 
of hostile armies, and the third time, in 1813, 
he fled, not to return. After the Battle of 
Waterloo he went to the United States and 
lived for a time near Philadelphia, assuming 
the title of count of Survilliers. He subse¬ 
quently went to England, and from there to 
Italy, where he died. 

Bonaparte, Letizia Ramolino (1750-1836), 
the mother of Napoleon I. She was a woman 
of much beauty, intellect and force of char¬ 
acter. Left a widow in 1785, she resided in 
Corsica till her son became’ first consul, when 
an establishment was assigned to her at Paris. 
On the fall of Napoleon she retired to Rome* 
where she died. 

Bonaparte, Louis (1778-1846), second 
younger brother of the emperor Napoleon I, 
and father of Napoleon III; born in Corsica. 
He was educated in the artillery school at 
Chalons, accompanied Napoleon to Italy and 
Egypt and subsequently rose to the rank of 
a brigadier general. In 1802 he married Hor- 
tense Beauharnais, Napoleon’s stepdaughter, 
and four years later, in 1806, was compelled 
by his brother to accept, very reluctantly, the 
Dutch crown. He exerted himself in promoting 
the welfare of his new subjects and resisted as 
far as possible the tyrannical interference and 
arbitrary procedure of France; but disagreeing 
with his brother in regard to some measures 
of the latter, he abdicated in 1810. From this 
time on he lived chiefly in Rome and in Flor¬ 
ence. He died at Leghorn. He was the author 
of several works which show considerable liter¬ 
ary ability. 

Bonaparte, Lucien (1775-1840), prince of 
Canino, next younger brother of Napoleon I, 
was born at Ajaccio. He emigrated in 1793 to 
Marseilles, where he distinguished himself as a 
republican orator and politician. After receiving 
an appointment in the commissariat at Saint 
Maximin, he married Christine Boyer, the 
daughter of an innkeeper there. After Robes¬ 
pierre’s fall he was in some danger, but his 
brother’s influence operated in his favor, and 
by 1798 he was settled in Paris and a member 
of the newly elected Council of Five Hundred. 
Shortly after Napoleon’s return from Egypt, 
Lucien was elected president of the Council, 
and in this position he contributed greatly to 


the fall of the Directory and the establishment 
of his brother’s power. In the next year, as 
Napoleon began to develop his system of mili¬ 
tary despotism, Lucien, who still held to his 
republican principles and candidly expressed 
his disapproval of his brother’s conduct, fell 
into disfavor and was sent out of the way as 
ambassador to Spain. Eventually, when Napo¬ 
leon had the consulate declared, hereditary, 
Lucien withdrew to Italy, settling finally at 
Rome, where he devoted himself to the arts and 
sciences and lived in apparent indifference to 
the growth of his brother’s power. He came 
to France, however, and exerted himself on his 
brother’s behalf, both before and after the 
Battle of Waterloo. Returning to Italy, he 
spent the rest of his life in leterary and scientific 
researches. Pope Pius VII made him prince 
of CaninOo He was the author of several works, 
among which are two long poems. 

Bonaparte, Napoleon. See Napoleon I. 

Bond, an obligation in writing to pay a sum 
of money, or to do or not to do some particular 
thing specified in the bond. The person who 
gives the bond is called the obligor ; the persons 
receiving the bond is called the obligee. A bond 
stipulating either to do something wrong in 
itself or forbidden by law, or to omit the doing 
of something which is a duty, is void. No per¬ 
son who cannot legally enter into a contract, 
such as an infant or a lunatic, can become an 
obligor, though such a person may become an 
obligee. No particular form of words is essen¬ 
tial to the validity of a bond. 

Bonds are of two classes; they are simple, 
where a simple promise is made; conditional, 
where a promise is made to be fulfilled in case 
a certain other condition is not fulfilled. A 
common form of bond is that on which money 
is lent to some company or corporation, and by 
which the borrowers are bound to pay the lender 
a certain rate of interest for the money. For 
details, see Vol. V ., Business Law and Forms. 

Goods liable to customs or excise duties are 
said to be in bond when they are temporarily 
placed in vaults or warehouses under a bond 
by the importer or owner that they will not be 
removed till the duty is paid on them. Such 
warehouses are called bonded warehouses. 

Bone, a hard material constituting the frame¬ 
work of mammals, birds, fishes and reptiles, 
and protecting vital organs, such as the heart 
and lungs, from external pressure and injury. 
In the temperate zones, bones reach their per¬ 
fection in men between the ages of twenty and 


Bone-ash 


Boniface 


twenty-five, and from this age till fifty they 
change but slightly; after that period they grow 
thinner, lighter and more brittle. Bones are 
densest at the surface and, except in the joints, 
are covered by a firm membrane called the 
'periosteum, which helps to nourish the bone. 
The internal parts of the bone are more cellular, 
the spaces being filled with marrow, a fatty 
tissue supporting fine blood vessels. Bone con¬ 
sists of nearly thirty-four per cent animal 
material and sixty-six per cent mineral sub¬ 
stances, chiefly phosphate and carbonate of 
lime. The animal material may be shown by 
placing a bone in weak acid, which will dissolve 
the mineral matter and leave the bone so that 
it can be easily bent. The animal matter is 
destroyed by burning, leaving the bone brittle 
and easily crushed. Bones, from the quantity 
of phosphates they contain, make excellent 
manure. The value of bone as manure is 
increased by boiling out the fat and gelatin, 
the removal of which makes the bones more 
readily acted on by the weather and hastens 
their decay; by the distribution of their parts 
by grinding them to dust, and by dissolving 
them in sulphuric acid to render the phosphate 
soluble in water. Before being utilized in agri¬ 
culture they are often boiled for the oil or fat 
they, contain, which is used in the manufacture 
of soap and lubricants. 

Bone'-ash, the earthy or mineral residue of 
bones that have been burned so as to destroy 
the animal matter and carbon. It is composed 
chiefly of phosphate of lime and is valuable as 
a fertilizer. 

Boneblack, Ivory Black, or Animal Char¬ 
coal, a substance obtained by heating bones 
in close retorts till they are reduced to small, 
coarse grains, after which the charcoal is reduced 
to powder by crushing between rollers. Bone- 
black possesses the valuable property of arrest¬ 
ing and absorbing into itself the coloring matter 
of liquids which are passed through it. Hence 
it is extensively used in the process of sugar¬ 
refining, in which cylinders of large dimensions 
filled with this substance are used as filters. 
After a certain amount of absorption the char¬ 
coal becomes saturated and ceases to act. It has 
then to be restored by reheating or other meth¬ 
ods. Boneblack has also the property of absorb¬ 
ing odors, and may thus serve as a disinfectant 
of clothing and apartments. 

Boneset, bone'set, or Thor'oughwort, a 
useful annual plant, native to America, easily 
recognized by its tall stem, four or five feet in 


height, passing through the middle of a large, 
double, hairy leaf, and surmounted by a broad, 
flat head of light purple flowers. An infusion 
of it is much used in domestic medicine as a 
tonic and for causing perspiration. 

Bonham, bon'am, Tex., the county-seat of 
Fannin co., 75 mi. n. e. of Dallas, on the Texas 
& Pacific and the Denison, Bonham & New 
Orleans railroads. The city has flour and cot¬ 
ton mills and railroad and wagon shops. It is 
in an agricultural region and has a large export 
trade in cotton, grain, flour and live stock. 
Bonham is the seat of Carleton College (Chris¬ 
tian). Population in 1910, 4844. 

Bonheur, bo nor', Marie Rosa (1822-1899),, 
a distinguished French artist and painter of 
animals. When only eighteen years old she 
exhibited two pictures, Goats and Sheep and 
Two Rabbits, which gave clear indications of 
talent. Since that time a long list of pictures, 
Plowing in Nivemais, now in the Louvre; 
Haymaking and The Horse Fair, most famous 
of all, now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 
New York, placed there by Cornelius Vander¬ 
bilt, who paid $55,000 for it, have made her 
name famous. In 1865 she was honored by 
Empress Eugenie, receiving the cross of the 
Legion of Honor. 

Bon Homme Richard, bo nom're sKahr', the 
flagship of John Paul Jones in his victory over 
the English sloop Serapis, September 23, 1779. 
With the aid of the French government, Jones 
had collected a small fleet, and in cruising about 
the English coast had captured many prizes. 
September 23, sighting a British fleet of mer¬ 
chantmen under consort of the Serapis and the 
Countess of Scarborough, he gave battle. The 
main contest was between the Richard and the 
Serapis, during which Jones lashed the two 
boats together and precipitated a fearful hand 
to hand fight. After several hours, the British 
ship surrendered, but the Richard was so badly 
damaged that she sank. The victory was 
important in winning foreign respect for the 
American navy. See Jones, John Paul. 

Bon'iface, the name of nine popes, of whom 
only three are conspicuous in history. Boni¬ 
face II (530-532) was the first pope to assumt 
the title of Universal Bishop of Christendom. 
Boniface VIII (1294-1303), Bendetto Gaetano, 
born at Anagni, was the greatest pope of the 
name. His inauguration was distinguished by 
unusual pomp and ceremony. In 1296 the -pope 
issued his famous bull Clericis Laicis, in which 
he forbade the payment or collection of taxes 


Boniface 

on ecclesiastical property without the consent 
of the Holy See. In 1300 he instituted the 
Roman Jubilee, and in 1302 he issued the bull 
Unam Sanctam, proclaiming the subjection of 
the temporal to the spiritual power to be an 
article of faith necessary to salvation. Boni¬ 
face IX (1389-1404), a native of Naples, suc¬ 
cessor to Urban VI, acquired almost absolute 
power in Rome. 

Boniface, Saint (680-755), (original name, 
Winf rid), a celebrated English missionary, 
sometimes called the Apostle of Germany, 
born at Kir ton, Devonshire, of a noble Anglo- 
Saxon family. He labored among the Frisians 
and German tribes. In 722 he was made 
bishop and ten years later archbishop. About 
743 he founded the Abbey of Fulda, and for 
ten years, beginning in 744, he was archbishop 
of Mainz. He is said to have enforced his 
missionary teaching by cutting down, with his 
own hands, the sacred oak at Geismar. He 
was murdered by some barbarians and was 
buried in the Abbey of Fulda. His festival is 
celebrated in both the Roman and Ang lian 
churches on June 5th. 

Bonito, bo ne'to, a name applied to several 
fishes of the mackerel family, one of which, the 
bonito of the tropics, or stripe-bellied tunny, is 
well know to voyagers from its persistent pursuit 
of the flying-fish. It is a beautiful fish, steel 
blue on the back and sides, silvery on the belly, 
with four brown longitudinal bands on each 
side. It grows to a length of two and a half 
feet and is good eating, though rather dry. 

Bonn, an important German town in Rhenish 
Prussia, situated on the left bank of the Rhine, 
about 15 mi. s. o. of Cologne. The scenery and 
surroundings of Bonn are very beautiful and 
attract tourists from all over the world. The 
chief buildings are the Munster church, in the 
late Romanesque style, the Rathaus, the Bee¬ 
thoven House, where the composer was born, 
and the buildings of the university (See Bonn, 
University of), Bonn was long the residence 
of the electors of Cologne and finally passed into 
the hands of Prussia by the arrangements of 
the Congress of Vienna in 1815. Population in 
1910, 87,967. 

Bonn, University of, a university established 
at Bonn, Germany, in 1818, by Frederick Wil¬ 
liam III, king of Prussia. Next to the Univer¬ 
sity of Berlin, Bonn is considered the leading 
German university. Its faculties embrace those 
of theology, law, medicine and philosophy. It 
has over 2400 students. The library contains 


Book 

275,000 volumes, besides a large number of 
manuscripts. The medical department embraces 
laboratories, a physiological institute and clinics. 
The university also has a celebrated observatory. 

Bon'ner, Robert (1824-1899), an American 
publisher, born near Londonderry, Ireland. He 
came tc the United States when a boy and 
became a compositor in Hartford, Conn. In 
1844 he went to New York; a few years later 
he purchased the New York Ledger, which he 
brought to a great circulation and influence. 
He had a fondness for fast horses, although he 
refused to let them race, and he owned Maud S. 
and Dexter. 

Bonnet-rouge, bo na'roozh ' (red-cap), a 
headdress worn during the French Revolution 
by every one who wished to be considered a true 
patriot. It was regarded as the emblem of 
liberty, being called the cap of liberty. The 
name bonnet-rouge was also applied to the Revo¬ 
lutionists themselves. 

Bon'tebok, an antelope of South Africa, of 
a brilliant purple-red color, with white mark¬ 
ings on the face. It is closely allied to the 
blesbok. 

Bo'ny Pike, a genus of fishes found in North 
American lakes and rivers, remarkable as being 
examples of a type of fishes now almost extinct. 
The body is covered with smooth enameled 
scales, so hard that it is impossible to pierce 
them with a spear. The genus includes gar- 
pike and the alligator-gar of the United States. 
See Garfish. 

Bonzes, bon'zez, the name given by Europeans 
to the priests of the religion of Fo, or Buddha, 
in eastern Asia, particularly in China, Burmah,’ 
Tonquin, Cochin-China and Japan. They do 
not marry, but live together in monasteries. 
There are also female bonzes, whose position 
is similar to that of nuns in the Roman Catholic 
church. 

Boo'by, a swimming bird, named from the 
extraordinary stupidity which it shows in light¬ 
ing on ships and allowing itself to be caught. 
The booby lives on fish, which it takes by dart¬ 
ing down upon them when they are swimming 
near the surface of the water. Its lower jaw 
and throat are naked and in one species are 
colored blue. 

Book, as the term is commonly used, a printed 
composition forming a volume. As the notion 
of a literary production surviving the materials 
on which it was written was unknown until 
long after the invention of writing, it is natural 
that early writers should have sought to record 


Book 


Book 


their thoughts on the most enduring materials 
at their hands. Thus, the Egyptians engraved 
their inscriptions on stones, on the walls of 
their monuments and on columns; the Assyrians 
pressed theirs upon clay tablets, which were 
hardened by baking; the Greeks and Romans 
used tablets of ivory, metal or wood. When 
tablets of wood were used, they were coated 
with wax on one side and on this wax, letters 
were traced with a stylus. Two such tablets, 
joined together at the back with wires, are the 
earliest arrangement which resembles the modern 
book. A raised margin was left around the edge 
of the wooden tablets to prevent the wax from 
rubbing. 

As people became more advanced and felt 
greater and more constant need of expressing 
themselves in writing, a more convenient 
material was found absolutely necessary, and 
the papyrus plant of the Egyptians furnished 
the first flexible writing material of any impor¬ 
tance. The papyrus was written on with reeds 
dipped in gum water colored with soot, and 
various other decoctions which were used as 
ink are mentioned by ancient writers. The 
next material employed was a parchment made 
from the skins of sheep. The pieces of parch¬ 
ment or papyrus were joined together, when a 
composition of any length was to be set down, 
and the entire sheet was wound about a stick 
in the form of a roll. This was called a 
volumen, and from this comes our word volume. 
Many of these rolls of papyrus, most of them 
in a good state of preservation, have been 
found in the coffins with embalmed bodies in 
Egypt. 4 

Paper made from cotton came into use about 
the end of the ninth century and checked the 
total destruction of old manuscripts, many 
of which were being erased that the parchment 
on which they were written might be used again. 
As linen paper became common in Europe the 
first real impetus was given to the production 
of books. The quality of the paper was poor, 
it was brownish in color and thick and rough, 
but many of the books produced at this time 
are marvels of skill and beauty. The writing 
was all done by hand, and the writers were, for 
the most part, monks, many of whom spent all 
of their time in copying. These monks acquired 
the greatest skill in copying out manuscripts, 
and some of these it is almost impossible to 
distinguish from the first printed books. The 
chapters and paragraphs had elaborate head 
lines and initials, and the initial letters were 


often done in red and blue ink or were illu¬ 
minated in gold. It took a scribe perhaps a 
year to make a book containing as much read¬ 
ing matter as an average school history, and 
he could, of course, make only one at a time. 
If a number of copies of some work were wanted, 
a reader was sometimes employed, with several 
scribes to take his dictation. This was a most 
unsatisfactory method, however, as errors con¬ 
stantly crept in, and it is believed that many of 
the errors found in the works of the Latin and 
Greek authors were brought about in this way. 
As it took so long a time to make books, it is 
natural that the price should have been very 
high and that their use should have been con¬ 
fined to the wealthiest classes. 

Modern Bookmaking. The greatest impetus 
which has ever been given to bookmaking was 
caused by the invention of printing, in the fifteenth 
century. Books became much cheaper, it was 
possible for more people to own them, and the 
art of reading, which had hitherto been almost 
confined to the clergy and scholars, became 
practicable and much more common. These 
earliest books were printed in type which imi¬ 
tated the copyist, and the head lines and 
capitals were often illuminated by hand with 
colored inks, as had been done in the written 
works. In beauty, some of these early printed 
books rivaled the best productions of modern 
bookmakifig, but in accuracy, of course, they 
fell far short. Words were written close together, 
there was no paragraphing or numbering of 
pages, and abbreviations were so frequent that 
it finally became necessary to have a book 
explaining the system of abbreviation. 

As previous to the invention of printing the 
copyists, as has been stated above, were chiefly 
monks, the works written were mostly of an 
ecclesiastical nature, and it is natural that the 
first printed books should have been copies of 
the Bible and other religious works. Soon, 
however, these were followed by the works of 
Latin and Greek authors, at first printed in the 
original languages, but before long in transla¬ 
tions. The sizes of these early printed books 
were usually quarto or folio, on account of the 
large type used, and these sizes were deter¬ 
mined by the number of leaves made from a 
sheet of paper. Thus, a sheet folded once 
made a folio, and a sheet folded twice, a quarto. 
As all sheets were practically the same size, this 
designation was comparatively exact, but since 
different sizes in paper and printing presses 
have come into use, the designations quarto, 


Bookbinding 


Bookbinding 


octavo and duodecimo mean relatively little. 
In England the size of books is still expressed 
in this way, but in the United States the size is 
usually given in inches. 

A book normally consists of the title page, 
which contains the title, the name of the author 
and publisher and the date of publication; the 
preface, a statement by the authoi, explaining 
the plan of the work; the table of contents; the 
text, or subject-matter, and, in some kinds of 
books, the index. See Bookbinding; Paper; 
Printing; Printing Press. 

Book'binding, the art of fastening together 
the pieces of a book and enclosing them in a 
case, called the cover. The first step in binding 
a book consists in folding the sheets. In small 
binderies this is done by hand, but in all of the 
larger establishments it is done by machinery. 
The separate sheets are fed into the folding 
machine either by an operator or by automatic 
feeders. The folder folds and presses the paper 
in the order necessary to bring the pages oppo¬ 
site one another. The next step consists in 
arranging the folded sheets, called signatures, in 
order to constitute the book. In large binderies 
all sheets of the same signature are placed to¬ 
gether in piles on a large revolving table, the piles 
being laid in the order of their numbers, as 1, 2, 
3, and so on. Girls sit around this table, and 
as it revolves each one takes a sheet from each 
pile as it comes opposite her. In this way by 
one revolution of the table as many books are 
placed together as there are girls to collect the 
sheets. This process is called gathering. 

After being gathered the sheets are pressed 
together in a strong press, where they remain for 
a number of days. After their removal from this 
press the packages are ready for sewing. The 
books are creased across by a saw made for the 
purpose, the book conta ining from three to five 
creases, according to its size. Large, strong cords 
or tapes are fastened in these creases, the ends 
being left three or four inches long. The leaves 
are sewed to these cords and in this way the book 
is fastened together. After sewing, the back is 
covered with a thick coating of glue and paste. 
When this is dry, the book is placed in a press 
resembling a vise, and is hammered to round the 
back. This press contains boards, over the edge 
of which the folded edges of the sheets are 
slightly bent in the hammering, thus forming a 
ledge in which the cover of the book rests. 

The book is now ready for the cover or case. 
This is put on 'in two ways. If the book is 
bound in leather, the boards forming the cover 


are first fastened to the book. This is done by 
raveling or scraping the ends of the cords to 
which the leaves have been sewed and gluing 
these to the boards. After this the outside cover 
is pasted on. When this is dry, the edges are 
folded over and pasted on the inside of the 
cover. The cover is then lined with white or 
colored paper, whatever lettering is necessary is 
put upon the cover and the back, and the book 
is then placed in press and allowed to dry. If 
a cloth cover or case is used, this is made com¬ 
plete before it is fastened upon the book. The 
method of fastening is practically the same as 
that used with a leather cover, and the finishing 
is done in the same way. 

The edges of the book are treated in various 
ways. Before the cover is put on, the books are 
placed in a cutting machine, where the edges are 
trimmed. These may be left plain, or they may 
be sprinkled, by placing them under a sieve over 
which a brush containing coloring matter is 
drawn; they may be feathered, by dipping them 
in a tank of water on the surface of which color¬ 
ing matter has been spread to form the desired 
pattern, or they may be gilded, which is done by 
treating the edges with a solution of white of egg 
and water and then laying on gold leaf. When 
dry, the gold leaf is burnished and furnishes the 
beautiful gilt appearance which is seen on many 
high-priced books. Uncut edges are preferred 
for many high-priced books. This usually 
means that the books are trimmed at the ends, 
but that the front edge of the leaf is left as it 
was formed by folding. 

Styles of binding are denoted by different 
names. A leather-bound book is onfe which is 
wholly covered by leather, as an unabridged 
dictionary or most law books. A cloth-bound 
book is one that has the sides and back covered 
with cloth. This style of binding is by far the 
most common and is familiar to every one. A 
half-leather has the back and comers of leather 
and the boards covered with some other material. 
The head binding is a cord or tape fastened to 
the ends of the back for the purpose of giving it 
strength and improving the appearance of the 
volume. When such an addition is made it is 
put on before the cover is fastened to the book. 

The hand-made books which were produced 
before the art of printing was invented were very 
expensive, and the bindings corresponded with 
the work on the book. The covers were usually 
of boards, which were often covered with leather 
that was highly ornamented, and they were also 
held in place by metallic hinges bearing engraved 


Bookkeeping 


Boomerang 


designs or other ornaments. Metallic clasps of 
gold and silver were also often used to fasten 
the book together, and these might contain rich 
settings of jewels and other gems. But when 
the art of printing made books cheaper and 
more readily accessible, the style of binding was 
changed accordingly, so as to reduce the price 
of the book. See Book. 

Book'keeping, the art or method by which 
mercantile or pecuniary transactions are recorded 
and classified. It is of the earliest origin, but 
in early times was comparatively simple in its 
principles, the main purpose being to find the 
balance between debts and credits. In its 
modem form, it is of two kinds, single entry and 
double entry. In the former, debts due to the 
trader are entered to the debit of the party 
who owes them, in a book called the day book, 
at the time the transaction is made, while debts 
incurred by the trader are entered to the credit 
of the party to whom the debt is owed. At some 
time the accounts in this book are transferred to 
the ledger, where the account with each person is 
entered in a separate place one side being for 
Dr. (debit) entries and the other for Cr. (credit) 
entries. To find out the state of the business, 
it is then necessary to balance the debts owing 
and the debts owed, and to compare this balance 
with the stock and cash on hand. 

Bookkeeping by double entry gives a much 
more accurate and complete record of the busi¬ 
ness. The key to its essential feature is the 
word double, which indicates that every tran¬ 
saction must be entered in two places, in a debit 
column and a credit column. The books used 
are a day book, a journal and a ledger. In the 
day book, details of every transaction are entered 
as they occur. These amounts are then trans¬ 
ferred to the journal, being entered opposite the 
names or titles of the ledger accounts which are 
concerned. That item in the day book which has 
cost something, or which the trader has received, 
is put in the debit column, and that which pro¬ 
duces something, or with which the trader has 
parted, is placed in the credit column. For 
instance, if a person has bought a suit of clothes 
for $15 he would credit cash for $15 and would 
debit expense $15. 

The various items in the journal are then 
transferred to the ledger, or posted, all accounts 
of the same nature, as clothing accounts, cash 
accounts, grocery accounts, being placed to¬ 
gether and debited or credited according to its 
nature, as shown by the journal. Thus, on 
the page marked Cash in the ledger, for the 


transaction noted above, $15 will be entered in 
the credit column; on the page marked Expense 
$15 will be entered in the debit column. Mani¬ 
festly, since every item must be posted in some 
form on both the debit and the credit column of 
the journal and must be transferred accordingly 
to the ledger, all the debit items in the ledger 
must equal all the credit items. An examination 
to determine whether this is true is known as 
taking a trial balance. This, in a general way, 
will tell whether the entries have been accurately 
made. Often other books are used in double 
entry bookkeeping to afford means of checking 
particular phases of the business by themselves; 
such are the stock book, cash book, bill book, 
invoice book, account sales book, each one includ¬ 
ing entries concerning only its particular sub¬ 
ject. For instance, the cash book will show the 
income and outgo of cash and of nothing more, 
being retained as an absolutely accurate test of 
this part of the business. 

Book'plate, a printed or engraved label, 
pasted in or on a book to show its ownership. 
Such labels were used in the last quarter of the 
fifteenth century, and were usually hand-painted. 
Albrecht Diirer originated the engraved book¬ 
plate, and the first dated specimen which we 
have was designed by him in 1516. The designs 
on these early bookplates usually consisted of the 
owner’s coat of arms, with allegorical elements 
added. About a half-century after these first 
bookplates were known in Germany, book¬ 
plates were introduced into England, and it is 
here that they have been most widely used. The 
first English designs were copied from the 
German and contained coats of arms and mottoes. 
These were succeeded by the Chippendale style, 
which was lighter and more graceful, and this 
in turn by a still simpler design, known as the 
ribbon and wreath. The first American book¬ 
plates came from England and were used by 
wealthy colonists. Within the last few years 
much interest has been shown in bookplates, 
and considerable literature about them has been 
produced. 

Books for Reading. See Reading. 

Boom'erang, a missile used by the Australian 
aborigines and by some peoples of India. It is 
made of hard wood, and is of a peculiar curved 
shape, sometimes resembling a rude and very 
open V. The boomerang, when thrown as if to 
hit some object in advance, instead of going 
directly forward, slowly ascends into the air, 
whirling round and round to a considerable 
height, and returns to the position of the thrower 


Boone 


Booth 


If it hits an object, of course it falls. The 
Australians are very dexterous with this 



weapon, and can make it go in almost any direc¬ 
tion, sometimes making it rebound before 
striking. 

Boone, Ia., the county-seat of Boone co., 43 
mi. n. w. of Des Moines, on the Chicago & 
Northwestern and the Chicago, Milwaukee & 
Saint Paul railroads. The district contains exten¬ 
sive coal mines and large deposits of fire and 
pottery clays. The city has shops of the 
Northwestern railroad, flour mills and an im¬ 
portant trade in agricultural produce, live stock 
and lumber. Population in 1910, 10,347. 

Boone , Daniel (1735-1820), a famous Ameri¬ 
can pioneer, born in Bucks co., Pa. Boone’s 
education was limited to reading and writing, but 
he became skilled in woodcraft, and was the peer 
of any indian in sagacity and fearlessness. May 
1, 1769, at the age of thirty-four,,with a company 
of five other men, he went into the unknown 
wilds of Kentucky. He built a fort called Boones- 
boro on the Kentucky River, and thither brought 
his family and about thirty volunteers. Boone 
was captured by the indians and carried to Old 
Chillicothe on the Miami, where he was adopted 
by a Shawnee chief. Learning of an intended 
raid upon Boonesboro, he escaped (June 16) and 
reached home in four days, having but one meal 
during his journey. He found his family gone, 
but helped to repel the attack of the indians. 
In 1780 he again brought his family to Kentucky, 
and he took a prominent part in the history of the 
territory till its admission to the Union in 1791. 
The Battle of “Blue Licks,” in which Boone’s 
sons fought by his side, took place in 1782. In 
the first survey of the state the title to Boone’s 
land was disputed, and in 1797 he moved to 
Missouri, then a Spanish province. There he 
received a grant of 8000 acres of land. At the 
time of the Louisiana Purchase, Boone again lost 


his land, but Congress granted him 850 acres. 
The charm of woodcraft clung to him to the last, 
and in his eighty-second year he went on a 
hunting excursion. Enoch Boone, his son, was 
the first white male child born in Kentucky. 

Booth, Edwin Thomas (1833-1893), an 
American actor, son of the English actor, Junius 
Brutus Booth. He was born at Belair, Md., and 
made his first stage appearance at Boston in 
1849. In his numerous tours in the United 
States and in Europe he‘was most enthusiastic¬ 
ally received. He was particularly famous for 
his personation of Shakespearean characters— 
Othello, Richard III, Lear and Hamlet—and is 
regarded as the leading American tragedian. He 
was of unimposing appearance, but was dignified 
and graceful, with a voice singularly flexible and 
capable of expressing any shade of meaning or 
feeling. 

Booth, John Wilkes (1839-1865), the assas¬ 
sin of President Lincoln, a brother of Edwin 
Booth. As an actor he never rose to distinction. 
He inherited from his father a touch of insanity 
that rendered his life erratic. During the Civil 
War his sympathies were for negro slavery, and 
early in 1865 he formed a conspiracy with others 
to murder President Lincoln and the principal 
officers of the government. On the evening of 
April 14, 1865, he entered Ford’s theater, in 
Washington, where the president was sitting ir 
a private box, and shot him. He shouted “Sic 
semper tyrannis,” leaped to the stage below 
breaking his leg in the effort, and in the confusion 
escaped through a back door, mounted a horse 
that was held in waiting and fled to Virginia. 
Here he was concealed for a time by sympathizers; 
but, on being discovered in a barn, he refused to 
surrender and was shot. 

Booth, Junius Brutus (1796-1852), an 
English actor, the father of Edwin Booth. Before 
going upon the stage in 1813, he was for a time 
a printer, then studied law, painting and sculp¬ 
ture. As Iago to Edmund Kean’s Othello, he 
gained great popularity in London, and on his 
visit to the United States in 1821 he was enthu¬ 
siastically received. Among his r6les those of 
Richard III, Lear, Shylock, Hamlet and Sir 
Giles Overreach were most famous. 

Booth, Maud Ballington Charlesworth 
(1865- ), a religious and social reformer, 

leader of the Volunteers of America, wife of 
Ballington Booth, general in chief of that organi¬ 
zation. She was born near London, the daughter 
of a wealthy clergyman, but at the age of seven¬ 
teen she joined the Salvation Army and began 


Booth 


Boots and Shoes 


at once to work actively in its interest in Paris, 
and later in Switzerland. In 1887 she married 
Ballington Booth. They seceded from the 
Salvation Army in 1896 and founded the Volun¬ 
teers of America, of which they became directors 
and leaders. Mrs. Booth was especially suc¬ 
cessful in her work in behalf of prisoners, both 
during their confinement and after their release. 
She also attained a wide reputation as a lecturer 
and produced several books, of which the best 
known are Branded and Look Up and Hope. 
See Volunteers of America. 

Booth, William (1829-1912), general of the 
Salvation Army, born at Nottingham, England. 
He was reared in the Episcopal Church, but 
being converted in a Wesleyan chapel, he joined 
the Methodist Church and became a minister. 
He was appointed to hold special evangelistic 
services in connection with his other work until 
1861, when, being requested to settle in the ordi¬ 
nary circuit work, he resigned and began his 
career as an evangelist proper. In 1855 he 
married Miss Catherine Mumford, who, in this 
new departure, proved an able helper until her 
death in 1890. General Booth organized in 
London (1865) “The Christian Mission,” which 
grew into the military organization re-christened 
in 1878 the Salvation Army. Under this name 
that useful organization has spread itself into 
many parts of the world. It is widely known for 
the zeal and self-denial of its rank and file. A 
distinctive feature of the Salvation Army is what 
has been called “the ministry of all the talents”; 
that is, giving every convert some part in the 
work. The War Cry, a weekly publication, was 
established in 1880 and has a wide circulation. 
General Booth has published many hymns for 
the u§e of the army, and it has gone forth “sing¬ 
ing itself around the world.” In Darkest Eng - 
land, published in 1890, General Booth outlines 
his plans for the suppression of poverty and vice. 
His sons and daughters have been trained in the 
work and have been associated with him in the 
army. Ballington, his second son, after carrying 
on the work in America for a number of years, 
withdrew, and in 1896 formed a new organiza¬ 
tion called the Volunteers of America, with head¬ 
quarters in New York City. See Volunteers 
of America; Salvation Army. 

Booth'ia Fe'lix, the most northerly peninsula 
of North America, projects between the Gulf of 
Boothia on the east and McClintock Channel on 
the west. Its length is 150 miles, and its greatest 
width is 50 miles At the southern extremity 
it narrows suddenly to an isthmus, which joins 


it with the mainland. The peninsula was dis¬ 
covered by Sir John Ross in 1829, and was 
named for Sir Felix Booth, who was the chief 
contributor to the expedition. It was on this 
peninsula that the north magnetic pole was first 
located in 1831. 

Boo'tie, a town of England, in Lancashire, 
adjoining Liverpool, whose docks extend into 
the borough. Bootle is in reality a Liverpool 
suburb. It has extensive timber yards, jute 
factories, grain mills and foundries. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 69,881. 

Boots and Shoes, coverings for the feet. The 
shoe is one of the oldest articles of apparel. The 
sandal is the simplest and oldest form of foot 
protector. It consists of a sole, attached to the 
foot by a leather thong. Uncivilized races made 
a shoe of a single piece of untanned hide, which 
was laced with a thong. From these simple 
styles more elaborate patterns were developed. 
The term shoe applies to the covering of the foot 
only, while hoot means a leather covering for the 
foot and leg. The Egyptians, Greeks and 
Romans were familiar with the boot, and highly 
ornamented, designs were often used by the 
royalty and nobility. Elaborate designs were 
also common in England during the fourteenth 
and fifteenth centuries. Those worn by the 
nobility became so fantastic and expensive that 
their styles were regulated by the government. 

Manufacture. For centuries all shoes were 
made by hand, and shoemakers came to America 
with the first colonists. For a long time in New 
England the shoemaker traveled from family 
to family and made from such leather as each 
family had in its possession the shoes desired. 
When the country became more thickly settled, 
the shoemaker located in a small shop, and his 
customers came to him. The man who could 
make a pair of boots or shoes in a day was con¬ 
sidered a first-class workman. The shoemakers 
then began to employ apprentices. After a 
time several makers combined their forces and 
set some workmen to cutting out the pieces for 
the shoes, others to sewing these together, others 
to fastening the uppers to the soles. It was 
found by this division of labor that much more 
work could be accomplished and in a much more 
satisfactory manner. Factories were established 
before any machinery for the manufacture of 
shoes had been invented. 

The first successful machine used in the manu¬ 
facture of boots and shoes was the rolling 
machine, which took the place of the old lap- 
stone and hammer for pressing the leather 


Boracic Acid 


Bordeaux 


together and giving it a smooth, hard surface. 
This was followed by a sewing machine, which 
first sewed together the various parts forming the 
upper of the shoe. Pegging machines for 
fastening the soles to the uppers followed. These 
were of various patterns, first using pegs, then 
nails and later wire, for sewing, until the present 
welt machine was invented, which fastens the 
uppers to the sole in the present fashion. 

In no other industry is the division of labor 
more perfect than in the manufacture of boots and 
shoes. The ordinary shoe factory consists of 
three departments. The first is that in which 
the patterns or pieces are cut, this being done by 
hand. Next is the department in which the 
uppers are sewed together. This consists of a 
room containing a number of sewing machines 
arranged in line along a table or bench. Each 
machine does only one thing; one sews a certain 
seam and another makes button-holes. Thus 
the pieces pass on from machine to machine, until 
they pass from the other end of the table ready 
to be fastened to the sole. The third depart¬ 
ment is that where the soles are made and the 
soles and uppers are fastened together. The 
soles are cut by machinery and are shaped 
by being placed in heavy presses. The inner 
sole is then tacked to a last, over which the 
uppers are drawn and fastened to the sole by 
hand. The outer sole is then tacked on, the 
last is removed and the shoe is sewed together 
on the Mackay sewing machine. After this the 
heel is put on by a machine that presses it into 
place and fastens it at the same time. The 
shoes are then sent to the polishing room, where 
they are finished, and the buttons are put on or 
the laces put in, as the case may require. They 
are then packed ready for shipment. Those of 
the best quality are wrapped in tissue paper, 
and each pair is packed in a box by itself, but 
the cheaper grades are packed in cases con¬ 
taining several dozen pairs each. 

The New England states lead in the manu¬ 
facture of boots and shoes, but large factories 
are found in Illinois and other states of the 
middle West. The entire output of the country 
exceeds 250,000,000 pairs each year, and their 
value is over $512,000,000. American shoes are 
quite extensively exported to Europe. 

Boracic, bo ras’ilc, Acid. See Boric Acid. 

Borage, bur’aj, a genus of plants having 
rough, hairy foliage and blue, drooping flowers. 
One species, a common plant, grows abundantly 
in waste places in the United States. It is used 
to give a coolness to beverages, in which its 


leaves are steeped, and was formerly thought to 
have the wonderful power of driving away care 
and making people happy. 

Bo'rax, biborate of sodium. Native borax 
has long been obtained, under the name of tincal, 
from India, the main source being a series of lakes 
in Tibet. As imported it is in small pieces of a 
dirty yellowish color and is covered with a fatty 
or soapy matter. Tincal, which contains vari¬ 
ous impurities, was formerly the only form in 
which borax was found. Besides Tuscany, 
other sources of borax, more particularly in North 
and South America and in Germany, have been 
rendered available. America yields large quanti¬ 
ties, there being rich deposits of borax and 
boracic minerals on the Pacific slope, especially 
in Death Valley. Pure borax forms large, 
transparent, six-sided prisms, which dissolve 
readily in water s give off water in dry air, and 
when heated melt in their water of crystallization, 
swell up and finally fuse to a transparent glass. 
Borax has a variety of uses. In medicine it is 
employed in ulcerations and skin diseases. It 
has valuable antiseptic and disinfecting proper¬ 
ties, and it is now much used for the preservation 
of meat, fish and milk. It is also employed in 
soldering metals, and in making fine glaze for 
porcelain, as it renders the materials more easily 
melted. It is used in enameling and in making 
beads, glass and cement. 

Bordeaux, bor do’, one of the most important 
cities and ports of France, capital of the depart¬ 
ment of Gironde, on the Garonne, about 70 mi. 
from the sea and 358 mi. s. s. w. of Paris. In 
the old town are the Cathedral of Saint Andr€, 
Saint Michael’s church, with its superb front 
of florid Gothic, the Hotel de Ville and the Palais 
de Justice. The chief exports are wine and 
brandy; sugar and other colonial produce and 
wood are the chief imports. Ship-building is the 
thief industry, and there are sugar refineries, 
woolen and cotton mills, potteries, soap works 
and distilleries. Bordeaux is one of the most 
flourishing cities of France and ranks, next to 
Marseilles and Havre, the chief commercial port 
of France. It is especially noted as a shipping 
place for wine, which is sent to all parts of the 
world. By the marriage of Eleanor, daughter 
of the last duke of Aquitaine, to Henry II of 
England, Bordeaux was transferred to the 
English crown, but under Charles VII, in 1451, it 
was restored again to France. In 1914, when 
it seemed possible that the Germans might 
besiege Paris, Bordeaux was made the temporary 
capital of France. Population in 1911, 261,678. 


Bordelais Wine 


Boric Acid 


Bordelais, bor de la', Wines, the wines of 
the district of Bordeaux, the name of vin de Bor¬ 
deaux being generally given to the wines made in 
the eleven departments of the southwest of 
France. The wines of this country are the best 
which France produces. Their characteristics 
are fine bouquet, velvety softness on the palate 
and the faculty of acting beneficially on the 
stomach without mounting too readily to the 
head. Besides the red wines of the Bordelais, 
known under the general name of claret , there are 
also white wines, of which the finest growths are 
Sauteme and Barsac. See Wine. 

Bor'den, Gail (1801-1874), an American 
inventor. Early in life he lived in Covington, 
Ky., and later in Madison, Ind. In 1822 young 
Borden went to Mississippi, where he became 
school teacher, county surveyor and United 
States deputy surveyor. Later he visited Texas 
and took charge of the official surveys of that 
territory. When the Republic of Texas was 
established, he became the first collector of the 
port of Galveston and made the first surveys of 
that city. About 1849 he produced pemmican 
and the meat-biscuit. The latter gained him a 
medal at the World’s Fair in London, and he 
was chosen an honorary member of the London 
Society of Arts. Unsuccessful financially with 
his biscuit, he turned his attention to a new 
scheme and formed the New York Condensed 
Milk Company, with works at Brewster’s Station, 
N. Y., and Elgin, Ill. This enterprise proved 
an immense success and Borden amassed a large 
fortune. Afterward he established an extract- 
of-beef factory at Borden, Tex., and also produced 
condensed preparations of tea, coffee, cocoa and 
various kinds of fruit. 

Bor'der, The, the territory adjacent to the 
frontier line between England and Scotland, 
the scene of frequent fights and forays among 
neighboring clans and families, from the eleventh 
till the end of the seventeenth century. At 
present the dividing line consists partly of 
natural and partly of imaginary outlines from 
near the mouth of the Tweed to the Solway. The 
history of the Border warfare is commemorated 
by Sir Walter Scott in many of his novels. 

Borghese, bor ga'ze, a Roman family, origi¬ 
nally of Sienna, where it held the highest offices 
after the middle of the fifteenth century. Pope 
Paul V, who belonged to this family, and who 
ascended the papal chair in 1605, loaded his 
relations with honors and riches. 

Borghese, Camillo, Prince (1775-1832). 
When the French invaded Italy he entered their 


service, and in 1803 he married Pauline, the 
sister of Napoleon. In 1806 he was created 
duke of Guastalla, and was appointed governor 
general of the provinces beyond the Alps. After 
the abdication of Napoleon he broke off all 
connection with the Bonaparte family and 
separated from his wife. See Borghese Palace. 

Borghese Palace, a magnificent building 
situated in the midst of the grounds of the 
beautiful villa Borghese just beyond the walls of 
Rome. Most of the art collection, consisting 
of ancient sculpture and painting, belonged 
originally to the Borghese family of Rome, but 
was taken to Paris by Napoleon, so that most 
of the works now contained in the Casino, the 
name cf the building in the villa Borghese, have 
been gathered together since 1820. The villa 
and Casino have been purchased by the Italian 
government and are open to the public. Among 
the especially noteworthy works of sculpture 
there are Bernini’s David and Apollo and 
Daphne. Among the paintings are Domeni- 
chino’s Cumaean Sibyl, Correggio’s Danae, 
Titian’s Sacred and Projane Love and Raphael’s 
Entombment, besides masterpieces of many other 
great painters. 

Borgia, bor'ja, the name of an Italian family 
which came into prominence in the fifteenth 
century. Caesar Borgia (1457-1507), son of 
Rodrigo Borgia, who became pope as Alexander 
VI, was a cardinal and military leader. By force 
and by treachery he gained control of the cities 
of Romagna and endeavored to form an inde¬ 
pendent hereditary power in central Italy. He 
was killed while accompanying the king of 
Navarre in his war against Castile. Though 
unscrupulous and cruel, Caesar possessed many 
redeeming qualities. He was a patron of learn¬ 
ing, a brave soldier, a shrewd statesman and an 
eloquent speaker. Macchiavelli holds him up as 
the type of a model ruler. Lucretia Borgia 
(1480-1520), duchess of Ferrara, a sister of 
Caesar Borgia. She was a woman of great 
beauty and intellectual brilliancy, a patron of 
learning and the arts. In literature her name 
was long associated with the grossest crimes, but 
recent researches of accurate and impartial 
historians have cleared her memory of the worst 
charges brought against her. 

Bor'ic Acid or Boracic, bor as'ilc, Acid, a 
compound of the element boron with hydrogen 
and oxygen. Boric acid is found as a salty 
deposit in some volcanic regions, is a part of 
many minerals and is contained in the steam 
which, along with sulphurous vapor, issues from 


Boring Machines 


Borromeo 


cracks in the soil in Tuscany. The steam from 
these places is now an important source of the 
acid, a system of condensation and evaporation 
being employed. The acid forms white, shining, 
scaly crystals, which, on heating, melt into a 
transparent mass that when cooled resembles 
glass. It dissolves in water and has a slight 
acid taste; it colors blue litmus purple, and 
yellow turmeric, brown. The chief use of the 
acid is as a source of borax, the biborate of 
sodium. 

Bor'ing Machines, machines for piercing 
wood, leather, metal and rock. The simplest 
tools for piercing wood are awls, gimlets and 
augers. The auger used with a brace or bit- 
stock is usually called a 
bit. The tools used for 
piercing stone and metal 
are called drills. The 
simplest boring ma¬ 
chines are operated by 
hand, either by means 
of a handle or brace, as 
in case of the auger, or 
by driving upon the tool 
with a hammer, as with 
a drill; but nearly all 
boring is now done by 
machines operated by 
steam or compressed 
air. These machines boring machine 
work very rapidly and with great power. The 
most effective is the diamond drill, used in bor¬ 
ing rock. This consists of a hollow tube having 
black diamond teeth at one end. The drill works 
with a rotary motion and cuts around a circular 
piece of rock which forms the core. On account 
cf the hardness of the teeth I the drill will with¬ 
stand great pressure and sinks into the rock 
rapidly. See Pneumatic Tools. 

Bor'neo, the fourth largest island in the world, 
situated in the Malay Archipelago. It has an 
area of 306,800 square miles, and a population 
of 1,700,000. The surface is broken by several 
chains of mountains running through the interior, 
the highest summit, near the northern extremity 
being 13,698 feet high. The rivers are numerous, 
and several of them are navigable for a consider¬ 
able distance by large vessels. There are also 
a few small lakes. The climate is hot, but it is 
not considered unhealthful. The island is cov¬ 
ered with extensive forests of teak and other 
trees valuable for dyewoods, camphor, gutta¬ 
percha, india rubber and various resins and 
gums. Spices, potatoes, yams, cotton and sugar 


cane are cultivated. There are some mineral 
products of importance, consisting of gold, 
antimony, iron, tin, zinc and coal. 

The southwestern, southern and eastern por¬ 
tions of the island are in the possession of the 
Dutch, under whom are a number of quasi¬ 
independent princes. On the northwest coast 
is the Malay kingdom of Borneo or Bruni. Its 
chief town, Borneo, is a place of considerable 
trade and is the residence of the sultan. Sara¬ 
wak, on the west coast, is under British protec¬ 
tion, while Labuan, an island off the northwest 
coast, is a British colony. Edible birds' nests, 
trepang, rattan, gutta-percha and timber are 
the chief articles of export. 

Bomu, bor two', a negro kingdom of the 
Central Sudan, Africa, on the west side of Lake 
Chad, with an area of about 50,000 sq. mi. 
The soil is fertile and there are abundant crops 
of maize, rice, barley, cotton and pulse. The 
people practice agriculture and also various arts 
and manufactures. The mai or sultan main¬ 
tains a standing army, armed with modern 
weapons. Kuka, the capital, near the western 
shore of Lake Chad, is one of the greatest mar¬ 
kets in Central Africa, a large trade being carried 
on in horses, the breed of which is famed through¬ 
out the Sudan. Another large town, on the 
shore of the lake, is Ngomu. Population of 
Bornu, estimated at 5,000,000. 

Borodino, boro'deno', Battle of (called 
also the Battle of the Moskva), a sanguinary 
battle fought near the village of Borodino, on the 
river Moskva, September 7, 1812, between the 
French under Napoleon and the Russians under 
Kutusoff, Barclay de Tolly and Bagration. 
Each side claimed the victory—the Russians, 
because they retreated in good order and were 
not pursued; the French, because they remained 
on the field, and because, shortly afterward, they 
pressed on to Moscow. The French numbered 
about 150,000, the Russians, some thousands 
less; the number of the slain of the two armies 
amounted to between 70,000 and 80,000. 

Bo'ron, one of the chemical elements, not 
found native but occurring commonly in com¬ 
binations, such as borax and sassoiite. See 
Boric Acid; Borax. 

Borromeo, bor ro ma'o, Carlo, Count (1538- 
1584), r. celebrated Roman Catholic saint and 
cardinal. He improved the discipline of the 
clergy, founded schools, libraries and hospitals, 
and was indefatigable in doing good. During 
the famine of 1570 and the plague in Milan, 
1576, he worked with such zeal for the sufferers 




Boschvark 


Boston 


that the world honors him. A large bronze 
statue of him stands on the western bank of 
Lake Maggiore, near his birthplace. 

Boschvark, bosh'vahrJc, the bush hog or bush 
pig of South Africa, one of the swine family, 
about five feet long and with very large and 
strong tusks. It is the same as the river hog of 
South Africa. The Kaffirs esteem its flesh as 
a luxury, and its tusks, arranged on a piece of 
string and tied around the neck, are considered 
a great ornament. 

Bosna-Serai, bos'na sa ri', or Serayevo, the 
capital of Bosnia, 570 mi. w. n. w. of Constanti¬ 
nople. It contains a serai, or palace, built by 
Mohammed II, to which the city owes its name. 
It was formerly surrounded with walls, but its 
only defense now is a citadel built on a rocky 
height at a short distance east from the town. 
Bosna-Serai is the chief mart in the province, the 
center of the commercial relations between 
Turkey, Dalmatia, Croatia and South Germany, 
and has, in consequence, a considerable trade. 
Population in 1910, 51,919. 

Bosnia, boz'rvi a, a province in the northwest 
of the Balkan Peninsula, w. of Servia. At the 
close of the Russo-Turkish War in 1878 it was 
given to Austria-Hungary by the Great Powers, 
to be held for an indefinite period. Its area, 
including Herzegovina and Novi-bazar, is 19,700 
square miles. The country is level in the 
north; in the south, mountainous. Its chief rivers 
are the Save, the Verbas, the Bosna, the Rama 
and the Drina. About half the area is covered 
with forests. Tillage is carried on in the valleys 
and low grounds, maize, wheat, barley, rye, 
buckwheat, hemp and tobacco being' grown. 
Fruits are produced in abundance. Sheep, 
goats and swine are numerous. The minerals 
include coal, which is worked in several places, 
manganese, antimony and iron. Among the 
manufactures are iron goods, arms, leather, 
linens and woolens. The inhabitants are mostly 
of Slavonian origin and speak almost the same 
language as that spoken in Servia. They are 
Mohammedans, Jews, and Roman and Greek 
Catholics. From the beginning of the fifteenth 
century until the Russo-Turkish war, 1877-78, 
Bosnia was subject to Turkey. The Treaty of 
Berlin, 1878, placed it under control of Austria, 
and in 1908 it was formally annexed to Austria- 
Hungary. Population in 1910, 1,931,802. 

Bosporus or Bosphorus, the strait connecting 
the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmora. It is 
nineteen miles long and from one-half to two. 
miles wide, A strong current usually flows 


from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean. The 
Strait is an important commercial route and is 
frequented by the vessels of all nations. It is 
strongly fortified, and the European powers 
have an agreement that no ships of war shall 
pass without the consent of Turkey. Over the 
middle of this channel (about 3,000 feet wide) 
Darius constructed a bridge of boats on his 
Scythian expedition (See Constantinople). 
The Cimmerian Bosporus was the name given 
by the ancients to the strait that leads from the 
Black Sea into the Sea of Azov. The Bos¬ 
porus of Constantinople is called the Thracian 
Bosporus, to distinguish it from the Cimmerian 
Bosporus. 

Bossuet, boswa Jacques Benigne (1627- 
1704), a celebrated French pulpit orator, rank¬ 
ing with Massilon, born in Dijon. From the 
Jesuit College at his home he went to the College 
of Navarre in Paris, where he devoted himself 
to the study of philosophy, the ancient classics 
and the Scriptures. He was made priest, doctor 
of philosophy and canon of Metz in 1652. Soon 
after, in a reply to the work of Paul Ferri, a 
Protestant divine, he became famous as a con¬ 
troversialist, and in 1661 he made an impression 
on Louis XIV by a sermon in the chapel of the 
Louvre. His fame spread through France; he 
was appointed tutor to the dauphin, and in 
1681 he was made archbishop of Meaux. In his 
controversy with Fenelon he had the support 
of the king and of the pope, but he was not. so 
successful as in his controversy with Ferri. In 
1697 Bossuet was made a member of the Council 
of State, and the following year he became first 
almoner to the duchess of Burgundy. He never 
objected to the king’s wars, nor to his oppres¬ 
sions, and as a preacher he was not very cour¬ 
ageous, nor had he the gift of persuasion. 
Among his principal works are Histoire Uni - 
verselle; Oraisons Funebres, orations on the 
death of Cond£, Turenne and others; and His¬ 
toire des Variations des Eglises Protestavi.es . 

Bos'ton, the capital of Massachusetts, county- 
seat of Suffolk co. and chief city of New England, 
is situated on the western arm of Massachu¬ 
setts Bay, known as Boston Harbor, 232 mi. 
n. e. of New York, on the Boston & Maine 
system, the New York, New Haven & Hart¬ 
ford, the Boston & Albany and other rail¬ 
roads. The oldest part of the city and busi¬ 
ness center occupies a peninsula between 
Boston Harbor on the east and Charles River 
on the west, and is somewhat oval in shape. 
The entire area of the city is about 38 square 


Boston 


Boston 


miles. The business portion is compactly built, 
and the streets in this part of the city radiate 
from Scollay Square, which is near the center of 
the peninsula, in all directions. The longest 
streets extend approximately north and south 
through the peninsula and then turn to the 
southwest. These are connected by numerous 
cross streets. Because of the shape of the city, 
the blocks between the streets are more or less 
irregular. Washington, Tremont and Summer 


streets are important business thoroughfares. 
State Street is the great financial center of the 
city, and in this respect corresponds to Wall 
Street in New York. Commonwealth Avenue, 
Massachusetts Avenue, the Strandway and the 
Fenway are noted boulevards. Beacon Street 
is a noted aristocratic center. 

Just across the Charles River to the north 
is Charlestown, noted for the navy yard and 
as the site of Bunker Hill Monument (See 
Bunker Hill, Battle of). The western part 


of the city, extending to Brookline, which is 
a very beautiful suburb of Boston, comprises 
the most fashionable residential portion. It is 
bounded on the west by the basin of the Charles 
River and on the east by Boylston Street. Here 
are found broad streets, regular blocks and 
elegant residences and public buildings. To the 
north and east of the city lies East Boston, con¬ 
nected with the business portion by ferry and a 
double-track tunnel. North of East Boston, and 
just across Chelsea River, is 
Chelsea. Across Charles River 
to the west is Cambridge, noted 
as the seat of Harvard Univer¬ 
sity (See Cambridge, Mass.). 
All of the principal streets of the 
city, as well as its numerous 
subdivisions, are connected by 
ample street car lines, and a 
subway and elevated railway ex¬ 
tend through the most crowded 
portions of the business section. 

Parks and Bculevards. Of 
all the parks, the Common is of 
the greatest interest, on account 
of its historic associations as well 
as from its location in the heart 
of the city. This is an irregular 
shaped park of less than fifty 
acres. It is the oldest public 
park in America and has been 
used as a pleasure ground since 
the first settlements were made 
in and about Boston. Within 
the Common are found the Sol¬ 
diers’ and Sailors’ Monument, the 
monument to the soldiers who 
fell in the Boston Massacre (See 
Boston Massacre), and the 
Shaw Memorial, one of the most 
beautiful monuments in America. 
Directly south of the Common is 
the Public Garden, having an 
area of twenty-four acres, 
laid out with walks and flower plots and 
with a pond in the center. At the Arlington 
Street entrance stands the colossal equestrian 
statue of Washington, considered to be one of 
the six great equestrian statues of the world. 
There are also several other statues, including 
one of Edward Everett and one of Charles 
Sumner. Extending from the Public Garden 
into the fashionable Back Bay district is Com¬ 
monwealth Avenue, the finest boulevard in the 
city. Through the center extends a park con- 

















Boston 


Boston 


taining walks, shade trees and statuary, and 
either side is faced with the finest residences 
and apartment houses which the city contains. 
This is crossed by Massachusetts Avenue, which 
extends across South Bay and connects with the 
Strandway, a boulevard extending along the 
water to Marine Park, which includes Castle 
Island. Just south of Massachusetts Avenue 
and east of Commonwealth Avenue is the dis¬ 
trict called “The Fens,” containing a beautiful 
park surrounded by boulevards. This system of 
boulevards adds much to the beauty of the city. 

Public Buildings. Among the most inter¬ 
esting historic structures, the Old Statehouse, 
on Washington Street at the head of State, is 
perhaps the most important. The present 
structure was built in 1748, and it has served 
in turn as townhouse, courthouse, statehouse 
and city hall. Within this building were 
enacted many of the scenes closely related to 
those events which led to American independ¬ 
ence. Fang’s Chapel, at the comer of Tremont 
and School streets, was established in 1689, 
and the present structure was completed in 
1753. This was the church attended by the 
royal governors and other officers of the crown 
during the colonial period. Christ church, 
which is probably the Old North church of 
Longfellow’s Paul Revere’s Ride, stands at the 
north end of Salem Street. It was from the 
balcony of this church that the signal lanterns 
were hung which notified Paul Revere of the 
march of the British. The Old South Meeting 
House, at the corner of Washington and Milk 
streets, is one of the most noted historic struc¬ 
tures in America' (See Old South Meeting 
House). Faneuil Hall, often known as the 
“Cradle of Liberty,” was first built as a market 
house (See Faneuil Hall). 

Associated with some of the older buildings 
and streets are a number of burying grounds 
of great historic interest. Among these are 
King’s Chapel Burying Ground, containing 
many quaint old gravestones and the remains 
of some of the most noted of the early colonists, 
among them Governor .John Winthrop and his 
son and grandson, the wife of Governor Andros, 
and John Cotton. Copp’s Hill Burying Ground 
was the second burial place established within 
the town. It contains the graves of Increase, 
Cotton and Samuel Mather, Chief Justice 
Parker and many who were noted for the part 
they took in the Revolutionary struggle. The 
Old Granary Burying Ground, on the north 
gide of Tremont Street, between Park and 

20 


Beacon, is also one of great interest. It con¬ 
tains the remains of many distinguished persons, 
among them Paul Revere, the Hancock family 
and Samuel Adams. 

The most prominent of buildings which have 
either been enlarged or modernized is the state¬ 
house, occupying the summit of Beacon Hill 
near the center of the city, and noted for its 
immense gilded dome. The statehouse extension, 
begun in 1890, is of yellow brick with trimmings 
of white marble, and maintains the old colonial 
style of architecture. The grounds about "he 
building are beautifully kept and contain \ 
number of monuments of historic interest. Othe> 
buildings of note are the city hall, the county 
courthouse, the Federal building, the custom¬ 
house, Boston Athenaeum, which contains a 
library of 200,000 volumes, the North and 
South railway passenger stations, the second of 
which is the largest structure of its kind in the 
world, and numerous imposing business blocks. 
The finest architectural center in the city is 
Copley Square, about which are grouped the 
public library, Trinity Church and the new Old 
South Church. These, with the Roman Catholic 
Cathedral of the Holy Cross, the First Spiritual 
Temple (Spiritualist) and the First Church of 
Christ (Scientist) are among the most prominent 
church edifices in New England. Among the 
hotels the best known are the Copley Plaza, the 
Touraine, the Lenox, the Parker House, the 
Adams House, Young’s, the Thorndike and 
the American House. The Somerset, the Puri¬ 
tan, the Vendome, the Tuilleries, the Bellevue, 
the Brunswick and the Westminster are the lead¬ 
ing family and residential hotels. Among the 
theaters the Boston Theater, with a seating capac¬ 
ity of 3000, is the largest playhouse in New Eng¬ 
land. The Castle Square, the Colonial, the 
Hollis Street, the Park, the Tremont and Keith’s 
are also noted playhouses. Symphony Hall, 
which is occupied by the Boston Symphony 
Orchestra for its concerts, is one of the finest 
music halls in the country. The new Opera 
House, in the Fenway district, is one of the 
best in the country. 

Public Institutions. Boston has many 
public institutions which are educational or 
charitable. First among these is the public 
library, housed in its magnificent new building 
on Copley Square. The building is of Milford 
granite, is rectangular in form and surrounds 
a court containing a fountain and othei beau¬ 
tiful appointments. The interior is noted for 
its architectural and mural decorations, being 


Boston 


Boston Tea Party 


probably the finest building in the country in 
this respect. It houses the largest circulating 
library in the world, containing about 980,000 
volumes. Among the more important educa¬ 
tional institutions are Boston University, the 
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the 
Harvard medical school and other departments 
of Harvard University which are located in the 
city, and a large number of private and denomi¬ 
national schools. The Perkins Institute and 
Massachusetts School for the Blind is the most 
noted school of this sort in the country and one 
of the most noted in the world (See Blind, Edu¬ 
cation of the). Most of the penal institu¬ 
tions of the city are located on islands in the 
harbor. 

Commerce and Industry. Boston is the 
commercial and financial center of New Eng¬ 
land, and next to New York it has the largest 
foreign commerce. It is the center of the rail¬ 
road systems of New England, and its passenger 
traffic is cared for in two great terminal stations, 
the North Station and the South Station. The 
South Station, which is over 800 feet long and 
700 feet wide, is the largest structure of its kind 
in the world. The harbor is well protected, 
deep and safe, eight miles wide and sixteen 
miles long. The entrances are guarded by 
strong fortifications and lighted by lighthouses 
and beacons on the numerous islands. The 
foreign commerce of the city amounts to about 
$200,000,000 a year, and three-fifths of this 
consists in imports. Among the imports wool 
is an important factor, and Boston is the second 
wool market Of the world. Lines of ocean 
steamers connect directly with all the leading 
European ports. 

The manufactures are large and varied, and 
many extensive manufactories are located in 
surrounding towns, their products finding an 
outlet through the city. Extensive railroad and 
insurance interests also have their center here, 
though many of the enterprises are located in 
the West. 

History. The first settlement on the penin¬ 
sula was made in 1626, and in 1630 John Win- 
throp and a company of colonists removed from 
Charlestown. Two years later the first meeting 
house was erected, and three years after this, 
the first school building. The settlement grew 
rapidly, and Boston soon became the largest 
town of Massachusetts Bay Colony, and the 
center of its educational and religious influence. 
In the events which led to American independ¬ 
ence the city took an active part, and its his¬ 


tory during this period is closely interwoven 
with that of the nation. See Boston Massacre; 
Boston Tea Party; also Lexington, Battle 
of; Bunker Hill, Battle of. 

After the close of the Revolutionary War, the 
city advanced rapidly in wealth and prosperity. 
The first Cunard liner entered her harbor in 
1840, and from that time to the Civil War her 
shipping industries were very important. Bos¬ 
ton was one of the leading centers in the anti¬ 
slavery movement, and during the Civil War 
her citizens stood staunchly by the Federal 
Union and furnished their full quota of men 
for the army and navy. Several disastrous fires 
have visited the city, the most noted being that 
of 1872, which laid waste fifty acres in the busi¬ 
ness section. The burnt district was immedi¬ 
ately rebuilt on greatly improved plans. Since 
1875 the city has grown rapidly, and in the 
progress many of the old historic structures 
have beeil removed to make room for larger and 
more modern buildings. Boston has done much 
for the literature and general culture of America. 
Longfellow, Lowell, Whittier, Emerson, Haw¬ 
thorne, Holmes, Thoreau, Parkman, Motley and 
Prescott lived and wrote in or near the city. 

Population. In addition to her purely Amer¬ 
ican element, Boston contains many Irish and 
Italians, with a sprinkling of Germans and 
English. Population in 1910, 670,585. Con¬ 
sult Lodge’s Boston, in the Historic Towns 
series, and Drake’s Old Landmarks and His¬ 
toric Personages of Boston. 

Boston Mas'sacre, the name given to an 
affray between a mob of Boston citizens and 
a squad of seven British soldiers on March 5, 
1770. It was the result of the violent opposi¬ 
tion of the Bostonians to the stationing of British 
regulars in the city in time of peace. It occurred 
on King, now State Street, and resulted in the 
death of three and the wounding of seven citi¬ 
zens The soldiers who were responsible were 
tried for murder and were defended by John 
Adams and Josiah Quincy and acquitted. The 
garrison, however, was removed to Castle 
Island. 

Boston Tea Party, the name given to the 
action of a body of Boston citizens, December 
16, 1773. It resulted from the opposition of 
the colonies to the imposition of a parliamentary 
tax upon tea. When ships were sent by the 
English East India Company to various ports 
in the colonies, the Americans took vigorous 
action to prevent the collection of the duty. In 
Boston a body of citizens, disguised as Indians, 


Boston University 

boarded the vessels and threw 342 chests of 
Indian tea into the harbor. » 

Boston University, a co-educational insti¬ 
tution established in Boston, Mass., in 1869, 
under the auspices of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. The university includes both college 
and graduate departments, and has schools of 
theology, law, medicine and science, and pro¬ 
vides post-graduate work in science, language, 
history and philosophy. The agricultural col¬ 
lege is allied with the Massachusetts Agricul¬ 
tural College at Amherst. There are about 150 
professors and instructors on the faculty, and 
the institution has about 1500 students. 

Boswell, boz’wel, James (1740-1795), the 
friend and biographer of Dr. Johnson. He was 
educated at Edinburgh and Cambridge and 
became a member of the Scottish bar. In 1763 
he became acquainted with Johnson, whom he 
had for some time previous greatly admired. 
During a year’s travel on the Continent he 
became acquainted with Voltaire, Rousseau and 
Paoli, and through Paoli he became deeply 
interested in the cause of Corsican independ¬ 
ence. In 1773 Boswell was admitted to the 
famous club of which Johnson, Burke, Gold¬ 
smith and Reynolds were members, and later 
in the same year he accompanied Johnson on 
a torn- to the Scottish highlands and the Hebrides. 
An account of the excursion appeared in 1785. 
During all the time he was with Johnson, Bos¬ 
well occupied himself with noting down every 
word and action of his famous companion, and 
his Life of Samuel Johnson, which appeared in 
1791, is almost universally admitted to be the 
best piece of biography in the language. 
Macaulay has said that Boswell is the first of 
biographers, not in spite of his littleness, but 
because of it; and certain it is that if he does 
not conceal Johnson’s faults, he does not hide 
his own, either. It is because of this masterly 
biography that we remember Johnson rather 
as a man than as a writer. 

Bosworth, boz'wurth, Field, Battle of, a 
great battle fought on the moor two miles south 
of the English market town of Bosworth, in 
August, 1485. By this battle the Wars of the 
Roses were closed, and the earl of Richmond 
was made king of England in the place of 
Richard III, who was killed in the battle. See 
Roses, Wars of the. 

Botan'ic Garden, a garden in which plants 
are cultivated for the purpose of scientific study. 
Until modern times their sole design was the 
cultivation of medicinal plants. Modern botan- 


Botany 

ical gardens are usually connected with univer¬ 
sities or are under government control. The 
chief gardens in Great Britain are the Royal 
Gardens at Kew, near London, and those at 
Edinburgh, Oxford and Dublin. Of the numer¬ 
ous ones in France, the Jardin des Plantes in 
Paris is the most noteworthy and has probably 
the largest collection of living plants, some 
fifteen thousand species growing there. Other 
famous European gardens are located at Bologna, 
Strassburg, Munich and Leipzig. In the United 
States there are many collections of plants, but 
few bear the name of botanic gardens and none 
has reached the rank of European establish¬ 
ments. The most extensive and best known 
are the Shaw Gardens of Saint Louis, now 
known as the Missouri Botanic Gardens, and 
kept in connection with Washington University; 
the botanic gardens at Cambridge; the Arnold 
Arboretum at Brookline, in connection with 
Harvard University, and the newly established 
New York Botanical Garden, occupying 250 
acres in Bronx Park, New York City. 

Bot'any, the science of plants, a very broad 
study, covering many topics. Modem botany 
studies plants and their organs, determining 
their forms and uses. It considers how plants 
breathe, feed, grow and produce others like 
themselves. It treats of the classification of 
plants, of their distribution over the earth of their 
relations to one another and of their value to 
man. From 300 B. c., when Theophrastus, the 
Greek, began to write upon botany, until the 
early part of the eighteenth century, when Lin¬ 
naeus fixed his system of classification, there 
had been no scientific study of botany, though 
many plants had been described and much 
written upon their properties. In the nine¬ 
teenth century, by the aid of the microscope and 
other instruments, a natural system of classi¬ 
fication was made and is now generally recog¬ 
nized. The later botany has concerned itself 
principally with the life-history of plants, espe¬ 
cially in the lower orders, and here tho discov¬ 
eries and theories of Darwin have revolutionized 
the beliefs of earlier days, until now all plants 
are supposed to have descended from a common 
ancestry (See Plant). The system of classi¬ 
fication (See Classification; Germs; Species; 
Variety) now generally adopted separates 
the vegetable kingdom into two great divisions, 
the first of which contains four groups, and 
the latter, two. The following outline indicates 
the characters of these groups: 

I. Cryptogams, or spore-producing plants. 


Botany 

The plants of this division are classified in the 
following groups: 

1. Myxothallophytes, or slime molds, very 
small organisms, hardly distinguishable from 
the lowest orders of the animal kingdom. They 
are one-celled masses of naked protoplasm, 
resembling the amoeba. See Slime Molds. 

2. Thallophytes, leafless plants of plainly 
cellular structure, having no distinction between 
stem and leaf. Among them are many impor¬ 
tant groups. See Bacteria; Diatom; Algae; 
Molds, Rusts; Yeasts; Lichens. 

3. Bryophytes, small, moss-like plants, living 
a life of two generations, the first in the form of 
a plant having stem and leaves, and the second 
in a spore-bearing capsule attached to the body 
of the preceding generation. See Mosses. 

4. Pteridophytes , the most highly organized 
of the cryptogams, having true roots and often 
well developed stems and leaves. The life of 
the plant is in two generations, one being in the 
form of a large plant with leaves, separate from 
and independent of the earlier generation. See 
Ferns; Club Moss. 

II. Phanerogams, or seed-bearing plants. 
This division is composed of two classes: 

1. Gymnosperms, or seed plants with naked 
ovaries. See Coniferae; Cycads, and many 
titles of evergreen trees. 

2. Angiosperms, or seed plants with ovules 
borne in closed ovaries, living a life of but one 
generation. There are two subclasses of angio¬ 
sperms: 

(а) Monocotyledons, plants in which the 
embryo has but one cotyledon. The leaves are 
usually parallel-veined and entire, and the 
parts of the flower are generally in threes, never 
in fives. In perennial plants there are no 
annual rings of wood. See Grasses; Palms; 
Lily Family; Orchids. 

(б) Dicotyledons, plants in which the embryos 
have two or more cotyledons. This subclass 
contains the greater part of the flowering plants. 
Their stems are composed of bark, wood and 
pith, and the parts of the flowers are usually in 
fours or fives (See Cruciferae; Leguminosae* 
Compositae; Labiatae, a great number of 
othei names of plant families and a great many 
specific titles). See Plant. 

The standard guide to the identification of 
plants of the region east of the Mississippi River 
and north of Tennessee is Gray’s Manual of 
Botany. Different authors have prepared similar 
books for the remaining sections of the country. 
Goodale’s Physiological Botany is a standard 


Bothnia 

authority on the structure and use of plant 
organs. The botanies in use in the public schools 
usually deal largely with the structure and func¬ 
tion of plant organs, but many of them contain 
simple keys and plant descriptions which will 
enable pupils to identify many of the specimens 
that come their way. Among the prominent 
school texts are Atkinson’s Elementary Botany, 
Bergen’s Foundations of Botany, Bailey’s Botany, 
Barnes’s Plant Life and Coulter’s Plant Relations. 
Darwin’s Climbing Plants, Forms of Flowers and 
Insectivorous Plants are interesting to the more 
advanced student. Besides these, there are an 
increasing number of books written in a popular 
vein, each treating of the flora of some restricted 
locality or especial families or genera of plants; 
for instance, such is Flowers and Ferns in their 
Haunts, by Mabel Osgood Wright. 

Botany Bay a bay in New South Wales, so 
called by Captain Cook on account of the great 
number of new plants collected in its vicinity. 
The English penal settlement, founded in 1788> 
and once popularly known as Botany Bay, was 
formerly located at Port Jackson, some miles 
to the north. 

Botetourt, bot'e toort, Norborne Berkeley 
(1734 ?-l770), an English colonial governor in 
America. In July, 1768, he became governor 
of Virginia, and in May, 1769, he dissolved the 
assembly for complaining of parliamentary 
taxation. However, he beseeched the govern¬ 
ment to desist from its policy; being unsuccess¬ 
ful, he resigned, and died soon after. 

Bot'fly, a stout, hairy fly, which lays its 
eggs ‘ upon the hairs of 
horses’ legs. These eggs 
the quadruped gets into its 
mouth and stomach, where 
they quickly hatch, and the 
larvae, attaching themselves 
to the walls of that organ, 
remain a year or two, until 
they are fully grown. Other 
species are a prey upon cat¬ 
tle and sheep, boring their way through the 
skin, under which they remain for some time. 

Bothnia, Gulf of, a gulf forming the north¬ 
ern arm of the Baltic Sea, lying north of the 
island of Aland and projecting between Finland 
on the east and Sweden on the west. Its length 
is 400 miles, its average width about 120 miles 
and its depth from 20 to 50 fathoms. There 
are numerous islands on the shores and many 
small inlets, so that navigation is rather difficult 
although there are many good harbors. On 



Bothwell 


Boucicault 


account of the large number of mountain streams 
flowing into it, the waters are comparatively 
fresh. In winter the gulf freezes over. 

Both'well, James Hepburn, Earl of (1536?- 
1578), known in Scottish history by his mar¬ 
riage to Mary Queen of Scots. It is believed 
that he was deeply concerned in the murder of 
Darnley, Mary’s husband. He was charged 
with the crime and w 7 as tried, but, appearing 
with four thousand followers, he was readily 
acquitted. He was then in high favor with the 
queen, and, with or without her consent, he 
seized her at Edinburgh, carried her a pris¬ 
oner to Dunbar Castle and prevailed upon her 
to marry him after he had divorced his own 
wife. A confederacy was formed against him, 
and in a short time Mary was a prisoner in 
Edinburgh, and Bothwell had been forced to 
flee to Denmark, where he died. 

Bo'-tree, the pipal, or sacred fig-tree of India 
and Ceylon, venerated by the Buddhists and 
planted near their temples. One specimen at 
Anuradhapura, in Ceylon, is said to have been 
planted before 200 b. c. It was shattered by a 
storm in 1887. 

Bot'ta, Paul Emile (1802-1870), a French 
traveler and archaeologist. He discovered the 
ruins of ancient Nineveh in 1843, while acting 
as consular agent for the French government 
at Mosul. As the result of his investigations, 
he published two important works—one on the 
cuneiform writing of the Assyrians and the 
other upon the monuments of Nineveh. The 
latter is a work of great splendor and marks an 
era in the investigation of Assyrian remains. 

Bott'ger or Bot'tiger, Johann Friedrich 
(1682-1719), a German alchemist, the inventor 
of the celebrated Meissen porcelain. His search 
for the philosopher’s stone, or secret of making 
gold, led him into many difficulties. At last he 
found refuge at the court of Saxony, where the 
elector erected a laboratory for him and forced 
him to turn his attention to the manufacture of 
porcelain, resulting in the invention associated 
with his name. 

Botticelli, bot'te chel'le, Sandro (properly 
Alessandro Filipepi) (1447-1515), an Italian 
painter of the Florentine school. Working at 
first in, the shop of the goldsmith Botticelli, 
from whom he takes his name, he showed such 
talent that he was removed to the studio of the 
distinguished painter, Fra Filippo Lippi. From 
this master he took the fire and passion of his 
style, and he added a fine imaginativeness and 
delicacy of his own. His greatest works are his 


madonnas, and in these he shows a deep per¬ 
sonal feeling and individuality (See Madonna). 
There is a certain tender and pathetic expression 
in the faces of all his figures. Some of his 
best known works are The Triumph of Spring, 
Birth of Venus, The Nativity and The Adora¬ 
tion of the Magi. There are many of his pic¬ 
tures in the galleries in Europe, and in the Pitti, 
Florence, and several frescoes are in the Sistine 
Chapel, Rome. In his later years Botticelli 
became an ardent disciple of Savonarola, and is 
said by Vasari to have neglected his painting for 
the study of mystical theology. 

Bot'tle, a vessel of moderate or small size, 
with a neck, for holding liquids. By the ancients 
bottles were made of skins or leather; they are 
now chiefly made of glass or earthenware. In 
bottle-making the glass is blown instead of 
pressed into form. In smelting, the glass is 
gathered upon pipes or tubes. When taken 
from the furnace the ball is rolled upon a slab of 
iron, the operator blowing through the pipe, 
meanwhile. This forms a long, hollow, pear- 
shaped mass, which is then swung into an open 
mold, the mold closed upon it, and the glass 
forced into every detail of the pattern by the 
lungs of the blower. The extra glass above the 
mold is broken off, the bottle is removed, and the 
mouth is shaped up by softening in the oven and 
working with a special tool. It is then sent 
through the tempering oven. The molds are 
kept very cool by a blast of air from a large air 
tube overhead. It is important that the proper 
amount of glass be gathered for a bottle, other¬ 
wise the bottles are too thick or too thin. The 
lettering on bottles is done by a plate engraved 
reverse and placed in the mold. In some large, 
factories bottles are made by machines constructed 
for the purpose. ‘The melted glass passes from 
the furnace into the machine, which does the 
work formerly done by workmen. See Glass. 
Bot'tle Imp. See Cartesian Diver. 

Bot'tle-tree, the name applied to one of 
several classes of trees, which has a trunk 
resembling a bottle with bulging sides. The 
Australian tree is the most common, having a 
short bottle-like trunk and dense foliage. The 
natives make nets of the fibers and use the sap 
in the stem as a drink. 

Boucicault, boo'se ho, Dion (1822-1890), an 
Irish dramatic author and actor. He was edu¬ 
cated to become an architect, but the success of 
a comedy, the well known London Assurance, 
which he wrote when only nineteen years old, 
determined him on a career in connection with 


Boudinot 


Boulogne-sur-Mer 


the stage. In 1852 be became an actor, and in 
1853 he went to America, where he was scarcely 
less popular than in England. On his return 
in 1860 he produced a new style of drama, of 
which The Colleen Bawn and Arrah-na-Pogue are 
the best examples. In collaboration with Joseph 
Jefferson he dramatized Irving’s story of Rip 
Van Winkle, in which Jefferson became world- 
famous as an actor. As an actor Boucicault was 
clever, but not highly gifted. His dramatic 
pieces number upward of one hundred fifty. 

Boudinot, boo'de not, Elias (1740-1821), an 
American patriot and philanthropist, born in 
Philadelphia. He was admitted to the bar and 
setved in Congress during the Revolutionary 
War, becoming its president in 1782. Later he 
resumed the practice of law, but again served in 
Congress from 1789 to 1795. He was director 
of the mint in Philadelphia from 1795 to 1805. 
He was a liberal patron and trustee of Princeton 
University and gave freely to other educational 
and religious institutions. He was the founder 
and first president of the American Bible Society. 

Bougainville, boo gaN veel', Louis Antoine 
de (1729-1811), a famous French navigator. 
At first a lawyer, he afterward entered the army 
and fought bravely in Canada under Montcalm. 
After the Battle of Quebec, in which Montcalm 
was killed, Bougainville returned to France and 
served with distinction in the campaign of 1761 
in Germany. In 1763 he undertook the com¬ 
mand of a colonizing expedition to the Falkland 
Islands, but as the Spaniards had a prior claim, 
the project was abandoned. Bougainville then 
made a voyage around the world and made a 
number of discoveries. In the American Revolu¬ 
tionary War he distinguished himself at sea, but 
he withdrew from naval service after the French 
Revolution and died in retirement. 

Bouguereau, boo gro\ William Adolphe 
(1825-1905), a French painter. He studied 
painting under Picot and received many honors, 
becoming a member of the Institute in 1876 and 
grand officer of the Legion of Honor in 1903. 
His work has been criticised as being too labored 
and as lacking in truth to nature. Of his paint¬ 
ings the more important are The Body of Saint 
Cecilia Borne to the Catacombs and The Birth of 
Venus. , 

Bouillon, boo yoN ’, Godfrey de. See God¬ 
frey de Bouillon. 

Boulanger, boo lahN zha ’, Georges Ernest 
Jean Marie (1837-1891), a French soldier. 
He served in Algeria, Italy and China, fought in 
the Franco-Prussian War, and became brigadier 


general in 1880. He was made minister of war 
in 1886, and in this capacity he was active in 
procuring the expulsion of the Orleans princes 
from the army and from France. He successfully 
contested several seats in the Chamber of Depu¬ 
ties, and in 1889 was elected deputy for Paris by 
a very large vote. Two months later the govern¬ 
ment, claiming to have evidence of his intended 
treason, began a prosecution, and Boulanger fled 
to Brussels and thence to the Isle of Jersey. He 
was convicted in his absence and remained an 
exile. He committed suicide in Brussels, on the 
grave of a woman to whom he had been deeply 
attached. 

Boulder, bole’dur , a rounded, water-worn 
stone of some size. In geology the term is 
applied to ice-worn and partially smoothed 
blocks of large size, lying on the surface of the 
soil, or embedded in clays and gravels, generally 
differing in composition from the rocks in their 
vicinity, a fact which proves that they must have 
been transported from a distance, probably by 
ice. When lying bn the surface, boulders are 
known as erratic blocks. The boulder clay, in 
which these blocks are found, belongs to the post- 
tertiary or quaternary period. It occurs in 
many localities, consists of a compact clay often 
separated by thin beds of gravel and sand, and is 
believed to have been deposited from icebergs and 
glaciers in the last glacial period. See Erratics; 
Glaciers; Tertiary Period. 

Boulder, Col., the county-seat of Boulder 
co., 29 mi. n. w. of Denver, on the Union Pacific, 
the Colorado & Southern and other railroads. 
It is located at the base of the Rocky Mountains, 
in an agricultural and stock-raising, as well as a 
mining district. There are a number of noted 
gold and silver mines and large smelting works. 
The city has a large sanitarium and a public 
park of 1800 acres. It is near the famous 
Boulder Canyon. Boulder is the seat of the 
University of Colorado. Population in 1910, 
9539. 

Boulogne-sur-Mer, boo'lo'ny’sur mare’, a sea¬ 
port of France, situated at the mouth of the Liane 
River and on the English channel, 22 mi. s. w. of 
Calais and 139 mi. n. w. of Paris. The city is 
divided into an upper and a lower town. The 
upper town is surrounded with old ramparts. 
The lower town is the business section and is 
modern in its plan and structure. The impor¬ 
tant buildings are the castle, erected in 1231, the 
church of Notre Dame, the Hotel de Ville and the 
palace of justice. The city also contains public 
baths, a public library and a museum of natural 


Boulogne-sur-Seine 


Bourbon 


history. The trade and the fisheries are very 
extensive. Boulogne is one of the most important 
seaports of France and has daily steamer com¬ 
munication with England. The lower town has 
quite a large English population, and the English 
language is quite generally spoken. It is one 
of the oldest cities of France and still shows 
evidence of Roman occupation. It was captured 
by the Northmen in 882, and in 1544 it was taken 
by Henry VIII of England. It was destroyed by 
Charles V in 1553. It was here that Bonaparte 
gathered a large army for the purpose of invading 
England, but he never carried out his purpose. 
Louis Napoleon attempted to start an insurrec¬ 
tion here in 1840, but he failed and was impris¬ 
oned in the castle. Population in 1911, 53,128. 

Boulogne-sur-Seine, boo'lo'ny’sur sayn', a 
town of France in the department Seine, about 
5 mi. w. of Paris, of which it is a suburb. It is 
from this place that the celebrated public park, 
Bois de Boulogne, gets its name. Population in 
1911, 57,027. 

Boun'ty, in political economy, a reward or 
premium granted for the encouragement of a 
particular species of employment or production, 
the idea being that the development of such 
trade or production will be of benefit to the whole 
community. The term is especially applied to 
the amount given for the destruction of noxious 
plants or animals. The same name is given to a 
premium offered by government to induce men 
to enlist in the public service, especially to the 
sum of money given in some states to recruits in 
>he army and navy. During the Civil War in 
America the bounty was at one time as high as 
$900. 

Boun'ty Jump'ers, a name given to those men 
who, during the C’vil War, enlisted in the Union 
army in order to secure the bounty which the 
government was paying and then deserted in 
order to enlist in another locality and receive 
another bounty. Stringent measures were taken 
by the government to put an end to this practice, 
but without complete success. 

Bourbon, boor’bon, an ancient French family 
which has given three dynasties to Europe, the 
Bourbons of France, of Spain and of Naples. 
The first of the line known in history is Adhemar, 
who, at the beginning of the tenth century, was 
lord of the old province Bourbonnais. The 
power and possessions of the family increased 
steadily until, in 1272, Beatrix, daughter of Agnes 
of Bourbon and John of Burgundy, married 
Robert, sixth son of Louis IX of France, and thus 
connected the Bourbons with the royal line of 


the Capets. Their son Louis had the barony 
converted into a dukedom and became the first 
duke of Bourbon. Two branches took their 
origin from the two sons of this Louis. The elder 
line was that of the dukes of Bourbon, which 
became extinct at the death of the Constable of 
Bourbon in 1527, in the assault of the city of 
Rome. The younger was that of the counts of 
La Marche, afterward counts and dukes of 
Vendome. From these descended Anthony of 
Bourbon, duke of Venddme, who by marriage 
acquired the kingdom of Navarre, and whose son, 
Henry of Navarre, became Henry IV of France. 
Anthony’s younger brother, Louis, prince of 
Conde, was the founder of the line of Cond6. 
There were, therefore, two chief branches of the 
Bourbons—the royal and that of Cond£. The 
royal branch was divided by the two sons of 
Louis XIII, the elder of whom, Louis XIV, 
continued the chief branch, while Philip, the 
younger son, founded the House of Orleans. 
The kings of the elder French royal line of the 
House of Bourbon run as follows: Henry IV, 
Louis XIII, XIV, XV, XVI, XVII (who never 
obtained the crown), XVIII and Charles X. The 
last sovereigns of this line, Louis XVI, Louis 
XVIII and Charles X, were brothers, all of them 
being grandsons of Louis XV. Louis XVIII 
had no children, but Charles X had two sons, and 
it was the younger of these, who was the father 
of the count of Chambord, who was looked 
upon by his party as the legitimate heir to the 
crown of France. 

The branch of the Bourbons known as the 
House of Orleans was raised to the throne of 
France by the Revolution of 1830, and was 
deprived of it by that of 1848. A regular suc¬ 
cession of princes leads to the notorious Egalite 
Orleans, who in 1793 died on the scaffold, and 
whose son, Louis Philippe, was king of France 
from 1830 to the Revolution of 1848. It is a 
representative of this branch, Louis Philippe, 
count of Paris, who is the present head of the 
family, uniting in himself the claims of both 
branches to the throne of France. 

The Spanish Bourbon dynasty originated 
when, in 1700, Louis XIV placed his grandson 
Philip, duke of Anjou, on the Spanish throne, 
as Philip V. From him is descended the present 
occupant of the Spanish throne, Alfonso XIII. 

The royal line of Naples, or the Two Sicilies, 
took its rise when, in 1735, the younger son of 
Philip V of Spain obtained the crown of Sicily 
and Naples and reigned as Charles III. In 
1759, however, he succeeded his brother Ferdi- 


Bourbon 


Bow 


nand VI on the Spanish throne, and at that 
time he transferred the Two Sicilies to his third 
son, on the condition that this crown should not 
be united with that of Spain. Ferdinand IV 
had to leave Naples in 1806; but after the fall 
of Napoleon he again became king of both 
Sicilies under the title of Ferdinand I, and the 
succession remained to his descendants until 
1860, when Naples was incorporated into the 
new kingdom of Italy. 

Bourbon, Charles, duke of Bourbonnais 
(known as the Constable de Bourbon ) (1489- 
1527), a famous French general. He distin¬ 
guished himself at the Battle of Marignano in 
1515, but soon afterward he came into disfavor 
with the king, through the enmity of the king’s 
mother. His anger at the treatment he received 
from the French led him to make an alliance 
with the emperor Charles V and Henry VIII 
of England. At Pavia he aided in the victory 
of the allies and the capture of the French king. 
Later he undertook a campaign in Italy, cap¬ 
tured Milan and attacked Rome, but during 
this attack on the city he was mortally 
wounded. 

Bourgeoisie, boor zhwah zee', a name applied 
to a certain class in France, in contradistinction 
to the nobility and clergy, as well as to the 
working classes. It thus corresponds nearly 
with the English term, “middle classes.” The 
word originally was applied to freemen or bur¬ 
gesses residing in towns. 

Bourges, boorzh, an ancient city of France, 
capital of the department of Cher, situated at 
the confluence of the Auron and Y&vre Rivers, 
144 mi. s. of Paris. The most noteworthy 
building is the Cathedral of Saint Etienne, of 
the thirteenth century, one of the finest 
examples of Gothic architecture in France. 
Bourges is a military center and has an arsenal, 
cannon foundry and other establishments. 
There are manufactures of cloth, leather and 
cutlery. Population in 1911, 45,735. 

Bourget, boor zha', Paul (1852- ), a 

French essayist and novelist. He graduated at 
the College de Sainte-Barbe in Paris and then 
took up journalism. His first publication, with 
the exception of contributions to magazines, 
was a volume of verse called Restless Life. His 
Studies and Portraits and Essays on Contem¬ 
porary Psychology show him to be a brilliant 
psychological analyst, and the same trait is 
strong in his novels. Among his novels are 
The Disciple, Cruel Enigma and The Promised 
Land. These, with his other novels, have given 


Bourget rank with the first of contemporary 
French novelists. 

Bourinot, boo're not, Sir John George 
(1837-1902), a Canadian historian. After his 
graduation from Trinity College, Toronto, he 
established the Halifax Reporter, which he 
conducted for many years. In the proceedings 
of the Royal Society of Canada appeared his 
first political and historical papers, which were 
afterward expanded into books. Among his 
writings are Parliamentary Procedure and Prac¬ 
tice, Manual of Constitutional History, Parlia¬ 
mentary Government in Canada, How Canada 
is Governed, Canada under British Rule and 
Canada's Intellectual Strength and Weakness. 

Boutelle, bow tel', Charles Addison (1839- 
1901), an American statesman,'born at Damaris- 
cotta, Maine. He went to sea and in 1862 
entered the Union navy, serving during the 
Civil War. In 1870 he became editor and pro¬ 
prietor of the Bangor Whig and Courier. He 
represented his district in congress for nine 
consecutive terms, from 1883 until his death. 
As, chairman of the House committee on naval 
affairs he did much toward securing the rebuild¬ 
ing of the navy on the present plan. 

Bout'well, George Sewall (1818-1905), 
an American statesman. In 1842 he was 
elected as a Democrat to the Massachusetts 
state legislature, where he sat until 1851. In 
1851 and again in 1852, he was elected governor 
on the Free-Soil ticket. He joined the Repub¬ 
lican party in 1854. From 1863 to 1869 he 
was a member of Congress, was chairman of 
the committee to report articles of impeachment 
against Andrew Johnson, and one of the seven, 
managers of the trial. He became secretary of 
the treasury in Grant’s cabinet, which office he 
held until March, 1873, when he was chosen 
United States senator. Boutwell was identified 
with the anti-imperialism movement and was 
president of the association from 1900 to his 
death. Mr. Boutwell practiced law in Wash¬ 
ington, D. C., and published many valuable 
essays and books. 

Bow, bo, the name of one of the most ancient 
and universal weapons of offense. It is made 
of steel, wood, horn or other elastic substance. 
The figure of the bow is nearly the same in all 
countries. The ancient Grecian bow was 
somewhat in the form of the letter 2. In draw¬ 
ing it, the hand was brought back to the right 
breast, and not to the ear. The Scythian bow 
was nearly semicircular. The long-bow was 
the national weapon in England. The battles 


Bow 


Bower-bird 


of Cr£cy (1346), Poitiers (1356) and Agincourt 
(1415) were won by this weapon, which was 
made of yew or ash, of the height of the archer, 
or about 6 feet long, the arrow being usually 
half the length of the bow. In England the 
strictest regulations were made to encourage and 
facilitate the use of the bow. Merchants were 
obliged to import a certain proportion of bow- 
staves with every cargo; town councils had to 
provide public shooting targets near the town. 
Of the power of the bow, and the distance to 
which it will carry, some remarkable anecdotes 
are related. Thus one writer mentions a ran¬ 
dom shot of a Turk, which he found to be 584 
yards. In the journal of King Edward VI it 
is mentioned that 100 archers of the king’s guard 
shot at a 1-inch board, and that some of the 
arrows passed through this and into another 
board behind it, although the wood was 
extremely solid and firm. See Crossbow. 

Bow, in music, the name of that well-known 
implement by means of which the tone is pro¬ 
duced from violins and other instruments of 
the same kind. It is made of a thin staff of 
elastic wood, tapering slightly till it reaches 
the lower end, to which the hairs (about 80 or 
100 horsehairs) are fastened, with which 
the bow is strung. At the upper end is an 
ornamental piece of wood or ivory, called the 
nut, fastened with a screw, which serves to 
regulate the tension of the hairs. 

Bowdoin, bo'd’n, James (1727-1790),an Amer¬ 
ican statesman. He was born in Boston and 
graduated at Harvard in 1745. He was a mem¬ 
ber of the general court of Massachusetts (1753- 
1756) and espoused the patriot cause. In 
1774 he was elected a member of the Conti¬ 
nental Congress, in 1775 became president of 
the Massachusetts council and in 1779 presided 
over the state constitutional convention. In 
1785 he became governor of the state and 
proved his executive ability by his energetic 
measures in the suppression of Shays’s Rebel¬ 
lion. He was a member of the convention that 
framed the Federal Constitution. Bowdoin was 
one of the founders, and became the president, 
of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 
and he was also a founder of the Massachusetts 
Humane Society. Bowdoin College, Brunswick, 
Me., was named after him (See Bowdoin Col¬ 
lege). 

Bowdoin College, the oldest institution 
of learning in Maine, chartered in 1794 and 
named after James Bowdoin, governor of 
Massachusetts, of which state Maine was then 


a district. Connected with Bowdoin College 
is the medical school of Maine, organized in 
1820. The college is noted for the many emi¬ 
nent men who have graduated from it. Among 
others were Henry W. Longfellow, Franklin 
Pierce and Chief Justice Melville W. Fuller. 
The college has about 80 instructors, 400 stu¬ 
dents, a library containing 103,000 volumes and 
an endowment of over $2,000,000. 

Bow'ell, Mackenzie (1823- ), a Cana¬ 

dian statesman, born in Suffolk, England. He 
came to Canada when a boy, and later became 
editor of the Belleville (Ontario) Intelligences 
In 1867 he entered the Dominion Parliament 
as a Conservative, and served as minister of 
customs, minister of defense, minister of trade 
and commerce, and premier. From 1896 to 
1906 he was the leader of his party in the Senate. 

Bow'er-bird, a name given to several differ¬ 
ent birds living in Australia or the Pacific 
islands. They are so called because in the 
nesting season they build remarkable bowers 
to serve as places of resort. These are con¬ 
structed on the ground, usually under over¬ 
hanging branches in secluded parts of the 



BOWER-BIRD 


forest. Here the male birds meet and dance 
and go through the queer antics that are sup¬ 
posed to attract their mates. One species uses 
only small shells for decoration; another bird 
builds a tent-like structure around a sapling, 
using for rafters the stems of an orchid that con¬ 
tinues to blossom after it is picked; still another 
uses only feathers. This fondness for bright 
things is not confined to the bower-birds, though 
no other birds seem to possess it to so great a 
degree. The magpie may be mentioned as an 
American illustration of this trait. 



Bowles 


Boxing 


Bowles, bohlz, Samuel (1826-1878), an 
American journalist, born in Massachusetts. 
In 1851 he became editor and manager of the 
Springfield (Mass.) Republican, which had been 
founded by his father, Samuel Bowles. Under 
his management it became one of the foremost 
journals in the United States. Though always 
interested in public affairs, he never held office, 
devoting himself to fearless editorial discussion 
of the issues. As a result of wide travel he 
published several books, among them Our 
Great West and The Switzerland of America. 

Bowling, boiling. Bowels is an ancient 
British game, still extremely popular. It is 
played on a smooth, level piece of greensward, 
generally about 40 yards long, and surrounded 
by a trench or ditch about 6 inches deep. A 
small, white ball, called tho jacl ;, b placed at one 
end of the green, and the object of the players, 
who range themselves in sides at the other, is 
so to roll their bowk that they may lie as near 
as possible to the jack. Each bowl is biased 
by being made slightly conical, so as to take a 
curvilinear direction; and in making the proper 
allowance for this bias, and so regulating the 
cast of the ball, consist the skill and attraction 
of the game. The side which owns the greater 
number of bowls next the jack, each bowl so 
placed constituting a point, carries off the vic¬ 
tory. The modern form of bowling has become 
very popular in the United States since 1875, 
and since 1895 has been a well organized and 
universally recognized sport, especially in the 
cooler months. It is one of the best of games, 
in that it brings into play every muscle of the 
body; does not overtax the strength or develop 
one organ at the expense of another, and is 
really a democratic pastime, in which anybody 
can indulge. It is no longer an outdoor game, 
but is played on long, narrow platforms, called 
alleys, made very smooth and nearly level, 
usually of hard wood strips set on edge. The 
alley shows 60 feet of clear bowling surface, 
besides the space taken up by the pins at one 
end and by the player in his run at the other. 
At each side of the alley is a gutter wide enough 
so that the balls may fall into it if inaccurately 
rolled. Beyond the end of the alley is a depres¬ 
sion or pit at least 2\ feet wide, and beyond 
that a swinging cushion to stop the force of the 
balls. A slanting roadway provides for the 
return of the balls to the player. The pins, 
which are of wood, are ten in number and are 
set up always on exactly the same spots, so as to 
form a triangle whose apex is in the center of 


the alley and toward the player. The balls 
may not exceed 20 inches in circumference nor 
16 \ pounds in weight, but balls of smaller size 
and of less weight may be used. In each ball 
holes are bored for the thumb and finger, so 
that the ball may be firmly held. The object 
of the game is to knock down the pins by rolling 
the ball along the alley. Each player may roll 
two balls and must then give way to an oppo¬ 
nent. Each of these innings is called a frame. 
If a player knocks down all the pins with a 
single ball, it is known as a strike ; if he knocks 
them all down with the two balls, it is known 
as a spare. The count is reckoned on the num¬ 
ber of pins knocked down in ten innings or 
frames. The side having knocked down the 
most pins, wins. The method of scoring, how¬ 
ever, is too technical to describe at length, but 
it enables the player to count more than once 
some of the pins he has knocked down. Three 
hundred is the highest possible score. 

Bowling Green, Ky., the county-seat of 
Warren co., 114 mi. s. w. of Louisville. It is 
on the Barren River, and on the Louisville & 
Nashville railroad. It is in a rich agiicultural 
region and has a brisk trade in hay, corn, wheat, 
oats, tobacco, mules and hogs, while its horse 
market is one of the most important in Ken¬ 
tucky. Bowling Green is the seat of Ogden 
College, Potter College for Women, Saint 
Columbia’s Academy and the Western Kentucky 
State Normal School. During the Civil War it 
was a point of considerable military importance. 
Population in 1910, 9173. 

Box-el'der, the ash-leaved maple, a small 
but beautiful tree of the United States. The 
tree grows rapidly almost anywhere, and accord¬ 
ingly it is a favorite shade tree. The wood is 
soft and brittle and of little value. 

Box'ing, an art which consists in dealing 
blows with the fist against one’s opponent while 
he protects himself with hands and arms. Box¬ 
ing was a popular sport among the Greeks and 
the Romans, and in the gladiatorial contests it 
became an exceedingly dangerous pastime, for 
the fists of the combatants were armed with 
leather covers, which were loaded with iron or 
lead (See Cestus). In England professional 
boxers were at one time very common, and 
during the reigns of the Georges persons of 
the highest ranks entered these pugilistic com* 
bats with great enjoyment. Boxing, however, 
has fallen into disrepute in more recent years, 
and prize fights are illegal in England, and both 
the spectators and principals may be proceeded 


Boxing the Compass 

against in law. In the United States the law 
varies decidedly. In some states all forms of 
prize fighting are illegal, while others limit 
them to a certain number of rounds, and still 
other states permit such fights under respectable 
supervision. In some cities all forms of boxing 
are prohibited, and the general tendency is to 
restrict the sport entirely to amateurs, who may 
not box before audiences that pay an admission 
fee. Nevertheless, the public still takes an 
interest in boxing, and the newspapers give 
considerable space to matches between the 
leading professionals in the numerous classes. 
Boxing under proper restrictions and reasonable 
rules is an exercise whose value is recognized 
by all who understand the art. Gloves thickly 
padded over the back of the hand, the fingers 
and the thumb, so as to give the appearance of 
a very thick mitt, are used. The leather is soft 
and pliable, and the gloves used by amateurs 
are so soft that injury is rarely inflicted by the 
blows. A boxing match usually consists of a 
specified number of rounds, each lasting three 
minutes, with an intermission of one minute 
between rounds. If at any time (except during 
the last ten seconds of a round) a boxer is knocked 
down, he is allowed ten seconds in which to get 
on his feet unassisted. If he fails, he is ‘ counted 
out” and loses the match. The competitions 
take place in a ring, which is an oblong about 
16 by 24 feet, surrounded by two ropes, which 
make a fence 4 feet high. The regulation 
athletic costume is used in boxing matches. 
Boxers are classified according to their weights, 
the numbers given here being the maximum 
limit: Bantam weight, 105 pounds; feather 
weight, 115 pounds; light weight, 135 pounds 
and under; welter weight, 145 pounds; middle 
weight, 158 pounds; heavy weight, over 158 
pounds. 

Box'ing the Com'pass, in seaman’s phrase, 
the repetition of all the points of the compass 
in their proper order—an accomplishment 
required of all sailors. 

Box Tortoise, tor'tis, or Box Turtle, a name 
given to one or two North American tortoises 
or turtles that can completely shut themselves 
into their shell, which can be closed by hinged 
joints in the lower shell. 

Box Tree, a shrubby evergreen tree twelve 
or fifteen feet high, with small oval and oppo¬ 
site leaves, and greenish, inconspicuous flowers, 
male and female on the same tree. It is a 
native of England, southern Europe and parts 
of Asia, and was formerly so common in Eng- 


Boyle’s Law 

land as to have given its name to several places 
—Boxhill, in Surrey, for instance, and Boxley, 
in Kent. The wood is of a yellowish color, 
close-grained, very hard and heavy, and takes a 
beautiful polish. On these accounts it is much 
used by turners, wood carvers, engravers on 
wood and mathematical instrument makers. 
Flutes and other wind instruments are made 
from it. The boxwood of commerce comes 
mostly from the regions adjoining the Black 
and Caspian seas, and is said to be diminishing 
in quantity. In gardens and shrubberies box 
trees may often be seen clipped into various 
formal shapes. There is also a dwarf variety 
reared as a hedge for garden walks and such 
places. 

Boy'cot/ting, the name given to an organized 
system of commercial ostracism. It was first 
employed in connection with the Land League 
and agitation of 1880 and 1881 in Ireland. It 
took its name from Captain James Boycott, a 
Mayo landlord, against whom it was first put in 
force. Persons who are subjected to boycotting 
find it difficult or impossible to get any one to 
work for them, to supply them with the neces¬ 
saries of life or to associate with them in any 
way. The practice has been legislatively de¬ 
clared illegal in many states of the Union. 

Boy'dell, John (1719-1804), an English 
engraver, chiefly distinguished as an encour- 
ager of the fine arts. He engaged Reynolds, 
Opie, West and other celebrated painters to 
illustrate Shakespeare’s works, and from their 
pictures was produced a magnificent volume 
of plates, the Shakespeare Gallery. The work 
of British engravers, through his influence, came 
to attain such excellence that it was sought after 
all over Europe. 

Boy'esen, Hjalmar Hjorth (1848-1895), a 
Norwegian-American author. He came to the 
United States in 1869 and became editor of a 
Scandinavian journal in Chicago. He was 
professor of German at Cornell University from 
1874 to 1880 and filled a similar post at Colum¬ 
bia University, New York. He published 
Gunnar and other novels. Idyls of Norway and 
many translations from the Scandinavian tongues. 

Boyle’s Law, otherwise called Mariotte’s 
Law, a law in physics, to the effect that the 
volume of a gas at a constant temperature will 
vary inversely as the pressure to which it is 
subjected. A given volume of gas under a 
pressure of two pounds to the square inch 
will occupy twice the space it will under a 
pressure of four pounds to the square inch. 


Braddock 


Boyne 


Boyne, a small river in eastern Ireland, about 
30 miles north of Dublin, noted for the battle 
which was fought on its banks in 1690. See 
William III. 

Boy Scouts, an organization for boys planned 
by General Robert Baden-Powell of England, 
and having for its purpose character-building for 
boys between 12 and 18 years of age. The Boy 
Scouts of America were organized by Ernest 
Thompson-Seton and the movement has spread 
rapidly. The method is summed up in the term 
Scout-craft. Scout-craft consists of First Aid, 
Life Saving, Tracking, Signaling, Cycling, 
Nature Study, Seamanship and other instruc¬ 
tion. This is accomplished in games and team 
play, and is pleasure, not work, for the boy. 
Before he becomes a scout a boy must take the 
scout’s oath, thus: “On my honor I promise 
that I will do my best; (1) To do my duty to 
God and my country; (2) To help other people 
at all times; (3) To obey the Scout Law.” 
Eight boys constitute a patrol, which chooses 
one of its members as the Patrol Leader. Three 
patrols form a troop, which has an adult Scout 
Master. There are now about 500,000 Boy 
Scouts in the United States alone. The move¬ 
ment spread quickly to Canada, where the 
Governor-General is Chief Scout, to France, 
Germany, Italy, Australia, New Zealand and 
several South American republics. Though 
the form of organization is military, the emphasis 
has been laid on virtues which shine in peace. 

Bozeman, boze'man, Mont., the county-seat 
of Gallatin co., 96 mi. s. e. of Helena, on the 
Gallatin River and the Northern Pacific Rail¬ 
road. The city is the business center for a large 
agricultural and stock-raising district, and it is 
near deposits of coal, gold, silver and iron. 
Four large canals and many smaller ones supply 
water for irrigating the valley, which produces 
large crops of grain. The industrial establish¬ 
ments include flour mills, stone quarries, brick¬ 
yards, lumber mills, breweries and other works. 
The state college of agriculture and mechanic 
arts is located here. Population in 1910, 5107. 

Bozzaris, bo'tsah ris, Marco (1788-1823), a 
Greek hero of, the War of Independence. He 
distinguished himself by his patriotism and 
military skill. He was killed in a night attack 
upon the camp of the Pasha of Scutari. The 
incident gave rise to the poem Marco Bozzaris 
by Fitz-Greene Halleck. 

Brabant, brah'bant, the central district of 
the lowlands of Holland and Belgium, extending 
from the Waal to the sources of the Dyle, and 


from the Meuse and the plain of Limburg to 
the lower Scheldt. In the time of Caesar, Bra¬ 
bant was inhabited by a mixed race of Germans 
and Celts, but in the fifth century the Franks 
took possession of it. Later it became a part 
of the Duchy of Lorraine. The principality of 
Brabant grew up around the city of Louvain. 
In 1430 Brabant came under the rule of the 
House of Burgundy and later passed to the 
Hapsburgs. The northern part of Brabant took 
part in a revolt of the Netherlands against 
Philip II of Spain and became a part of the 
Dutch Republic. After the wars of Napoleon 
all of Brabant was included in the kingdom of 
the Netherlands and was divided into three 
provinces. 

Brack'et, a projection from a wall or other 
surface, used to support balconies, windows or 
upper portions of a building. Brackets are 
generally made of iron, wood or metal and are 
sometimes elaborately designed and ornamented. 
The term is also applied to the small supports 
of shelves, statues and the like. See Corbel. 

Brad'dock, Pa., a borough in Allegheny co., 
10 mi. e. of Pittsburg, on the Monongahela 
River and on the Pennsylvania, the Baltimore 
& Ohio and other railroads. It has exten¬ 
sive manufactures of steel rails, wire, cement, 
plaster and other articles. The town has a 
Carnegie public library. It was settled about 
1795, on the site of General Braddock’s defeat 
in 1755. Population in 1910, 19,357. 

Braddock, Edward (1698-1755), a British 
soldier. In 1754 he was made commander of 
all British troops in America. He arrived at 
Hampton, Va., in 1755, and near Alexandria 
met the Virginia troops for the expedition 
against the French Fort Etuquesne. By April 24 
he had reached Frederick, Md., when he was 
forced to wait for wagons to transport his stores. 
He was joined there by Washington, whom he 
invited to be his aid-de-camp, and Benjamin 
Franklin, then postmaster general of the colo¬ 
nies. He scorned the advice of Franklin 
regarding the danger from the ambuscades of 
the indians, and set out from Fort Cumberland 
by the path marked out by Washington two 
years earlier. The army consisted of about 
twelve hundred regulars and provincials and a 
few friendly indians. On July 9 the advance 
division under Gates was attacked by a band of 
French and indians. Frightened by the war- 
whoop which they heard tor the first time ; the 
British fell back in confusion, and Braddock 
tried to rally them against their invisible foes. 


Bradford 


Bradstreet 


Familiar with Indian warfare, the Virginians 
separated, and sought shelter behind rocks and 
trees, but Braddock, dispensing with the “mili¬ 
tary instruction of a Virginia colonel,” Wash¬ 
ington, kept his men drawn up in platoons, and 
they fired at random into the forest, killing 
many of the Americans. Braddock’s personal 
bravery was conspicuous. Five horses were 
killed under him, and he was at last mortally 
wounded. The battle ended in a rout, and less 
than half of the force survived and was led to 
safety by Washington. 

Brad'ford, a city of England situated on the 
Aire, 8 mi. w. of Leeds. The town is divided 
into the old and new sections. The latter has 
been almost entirely rebuilt since 1860, and it 
contains wide and well constructed streets, 
with modern buildings. The most important 
structures are the town hall, Saint George’s 
Hall, Mechanics’ Hall, the exchange and the 
temperance hall. The city contains a technical 
college, a free public library and numerous other 
educational institutions. There are also an 
infirmary, an eye and ear hospital, an institution 
for the blind and several almshouses. The city 
has a number of public parks and is noted for 
its excellent public utilities, including the water, 
gas and electric light works, which are owned 
by the municipality. Its leading manufactures 
are worsteds, alpacas and mohairs. It also 
manufactures silks and velvets and cotton goods. 
The town was incorporated in 1847 and was 
made a city in 1897. Population in 1911, 288,505. 

Bradford, Pa., a city in McKean co., 76 mi. 
s. of Buffalo, N. Y., on a tributary of the Alle¬ 
gheny River, and on the Pennsylvania, the Erie, 
the Buffalo, 1 Rochester & Pittsburg and several 
other railroads. It lies in a productive oil field 
and in a natural-gas region, and has oil refineries, 
tool shops, boiler and gas engine works, glass 
works, extensive lumber interests and immense 
■wood-working establishments. Near the city 
are vitrified, pressed and enameled brick, and 
acid and wood-alcohol works. Fourteen miles 
away is the great Kinzua bridge, 300 feet high 
and 2100 feet long. Population in 1910, 14,544. 

Bradford, William (about 1590-1657), a 
colonial statesman in. America, second governor 
of Plymouth colony and the chief historian of 
that colony and period. He was bom in York¬ 
shire, England, joined the Separatist Church at 
Scrooby, but was imprisoned when that con¬ 
gregation went to Holland in 1608. Later he 
joined his friends at Leyden and became a 
prominent member of the community there. 


He went to America on the Mayflower, and upon 
the death of Carver he became governor of the 
colony, holding the office continuously until his 
death, with the exception of a period of five years. 
During all this time he was the responsible head 
of the colony and administered its affairs with 
remarkable foresight and sagacity. His History 
of Plymouth Plantation is the foundation for all 
later accounts of the period. 

Bradlaugh, brad’law, Chables (1833-1891), 
an English politician and reformer. He is well 
known by his writings and lectures, and more 
especially by his efforts to gain admission to 
Parliament. Being elected for Northampton 
in 1880, he claimed the right to make affirmation 
instead of taking oath, as he was an atheist; and 
although he offered later to take oath, this right 
was denied him. Though he was repeatedly 
reelected by the same constituency, the majority 
of the House of Commons continued to declare 
him disqualified for taking the oath or affirming; 
and it was only after the election of a new Parlia¬ 
ment in 1885 that he was allowed to take his seat 
without opposition. 

Brad'ley, Joseph Philo (1813-1892), an 
American jurist, born at Berne, N. Y., and 
educated at Rutgers College. He was admitted 
to the bar in 1839, attained prominence in his 
profession and was a Republican elector in the 
Fremont campaign of 1856. In 1870 he was 
appointed associate justice of the Supreme 
Court, and in 1876 he was a member of the 
electoral commission which decided the election 
in favor of President Hayes. He was one of the 
most distinguished constitutional lawyers of his 
time. 

Brad'shaw, John (1602-1659), an English 
judge, president of the court which tried and 
condemned Charles I. After the death of the 
king he opposed Cromwell and the Protectorate, 
and he was in consequence deprived of the honors 
which had been given him for his conduct of the 
trial. On the death of Cromwell he became lord 
president of the council. At the Restoration, his 
body was exhumed and hung on a gibbet with 
those of Cromwell and Ireton. 

Brad'street, Anne (1612-1672), an Ameri¬ 
can poet. She was a daughter of Governor 
Thomas Dudley and was married to Governor 
Bradstreet in 1628. Her verses are founded on 
good English models, but they lack originality, 
ease and novelty. Modem readers find little of 
interest in them, but they were exceedingly pop¬ 
ular when they first appeared, and Mrs. Brad¬ 
street was given the name of “The Tenth Muse.” 


Bradstreet 


Brahma 


Bradstreet, Simon (1603-1697), an early 
colonial governor of Massachusetts. He was 
born in Lincolnshire, England, and was educated 
at Emmanuel College, Cambridge. He emi¬ 
grated to America in 1630 and was appointed 
secretary and agent of the colony and com¬ 
missioner of the United Colonies. In 1653 he 
opposed the proposed war on the Dutch of New 
York and the eastern tribes of indians. In 
1660 he went to England and acted as agent for 
the colony. From 1630 until 1679 he served as 
assistant, and from 1679 until 1686 and again 
from 1689 to 1692 he was governor of the colony. 
When Sir William Phipps arrived with a new 
charter, Bradstreet became first councilor. 

Bra'dy, Cyrus Townsend (1861- ), an 

American clergyman and author, bom in Alle¬ 
ghany, Pa. After graduating from the United 
States Naval Academy he resigned from service, 
worked with two western railroads, and after 
studying theology, was an Episcopal rector. 
Later he became archdeacon of Kansas, then of 
Pennsylvania, and successively rector of churches 
in Philadelphia, Toledo, Ohio, and Kansas City, 
Mo. He was a chaplain in the Spanish-American 
War. He was the author of Recollections of a 
Missionary in the Great West, lives of Decatur 
and Paul Jones, and much popular fiction, in¬ 
cluding Under Toys’Is and Tents, Hohenzollem, 
On the Old Rearsarge, The Island of Regeneration 
and The Cliff-Dweller’s Pot. His stories usually 
have a historical background, and are of the 
masculine, warlike type. 

Bragg, Braxton (1817-1876), an American 
soldier, bom in North Carolina. He graduated 
at West Point in 1837, was appointed second 
lieutenant of the third artillery and served 
against the Seminoles in Florida. For gallant 
service in the Mexican War he was brevetted 
captain, major and lieutenant colonel. In 1856 
he resigned from the army and engaged in 
planting in Louisiana, and at the beginning of the 
Civil War he was appointed brigadier general in 
the Confederate army and placed in command 
at Pensacola, Fla. In 1862 he became major 
general in command of the second division of 
the Confederate army, and he held a prominent 
command at the Battle of Shiloh. After the 
evacuation of Corinth he succeeded General 
Beauregard in command of the army in the 
west. He was defeated at Perryville and at 
Murfreesboro, but was successful at Chicka- 
mauga. General Grant defeated him at Chatta¬ 
nooga, and in December of that year Bragg was 
relieved from command at his own request. 


He was called to Richmond to act as military 
adviser to President Davis, with whom he was 
a favorite. In 1864 he led a small force from 
North Carolina to Georgia to operate against 
General Sherman, but he was unsuccessful. 
After the war he passed his life in retirement, but 
at one time he was chief engineer for the state of 
Alabama, and he superintended the improve¬ 
ments in Mobile Bay. 

Bragg, Edward Stuyvesant (1827-1912), an 
American legislator and soldier, born in New 
York. He removed to Fond du Lac, Wis., in 
1849, practiced law there and in 1854 became 
district attorney. He was commissioned captain 
in the Union army in 1861, fought in the Army of 
the Potomac, at the head of the famous “Iron 
Brigade,” and came out of the war a brigadier 
general. In 1877 he was sent to Congress, and 
served four terms as a Democrat. He was 
appointed minister to Mexico in 1888, consul- 
general to Havana in 1902 and consul-general to 
Hongkong in the same year, where he remained 
until 1906. 

Brahe, brah or brah'ay, Tycho (1546-1601), 
a Danish astronomer, born at Knutstorp. From 
early life he manifested an interest in the study 
of the heavens, and though destined by his 
uncle for the law he devoted most of his time to 
astronomical observations. He inherited a con¬ 
siderable fortune, which enabled him to pursue 
his favorite study in a successful manner. In 
1572 he discovered a new star in the constellation 
Cassiopeia. Later he was offered by Frederick 
II of Denmark an island on which to establish 
an observatory, besides the necessary funds for 
its erection and equipment and ample salary for 
its care. He accepted the proposition and 
erected the observatory, where for over twenty 
years he continued his observations. After the 
death of Frederick II Brahe was persecuted 
and finally deposed. He left the country, but 
continued his astronomical work. At one time 
the astronomer Keppler was his student, and it is 
believed by some that much of Keppler’s later 
success was due to what he learned from his 
celebrated teacher. 

Brah'ma, a Sanskrit word signifying (in its 
neuter form) the Universal Power,, or the ground 
of all existence, not an individual deity, but only 
an object of contemplation, a universal spirit of 
which the human soul is a part. It is also (in 
its masculine form, with long final syllable) a 
particular god, the first person in the Triad 
(Brahma, Vishnu and Siva) of the Hindus. The 
personal god Brahma is represented as a red or 


Brahmanism 


Brahmanism 


golden-colored figure, with four heads and as 
many arms, often accompanied by the swan or 
goose. He is the god of the Fates, master of life 
and death, yet he is himself created, being merely 
the agent of Brahma, the Universal Power. His 
moral character is no better than that of the 
Grecian Zeus. 

Brah'manism, a religious and social system 
prevalent among the Hindus, and so called 
because developed and expounded by the priestly 
caste known as the Brahmans. It is founded on 
the ancient religious writings known as the 
Vedas, which are regarded as sacred revelations. 
The Brahmans as a body became custodians and 
interpreters of these writings, and the priests and 
general directors of sacrifices and religious rites. 
As the priestly caste increased in numbers and 
power, they made the ceremonies more elaborate 
and added to the Vedas other writings. In time 
the caste of Brahmans came to be accepted as a 
divine institution, and an elaborate system of 
rules was made which defined and enforced its 
place by the severest penalties, as well as that of 
the inferior castes, the Kshatriyas, or warriors, 
the Vaisyas, or cultivators, and the Sudras, or 
slaves. It was not without a struggle that the 
warriors recognized the superiority of the Brah¬ 
mans. It was by the Brahmans that the Sanskrit 
literature was developed; and they were not only 
the priests, theologians and philosophers, but 
also the poets, men of science, lawgivers, adminis¬ 
trators and statesmen of the Aryans of India. 

The sanctity and inviolability of a Brahman 
are maintained by severe penalties. Murdering 
or robbing one of the order are sins for 
which there is no atonement; even the killing 
of his cow can only be expiated by a painful 
penance. A Brahman should pass through four 
states: first, as Brahmachari, or novice, he begins 
the study of the sacred Vedas, and is initiated 
into the privileges and the duties of his caste. 
He has a right to alms, to exemption from taxes 
and from capital and even corporal punishment. 
He is not allowed to eat flesh and eggs and must 
not touch leather, skins of animals and most 
animals themselves. When manhood comes he 
ought to marry, and, as Grihastha, enter the 
second state, which requires more numerous and 
minute observances. When he has begotten a 
son and trained him up for the holy calling, when 
he sees the son of his son, he ought to enter the 
third state, and as Vanaprastha, or inhabitant 
of the forest, retire from the world for solitary 
praying and meditation, with severe penances to 
purify the spirit; but this and the fourth or last 


state of a Sannyasi, requiring a cruel degree of 
asceticism, are now seldom reached, and the 
whole scheme is to be regarded as representing 
rather the Brahmanical ideal of life than the 
actual facts. 

The oldest Vedic literature represents a wor¬ 
ship of natural objects; the sky, personified in 
the god Indra; the dawn, in Ushas; the vari¬ 
ous attributes of the sun, in Vishnu, Surya and 
Agni. These gods were asked for assistance in 
the common affairs of life and were pleased by 
offerings which, at first few and simple, after¬ 
ward became more complicated and included 
animal sacrifices. In the later Vedic hymns a 
philosophical idea of religion and of the problems 
of being and creation appears struggling into 
existence; and this tendency is systematically 
developed by the supplements and commentaries 
known as the Brahmans and the Upanishads. 
In some of the Upanishads the deities of the old 
Vedic creed are treated as symbolical. Brahma, 
the supreme soul, is the only reality, the world is 
regarded as coming from him, and the highest 
good of the soul is to become united with the 
divine. The necessity for the purification of the 
soul for its reunion with the divine nature 
gave rise to the doctrine of transmigration of souls. 

From this philosophical development of Brah¬ 
manism came a distinct separation between the 
educated and the vulgar creeds. While from 
the fifth to the first century b. c. the higher 
thinkers among the Brahmans were developing 
a philosophy which recognized that there was but 
one god, the popular creed had concentrated its 
ideas of worship round three great deities— 
Brahma, Vishnu and Siva, who now took the 
place of the confused old Vedic Pantheon. 
Brahma, the creator, though considered the most 
exalted of the three, was too abstract an idea to 
become a popular god, and soon sank almost out 
of notice. Thus the Brahmans became divided 
between Vishnu, the preserver, and Siva, the 
destroyer and reproducer, and the worshipers of 
these two deities now form the two great religious 
sects of India. Siva, in his philosophical signifi¬ 
cance, is the deity mostly worshiped by the real 
Brahman, while in his aspect of the destroyer, 
or in one of his female manifestations, he is the 
god of the low castes and is often worshiped with 
degrading rites. But the highly cultivated 
Brahman is still a pure theist, and the educated 
Hindu in general professes to regard the special 
deity he chooses for worship as merely a form 
under which the One First Cause may be 
approached. 


Brahmaputra 


Brain 


The system of caste originally, no doubt, 
represented distinctions of race. The early 
classification of the people was that of “twice- 
born” Aryans (priests, warriors, husbandmen) 
and once-born non-Aryans (serfs); but inter¬ 
marriages, giving rise to a mixed people, and the 
variety of employments in modern times have 
greatly modified this simple classification. 
Innumerable minor distinctions have grown up, 
so that among the Brahmans alone there are 
several hundred castes, who cannot intermarry 
or eat food cooked by one another. 

The Brahmans represent the highest culture 
of India, and as the result of centuries of edu¬ 
cation and self-restraint have evolved a type of 
man distinctly superior to the castes around 
them. They still have great influence and 
occupy the highest places at the courts of princes. 
Many, however, are driven by need or other 
motives into trades and employments inconsistent 
with the original character of their caste. 

Brahmaputra, brah'ma poot’ra, a large river 
of Asia, rising in Tibet, flowing southward through 
the Himalayan Mountains and then westward 
into India, where it unites with the Ganges about 
ninety miles above its mouth. The sources of 
the Brahmaputra are not well known, but they 
are in mountain regions over 16,OCX) feet above 
the sea. In the first part of its course the stream 
is called the Sanpo, and after it passes through 
the mountains it is known as the Dihong. It is 
then joined by the Dibong and Lohit, after which 
the united streams are known as the Brahma¬ 
putra. Its entire length is about 1800 miles, and 
it is navigable for 800 miles from the sea. 

Brahmo-somaj , brah’ma so mahj’, or the The- 
istic Church of India, a religious and social 
association in India. It was founded in 1830 by 
Rammohun Roy, an enlightened Brahman, who 
sought to purify his religion from idolatries. 
This church, while accepting what religious 
truth the Vedas may contain, rejects the idea of 
their special infallibility, and founds its faith on 
principles of reason, accepting what is good in 
all religions. The members do not in principle 
recognize the distinction of caste, but consider 
all men God’s children. They have done much 
toward educating women and abolishing child 
marriages. 

Brahms, Johannes (1833-1897), a great 
German composer, born at Hamburg and intro¬ 
duced to the world by Schumann. Though 
living at various musical centers, he rarely 
appeared in concert, devoting himself to com¬ 
position, the result being a rather conventional, 


though at times brilliant, style of composition. 
His numerous symphonies, of which the most 
famous is probably the Fourth, and his songs, 
of which Wie Bist du meine Konegin is most 
commonly heard, are among the most beautiful 
in all music. His masterpiece was the German 
Requiem, a choral work possessing solemn 
dignity and remarkable harmony. Though a 
close student of Wagner’s method, Brahms did 
not follow it, and thus became the idol of the 
anti-Wagnerian school. However, Brahms him¬ 
self was a warm admirer of Wagner’s genius. 

Brain, the center of the nervous system and 
the seat of consciousness and volition in man and 
the higher animals, comprising that portion of 
the nervous system contained within the cranial 
cavity, with 
the exception 
of such por¬ 
tions of the 
twelte cra¬ 
nial nerves as 
lie between 
the brain 
and the place 
where they 
leave the cra¬ 
nium. The 
human brain 
is larger and 
heavier, not 
only in pro¬ 
portion to the 
weight of the body, but in actual mass, 
than that of any other animal except the 
elephant and some of the whales. The 
average male European brain weighs about 
50 ounces, that of the female about 45 ounces. 
Since the height and weight of the average woman 
is about eight per cent less than that of the 
average man, it appears to be a fact that the 
average female is possessed of a smaller brain 
capacity than the average man. In the infant 
at birth the brain weighs about 10 ounces, and 
it continues to increase in size until about the 
eighth year. The weight, however, increases 
until middle life. The largest brain is said to 
have been that of Cuvier, about 64 ounces. The 
smallest brain of an intelligent individual weighs 
about 35 ounces. Among idiots, however, brains 
have been found with a weight as low as 8§ 
ounces, and, on the other hand, the brain of an 
idiot has been observed to weight as much as 60 
ounces. Among the lower races of mankind, the 
average weight is distinctly lower, ranging in 



Brainerd 


Bramante 


males from 45 to 42 ounces. The brain is 
composed of the cerebrum, cerebellum, pons 
varolii and medulla oblongata. These and other 
important pafts are shown in the cut. The 



SECTION THROUGH HEAD AND NECK 

l, medulla oblongata; 2, pons; 3, right lobe of cere¬ 
brum; 4, cerebellum in section; 5, blood vessel; 6, 
corpus striatum; 7, nasal passage; 8, nasal bone; 9, 
soft palate; 10, hard palate; 11, tongue; 12, epiglot¬ 
tis; 13, os hyoides; 14, esophagus; 15, spinal cord; 
16, larynx; 17, windpipe. 

brain is covered with a delicate membrane, the 
pia mater, which carries the blood vessels that 
supply the brain with blood. Lining the skull 
is a tough membrane, the dura mater, which 
extends downward into the fissure that separates 
the hemispheres of the cerebrum and forms a 
partition between the cerebrum and cerebellum. 
The arachnoid membrane lies between the other 
two; it receives its name from its delicate struc¬ 
ture, likened to a cobweb. The substance of 
the brain is gray and white tissue. The gray 
tissue forms an outside layer of the cerebrum 
and cerebellum, which in this respect differ from 
the medulla oblongata and the spinal cord, and 
it forms a covering for the white substance into 
which it dips in the convolutions that increase 
its surface. It varies in thickness from one- 
twelfth to one-eighth of an inch. See Cere¬ 
bellum; Cerebrum; Medulla Oblongata; 
Nervous System; Spinal Cord; Anatomy. 

Brain'erd, Minn., the county-seat of Crow 
Wing co., 115 mi. w. of Duluth, on the Missis¬ 
sippi River and on the Northern Pacific and 
the Minnesota & International railroads. It is 
in a fertile agricultural region and has a large 

27 


trade in farm produce, lumber and furs. The 
river furnishes water power for various manu¬ 
factures, and the Northern Pacific has large rail¬ 
road shops here and a hospital for its employes. 
The city also has a lumbermen’s hospital, a 
number of fine public buildings, a park and 
athletic grounds. Brainerd was chartered as a 
city in 1883. Population in 1910, 8526. 

Brain'tree, Mass., a town in Norfolk co., 
10 mi. s. of Boston, on the New York, New 
Haven & Hartford Railway. It is near granite 
quarries and contains foundries and manufac¬ 
tures of boots, shoes, leather, paper, electrical 
appliances and various other articles. Brain¬ 
tree has the Thayer Academy and the Thayer 
Public Library. It was settled in 1634 and was 
made a town six years later. Population in 
1910, including the villages of South and East 
Braintree, 8066. 

Brake, a device for stopping or retarding 
the motion of a wagon, car or machine, by press¬ 
ing a shoe against the rims of the wheels. The 
shoe is usually worked by a simple or com¬ 
pound lever, by which the pressure can be so 
regulated as to produce a slow motion or a 
sudden stop. Hand brakes on railway cars are 
set by winding a chain attached to the lever 
around an axle turned by a wheel in the hands 
of the brakeman. See Air Brake. 

Brake, a species of fern very common in 
America and Europe generally, and often cover¬ 
ing large areas 
on hillsides 
and on unfilled 
grounds. Ithas 
a black creep¬ 
ing rootstalk, 
from which 
fronds grow 
often to the 
height of sev¬ 
eral feet and 
divide into 
three branches. 

As the plants 
remain erect 
in winter, they 
form a good 
cover for game 
throughout the 
year. The rhizome is bitter, but it • has been 
eaten in times of famine. 

Bramante, bra mahn'ta, Donato (1444-1514), 
a great Italian architect. Bramante began his 
career in Milan, where his greatest work was the 






Bramble 


Brant 


choir and dome of Santa Maria delle Grazie. At 
the age of fifty-five he went to Rome, where a 
study of the great Roman monuments changed 
his style completely, and he became the leader 
of the Middle Renaissance period. He was 
patronized by the popes, and his greatest work 
was done as the first architect of the Church of 
Saint Peter. Owing to his death, his plans were 
never carried out, but they exercised a great 
influence on the work of later architects. 

Bram'ble, the name commonly applied to a 
bush with trailing prickly stems, which is called 
in Scotland, brambles, and in England, black¬ 
berry. It is rarely cultivated, but as a wild 
plant it grows in great abundance. The flowers 
do not appear till late in the summer, and the 
fruit, which is deep purple or almost black in 
color, does not ripen till autumn. 

Bran. See Flour. 

Brandenburg, brahn'den boorg, a province of 
Prussia, situated in the center of the kingdom, 
bounded on the n. by Mecklenburg, on the e. by 
Pomerania and the provinces of West Prussia and 
Posen, on the s. by the kingdom of Saxony and 
Silesia, and on the w. by the provinces of Saxony 
and Hanover. The area is 15,381 sq. mi. The 
surface is flat and is well watered by many lakes 
and rivers, including the Oder and the Elbe. 
The principal crops are barley, rye, potatoes, 
tobacco, hemp, flax and hops. Cattle-raising 
is an extensive industry and fish-culture is also 
important. The most important manufactures 
are wool, silk, linen, paper and leather. The 
chief towns are Potsdam, Konigsberg and 
Frankfort-on-the-Oder. Berlin is the capital. 
Since 1415, when Frederick of Hohenzollern 
was invested with the title of elector of Brand¬ 
enburg, the province has been under the rule of 
the present imperial dynasty of Germany. 
Elector Frederick III transformed the dominions 
into the kingdom of Prussia in 1701 and took 
the title of King Frederick I of Prussia. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 4,092,616. 

Brandes, brahn'des, Georg Morris Cohen 
(1842- ), a Danish literary critic, bom in 

Copenhagen. He was the first man to infuse 
into Danish thought and literature the ideals 
and tendencies of modern European literature, 
and his volumes have raised him to the rank of 
the foremost modem critics. Among the most 
important of his earlier work was the series of 
lectures delivered at the University of Copen¬ 
hagen and afterward published as the Main 
Literary Currents of the Nineteenth Century, 
a book which made him unpopular in Denmark 


and caused him to remove to Berlin. Among 
his later works were Danish Poets, Eminent 
Authors of the Nineteenth Century, and Men and 
Works in European Literature. 

Brandon, a city of Manitoba, Canada, on the 
Assiniboine river, the Canadian Pacific, Canad¬ 
ian Northern and Great Northern railways. 
Brandon is the seat of large flour mills, saw 
mills and farm implement factories, and is one 
of the greatest horse markets in Canada. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 13,839. 

Bran'dy, the liquor obtained by the distilla^ 
tion of wine, or the refuse of the winepress. 
It is colorless at first, but usually derives a 
brownish color from the casks in which it is 
kept, or from coloring matter added to it. The 
best brandy is made in France, particularly in 
the Cognac district in the department of Cha^ 
rente. Much of the so-called brandy sold in 
Britian and America is made from more or less 
coarse whisky, flavored and colored to resemble 
the real article; and France also exports quanti¬ 
ties of this sort of brandy. In America various 
distilled liquors get the name of brandy, as apple 
brandy, peach brandy, being named from the 
fruit from which they are made. Brandy is 
often used in medicine as a stimulant. 

Bran'dy wine, Battle of the, an important 
battle of the Revolutionary War, fought on 
Brandywine Creek, near Dilworth, N. J., Sep¬ 
tember 11, 1777. The American force of 
11,000 was commanded by General Washington, 
and it opposed a British army of 18,000 under 
General Howe. The British took the offensive, 
and by a brilliant flank movement on the part 
of Cornwallis, forced the Americans to retreat. 
The losses were about equal, but the victory 
enabled Howe to enter Philadelphia. 

Brant, Joseph (Thayendanega) (about 1742- 
1807), a Mohawk indian chief. At the age of 
thirteen he accompanied his two elder brothers, 
who took part in Sir William Johnson’s cam¬ 
paign against the French at Lake George. He 
was sent to the Rev. Eleazar Wheelock’s indian 
school at Lebanon, Conn., became interpreter 
to a missionary and was frequently employed by 
Johnson as an agent among various tribes. 
During the Revolution the Mohawks adhered 
to the British, and Brant received a commission 
in the British army, in which he attained the 
rank of colonel. He participated in the Battle 
of Oriskany, one of the bloodiest engagements 
of the war, and led the indians in many raids 
on the border settlements of New York, but he 
was not present at the massacre of Wyoming. 


Brantford 


Brass 


Brant'ford, a city of Ontario, Canada, 
situated on the Grand River and on the Grand 
Trunk railroad, 70 mi. e. of London. The city 
contains several banks, the Ontario institution 
for the education of the blind and WicklifFe 
Hall. The leading industries are the manufac¬ 
ture of mill machinery, stoneware and foundry 
products. The city is also the site of large 
railroad shops. The river is navigable, and a 
canal connects the town with Lake Erie. 
Brantford was named from the Mohawk chief 
Brant, and a fine monument was erected to his 
memory in Victoria Square. The town is the 
headquarters for the Amalgamated Tribes of the 
Six Nations. Population in 1911, 23,132. 

Brass, an alloy of copper and zinc, of a 
bright yellow color, and hard, ductile and mal¬ 
leable. The best brass consists of two parts by 
weight of copper to one of zinc; but any degree 
of variation may be obtained by altering the 
proportions; thus, by increasing the quantity of 
zinc we may form tombac and 'pinchbeck, and 
with nearly a seventh more of zinc than copper 
the compound becomes brittle and of a silver- 
white color. By increasing the copper, on the 
other hand, the compound increases in strength 
and tenacity. Brass which is to be turned or 
filed is made workable by mixing about 2 per 
cent of lead in the alloy, which has the effect of 
hardening the brass and preventing the tool from 
being clogged. For engraving purposes a little 
tin is usually mixed with the brass. As brass 
is both malleable and ductile, it may be rolled 
into sheets or drawn into fine wire. Brass tubes 
are also an important article of commerce. 

The working of brass requires considerable 
skill. First, the copper is melted in'crucibles, 
and the zinc is added in small quantities. This 
mixture must be stirred until the two metals 
are thoroughly united. The brass is usually 
then allowed to cool and is roughly cast in the 
foundry. Later the castings are again melted 
and the molten metal is poured into the molds. 

The brass molders work at troughs, in which 
is kept the molding-sand, which is so cohesive 
that it may be formed as desired. The flask 
in which the sand is packed around the pattern 
is made of two frames, one fitting over the 
other. One frame has little legs of wood, 
called dowels, and the other has holes into 
which these dowels fit, so that when these 
frames are brought together one will remain 
over the other. The frames are made of four 
pieces of wood fitted up with hinge-like corner- 
pieces. so that the frame can be unlocked and 


taken away from the sand without disturbing it. 
The molder fills one of the frames with sand. 
In the center and on top of the sand he lays the 
pattern and presses it into the sand and then 
fits the other frame over it. He shakes some 
fine sand over the pattern and fills the upper 
frame with molding-sand, which he rams down 
hard. He then scrapes the surplus sand from 
the top frame with a stick and runs a pointed 
wire into the sand toward the pattern, thus 
providing escapes for the gases which form 
when the molten metal is poured in. He then 
turns over both frames and carefully lifts the 
bottom frame, exposing the pattern imbedded in 
the same. The pattern is withdrawn by driving 
a steel pin into the wood or by means of a screw 
pin made for the purpose. If the casting is to 
be hollow, the cores are now put in place. A 
core is made of sand and paste rammed into 
molds and afterward baked in a large oven. 
When the cores are laid in place in the hollow 
space left by the pattern, the channels are 
scooped out, the frames placed together and 
the woodwork taken off; then the short board, 
with a block of sand on it, is laid on the floor. 

False core work is required for some pur¬ 
poses. A false core is a part of the mold built up 
separate from the mold proper, and, as it is in 
small pieces, it can be taken out without remov¬ 
ing the pattern. Thus a bust can be buried in 
the sand, but its rounded, irregular form, its deep- 
cut and incurving impressions, make it impos¬ 
sible to withdraw it from the sand without 
bringing part of the mold with it. This is 
avoided by making a mold out of sand packed 
so tight and hammered so close into the different 
parts of the pattern that each part can be taken 
away, and when the pattern is removed can be 
properly put together again to form the mold. 
The brass is melted in crucibles, which are lifted 
out of the furnace, carried to the molds and 
emptied into the gate, thus filling the hollow 
in the sand. 

The castings which are to be polished are 
cleaned in water and acids and then buffed or 
burnished. Sometimes they are finished by 
being dipped into solutions of nitric acid and 
water. If a dead finish is desired the acid 
solution is much weaker than if a bright finish 
is wanted. When brass is burnished, it is 
brought to a high finish by being rubbed with 
polished steel tools, or it is held against buffing 
wheels which are made of cotton. A red polish 
mixture is put on the wheel, and the high speed 
polishes the brass. This wheel, however, can 


Brasses 


Brazil 


be used only on smooth and regular surfaces. 
The brilliancy and polish of brass may be pre¬ 
served by lacquer, which is put on and dried in 
an oven. Brass is spun, stamped, pressed and 
drawn in the same manner as copper, gold or 
silver. See Bronze. 

Brass'es, Monumental, large plates of brass 
inlaid in polished slabs of stone, much used as 
tombstones during the thirteenth and fourteenth 
centuries. The figure of the person commemo¬ 
rated was represented either in a carved outline 
on the plate or in the form of the plate itself. 
Occasionally an ornamented cross took the place 
of the figure. The earliest example of these 
monumental slabs now existing in England is 
that on the tomb of Sir John d’Aubernoun 
(1277), at Stoke Dabemon in Surrey. These 
brasses are of great value in giving an exact 
picture of the costume of the time to which 
they belong. 

Bras'sey, Thomas (1805-1870), an English 
railway contractor and surveyor. His opera¬ 
tions were on an immense scale and extended 
to most of the European countries, as well as 
to America, India and Australia, one of his 
greatest works being the Grand Trunk Railway 
of Canada, with the great Victoria bridge over 
the Saint Lawrence at Montreal. 

Brattleboro, brat't'l bur'ro, Vt., a town in 
Windham co., 60 mi. n. of Springfield, on the 
Connecticut River, and on the Boston & Maine 
and the Central Vermont railroads. It has a 
picturesque location, and it contains tfie Brooks 
public library, Glenwood Academy and the 
state asylum for the insane. The manufactures 
include organs, carriages, furniture and machin¬ 
ery. Brattleboro was chartered in 1753 and 
takes its name from William Brattle of Massa¬ 
chusetts, one of the original grantees. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 6517. 

Brazil', Ind., the county-seat of Clay co., 
16 mi. n. e. of Terre Haute, on the Chicago & 
Eastern 'Illinois and several other railroads. 
Coal mining is the chief industry. There are 
also manufactories of mining machinery, and 
clay products from the extensive deposits in the 
neighborhood. The city was settled in 1856, 
and was incorporated in 1873. It has a public 
library, and it owns and operates its water¬ 
works. Population in 1910, 9340. 

Brazil, The United States of, a republic 
of South America, extending from 5° north 
latitude to 34° south latitude, and from 35° to 
74° west longitude. Its greatest length from 
north to south is 2600 miles, from east to west, 


2700 miles, and its area is 3,218,000 square 
miles, or a little less than that of the United 
States, exclusive of Alaska and island posses¬ 
sions. It is larger than Australia with Tasmania, 
and includes more than one-half of the area of 
South America. It is bounded on the n. e. and 
s. e. by the Atlantic Ocean, and on the n. w. 
and s. w. by all the countries of South America 
except Argentina and Chile. 

Surface and Drainage. The surface con¬ 
sists of three distinct regions: the Brazilian 
Plateau, with ranges of mountains on the east; 
the Amazon Basin, which includes nearly all of 
the interior and extends to the western bound¬ 
aries, and the Guiana Plateau, which includes 
that portion of the country north of the Amazon. 
A number of parallel ranges of low mountains 
extend across the eastern portion of the Bra¬ 
zilian Plateau. The first of these is parallel 
with the southeastern coast. None of them is 
high, and the extreme altitude does not exceed 
7000 feet. South of these mountains are a few 
short ranges extending in a northwest and south¬ 
west direction and separating the basin of the 
Parana from that of the Paraguay. A low range 
of land, from 30 to 50 miles wide, extends east 
and west from these ranges of mountains and 
separates the basins of the Parana and Para¬ 
guay from those of the Amazon and the San 
Francisco. This is generally known as the 
“height of land.” West of the mountain ranges 
the plateau extends to the basin of the Madeira, 
and it is in many places deeply cut by river 
valleys. The valley of the Paraguay is low and 
swampy. 

Along the lower course of the Amazon the 
basin is from 50 to 150 miles wide, but it expands 
as it extends inland, until it includes all of the 
northwestern part of Brazil. As far as known, 
this interior is a flat plain, seldom exceeding 300 
feet in altitude, and in some places the flood 
plain exceeds 150 miles in width. During hig h 
water the Amazon is connected with the Para¬ 
guay through the swamps of the Paraguay 
Valley. The Guiana Plateau includes the 
country north of the Amazon and extends from 
the Rio Negro to the Atlantic. Its northern 
border is formed by the Akrai Mountains, and 
from these the land slopes gradually to the 
Amazon. 

The Amazon and its tributaries drain about 
two-thirds of the country and constitute the 
largest system of navigable rivers in the world. 
Nearly all streams belonging to the system are 
navigable for large steamers throughout the 


Brazil 


Brazil 


year. Several of those entering the Amazon in 
its lower course have their navigation obstructed 
by the fall line at the edge of the plateau, but 
those farther inland are free from obstructions 
for long distances. The entire mileage of the 
system is estimated at 19,000 miles, 13,000 of 
which are open to navigation. The Parana and 
Paraguay drain about one-fourth of the country, 
and the San Francisco and other short streams 
the remainder. The Rio Negro connects with 
the Orinoco through the Cassiquiare. See 
Amazon; Madeira River; Tocantins; San 
Francisco. 

Mineral Resources. Formerly Brazil was 
the leading country in the production of gold and 
diamonds, but the deposits of gold were found 
in sand and gravel along the rivers, and these 
have all been exhausted, and the opening of 
diamond mines in South Africa caused the 
Brazilian diamond mines to decline. There are 
precious stones, such as agate and carnelian, and 
petrified wood in considerable quantities. Of 
the useful metals there are ores of lead, copper, 
silver and iron. Lignite of an inferior quality 
has been found in a number of places, but as yet 
none of these deposits of coal or ore has been 
worked to any extent. The mining regions are 
located among the mountains in the states 
forming the southern and southeastern portions 
of the country. 

Climate. With the exception of the two 
most southerly states, Brazil lies wholly within the 
tropical regions; yet, owing to the modifying 
influences of altitude and winds, the temperature 
seldom exceeds 95° and is remarkably even in 
most portions of the country throughout the year. 
Most of the country receives a very heavy rain¬ 
fall; those portions of the Amazon basin near 
the coast have an annual rainfall of from 75 to 
100 inches, but farther inland the fall increases 
in certain localities to from 300 to 400 inches. 
The plateau on the east also receives an abun¬ 
dance of moisture, but the states immediately 
south of the Amazon near its mouth receive less 
rainfall than other portions of the country and 
occasionally suffer from prolonged droughts, as 
do certain portions of the interior. Most of the 
rain falls between January and June, while from 
June to October the weather is comparatively 
clear and dry. 

Agriculture. In the southeastern portion 
and along the Amazon there are extensive areas 
of fertile land, but the land on the plateau in the 
interior has not been found suitable for agri¬ 
cultural purposes, though it forms good grazing 


land. Only a small portion of the fertile land 
is under cultivation, and the methods of tillage 
are very primitive. Coffee is by far the largest 
and most profitable crop, and in the raising of 
this Brazil leads the world. The crop next in 
importance is sugar, followed in their order by 
tobacco and cotton, while in all of the agricultural 
districts corn, rice, vegetables and tonka beans 
are grown for home purposes. Sweet potatoes, 
yams, farina and maize are also raised in some 
portions of the country. 

The forest regions include the great forests of 
the Amazon, which in many sections are choked 
with a growth of tropical vegetation that is 
impenetrable. These are the largest forests in 
the world, and they supply the inhabitants with 
many valuable products. It is from the Amazon 
valley that a large quantity of rubber is gathered 
each year, while from the forests in the southeast 
drugs, lumber, dyewood and nuts are obtained. 

Manufactures. The manufactures are small, 
but are gradually increasing in number and 
importance. They include those industries re¬ 
quired for manufacturing raw material and for the 
reduction of ores. Among these the manufacture 
of cotton and woolen goods is the most important. 
In the states of Bahia and Pernambuco there are 
a large number of sugar refineries, and the manu¬ 
facture of tobacco products is assuming con¬ 
siderable importance. Machine shops, foundries 
and tanneries are found in some of the larger 
cities, but many lines of manufacturing are 
hindered for lack of suitable fuel. 

Transportation. Most of the large towns 
in the southern and eastern states are connected 
by railway, and numerous short lines extend from 
the coast inland to the fertile agricultural regions. 
In all, the country has now 16,200 miles of rail¬ 
way, of which nearly 2000 miles are owned and 
operated by the government, and nearly one- 
third of the remainder is operated under a 
guarantee of government interest. Roads are 
few and poor, and in the interior there are prac¬ 
tically no roads. The means of communication 
are either by water or by trails. Because of her 
extended system of navigable rivers, Brazil has 
encouraged shipbuilding, and the country now 
has an excellent merchant marine, which is ade¬ 
quate to all demands for domestic commerce. 
There are also a few lines of Brazilian steamers 
devoted to foreign trade. Mail facilities are 
fair, and the country has over 20,000 miles of 
telegraph lines. 

The commerce is quite extensive amounting 
to over $600,000,000 a year. Coffee forms 


Brazil 


Brazil 


three-fourths of the value of exports and one- 
third of the total commerce. About two-thirds 
of the coffee is sent to the United States. The 
other leading exports are sugar, rubber, cotton, 
hides, tobacco and cocoa. Exports of lesser 
importance consist of dyes, cabinet woods, gold, 
diamonds and other precious stones. The 
imports consist of manufactured goods of all 
kinds, foodstuffs, including wheat, flour, corn, 
dressed meat, butter, lard, olive oil and wines. 
Great Britain, Germany, France and the United 
States are the leading countries engaged in 
foreign trade. 

Inhabitants and Language. The white 
inhabitants constitute less than half of the 
population and are largely of Portuguese descent, 
though mingled with them are immigrants from 
Germany, Italy and Spain, with a slight sprin¬ 
kling of those from Great Britain and the United 
States. About one-third of the inhabitants are 
half-breeds, one-seventh negroes and one-tenth 
indians, some of whom are still living in the savage 
state. Portuguese is the prevailing language, 
though some of the native tribes still retain the 
indian tongue. 

Education. While every parish is supposed 
to provide a primary school for boys and another 
for girls, but little attention is paid to the law, 
and" nearly 80 per cent of the inhabitants are 
illiterate. In the more densely populated states 
of the south and along the eastern coasts school 
privileges are better. In these states and in the 
large cities, there are both elementary schools 
and schools corresponding to the high schools and 
academies in the United States. There are also 
schools of medicine, law and science, and the 
government sustains four military schools and 
a naval academy. 

Government and Religion. The govern¬ 
ment is a federal republic comprising twenty 
states and one federal district. It is based on 
a constitution which very closely resembles that 
of the United States. The executive power is 
vested in a president and vice-president, and 
six ministers, who are at the head, respectively, 
of the departments of finance; war; industry, 
railways and public works; foreign affairs; 
navy; and interior and justice. The legislative 
department consists of a Senate and House of 
Representatives. The Senate consists of three 
members from each state, elected by the people 
for nine years, the terms of one-third of the 
senators expiring every three years. The House 
of Representatives consists of deputies elected 
by popular vote for four years, and apportioned 


to the states according to population. The 
judicial power is vested in a national Supreme 
Court, consisting of fifteen judges appointed by 
the president and confirmed by the Senate. 
Each state has its own governor and legislature 
and is in many respects more independent than 
are the states of the American Union, since the 
states of Brazil have the privilege of treating 
with foreign powers concerning commercial 
affairs, and any state may divide its territory into 
other states or two or more states may consoli¬ 
date. Each state is divided into municipalities 
and districts for the purpose of local government. 

The Church and State are entirely separated. 
While all faiths are tolerated, over 90 per cent 
of the inhabitants are Roman Catholics, and the 
government provides for the maintenance of 
the Roman Catholic Church. 

Cities. The most important cities are Rio 
de Janeiro, the capital,' Bahia, Sao Paulo, 
Pernambuco, Belem and Porto Alegre, each of 
which is described under its title. 

History. Brazil was first seen by Vicente 
Pinzon in 1500. Between 1532 and 1535 the 
country extending from 30° south to the equator 
was divided into twelve districts whose boundaries 
extended westward without limit. These dis¬ 
tricts were granted to independent captains for 
colonization, but the plan failed and the claims 
reverted to the Portuguese crown. The early 
settlers enslaved the natives, and in 1549, when 
Jesuit missionaries began to work among tki 
indians, the settlers entered a protest against 
this practice. After a prolonged conflict, in 
1680 slavery of the indians was abolished, but 
negro slavery took its place. 

From 1580 to 1640 the country was in the 
possession of Spain. In 1691 gold was dis¬ 
covered, and diamonds were found about twenty 
years later. These discoveries led to a rapid 
increase in the number of settlers. At the 
invasion of Portugal in 1807 by the French, 
Brazil became the residence of the royal family 
and was for fourteen years the seat of government. 
When King John VI returned, he left his oldest 
son, Dom Pedro, as prince regent of Brazil but 
in 1822 the country proclaimed her independence 
and made the regent emperor. Dom Pedro -was 
succeeded by his son, Dom Pedro H, who was 
invested with the crown at fifteen years of age. 
He proved a wise and able ruler, and during his 
long administration the country made rapid 
advancement; but notwithstanding Dom Pedro’s 
excellent rule, there was a growing desire for a 
republican form of government, and in 1889 the 


Brazilwood 


Bread 


royal family retired to Portugal, and the present 
government was organized. Population in 
1911, about 21,000,000. Consult Burton’s 
Explorations of the Highlands of Brazil. 

Brazil'wood, a kind of wood yielding a red 
dye, obtained from several trees native of the 
West Indies and Central and South America. 
The wood is hard and heavy, and as it takes on 
a fine polish it is used by cabinet-makere for 
various purposes. The dye is obtained by 
reducing the wood to powder and boiling it in 
water. 

Brazos, brah'zose, a river of Texas, formed by 
the junction of Clear and Salt forks. It flows 
southeast by a winding course and empties into 
the Gulf of Mexico, 40 mi. s. w. of Galveston. 
It is the largest river of the state, has a length of 
900 miles and is navigable during high water for 
300 miles, and at all seasons for 40 miles from the 
Gulf. 

Brazza, braht'sa, an island situated in the 
northern part of the Adriatic Sea and forming a 
part of the province of Dalmatia of Austria- 
Hungary. Its area is 150 square miles. The 
surface is somewhat mountainous, but the soil 
is fertile and on the slopes of the mountains 
produces olives, figs, grapes and other semi- 
tropical fruits, while grain is grown on the lower 
lands. A celebrated marble quarry is also 
located here. Population about 25,000. 

Bread, bred, the flour or meal of grain, kneaded 
with water into a tough and consistent paste, and 
baked. There are numerous kinds of bread, 
according to materials and methods of prepara¬ 
tion; but all may be divided into two classes: 
fermented, leavened or raised, and unfermented, 
unleavened, not raised. The latter is the sim¬ 
pler, and no doubt was the original, kind, and is 
still exemplified by biscuits, the oat cakes of 
Scotland, the com bread of America, the dampers 
of the Australian colonies and the still ruder 
bread of savage races. It was probably by 
accident that the method of bringing the paste 
into a state of fermentation was discovered, by 
which its toughness is almost entirely destroyed, 
and it becomes porous, palatable and digestible. 
All the cereals are used in making bread, each 
zone using those which are native to it. Thus 
maize, millet and rice are used for the purpose in 
the hotter countries; rye, barley and oats in the 
colder, and wheat in the intermediate or more 
temperate regions. 

In the most advanced countries bread is made 
from wheat, which makes the lightest and most 
spongy bread. The fermentation necessary for 


ordinary loaf-bread is generally produced by 
means of leaven, or yeast. Most bakers use 
the compressed yeast, which ia dissolved in 
warm water and poured into the “mixer.” 
Enough flour is added to make a thin paste. 
This is left two or three hours to ferment, and 
then the sponge is ready to be made into dough. 
Salt is put in the sponge, then milk, lard and 
sugar, and finally enough flour to make a good 
stiff dough. The mixer is a semi-cylindrical 
trough, about four feet long, in which is a shaft 
with iron arms running spirally around it, and 
this becomes a kneading machine when the 
dough is made up and the sponger shifts the belt 
to the tight pulley. The iron arms revolve in 
the trough, working the dough over and over. 
The dough is sliced from the arms of the machine 
as it drags through the mass, thus allowing it to 
work every particle of dough. From this 
trough the dough is put into deep wooden 
troughs, where it is kept covered for two or 
three hours. During this time it is carefully 
watched, and now and then it is “beaten down” 
by two men, who pass their arms into the dough. 
The dough is then taken frcm the trough and 
thrown on to a bench. One of the benchmen 
cuts off a batch of dough weighing about, fifteen 
pounds and places it in a dividing machine, 
which forces a number of cutting edges up 
through the dough, dividing it into twelve equal 
parts. These are torn apart and tossed on to 
a bench, where they are quickly kneaded and 
molded into round loaves, which are placed in 
wooden boxes, where they remain for some time. 
Then the dough is taken out and worked again, 
after which it is nicely molded into loaves and 
placed in pans 9 inches long, 4J inches high 
and 4£ inches wide. In a short time these are 
placed in the oven. An ordinary baker’s oven 
is about sixteen feet in diameter, and is circular 
in shape. The bottom of the oven is made of 
soapstone and revolves over the fire. The pans 
containing the dough are placed in the oven by 
means of a large wooden paddle. The oven 
will hold about three hundred fifty loaves, and 
will bake them in about a half hour. As soon 
as the loaves are brought from the oven they are 
removed from the pans and taken to a cool, dry 
room, whence they go to the wagons for delivery. 

Vienna bread is made by a process which dif¬ 
fers from the above in some respects. Instead 
of being put into boxes the dough is rolled into 
long, slim pieces, and each piece is wrapped 
in canvas bagging and laid away until ready 
for the oven. Then the canvas is removed and 


Breadfruit 


Breccia 


the loaves are laid directly on the bottom of the 
oven, and not in pans. Before it is placed in 
the oven each loaf is washed with a cornstarch 
preparation, and three slices are made along 
the top of the loaf with a keen knife. When 
the loaves are laid on the soapstone, the oven 
is charged with steam, and this, with the corn¬ 
starch preparation, gives Vienna bread its 
peculiar crisp crust. About two hundred fifty 
loaves of bread are made from a barrel of flour, 
and the average loaf is supposed to weigh a 
pound. 

Aerated bread, so called, because made with 
aerated water, that is, water strongly impreg¬ 
nated with carbonic acid under pressure, is 
unleavened bread, the dough being also worked 
up under pressure and caused to expand by the 
carbonic acid when the pressure is removed. 
Brown or whole-flour bread is considered to be 
very wholesome. It is made from undressed 
wheat and consequently contains the bran as 
well as the flour. 



BREADFRUIT 


Bread'fruit, a large round fruit of a pale- 
green color, six or eight inches in diameter, 
marked on the surface with irregular six-sided 
depressions, and containing a white and some¬ 
what stringy pulp, which when ripe becomes 
juicy and yellow. The tree that produces it 
grows on the islands of the Indian and South 
Pacific oceans. It is about forty feet high, with 
large and spreading branches and large, bright 
green leaves over a foot in length. The fruit is 
generally eaten immediately after being gathered, 


but it is also often prepared so as to keep for 
some time, either by baking it whole in close, 
underground pits, or by heating it into paste 
and storing it underground, where ,a slight 
fermentation takes place. The eatable part lies 
between the skin and the core and is somewhat 
of the consistency of new bread. Mixed with 
cocoanut milk it makes an excellent pudding. 
The inner bark of the tree is made into a kind 
of cloth. The wood, when seasoned closely 
resembles mahogany and is used for the build¬ 
ing of boats and for furniture. The jack much 
used in India and Ceylon is another member of 
this genus. 

Bread'-nuts, the seeds of a tree of the same 
order as the breadfruit (See Breadfruit). The 
bread-nut tree is a native of Jamaica. Its wood, 
which resembles mahogany, is useful to cabinet¬ 
makers, and its nuts make a pleasant food, in 
taste not unlike hazelnuts. 

Break'water, a work constructed in front of 
a harbor to serve as a protection against the 
violence of the waves. The name may also be 
given to any structure which is erected in the 
sea, with the object of breaking the force of the 
waves without and producing a calm within. 
Breakwaters are usually constructed by sinking 
loads of unwrought stone along the line where 
they are to be laid, and allowing them to settle 
under the action of the waves. When the mass 
rises to the surface, or near it, it is surmounted 
with a pile of masonry, sloped outwards in such 
a manner as will best enable it to resist the action 
of the waves. The great breakwaters are those 
of Cherbourg in France, Plymouth in England, 
Delaware Bay and Buffalo in America. In less 
important localities floating breakwaters are 
occasionally used. These are built of strong 
open woodwork, partly above and partly under 
water, divided into several sections and secured 
by chains attached to fixed bodies. The break¬ 
ers lose nearly all their force in passing through 
the beams of such a structure. 

Breccia, brech'chah, a variety of conglomerate 
rock, composed of fragments of the same or 
different rocks, united by another mineral which 
serves as a cement. The cement is usually some 
compound of lime or silica. Some of the vari¬ 
eties of marble are a calcareous breccia, in 
which fragments of the same rock have been so 
cemented together as to form a beautifully 
mottled surface when polished. Breccia having 
peculiar markings is found in Spain and some 
other countries of the Mediterranean. When 
the cement is strong, so as to form a hard rock, 



Breche de Roland 

breccia is highly prized for finishing interiors. 
Occasionally formations contain fossils, and all 
are interesting on account of their peculiar 
appearance. Pudding stone is a variety of 
breccia in which rounded stones or pebbles 
take the place of angular fragments. 

Breche de Roland, bresh de ro lahN ', that 
is, the breach of Roland, a mountain pass in the 
Pyrenees, between France and Spain, a few 
miles west of Mont Perdu, which, according to 
a well-known legend, was opened up by Roland, 
one of the paladins of Charlemagne, with one 
blow of his sword Durandal, in order to afford 
a passage to his army. It is an immense gap 
in the rocky, mountain barrier. 

Breck'enridge, John Cabell (1821-1875), 
an American soldier and statesman. He was 
educated at Center College, Ky., and began the 



JOHN C. BRECKENRIDGE 


practice of law. He served in the Mexican War 
as major of a volunteer regiment. On his 
return he was elected to the Kentucky legisla¬ 
ture and to Congress in 1851 and 1853 as a 
Democrat. In 1856 he became vice-president 
of the United States, with Buchanan as president, 
and in 1860 was nominated for president by the 
extreme Southern .Democrats who withdrew 
from the national convention that was held in 
Charleston, S. C. He received the electoral 
vote of all the slave states, except Virginia, Ken¬ 
tucky, Tennessee and Missouri. In 1861 he 


Breeding 

took his seat in the United States Senate as suc¬ 
cessor to John J. Crittenden of Kentucky, but 
resigned December 4, to enter the Confederate 
army, in which he was first appointed brigadier 
general, then major general. He commanded 
the Confederate reserve at Shiloh and the right 
wing of General Braxton Bragg’s reserve at 
Murfreesboro. He served at Chilkamauga and 
Chattanooga, at Cold Harbor, in Early’s advance 
on Washington, and shared in his defeat by 
Sheridan near Winchester, Va., September, 
1864. From January till April, 1865, he was 
secretary of war in Jefferson Davis s cabinet, 
and after the downfall of the Confederacy he 
went to Europe. He returned to Kentucky in 
1868 and practiced law until his death. 

Breckinridge, William Campbell Pres¬ 
ton (1837-1904), an American congressman 
and orator, born at Baltimore, Md. He gradu¬ 
ated from Center College, Ky., in 1855, and two 
years later graduated in law from the University 
of Louisville. He served as colonel of a Ken¬ 
tucky cavalry regiment in the Confederate army. 
He was a member of Congress from 1884 to 
1895, as a “gold democrat.” 

Breda, bra dah', a town in Holland, province 
of North Brabant. Breda was once a strong 
fortress and of great military importance as a 
strategical position. From the sixteenth to the 
end of the eighteenth century it had an inter¬ 
esting military history of sieges, assaults and 
captures. It is celebrated for the association 
of nobles formed in 1566 under the name of 
“Compromise of Breda,” and for the peace 
signed there in 1667 between England and 
Holland. Population in 1910, 27,445. 

Breech. The breech is the solid mass of 
metal behind the bore of a gun, that by 
which the shock of the explosion is principally 
sustained. In breech-loading arms the charge 
is introduced here, there being a mechanism 
by which the breech can be opened and closed. 
In small arms the advantages of breech-loading 
for rapidity of fire and facility of cleaning 
have recently recommended it to general, use, 
and its efficacy for military purposes was effect¬ 
ively demonstrated by the Prussian campaign 
against Denmark and Austria in 1864 and 1866. 
Since that time every government has adopted 
the new system, both in small arms and heavy 
ordnance, while beerch-loading sporting, arms 
are also in general use. 

Breed'ing, the art of improving races or 
breeds of domestic animals and plants, or modi¬ 
fying them in certain directions, by continuous 



Bremen 


Brescia 


attention to their pairing in the case of the 
former and to cross-fertilization in the latter. 
Animals show great susceptibility of modifica¬ 
tion under systematic cultivation; and there can 
be no doubt that by such cultivation the sum 
of desirable qualities in particular races has 
been greatly increased. Individual specimens 
are produced possessing more good qualities 
than can be found in any one specimen of the 
original stock; and from the same stock many 
varieties are taken characterized by different 
perfections, the germs of all of which may have 
been in the original stock but could not have 
been developed at the same time in a single 
specimen. 

When an effort is made to develop rapidly, or 
to its extreme limit, any particular quality, it is 
always made at the expense of some other 
quality, or of other qualities generally, by which 
the intrinsic value of the result is necessarily 
affected. High speed in horses, for example, is 
only attained at the expense of a sacrifice of 
strength and power of endurance. So the cele¬ 
brated merino sheep are the result of a system 
of breeding which reduces the general size and 
vigor of the animal and diminishes the value 
of the carcass. Much care and judgment, 
therefore, are needed in breeding, not only in 
order to produce a particular effect, but also 
to produce it with the least sacrifice of other 
qualities. 

Breeding, as a means of improving domestic 
animals, has been practiced more or less sys¬ 
tematically wherever any attention has been 
paid to the care of live stock, and nowhere 
have more satisfactory results been obtained 
than in Great Britain. The United States, 
France and Germany have also attained a high 
distinction by their development of high-bred 
live stock. 

Bre'men, a free city of Germany, an independ¬ 
ent member of the Empire, one of the three 
Hanse towns, on the Weser, about 50 mi. from 
its mouth. Here are the cathedral, founded 
about 1050, the old Gothic council house, the 
townhall, the merchants’ house and the old and 
the new exchange. The city abounds in many 
interesting old and modern public monuments 
and statues. The manufacturing establishments 
consist of tobacco and cigar factories, sugar 
refineries, rice mills, iron foundries, machine 
works, rope and sail works and ship-building 
yards. Its situation renders Bremen the empo¬ 
rium for Hanover, Brunswick, Hesse and other 
countries traversed by the Weser, and next to 


Hamburg it is the principal seat of the export and 
import and emigration trade of Germany. 

Bremen was made a bishopric by Charlemagne 
about 788, was afterward made an archbishopric 
and by the end of the fourteenth century had 
become virtually a free, imperial city. Bremen 
was a free port until 1888, when it was incor¬ 
porated in the Imperial Zollverein. The con¬ 
stitution is in most respects republican. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 246,827. 

Bremer, bra'mur, Fredrika (1801-1865), a 
Swedish novelist. She wrote an account of her 
travels in the United States, in Italy, Greece and 
Palestine; but her fame rests chiefly on her 
novels, among the best of which are Neighbors, 
The President's Daughters, Nina and Strife and 
Peace. These have been translated into English 
by Mary Howitt. 

Brenham, bren'am, Tex., the county-seat of 
Washington co., 75 mi. n. w. of Houston, on the 
Gulf, Colorado & Santa F6 and the Houston & 
Texas Central railroads. The city is in an 
agricultural and cotton-growing region, and it 
has cotton and cotton-seed oil mills, and found¬ 
ries, machine shops and wood-working factories. 
There are two parks of note, besides a fair 
grounds. The Blim Memorial and Evangelical 
Lutheran colleges are located here. Brenham 
was settled in 1844 and was first incorporated 
in 1866. Population in 1910, 5000. 

Brent Goose, a wild goose, inhabiting most 
of the northern hemisphere, remarkable for its 
length of wing and the extent of its migratory 
power. It appears along the Mississippi in the 
autumn, but at the approach of spring it migrates 
farther north, where it breeds. 

Brescia, bresh'shah, a city of northern Italy, 
capital of a province of the same name, 52 mi. e. 
of Milan. Among its chief buildings are the new 
cathedral, the Rotonda, or old cathedral, the 
city hall, called La Loggia, and the Broletto, or 
courts. Besides these, there are a museum of 
antiquities, a botanic garden, a fine public 
library and a theater Near the town are large 
iron works, and the firearms made here are 
esteemed the best that are made in Italy. There 
are also silk, linen and paper factories, tanyards 
and oil mills. Brescia was the seat of a school 
of painting of great merit. The city was orig¬ 
inally the town of the Cenomanni, and it became 
the seat of a Roman colony under Augustus about 
15 B. c. In the Middle Ages it rose to be an 
important city republic, and in the beginning of 
the fifteenth century it was under the protection 
of Venice. In 1815 it was assigned to Austria by 


Breslau 


Brewing 


the Vienna Treaty, and in 1859, to Sardinia by 
the Treaty of Zurich. Population in 1911, 
83,323. 

Breslau, bres’low, a city in the German 
Empire, excelled in population only by Berlin, 
is the capital of the province of Silesia, and is 
situated on the Oder. The public squares and 
buildings are handsome, and the fortifications 
have been converted into fine promenades. The 
cathedral, built in the twelfth century, the 
Stadthaus, the Church of Saint Elizabeth, and 
the Rathhaus, or town hall, a Gothic structure 
of about the fourteenth century, are among the 
most remarkable buildings. There is a flour¬ 
ishing university, with a museum, a library of 
400,000 volumes, an observatory and other 
buildings. Breslau has manufactures of machin¬ 
ery, railway carriages, furniture and cabinet 
ware, cigars, spirits and liquors, wool, linens, 
musical instruments, porcelain and glass, and 
carries on an extensive trade. It was the seat of 
a bishopric by the year 1000, and in the Middle 
Ages it was ruled successively by the kings of 
Poland, the dukes of Breslau and the kings of 
Bohemia. In 1741 it was conquered by Fred¬ 
erick II of Prussia. Population in 1910, 510,929. 

Brest, a seaport in northwestern France, 389 
mi. w. of Paris by rail. It has one of the best 
harbors in France and is the chief station of the 
French marine. The entrance is narrow and 
rocky, and the coast on both sides is well fortified. 
Brest stands on the summit and sides of a pro¬ 
jecting ridge, many of the streets being exceed¬ 
ingly steep. Several of the docks have been cut 
into the solid rock, and a breakwater extends far 
into the roadstead. The manufactures of Brest 
are inconsiderable, but it has an extensive trade 
in cereals, wine, brandy, sardines, mackerel and 
colonial goods. Population in 1911, 90,540. 

Breton, bre toN', Jules Adolph (1827-1906), 
a French painter, born at Corriferes. His genius 
lay in depicting the life of the peasants among 
whom he was born. His works are characterized 
by tender feeling, but they lack that strength 
and power which mark Millet’s work. Among 
Breton's principal paintings are Blessing the 
Grain; Return of the Gleaners, his most cele¬ 
brated work; Planting a Calvary, and Song of 
the hark, also very popular. Breton also wrote 
both poetry and prose. Among his literary 
works are Jeanne. The Life of an Artist, A 
Peasant Painter and The Fields and the Sea. 

Bre'viary, a book containing all the ordinary 
and daily services of the Roman Catholic Church, 
except those connected with the celebration of 


the Eucharist, contained in the Missal, and 
those for special occasions, as funerals, baptisms, 
marriages, contained in the Ritual or Pontifical. 

Brew'er, David Josiah (1837-1910), an 
American jurist, bom at Smyrna, Asia Minor, 
the son of an American missionary. He gradu¬ 
ated at Yale in 1856, studied law with his uncle, 
David Dudley Field, graduated at Albany Law 
School in 1858 and practiced in Leavenworth, 
Kan., where he served successively as probate 
judge, district judge and justice of the state 
supreme court. He resigned the last position in 
1884, after fourteen years’ service, to become 
United States circuit judge. President Harrison 
appointed him associate justice of the United 
States Supreme Court in 1889, and he was a 
member of the Venezuelan Boundary Commis¬ 
sion and arbitration tribunal. 

Brewing, in its broadest sense, the process of 
manufacturing liquors not made by distillation. 
In the United States the term is restricted to the 
manufacture of malt liquors. The first process 
in brewing is malting. This consists in causing 
the grain to germinate for the purpose of changing 
the starch into sugar. The grain is cleaned and 
then placed in large tanks of cold water, where 
it remains for three or four days. This step in 
the process is known as steeping. From the 
steeping tanks the grain is taken to the malt 
house, where it is spread upon the floors to the 
depth of ten or twelve inches and is allowed to 
remain until the sprouts appear. The grain is 
then removed to the dry kiln, where it is heated 
to 100° F. for pale malt and 150° for brown malt. 
The heating arrests germination and leaves the 
malt dry and crisp. 

The malt is then crushed or roughly ground in 
a mill and thoroughly mixed with hot water, 
for mi ng what is known as the mash. This is 
placed in a tank, where it is heated to 170°. The 
tanks are provided with mechanical mixers which 
constantly stir the liquid. After remaining in 
the mash tanks for two or three hours, the liquid 
is drawn off and is known as the wort. This is 
placed in copper boilers and boiled with hops, 
after which it is drawn off and cooled and run 
into vats containing yeast. In these vats fer¬ 
mentation takes place. After the fermentation 
has proceeded to the' proper stage, the liquor is 
run into barrels or larger casks and placed in 
cool cellars. 

In the United States barley is the grain most 
extensively used in the manufacture of malt 
liquors, but wheat, oats or other grains may be 
used. The kind of liquor depends largely upon 


Brewster 


Brick 


the treatment of the malt, the quantity of hops 
used and the stage in which fermentation is 
arrested. See Ale; Beer; Chica. 

Brew'ster, Sir David (1781-1868), a Scotch 
physicist, one of the greatest scientists of the 
nineteenth century. He was educated for the 
ministry, but gave this work up to study science, 
to which he was first attracted by the lectures of 
Robson and Playfair. In 1808 he became editor 
of the Edinburgh, Encyclopedia and the next year, 
in conjunction with Jameson, founded the 
Edinburgh Philosophical Journal, which later 
became the Edinburgh Journal of Science. 
Brewster was one of the founders of the British 
Association for the Advancement of Science and 
was its president in 1850. In 1838 he was 
chosen principal of the united colleges of Saint 
Leonard and Saint Salvador at Saint Andrews, 
and later he was made principal of the Univer¬ 
sity of Edinburgh. Among his inventions were 
the polyzonal lens, the kaleidoscope and the 
improved stereoscope. His chief works are a 
Treatise on the Kaleidoscope , Letters on Natural 
Magic, Martyrs of Science and Life of Newton. 

Brewster, William (1560-1644), the leader 
of the Mayflower Pilgrims, born at Scrooby and 
educated at Cambridge. He left the Established 
Church and founded a separate society in his 
house. In 1608 he went to Holland and opened 
a school at Leyden. He was made ruling elder 
and conducted the Pilgrims in the Mayflower to 
Plymouth, Mass., in 1620. Brewster was their 
only spiritual teacher for some years, but he did 
not administer the sacraments. He is venerated 
as the ruling spirit in the earliest New England 
colony. 

Bri'bery, in law, the offering or giving of 
reward for the purpose of inducing the receiver 
to act unlawfully in favor of the giver. It is 
especially common in connection with public 
service. A bribe need not be money, but may 
consist of anything which constitutes a satis¬ 
faction, such as property, position or service. 
Before the law, both parties to the transaction 
are held equally guilty, and large fines and even 
imprisonment are the punishments inflicted. 

Brice, brise, Calvin Stewart (1845-1898), 
an American lawyer and politician, bom in Ohio. 
He graduated at Miami University in 1863, served 
in the Union army during part of the war'and 
practiced law for a time, but soon engaged in 
business, being connected with numerous rail¬ 
roads, the most important being one projected 
between Hankow and Canton, China, in the 
promotion of which he was interested at the time 


of his death. He was a Democrat in politics, 
was chairman of the national committee in 1889 
and in the following year became a leading 
member of the United States Senate. 

Brick, a sort of artificial stone, made by 
molding a mixture of clay and sand and drying 
it in the sun or baking or burning in a kiln. 
Bricks are of great antiquity, and sun-dried 
bricks have been found in Egypt, Assyria, Baby¬ 
lonia and many other ancient countries. Many 
of these bricks contain inscriptions which are of 
great historic value, since they constitute the 
only known record of people and events of the 
time in which they were made. The Romans 
also made and used bricks, and it was through 
these people that the art- of brick-making was 
introduced into England. 

In the manufacture of brick a good clay 
should be selected. This should be free from 
the remains of animals and plants and should 
contain but little iron or lime. The clay should 
also contain about one part sand to two parts 
clay. If this proportion of sand is not present, 
enough needs to be added to make the required 
proportion. The clay is usually dug in the fall 
and spread upon the ground in small heaps, 
where it lies exposed to the weather and frost 
during the winter. By this means it is broken 
into small pieces and can thus be the more 
easily handled. The . clay and sand in proper 
proportions are ground with water into a plastic 
mass, which is forced out of the machine through 
an opening that forms a column having the 
length and width of a brick. As this column 
comes from the machine it is cut by wires into 
bricks of the required thickness. These fall 
upon an endless belt that carries them either to 
a machine for re-pressing or to tram cars that 
take them to the drying sheds or drying tunnels, 
according to the plan of the plant. The bricks 
intended for finishing or facing either outside or 
inside walls are re-pressed in a steel mold to 
give them a smooth finish and sharp edges and 
corners. A good machine will make 100,000 
bricks in a day. 

The bricks are burned by placing them in 
kilns, which are either temporary or permanent. 
The old method was to pile the soft bricks in 
such a way that a pile contained a number of 
arches for fires and left spaces between the 
bricks so that the flame and hot air could reach 
them all. After completion, the pile was plas¬ 
tered over with clay or mortar, and the fire was 
started. But the present method is to use per¬ 
manent kilns. These are circular, about thirty 


Bricklaying 

feet in diameter and from ten to twelve feet 
high. The soft bricks are placed in these 
kilns so that the fire can surround them and 
raise all to the same temperature. Firing 
requires from six to ten days. The common 
brick are heated to a cherry red, and the harder 
brick to a white heat. 

There are numerous varieties of brick. The 
ordinary brick used in building and paving is 
eight inches long, four inches wide and two 
inches thick. Bricks of this style outnumber all 
other varieties. Pressed brick are those re¬ 
pressed in the process of making and used for 
the finishings of exteriors and interiors. Fire 
brick are made of fire clay and are used for filling 
the interior walls of fireproof buildings and 
lining the fire pots of furnaces and coal stoves. 
Hollow tiles are often used in constructing par¬ 
titions in fireproof buildings. Pavement brick 
contain lime, which fuses when they are burned 
and makes them very hard. They are some¬ 
times called vitrified brick. 

Bricks are extensively used in building, since 
the erection of steel frame buildings in cities 
makes them specially valuable in the construc¬ 
tion of walls. They are also used for founda¬ 
tions, sewers, cisterns and numerous other pur¬ 
poses. Paving brick are used in paving the 
streets of cities. Brickyards are found wherever 
brick clay can be obtained and there is a local 
demand for the brick. In the United States the 
greatest centers of the brick industry are along 
the Hudson River from Troy to New York City, 
in Philadelphia County, Pa., and in Cook 
County, Ill. The country produces over 
"30,000,000,000 bricks a year, having a value 
of about $100,000,000. See Bricklaying; 
Clay; Tile. 

Brick'laying. In many countries the only 
available material for house building is brick. 
The solidity and durability of a brick building 
depends largely upon the manner in which the 
bricks are laid. In laying the foundations of 
walls, the first courses should be thicker than 
the intended superstructure, and the projections 
ihus formed, usually of quarter brick on each 
lide, are called set-offs. Mortar composed of 
lime and sand is the common cement for brick¬ 
work. It should be equally and carefully 
applied. The most important thing in brick¬ 
laying is to see that the wall is properly bonded. 
The bricks of every course should cover the 
joints of the course below it, or, to use the 
bricklayer’s phrase, the work must break bond. 
A layer of bricks is called a course. Bricks laid 


Bridge 

with their lengths in the direction of the course 
and their sides to the wall face, are called 
stretchers', those laid transversely, with their 
ends forming the wall face, headers ; a layer of 
headers, a heading course; of stretchers, a 
stretching course. 

The two kinds of bond almost exclusively 
used consist of alternate stretching and heading 
courses; and of a stretcher and header laid 
alternately in each course. The first bond is 
the strongest, but the second bond is the more 
ornamental and is in most general use. In 
order to strengthen the bond, bands of hoop- 
iron, tarred and sanded, are sometimes laid flat¬ 
wise between the courses. This hoop-iron bond 
has superseded the old practice of using bond- 
timbers. See Brick; Building. 

Bridge, a structure of wood, stone, brick, iron, 
or other material, affording passage over a stream, 
valley, or another passageway, such as a railway 
or a carriage road. The earliest bridges were 
undoubtedly trunks of trees felled across narrow 
streams. These were followed by wooden struc¬ 
tures built on a more elaborate plan. Bridges 
having wooden piers were in common use among 
the Romans, and the Pons Sublicus, erected 621 
b. c., is the oldest structure of the kind of which 
we have any record. 

Arch Bridges. The Romans were also the 
first people to make use of the arch in building 
bridges and other structures. Portions of their 
great arched sewer, the Cloaca Maxima, still 
remain as a monument to the durability of their 
work. After the construction of such a work 
as this, the building of arched bridges across 
the Tiber must have been comparatively easy. 
One of the first examples of these structures was 
the bridge built by Augustus over the Nera, at 
Narni. It contained four arches, the longest 
having a span of one hundred forty-two 
feet. Formerly stone was the only material 
used in their construction, but now concrete is 
often employed. See Arch; Concrete. 



STEEL ARCH BRIDGE AT NIAGARA FALLS 

All large bridges are constructed after one of 
the following plans, arch, truss, tubular, canti¬ 
lever, or suspension. 







Bridge 

Truss Bridges. Iron was first employed in 
the construction of bridges about 1777. The 
first iron bridges were after the pattern of the 
stone arch, and cast-iron was used. The nature 
of the material gave the engineers greater lati¬ 
tude, however, and enabled them to construct 
arches with longer spans. The arch was gradu¬ 
ally superseded by the girder and truss, and 
cast-iron by wrought-iron and steel, which is 
now the material almost universally employed in 
the construction of bridges. 

The abundance of timber in the United States 
led to its very general use for bridges for 
a long time The necessity of spanning large 
streams early led to the invention of a frame¬ 
work which was self-supporting between the 
piers, and also of sufficient strength to sustain 
any load that the bridge was required to carry. 
Such a structure is known as a truss. Trusses 
are of two kinds, simple, and arched. A simple 
truss is one supported at its two ends without 
exerting any lateral pressure; an arched truss 
exerts both lateral and vertical pressure upon 
its supports. The first truss bridges were made 
of wood, and a few remarkable structures of this 
kind are still to be found in Europe and in the 
United States. 

Tubular Bridges. A tubular bridge con¬ 
sists of a tube, either rectangular or circular, 
made by riveting steel plates together. The 
tube rests on piers and abutments, and the 
roadway passes through the tube or over the 
top. The most noted bridge of this pattern is 
the Britannia Bridge over the Menai Straits, in 
Wales. This bridge has two spans of 450 feet 
and two of 250 feet; the tube is made of cast and 
wrought iron, and is 1380 feet long, 28 feet deep 
and 13 feet 8 inches wide in the clear. The tube 
contains a single track. At the time of its com¬ 
pletion, the Victoria Bridge across the Saint 
Lawrence River at Montreal was the most cele¬ 
brated bridge in the world. Its total length was 
1£ miles; it contained 25 spans, the center one 
having a length of 330 feet, and each of the 
others that of 242 feet, and cost about $7,000,000. 
Both of these bridges were designed by Robert 
Stephenson of England. The Victoria Bridge 
was replaced by one of the steel truss pattern 
in 1898. 

From the standpoint of the engineer, the 
length of span is the most important factor to 
be considered in the construction of bridges. 
Usually, the longer the span, the greater the 
difficulties to be overcome; hence, bridges with 
long spans rank higher as works of engineering 


Bridge 

than those of short spans, even though the 
latter class may include bridges of greater 
length. Some of the most celebrated truss 
bridges in the United States are the following: 
that across the Ohio River at Cincinnati, having 
a span of 550 feet; the bridge of the Illinois 
Central Railway across the Ohio at Cairo, Ill., 
having a span of 518§ feet; and the celebrated 
Eads Bridge at Saint Louis, having three spans, 
one of which is 515 feet, and the others 497 
feet each. This bridge is of the arched truss 
type and has two railway tracks, two tracks for 
electric cars, a driveway and sidewalks. At the 
time of its construction the middle arch was the 
longest in the world. 

Cantilever Bridges. Bridges of the canti¬ 
lever type are taking the place of the old style 
truss and arch in many places. A cantilever 
truss has a shore arm and a river arm, which 
are supported on a tower in such a way that 
they practically balance each other. The river 
arms are joined by a central truss, and the 
entire structure is so made that the strain of the 
load is very evenly distributed over the bridge. 
The cantilever truss has great advantage over 
other patterns from the point of economy in 
construction, since temporary structures are 
required only under the shore arms. The river 
arms are extended from the towers and are self- 
supporting during construction. When joined 
by the center truss, the structure is complete. 
The first important bridge of this type was 



WILLIAMSBURG BRIDGE AT NEW YORK 


erected over the Niagara River by the Michigan 
Central Railroad in 1882. The total length of 
this bridge is 910 feet; the span between the 
towers is 470 feet, and the bridge is 245 feet 
above the river. Other noted bridges of this 
type are that over the Saint John’s, in New 
Brunswick; that over the Hudson, at Pough¬ 
keepsie; that over the Mississippi, at Memphis, 













Bridge 


Bridges 


and that over the Firth of Forth, in Scotland. 
The largest cantilever bridge ever projected was 
that to span the Saint Lawrence above Quebec, 
having a central span of 1800 feet. Before it 
was completed this bridge fell, ruining the 
structure and causing the loss of 74 lives. 

Suspension Bridges. A suspension bridge 
has a platform swung on cables which pass 
over towers, and are anchored at the abut¬ 
ments. The first modern suspension bridge in 
England was built about 1819. The great 
Suspension Bridge over the Niagara River, 
completed in 1854, marked an epoch in bridge¬ 
building and in the history of the country. 
This was the first great railroad bridge in 
America and was likewise the beginning of 
the westward extension of great railway systems. 
This bridge had a span of 821 feet and a width 
of 15 feet; it had two decks, the upper containing 
two railway tracks, and the lower a carriage road 
and sidewalks. Each deck was supported by 
two cables 10£ inches in diameter containing 
14,040 wires each. The platforms were held in 
position by being attached to the cables by small 
cables of a similar make. In 1897 this bridge 
was replaced by one of the steel-arch type. A 
suspension bridge nearer the falls, and carrying 
a carriage road and sidewalks, was also replaced 
by a steel arch in 1898. This bridge long had 
the distinction of having the longest arch in the 
world, its span being 840 feet. Suspension 
bridges are now common in Great Britain and 
Europe. The Brooklyn Bridge, over East River, 
connecting the cities of New York and Brooklyn, 
is one of the most celebrated suspension bridges. 
This bridge was completed in 1883. The 
Brooklyn Bridge, however, is exceeded in magni¬ 
tude by the Williamsburg or East River Bridge, 
located about one and one-half miles farther up 
the river and completed in 1903. The central 
span of the East River Bridge is 1600 feet between 
towers, and the land span at each end is 596 feet; 
it has an approach 2500 feet long on the New 
York side, and one 1750 feet long on the Brooklyn 
side. The entire height of the towers is 335 feet; 
the platform is 110 feet wide and provides on its 
upper deck for an elevated railway track, two 
footpaths and bicycle paths, while the lower 
deck is to contain two electric railway tracks on 
each side of the elevated railway, and a driveway. 

A special form of suspension bridge, commonly 
known as the aerial bridge, has its only American 
example at Duluth. A rigid steel frame, sup¬ 
porting a cage or platform, is hung on elevated 
tracks, leaving the channel entirely free. 



AERIAL BRIDGE AT DULUTH 


Drawbridges. Drawbridges are so con¬ 
structed that they can be opened to admit of the 
passage of vessels. The draw may constitute 
the entire bridge, or it may be only a single span 
in a long bridge. Drawbridges are of three 
types: the swing bridge, consisting of a span 
supported on a center pier and revolving on a 
turntable; a lift bridge, so constructed that it can 
be raised to a sufficient height to allow vessels to 
pass under in the clear, and a lift bridge of the 
bascule type. The bascule bridge is adapted to 
narrow channels, where a center pier would 
obstruct navigation, and is gaining favor as a 
drawbridge over canals. In a bridge of this 
type the span is made in two parts of equal 
length. When the bridge is closed, these parts 
form a complete arch. See, also, Pontoon. 

Bridgeport, Conn., one of the county-seats 
of Fairfield co., 18 mi. s. w. of New Haven and 
56 mi. n. e. of New York City, on the Bridgeport 
harbor, which is an arm of Long Island Sound, 
and on the New York, New Haven & Hartford 
railroad. The city has many churches, public, 
charitable and educational institutions. Bridge¬ 
port is an important manufacturing city, with a 
considerable coasting trade. The principal 
products are sewing machines, ammunition, 
hardware, cutlery, carriages and various iron, 
steel and rubber goods. The place was first 
settled about 1639, was incorporated as the 
borough of Bridgeport in 1800 and was chartered 
as a city in 1836. Population in 1910,102,054. 

Bridges, Robert (1844- ), an English poet, 

born on the Isle of Thanet, and educated at 
Eton and Corpus Christ! college, Oxford. He 
studied medicine at St. Bartholomew’s, London, 
and practiced his profession in that city until 
his retirement in 1882, since which time he has 
devoted his life to literature, reaching notable 
rank as a poet. In 1913 he was appointed poet- 
laureate, succeeding Alfred Austin. He has writ¬ 
ten eight plays in imitation of the classical 
style, a large body of lyrics, some three score son¬ 
nets in sequence called The Growth of Love, a 
















Bridgeton 

poetical version of Eros and Psyche , an essay on 
Keats and a study of Milton’s prosody. His 
poetical works and plays have been published in 
six volumes. 

Bridge'ton, N. J., the county-seat of Cum¬ 
berland co., 38 mi. s. of Philadelphia, Pa., on the 
Cohansey River and on the New Jersey Central 
and the West Jersey & Seashore railroads. It is 
in a fertile region, manufactures glass, machinery 
and other articles, and has large fruit and vege¬ 
table canning interests. The educational insti¬ 
tutions include the South Jersey Institute, the 
West Jersey Academy and Ivy Hall Seminary. 
Population in 1910, 14,209. 

Bridgetown, the capital of the West Indian 
island of Barbados, situated on Carlisle Bay, 
on the western coast of the island. The principal 
buildings are the Chinch of Saint Michael, 
Church of Saint Mary and the Jewish synagogue. 
The city also contains an excellent market place, 
a barracks and Trafalgar Square, in which there 
is a bronze statue of Lord Nelson. Bridgetown 
has suffered severely several times from fires. 
The city was founded during the last half of the 
seventeenth century under the name of Indian 
Bridge. Population in 1910, 16,648. 

Bridgewater, Mass, a town in Plymouth 
co., 27 mi. s. of Boston, on the New York, New 
Haven & Hartford railroad. It has a town 
library, a state normal school, a state farm and 
almshouse, and contains manufactures of nails, 
boots, shoes, brick and other articles. The place 
was settled in 1645 and was called Nuncketest 
until its incorporation in 1656. Population in 
1910, 7688. 

Bridge Whist. See Whist. 

Bridg'man, Laura Dewey (1829-1889), a 
remarkable blind deaf-mute. At the age of two 
a severe illness deprived her of sight, hearing and 
speech, and to some extent, also, of smell and 
taste. She was placed in the Perkins Institution 
for the Blind. Boston, at the age of eight, and 
Dr. Howe undertook her education. She made 
rapid progress and acquired a knowledge of 
geography and arithmetic, learned to do house¬ 
hold work and to sew, both by hand and on the 
machine. After receiving her education, Miss 
Bridgman taught in the Perkins Institution. 

Bri'dle and Bit, that part of a horse’s harness 
which is attached to the head and mouth, by 
means of whic h he is governed and restrained. 
The proper bitting of horses has been a matter 
of much study, and innumerable kinds of bits 
have been introduced for the purpose. The 
ordinary single riding bridle has a snaffle bit. 


Brigandage 

There are several forms of the snaffle bit. The 
common riding form is a round, smooth bit, 
jointed in the middle, attached at either side to 
bars or checks, which prevent the bit from 
being pulled through the horse’s mouth, and 
having rings to which the reins and cheek-pieces 
of the headstall are fixed. The twisted snaffle 
has the mouthpiece twisted or fluted. The ring 
snaffle is made without checks; and the rings for 
headstall and reins are not fixed, but work loose 
in holes at the ends of the mouthpiece. The 
double bridle is generally used in the hunting 
field and often for ordinary purposes. Among 
the Arabs and in South America and some parts 
of Mexico and Texas, a heavy, old-fashioned and 
terribly cruel curb bit is used. On the other 
hand, the stockmen of Australia employ the plain 
snaffle bridle alone. It is interesting to know 
that in the representations of harnessed horses 
in the Assyrian sculptures, the bridle generally 
shown is apparently almost identical with the 
modern snaffle. 

Brig'andage, the system of robbery by bands 
of men in secluded spots on highways or in 
mountains. It is of very ancient origin, but it 
has always flourished especially in those countries 
which had loose governments. In British history 
the most celebrated brigand was Robin Hood, 
and in later times Dick Turpin, while in Ger¬ 
many the so-called robber barons attained 
special fame. For years they practically held 
the southern part of the country at their mercy 
and were not effectually crushed until after the 
Thirty Years’ War. Spain has always been a 
particularly favorable field for outlaws, of whom 
Don Jos6 Maria, whose name is perpetuated in 
Merimee’s Carmen, was probably the most 
famous. In more recent times the brigands 
have prospered more especially in Italy, where 
Fra Diavolo, the monk bandit, practiced his 
profession. In very recent times a peculiar 
type of brigandage, combining patriotism and 
robbery, has grown up. It was brigands of this 
class who kidnaped Miss Ellen Stone and her 
companion in 1901 in Macedonia and held them 
for a large ransom, which was finally paid by the 
United States. It is now plain that these 
brigands were the close allies, if not the paid agents, 
of the famous Macedonian committee, which 
is seeking to secure the independence of the 
country and used this method of securing funds. 
Brigandage in the United States has taken the 
form chiefly of train robberies, and though such 
crimes are becoming constantly more rare as the 
western states become more closely populated 


Bristol 


Bright 

they still are common, especially in the passes of 
the Rocky Mountains. The most famous of all 
of American brigands was Jesse James. 

Bright, John (1811-1889), an English orator 
and statesman. He first became known as a 
leader in the Anti-Corn-Law League (See Corn 
Laws). In 1843 he was chosen a member of 
Parliament for Durham, and there he distin¬ 
guished himself as a strenuous advocate of free 
trade and reform. He was in 1857 returned for 
Birmingham, and soon afterward he made 
speeches against the policy of great military 
establishments and wars of annexation. During 
the American Civil War he was one of the few 
English statesmen who were outspokenly in 
favor of the Union cause. In 1865 he took a 
leading part in the movement for the extension 
of the franchise and strongly advocated the 
necessity of reform in Ireland. The disestab¬ 
lishment of the Irish Church and the control of 
India by the crown were subjects which inter¬ 
ested him greatly. The influence which Bright 
maintained throughout his Parliamentary career 
was due to his high moral character rather than 
to great intellectual power. 

Brighton, bri'ton, a maritime town and 
watering-place in England, in the county of 
Sussex, 47 mi. s. of London. In front of the 
town is a massive sea wall, with a promenade 
and drive over 3 miles in length, one of the finest 
in Europe. Brighton has no manufactures, but 
it is especially famous as being the most fashion¬ 
able watering-place in England. It owes its rise 
to the partiality shown it by George IV, when 
prince of Wales. Population in 1911, 131,250. 

Bright’s Disease, a name given to various 
forms of kidney disease. The urine jn such 
cases contains albumen and is of less specific 
gravity than usual. The disease is accom¬ 
panied with uneasiness or pain in the loins, 
pale countenance, disordered digestion, frequent 
urination and dropsy. Blood poisoning may 
follow, and in the end it often gives rise to the 
brain disturbance which is the frequent cause 
of death. The common form of the disease was 
first described by Dr. Richard Bright in 1827. 

Brim'stone, a name for sulphur. Sulphur, 
in order to purify it from foreign matters, is 
generally melted in a close vessel, allowed to 
settle, then poured into cylindrical molds, in 
which it becomes hard, and is known in com¬ 
merce as roll brimstone. 

Brindisi, breen'de se, (the ancient Latin town, 
Brundusium), a seaport and fortified town in' 
the province of Lecce, southern Italy, on the 
28 


Adriatic, 45 mi. e. n. e. of Taranto. In ancient 
times Brundusium was an important city, and 
with its excellent port it became a considerable 
naval station of the Romans. Its importance as 
a seaport declined in the Middle Ages and was 
subsequently completely lost and the harbor 
blocked, until in 1870 the Peninsular and 
Oriental Steam Navigation Company put on a 
weekly line of steamers between Brindisi and 
Alexandria for the conveyance of mail and pas¬ 
sengers between Europe and the East. From 
this cause, and from the construction of the 
Suez Canal, Brindisi has suddenly risen into 
importance. Population about 28,000. 

B rin' ton, Daniel Garrison (1837-1899), 
an American archaeologist and ethnologist. He 
was born in Pennsylvania, graduated from Yale 
and studied medicine at Jefferson Medical 
College and in Paris. During the Civil War 
he served in the Union army as a surgeon, and 
after the close of the struggle he was editor for 
twenty years of the Medical and Surgical 
Reporter. He was professor of ethnology at the 
Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences and 
also held a chair in the University of Pennsyl¬ 
vania. Among his works are the Myths of the 
New World, American Hero Myths, The Ameri¬ 
can Race and Religions of Primitive Peoples. 

Brisbane, briz'bane, a city in Australia, the 
capital of Queensland, situated on the Brisbane 
River. Communication with European and 
Australian cities is by means of rail and steam¬ 
ship lines. The city possesses some fine build¬ 
ings, among which are the Houses of Parlia¬ 
ment, the postoffice, a technical college and the 
viceroyal lodge. Brisbane is the seat of an 
Anglican and a Roman Catholic bishop. Origi¬ 
nally established as a penal colony, the city 
gradually grew in commercial importance, and 
in 1859 it was incorporated. Population in 1911, 
141,342. 

Bristles, bris'sTz, the stiff, coarse, glossy 
hairs of the hog and the wild boar, especially 
the hair growing on the back; extensively 
used by brushmakers, shoemakers and saddlers. 
The market is supplied by the meat packing 
houses and by importations from Russia and 
Germany. Russia supplies the finest qualities, 
which are worth about $250 or $300 per hun¬ 
dred pounds. See Brush. 

Bris'tol, a cathedral city of England, situated 
partly in Gloucestershire, partly in Somerset¬ 
shire, 8 mi. from the Bristol Channel, but form¬ 
ing a county in itself. The town is built partly 
on low grounds, partly on eminences, and has 


Bristol 


British Association 


some fine suburban districts, such as Clifton, 
on the opposite side of the Avon, and connected 
with Bristol by a suspension bridge 703 feet 
long and 245 feet above high-water mark. 
The most notable public buildings are the cathe¬ 
dral, founded in 1142, the Church of Saint Mary 
Redcliff, said to have been founded in 1293 and 
perhaps the finest parish church in the kingdom, 
the guild hall, the museum and the library. 
Bristol has glass works, potteries, soap works, 
tanneries, sugar refineries, chemical works, ship¬ 
building yards and machinery works. Coal is 
worked extensively within the limits of the 
borough. The export and import trade is large 
and varied, and the city is one of the most impor¬ 
tant ports of Great Britain. There is a harbor 
in the city itself, and the construction of new 
docks at Avonmouth and Portishead has given 
a fresh impetus to the trade. The Saxons called 
this place Bricgstow (bridge place). In 1373 
it was constituted a county of itself by Edward III 
and was made the seat of a bishopric by Henry 
VIII in 1542 (now united with Gloucester). 
Sebastian Cabot, Chatterton and Southey were 
natives of Bristol. Population in 1911, includ¬ 
ing Clifton, 357,059. 

Bristol, Conn., a borough in Hartford co., 
18 mi. s. w. of Hartford, on the New York, New 
Haven & Hartford railroad. It has a public 
library, electric lights and street railroads, and 
it contains manufactures of clocks, brass goods, 
tools, knit goods and other articles. The place 
was incorporated as a town in 1785, and as a 
borough in 1893. Population in 1910, 9527. 

Bristol, Pa., a borough in Bucks co., 21 mi. 
n. e. of Philadelphia, on the Delaware River, 
the Pennsylvania canal and the Pennsylvania 
railroad. It is in a rich fruit and truck-farming 
region, has foundries, rolling mills and extensive 
manufactures of carpets, textile goods, wall 
paper and patent leather. Bristol was settled in 
1681 and was originally called Buckingham. 
A ferry connects it with Burlington , r on the New 
Jersey side of the river. Population in 1910, 
9256. 

Bristol, R. I., the county-seat of Bristol co., 
15 mi. s. e. of Providence, on Narragansett Bay 
and on the New York, New Haven & Hartford 
railroad. The town has an excellent harbor 
and large ship-building yards, and it contains 
manufactures of rubber, woolen and cotton 
goods. It has a fine, large public library and 
eight churches. The place was first settled by 
the whites about 1675 and was incorporated as 
a town in 1746. Population in 1910, 8565. 


Bristol, Tenn., a city in Sullivan co., on the 
Southern and the Norfolk & Western railroads. 
Bristol, Va., forms with it practically one city, 
for the state line passes down the middle of the 
main street of the combined municipalities. 
There are extensive lumber and pulp mills and 
manufactures of other articles. King’s College, 
Sullins College and the Southwest Virginia 
Institute for young ladies are located here. 
Population in 1910, in Tennessee, 7148, and 
including that portion in Virginia, 13,395. 

Bristol Chan'nel, an arm of the Irish Sea 
indenting the coast of Great Britain between 
Wales and the southern peninsula of the island. 
It is about 80 mi. long and varies in width from 
5 to 50 mi., having a shore line of 220 mi. It 
receives the waters of the Usk, Wye, Severn. 
Avon and several other rivers. The channel is 
noted for its high tides, which in the narrowest 
places sometimes rise 40 feet. Lundy Island is 
situated at the entrance. 

Bris'tow, Benjamin Helm (1832-1896), an 
American politician and reformer, born in Elk- 
ton, Ky. He began the practice of law in his 
native state, entered the Union army at the 
beginning of the Civil War and rose to the rank 
of colonel. In 1870 he was appointed United 
States solicitor general and from 1874 to 1876 
was secretary of the treasury, being active in the 
prosecution of the Whisky Ring. This fame 
made him a prominent candidate for the Repub¬ 
lican nomination for president in 1876, but he 
was defeated by Hayes. In the same year he 
removed to New York, where he gained a large 
legal practice. 

Britannia Tubular Bridge. See Bridge, 

subhead Tubular Bridges. 

Brit'ish Amer'ica, the name formerly applied 
to that portion of North America north of the 
United States and east of Alaska, including 
Newfoundland. Since the formation of the 
Dominion of Canada, the term is restricted to 
Newfoundland, the Bermudas, British Honduras, 
the British West India Islands, British Guiana 
and the Falkland Islands. The term is now 
seldom used. 

British Association for the Advancement 
of Science, a society organized in 1831, mainly 
through the exertions of Sir David Brewster, 
whose object was to assist the progress of dis¬ 
covery and to disseminate the latest results of 
scientific research, by bringing together men 
eminent in all the several departments of science. 
Its first meeting was held at York on Sept. 26, 
1831. Since then it has met annually in different 


British Central Africa 


British Columbia 


parts of the United Kingdom and twice in 
Canada, in Montreal in 1884 and Toronto in 
1897. The sessions extend generally over about 
a week. The society is divided into sections, 
which, after the president’s address, meet 
separately for the reading of papers and for con¬ 
ference. Lectures and other general meetings 
are usually held each evening during the meet¬ 
ing of the association. The yearly revenue of 
the association is more than sufficient to meet 
its expenses, and the surplus is appropriated 
for the pursuit of various lines of scientific 
investigation. 

British Cen'tral Africa, a British colony, 
situated in the east central portion of Africa, 
bounded on the n. by Kongo State and German 
East Africa, on the e. by Lake Tanganyika, 
on the s. by Portuguese East Africa and on the 
w. by Kongo State. It is really an extension of 
Rhodesia. The area is about 40,980 square 
miles, and the population is estimated at between 
900,000 and 1,000,000, less than 500 of whom 
are Europeans. The climate is salubrious, and 
the chief crops are wheat, oats, barley and 
coffee. Since the colony has come under British 
rule it is being rapidly opened to civilization. 
See Rhodesia. 

British Colum'bia, a province of the Domin¬ 
ion of Canada, bounded on the n. by Yukon 
and Mackenzie, on the e. by Alberta, on the 
s. by the United States and on the w. by the 
Pacific Ocean and Alaska. Its length from 
north to south is 740 miles, and its greatest 
length from east to west, 620 miles. The area, 
including islands, is 355,855 square miles, or 
about equal to that of California and Arizona 
combined. 

Surface and Drainage. With the exception 
of the northeastern comer, the province is moun¬ 
tainous. The main range of the Rocky Moun¬ 
tains, extending its entire length from northwest 
to southeast, forms a portion of the boundary 
between British Columbia and Alberta. To the 
west of this portion of the Rocky Mountains, 
and extending nearly parallel with them, are the 
Selkirk and Gold ranges, and a little to the 
north of the Selkirks are the Caribou Mountains. 
Between these ranges are deep valleys (See Sel¬ 
kirk Mountains). Extending through nearly 
the middle portion of the southern half of the 
province is the northern extremity of the Cascade 
Range, and the Coast Range extends along the 
coast, its spurs forming most of the numerous 
islands. All of these ranges diminish in alti¬ 
tude toward the north, and before reaching the 


northern boundary some of them disappear. The 
southeastern portion is unusually mountainous, 
and between the ranges are found a number of 
long, narrow lakes, which are really expansions 
of the rivers. The most important of these are 
Okanagan, Arrowhead and Kootenay. The 
surrounding mountains have altitudes ranging 
from 8000 to 10,000 feet and are covered with 
snow throughout the year. 

The principal rivers are the Columbia, which 
drains the southeastern portion, the Frazer, 
which traverses the province for a distance of 
750 miles, and the Skeena and Stikine, all of 
which flow into the Pacific and are navigable 
for large boats in the lower parts of their courses. 
The northeastern portion of the province is 
drained by the Peace and the Liard rivers, 
which find an outlet through the Mackenzie. 

Climate. British Columbia has on the whole 
a milder climate than other provinces in the 
same latitude. This is due to the warm winds 
which blow from the Pacific and along the coast 
and for some distance into the interior. At 
Vancouver the yearly temperature ranges from 
about 37° to 60°. East of the Coast Range 
there is greater difference between summer and 
winter, and the eastern portion of the province 
has extremely cold winters and hot summers. 
The rainfall varies greatly from the coast inland. 
The Coast Range deprives the winds of much 
of their moisture, and upon the western slopes 
of these mountains the annual rainfall varies 
from 100 inches in the northern part to 40 inches 
at Victoria, while in the valleys in the interior 
it is about 15 inches. Lofty ranges of the Sel¬ 
kirks and the Rocky Mountains deprive the 
atmosphere of still more moisture, and the win¬ 
ters in this region are characterized by deep 
snows, which remain upon the mountains through¬ 
out the year and furnish the source of most of 
the streams that rise in that locality. 

Mineral Resources. The province is rich 
in minerals, and mining is the chief industry. 
Gold was discovered in 1851 and for a number 
of years was obtained in large quantities from 
gravel along the river beds. After these sources 
Were exhausted, prospectors discovered numer¬ 
ous valuable veins of ore in the southeastern 
section, or Kootenay district, and mountain 
mines are now extensively worked. Next to 
gold, silver is the most important metal mined, 
followed in value by copper. On Vancouver 
Island are extensive coal mines, and others are 
found in the Crow’s Nest Pass of the Rocky 
Mountains. 


British Columbia 

Agriculture. The soil is fertile, and the 
plains and valleys are well adapted to the 
growth of wheat, oats, other cereals and nearly 
all fruits of the temperate latitudes. Wherever 
there is sufficient rainfall, agriculture is very 
successful. In the dry regions stock raising is 
followed to a considerable extent. Some of the 
arid regions are successfully irrigated. 

Lumbering. The western slopes of the 
mountain ranges are covered with dense forests 
of valuable timber trees, chief among which 
is the Douglas fir, and lumbering is the industry 
next in importance to mining. There are 
numerous large mills in the lumber regions, and 
the annual cut exceeds 100,000,000 feet. 

Fisheries. Rivers flowing into the Pacific 
are abundantly stocked with fish, and during the 
spawning season of the year quantities of fish 
from the salt water ascend the streams; con¬ 
sequently, fishing is an important industry, and 
in this British Columbia ranks second only to 
Nova Scotia among the provinces. Salmon 
fishing and canning is extensively carried on 
along the Frazer River, and the annual out¬ 
put of the fisheries amounts to over $10,000,- 
000 . 

Transportation. The rivers flowing into 
the Pacific are navigable for considerable dis¬ 
tances, and the mountain lakes in the Kootenay 
district contain small steamers which ply between 
various ports. The Canadian Pacific railway 
crosses the southern portion of the province and 
terminates at Vancouver. This, line has two 
spurs extending to railway systems in the United 
States, and several extending northward. The 
Grand Trunk Pacific system, when completed, 
will furnish the center and northern portions 
with railway communication with the coast and 
with the East. Most of the towns in the interior 
have to depend upon stage lines for mail and 
passenger transportation. 

Education. The province maintains an 
excellent system of public schools, which are 
entirely under secular control and which receive 
government aid in proportion to attendance. 
There are also numerous private schools and 
high schools. 

Government. British Columbia’s local gov¬ 
ernment consists of a legislature, elected by 
popular suffrage, and an executive council. The 
chief executive is the lieutenant governor, 
appointed by the Dominion government. See 
Dominion of Canada, subhead Government. 

Cities. The leading cities are Victoria, the 
capital, Vancouver, Nanaimo, Nelson and New 


British Isles 

Westminister, each of which is described under 
its title. 

Population in 1911, 392,480, of which 25,000 

were indians. 

British East Africa, a British colony situated 
in thfe east central portion of Africa, bounded on 
the n. by the British Sudan and Abyssinia, on 
the e. by Italian Somaliland and the Indian 
Ocean, on the s. by German East Africa and 
on the w. by Kongo State. It also includes the 
islands of Zanzibar and Pemba. The area is 
over 1,000,000 square miles, and the population, 
exclusive of islands, is estimated at over 5,000.000, 
of whom only about 2,000 are Europeans. The 
cduntry is watered by the Upper Nile and con¬ 
tains a portion of Victoria Nyanza, Albert 
Nyanza and Lake Rudolph. The plains con¬ 
tain a rich growth of grass and are well suited 
to grazing. The minerals include iron and 
copper in abundance. The principal exports 
are ivory, rubber, gums, hides and cattle. A 
railway extends from Mombasa, on the coast, 
to Port Florence, on Victoria Nyanza, in the 
Uganda region. The important cities are 
Mombasa and Zanzibar. See Uganda. 

British Guiana, ge ah'na. See Guiana. 

British Honduras or Belize, a colony of 
Great Britain, in the northeastern part of Central 
America, bounded on the e by the Caribbean 
Sea. on the s. by the Gulf of Honduras, on the 
s and s. w. by Guatemala and on the n. by 
Mexico. It has an area of 7562 square miles. 
The coast is low and swampy, and the climate 
is hot and moist. There are large forests of 
mahogany and logwood, and the soil is in many 
parts fertile, the chief products being coffee, 
bananas and cocoanuts. The exports consist of 
woods, fruit, rubber and sugar, and about one- 
half of the trade is carried on with Great Britain. 
The capital is Belize The government is in the 
hands of a governor, assisted by an executive and 
a legislative council, all appointed by the 
sovereign of Great Britain. The first settle¬ 
ment was made at the beginning of the 
eighteenth century. Spain attempted at differ¬ 
ent times to expel the settlers, but in 1783, 
by a treaty, the sovereignty of Great Britain 
was recognized. It became a separate colony 
in 1884. 

British Isles, the archipelago off the western 
coast of Europe, surrounded by the British 
Channel, the Strait of Dover, the North Sea and 
the Atlantic Ocean. It includes the islands of 
Great Britain, Ireland, the Hebrides, the Orkneys 
and the Channel Islands. See Great Britain. 


British Museum 


Brock 


British Muse'um, the great national museum 
in London, founded by Sir Hans Sloane, who, 
in 1753, bequeathed his various collections, 
including 50,000 books and manuscripts, to the 
nation, on the condition of $100,000 being paid 
to his heirs. Montague House was appropriated 
for the museum, which was first opened on 
January 15, 1759. The original edifice having 
become inadequate, a new building in Great 
Russell Street was resolved upon in 1823, but 
was not completed till 1847. In 1857 a new 
library building was completed and opened at a 
cost of $750,000. It contains a circular reading- 
room 140 feet in diameter, with a dome 106 feet 
in height. This room contains accommodation 
for 200 readers comfortably seated at separate 
desks, which are provided with all necessary 
conveniences. More recently, the accommo¬ 
dation having become again inadequate, it was 



BRITISH MUSEUM 

resolved to separate the objects belonging to the 
natural history department from the rest, and 
to lodge them in a building by themselves^ 
Accordingly, a large natural history museum has 
been erected at South Kensington, and the 
specimens pertaining to«natural history, including 
geology and mineralogy, have been transferred 
thither, but they still form part of the British 
Museum. Further additions to the Great 
Russell Street buildings were made in 1882, and 
again in 1888. The museum is under the man¬ 
agement of forty-eight trustees. It is open daily, 
free of charge. Admission to the reading room 
as a regular reader is *by ticket, procurable on 
application to the chief librarian and by complying 
with certain simple conditions. The library, 
which is now the second largest and one of the 
most valuable in the world, has been enriched 
by numerous bequests and gifts, among others 
the library collected by George III during his 
long reign. A copy of every book, pamphlet, 
newspaper, piece of music, etc., published any¬ 
where in British territory, must be conveyed 


free of charge to the British Museum. The 
museum contains eight principal departments, 
namely, the depai 
charts, plans, etc.; 
the department o 
ment of oriental antiquities; the department of 
Greek and Roman antiquities; the department of 
coins and medals; the department of British and 
medieval antiquities and ethnography, and the 
department of prints and drawings. The total 
number of persons using the reading-rooms each 
year is about 200,000, and the annual number of 
visitors, exclusive of readers, is about 700,000. 

Brit'tany or Bretagne, bre tahn'y’, a penin¬ 
sula projecting into the Atlantic, between the 
British Channel on the n. and the Bay of Biscay 
on the s., and forming the extreme western 
portion of France. Brittany is supposed to have 
taken its name from the ancient Britons, who 
sought refuge here when driven from the island 
of Britain. It was formerly an independent 
kingdom, then a duchy of France. It is now a 
province of France and is subdivided into five 
departments. The soil is rather poor, and only 
meager crops are grown. Of these, corn, grapes 
and other fruits are the most important. The 
inhabitants along the coast engage in the manu¬ 
facture of salt, and coal, lead and iron are found 
in small quantities in the interior. The fisheries 
are quite important. Many remains of the 
ancient inhabitants are found throughout the 
country, and the native peasantry retain their 
ancient language, which closely resembles the 
Welsh. See France. 

Broad'sword, a sword with a broad blade, 
designed chiefly for cutting, formerly used by 
some regiments of cavalry and Highland infantry 
in the British service. The claymore, or broad¬ 
sword, was the national weapon of the High¬ 
landers. 

Brocade, bro Icade f , a stuff of silk, enriched 
with raised flowers, foliage or other ornaments. 
The term is restricted to silks figured in the 
loom, distinguished from those which are em¬ 
broidered after being woven. Brocade was 
manufactured in Oriental countries at an early 
date and in Europe as early as the thirteenth 
century. 

Brock, Sir Isaac (1769-1812), a British 
soldier. He became lieutenant in 1790, served 
in the West Indies, in Holland and at the Battle 
of Copenhagen, and in 1802 went to Canada, 
where he suppressed a troublesome conspiracy. 
In 1810 he commanded the troops in Upper 
Canada and became lieutenant governor of that 


■taient of printed books, maps, 
the department of manuscripts;, 
f natural history; the depart-' 












Brocken 


Bronchitis 


province. General Brock moved his command 
to Detroit in 1812, and in August he captured 
General Hull 
with his entire 
army. Mean¬ 
while, a United 
States force was 
gathered on the 
frontier of Niag¬ 
ara, and in his 
attack on this 
force General 
Brock fell. A 
magnificent 
monument has 
been erected to 
him at the spot 
where he was 
killed in Queens¬ 
town. 

Brock'en.the 
highest sum¬ 
mit of the Harz 
Mountains in Prussian Saxony, celebrated for 
the atmospheric conditions which produce in 
the clouds the appearance of gigantie spectral 
figures, which are only shadows of the spectators 
projected by the morning or evening sun. It 
is 3747 feet high. 

Brock'ton, Mass., a city in Plymouth co., 
20 mi. s. of Boston, on the New York, New 
Haven & Hartford Railroad. It is the greatest 
center for fnaking men’s shoes in America. Its 
other products include shoe machinery and sup¬ 
plies, tools, automobiles, motor-cycles and rubber 
goods. The place was settled in 1700 and was 
incorporated in 1821 as North Bridgewater. The 
present name was adopted in 1874. Population 
in 1910, 56,878. 

Brock'ville, a city of Ontario, Canada, 
situated on the Saint Lawrence River and on 
the Grand Trunk railway, 40 mi. n. e. of Kings¬ 
ton and 125 mi. s. w. of Montreal. The most 
important industries include the manufacture 
of steam engines, agricultural implements, tools, 
gloves and chemicals. Brockville is a port of 
call for the steamers passing down the Saint 
Lawrence, and on account of rapids in the 
river canals have been constructed to facilitate 
navigation at this point. The city was named 
for Gen. Isaac Brock. Population in 1911,9374. 

Broken Wind. See Heaves. 

Bro'ker, an agent who is employed to con¬ 
clude bargains or transact business for others, 
in consideration of a charge or compensation 


which is usually in proportion to the extent or 
value of the transaction completed by him, and 
is called his commission or brokerage. In 
large mercantile communities the business of a 
broker is usually limited to a particular class of 
transactions, and each class of brokers has a 
distinctive name, as bill broker, one who buys 
and sells bills of exchange for others; insurance 
broker, one who negotiates between underwriters 
and the owners of vessels and shippers of goods; 
ship broker, one who is the agent of owners of 
vessels in chartering them to merchants or 
procuring freight for them from one port to 
another; stock broker, the agent of dealers in 
shares of joint stock companies, government 
securities and other monetary investments. 

Bromine, bro'min, a non-metallic element 
discovered in 1826. In its general chemical 
properties it much resembles chlorine and 
iodine, and it is usually associated with them. 
It exists, but in very minute quantities, in sea 
water, in the ashes of marine plants, in animals 
and in some salt springs. At common tempera¬ 
tures it is a very dark reddish liquid, emitting 
a red vapor and having a powerful and suffo¬ 
cating odor. It has bleaching powers like 
chlorine, and it is very poisonous. Its density 
is about four and a half times that of water. 
It combines with hydrogen to form hydrobromic 
acid. 

Bronchi, bron'ki, the two branches into which 
the trachea, or windpipe, divides in the chest, 
one going to the right lung, the other to the 
left. They divide and subdivide into countless 
small tubes, known as bronchial tubes. They 
are lined with a' mucous membrane, and at the 
extremity of each tiny tube is a cluster of air 
cells. See Lungs; Respiration. 

Bronchitis, bron ki'tis, an inflammation of 
the mucous membrane of the bronchial tubes, 
or the air passages leading from the trachea to 
the lungs. It is of common occurrence and 
may be either acute or chronic. Its symptoms 
are those of a feverish cold, such as headache, 
lassitude and an occasional cough, which are 
succeeded by a more frequent cough, occurring 
in paroxysms, a spit of yellowish mucus and a 
feeling of great oppression on the chest. Slight 
attacks of acute bronchitis are frequent and not 
very dangerous. They may be treated with 
mustard poultices or fomentations. Acute bron¬ 
chitis, however, may become a formidable 
malady and requires prompt treatment. Its 
main symptoms are cough, shortness of breath 
and spit. It is particularly apt to attack a 



BKOCK MONUMENT AT 
QUEENSTOWN 







Bronte 


Brook Farm 


person in winter, and in the end it may cause 
death by preventing the lungs from doing their 
work and by causing other complications. 

Bronte, bran ta', Charlotte (afterwards 
Mrs. Nicholls) (1816-1855), an English novelist. 
After an education received partly at home and 
partly at neighboring schools, Miss Bronte 
became a teacher and then a governess. In 
1842 she went with her sister Emily to Brussels, 
with a view of learning French and German, 
and she afterward taught for a year in the school 
she had attended there. Her experiences at this 
school she described later in Villette. Obliged 
to support themselves, and finding school teach¬ 
ing impossible because it kept them from home, 
the three sisters, Charlotte, Emily and Anne, 
turned their attention to literary composition; 
and in 1846 a volume of poems by the three 
sisters was published, under the names of Currer. 
Ellis and Acton Bell. It was issued at their 
own risk and attracted little attention, so they 
gave 'up poetry for prose fiction, and each 
porduced a novel. Charlotte (Currer Bell) wrote 
The Professor, but it was everywhere refused by 
publishers and was not given to the world 
till after her death. This failure, however, did 
not discourage her, and she continued her work 
on Jane Eyre, which was published in 1847. 
Its success was immediate and decided. Her 
second novel, Shirley, appeared in 1849, and in 
1852 appeared Villette. Meanwhile Charlotte 
had lost her two sisters and her brother, and her 
life, never happy, became one of almost unbroken 
gloom. In 1854 she married her father’s curate, 
the Rev. Arthur Nicholls, and she had a few 
happy months before her death in 1855. Mrs. 
Gaskell, in her Life of Charlotte Bronte, makes 
the reader see very clearly the dreariness of the 
Bronte home and the monotonous gloom of 
Charlotte’s life. 

Bronze, an alloy of copper and tin in varying 
proportions, with occasionally the addition of 
small quantities of lead or zinc. The most com¬ 
mon varieties of bronze in use are gun metal, 
used in making ordnance (See Artillery; 
Cannon) ; bell metal (See Bell) ; specular metal, 
used for making mirrors and reflectors in tele¬ 
scopes; statuary bronze, used in sculpture; 
aluminum bronze, a composition of copper 
and aluminum, closely resembling gold, and 
manganese bronze, often called white bronze, a 
composition of iron and manganese with other 
bronzes. Gun metal contains nine parts copper 
and one part zinc. It is very hard and strong. 
Bell metal for large bells consists of three parts 


copper to one part tin, and for small bells, four 
parts copper to one part tin. Statuary bronze 
contains eight parts copper to two parts tin. 
Japanese bronzes contain quite a large propor¬ 
tion of lead, which makes them softer. They 
also contain some nickel, arsenic, silver and 
gold. 

Bronze has been known from a very early 
period of history. The Chinese and ancient 
Egyptians were familiar with it centuries before 
the Christian era, and it is supposed that their 
early bronzes were produced by smelting the 
ores of the metals. Bronze is used for a great 
variety of purposes in the arts, also for orna¬ 
mental work, such as railings and other struc¬ 
tures. See Bronze Age. 

Bronze Age, a term denoting the period or 
stage of culture of a people using bronze as the 
material for implements and weapons. As a 
stage of culture, the use of bronze comes between 
the use of stone and the use of iron. The Bronze 
Age is not an absolute division of time, but a 
relative condition of culture, which in some places 
may have been reached early, in others late; in 
some it may have been prolonged, and in others 
brief or even, as in the Polynesian area, it may 
not have existed, in consequence of the people 
passing directly from the use of stone to that 
of iron. The implements and weapons of the 
Bronze Age include knives, saws, sickles, awls, 
gouges, hammers, anvils, axes, swords, daggers, 
spears, arrows, shields. The composition of 
the bronze varied considerably, but in general 
it was about ninety per cent of copper to ten 
per cent of tin. See Stone Age; Iron Age. 

Brooch, brohch, an ornamental pin used for 
fastening the dress, or for ornament only. It 
has a pin passing across it, which is fastened at 
one end with a joint, and at the other with a 
hook. Brooches were worn by both men and 
women in Greece and Rome and in Europe up 
to the time of the Middle Ages. They often 
bore inscriptions, and it is an interesting fact 
that the oldest example of Latin now in exist¬ 
ence is inscribed on a brooch. Brooches were 
often used, also, as a kind of amulet or talisman. 

Brook Farm, a socialistic community founded 
at West Roxbury, Mass., in 1841, under the 
inspiration of George Ripley. At different times 
in the course of its career some of the most dis¬ 
tinguished of Americans were connected with it, 
among them Nathaniel Hawthorne, George W. 
Curtis, Charles A. Dana, Margaret Fuller and 
Ralph Waldo Emerson. The industrial system 
of the community was one of “brotherly coop- 


Brookfield 


Broom 


eration.” All members, regardless of sex, were 
required to labor a certain period each day, the 
products being turned in to a common stock, 
from which all shared practically equally. 
Financial difficulties, however, soon led to its 
decline, some of the most distinguished members 
of the community became discouraged and 
withdrew, and finally some of its most impor¬ 
tant buildings were destroyed by fire. It 
was dissolved in October, 1847. Hawthorne’s 
Blithedale Romance contains, under the guise of 
fiction, many of the author’s experiences at 
Brook Farm. See Communism; Transcenden¬ 
talism. 

Brook'field, Mo., a city in Linn co., 100 mi. 
e. of Saint Joseph, on the Chicago, Burlington 
& Quincy railroad. The industries include 
railroad shops, iron works, lumber and flour 
mills and brick yards. Coal is mined in the 
vicinity, and together with farm produce and 
live stock it produces a considerable trade. The 
place was settled about 1860. Population in 
1910, 5749. 

Brook'line, Mass., a town in Norfolk co., 
about 3 mi. w. of Boston, on the Boston & 
Albany railroad. It is one of the wealthiest 
and most beautiful residence suburbs of Boston. 
Riding Academy is located here, and the town 
has a large public library. There are also some 
manufactures of electrical appliances and other 
articles. It was settled in 1635 and was known 
as the “Hamlet of Muddy River” until 1705, 
when it was incorporated as Brookline. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, including the villages of Cottage 
Farm, Longwood and Reservoir Station, 27,792. 

Brook'lyn, a borough of New York City, 
formerly the county-seat of Kings co. and second- 
largest city of New York, is situated on the west 
end of Long Island and is separated from the 
borough of Manhattan by East River. Brook¬ 
lyn is characterized by its broad, straight streets, 
numerous shade trees, extensive river front and 
many magnificent churches and residences. 
Along the water front are extensive sugar refin¬ 
eries and other factories. Brooklyn is connected 
with Manhattan by the Brooklyn and East River 
bridges and by numerous lines of ferries. In 
1898 it was made a part of Greater New York. 
See New York (City). 

Brooklyn Bridge. See Bridge, subhead 
Suspension Bridges. 

Brooks, Phillips (1835-1893), an American 
bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church, bom 
at Boston and educated at Harvard and ri the 
Theological Seminary, Alexandria Va. He was 


the rector of the Church of the Advent and 
later of the Holy Trinity Church in Philadel¬ 
phia. After serving as rector of Trinity Church 
in Boston he was appointed bishop of Massa¬ 
chusetts in 1891. Brooks was celebrated not 



only as a popular and powerful preacher, but 
as a vigorous and independent thinker and a 
polished orator. Among his publications are 
Lectures on Preaching, The Influence of Jesus 
and several volumes of sermons. He also is the 
author of the popular Christmas hymn, Oh, 
Little Town of Bethlehem. 

Brooks, Preston Smith (1819-1857), an 
American politician. He became a member of 
Congress from South Carolina in 1853 and 
attained an unenviable notoriety in May, 1856, 
by making a brutal assault upon Charles Sum¬ 
ner in the United States Senate chamber. 

Broom, the name of several plants of the pea 
family. The common broom of Europe is a 
bushy shrub, with straight, angular branches 
of a dark-green color, and flowers of a deep 
golden yellow. Its twigs are often made into 
brooms and are used in thatching houses and 
cornstacks. The whole plant has a very bitter 
taste. 

Broom, an article for sweeping floors, usually 
made of broom corn. The corn is sorted as to 
size, then dried and sent to the factory in bales. 
The handle of the broom is a turned stick about 
four feet long and enlarged at the end to which 



Broomcom 

the brush is fastened. The corn is bound to the 
handle with wire. The broom is flattened in a 
vise and sewed. The ends are then trimmed 
until they are even, and the brooms are tied in 
packages of one dozen, ready for the market. 
The work is mostly done by hand and is suitable 
for small shops, individual enterprises and peni¬ 
tentiaries. Broom making is also quite a com¬ 
mon trade for the blind. Whisk brooms are 
made in a manner similar to the large brooms, 
but they are of finer material and often have 
fancy handles. See Broom Corn. 

Broom Com or Broom Grass, a grass with 
a jointed stem, growing to a height of eight or 
ten feet, extensively cultivated in the United 
States, where the branched panicles are made 
into carpet brooms and clothes brushes. Before 
the plant matures, the stem is broken over 
about eighteen inches from the top and allowed 
to hang until the seed ripens. Then the head is 
cut off, the seeds are removed and the heads 
cured in the shade. 

Broth'erhood of An'drew and Phil'ip, 

The, was founded in 1888 and is composed 
of members of twenty-three evangelical denomi¬ 
nations. “Any man can belong to the Brother¬ 
hood who will promise to pray daily for the 
spread of the kingdom of. Christ among men, 
and to make an earnest effort each week to bring 
at least one man within the hearing of the 
Gospel. ” There are 1000 chapters in the United 
States, with 30,000 members, and there are also 
chapters in Australia and Japan. 

Brotherhood of Saint Andrew, The, a 
religious organization, started as a parish guild 
in Saint James Episcopal Church, Chicago, in 
1883. The object of the organization was 
“the spread of Christ’s kingdom among young 
men.” The work spread rapidly, and there are 
now national organizations in the United States, 
Canada, England Scotland, Australia and the 
West Indies. In China, Japan, Germany and 
in Central and South America are chapters 
affiliated with the American brotherhood. The 
headquarters are in Pittsburg, Pa. There are 
now 1500 active chapters, with a membership 
of 16,000 men. A junior department has 500 
chapters in the United States, with about 6000 
members. 

Brough, brow, John (1811-1865), an Ameri¬ 
can journalist and politician, born in Ohio and 
educated at the state university. He edited 
several influential Democratic papers and gained 
a reputation as one 6f the ablest orators of his 
party in Ohio. In 1864 he was nominated for 


Brown 

governor of the Union party and was elected 
over Vallandigham by a tremendous majority. 
For his efficient service to the government during 
his term, he is known as one of the great “war 
governors.” 

Brougham, broom or broo'am, a four-wheeled 
carriage, with a single inside seat for two persons, 
and with a raised driver’s seat. The conveyance 
was named after, and was apparently invented 
by, Lord Brougham. 

Brougham, Henry Peter, Baron Brougham 
and Vaux (1778-1868), an English statesman 
and jurist. Along with Jeffrey, Horner and 
Sydney Smith, he bore a chief part in starting the 
Edinburgh Review in 1802. He entered Parlia¬ 
ment, labored for reforms, and by his fearless 
and successful defense of Queen Caroline in 1820 
he won great popular favor. In the ministry 
of Earl Grey he accepted the post of lord chan¬ 
cellor, and in this position he distinguished him¬ 
self as a law reformer and aided greatly in the 
passing of the Reform Bill of 1832. In legal 
procedure he secured the correction of various 
abuses. 

Brown, a color which may be regarded as a 
mixture of red and black, or of red, black and 
yellow. There are various brown pigments, 
mostly of mineral origin, as bistre, umber and 
cappagh brown. 

Brown, Benjamin Gratz (1826-1885), an 
American politician, born in Lexington, Ky. 
He graduated at Yale in 1847, began the practice 
of law in Saint Louis and was elected to the 
legislature. In 1854 he began the publication 
of the Missouri Democrat. During the Civil 
War he fought in the Union army and became 
brigadier general of volunteers He was United 
States senator from Missouri from 1863 to 1867, 
and in 1871 he was elected governor of the state. 
He was prominent in the Liberal Republican 
movement in 1872, which had its beginnings in 
Missouri, and was the candidate for vice-presi¬ 
dent on the ticket headed by Horace Greeley. 

Brown, Charles Brockden (1771-1810), the 
first American novelist of any importance. He 
was educated for the law, but the term intended 
for preparatory legal study was principally 
occupied with literary pursuits. His first novel, 
Wieland, was published in 1798. Others of 
his works are Mervyn, Ormund and Clara 
Howard. Brown’s novels, while in certain 
respects powerful, are of the highly sentimental, 
improbable type, and their tendency toward the 
gloomy and horrible has always kept them from 
becoming popular. 


Brown 


Brown 


Brown, Elmore Ellsworth (1861- ), an 

American educator, born in -Kiantone, N. Y., 
and educated in the Illinois State Normal Uni¬ 
versity, University of Michigan and German 
universities. After filling several public school 
positions, Mr. Brown was chosen assistant 
professor of the science and art of teaching in 
the University of Michigan in 1891. From there 
he went to the University of California as associ¬ 
ate professor of pedagogy, and in 1893 he was 
appointed as head of the department. In June, 
1906, he succeeded William T. Harris as com¬ 
missioner of education for the United States; 
he resigned in 1911 to become chancellor of 
New York University. He is the author of several 
books, besides many articles for magazines and 
reviews. 

Brown, George (1818-1880), a‘ Canadian 
statesman. He was educated in Scotland, came 
to New York in 1838 and published there the 
British Chronicle. In 1843 he went to Canada, 
and the following year he issued the first number 
of the Toronto Globe. He sat in the Dominion 
Parliament from 1851 to 1867, and in 1873 he 
entered the Senate. He was shot by a discharged 
employe and died from the effects of the wound. 

Brown, Henry Billings (1836-1913), an 
American jurist, bom at South Lee, Mass. He 
graduated at Yale, studied law at Yale and 
Harvard and began practice in Michigan. He 
became United States district attorney in 1863, 
was for a time state circuit judge and from 1875 
to 1890 was judge of the United States court for 
the eastern district of Michigan. From 1890 to 
1906 he was associate justice of the United 
States Supreme Court. 

Brown, Jacob (1775-1828), an American 
soldier, born in Bucks co., Pa. He removed 
to New York, taught school and studied law, 
and then served as military secretary to Alex¬ 
ander Hamilton. He entered the state militia, 
became brigadier general and early in the War 
of 1812 was commissioned to defend the frontier. 
His successes against the British at Ogdensburg 
and Sackett’s Harbor led to his appointment as 
brigadier general in the United States regular 
army. He was raised to the rank of major 
general, and early in 1814 he became commander 
of the northern department. On July 5 he was 
responsible for the defeat of the British at 
Chippewa, and on July 25 he was conspicuous 
in the victory at Lundy’s Lane. From 1821 
until his death he was general in chief of the 
United States army. 

Brown, John (1800-1859), an American 


abolitionist, celebrated as the originator of the 
Harper’s Ferry insurrection. He was bom in 
Torrington, Conn. His early years were' spent 
in travels, apparently aimless and valueless, 
though at times he displayed in his business 
affairs the real force of his character. He lived 
at different times in Connecticut, Ohio and New 
York, was twice married and was the father of 
twenty children. 



In 1855, with his four sons, he migrated to 
Kansas and at once took a prominent position 
as an antislavery man. He became renowned 
in the fierce border warfare which was carried 
on for some years in Kansas and Missouri, and 
he gained particular celebrity by his victories at 
Pottawatomie and Osawatomie. 

About this time he seems to have formed the 
idea of effecting slave liberation by arming the 
slaves and inciting them to rise in revolt against 
their oppressors. As the first step in this scheme, 
he designed to seize the arsenal of Harper’s 
Ferry, where an immense stock of arms was kept. 
On the night of Oct. 10, 1859, he, with a hand¬ 
ful of well-armed and resolute companions, 
including several of his sons, overpowered the 
small guard and gained possession of the arsenal. 
During the next morning he made prisoners of 
some of the chief men of the town, but there was 
no rising of slaves as he had expected. A 



Brown 


Browning 


squad of United States soldiers under Capt. 
Robert E. Lee regained control of the arsenal 
after a short but stubborn fight, in which Brown 
was severely wounded. On October 27, he was 
tried at Charlestown for treason and murder, was 
found guilty and was hanged December 2. His 
offense was generally condoned in the north, 
and his execution was condemned. This led the 
Southerners to become more bitter in their 
feeling against the antislavery party. 

Brown, John (1810-1882), a Scottish physi¬ 
cian and writer, educated at the University of 
Edinburgh. He practiced medicine in Edin¬ 
burgh and wrote during his leisure hours many 
essays on medicine, literature and miscellaneous 
topics. These have been collected in a volume 
known as Horae Subsecivae. He is chiefly 
remembered for the widely popular Rab and His 
Friends. 

Brown, John (1736-1788), author of the Bru- 
nonian system in medicine. He maintained 
that the majority of diseases were proofs of 
weakness and not of excessive strength or 
excitement, and therefore contended that indis¬ 
criminate lowering of the system, as by bleeding, 
was erroneous and that supporting treatment was 
required. His system gave rise to much opposi¬ 
tion, but his opinions materially influenced the 
practice of his successors. 

Brown, John George (1831-1913), an Ameri¬ 
can painter, born in Durham, England. He 
studied in Newcastle-on-Tyne and in Edinburgh 
and in 1853 came to America. He was one of 
the original members of the Water Color Society 
and was its president in 1901. His portrayals 
of New York bootblacks and street urchins are 
especially known. Among his productions are 
Hiding in the Old Oak , Pull for the Shore and 
Street Boys at Play. 

Brown, Joseph Emerson (1821-1894), an 
American lawyer and politician, born in South 
Carolina. He early removed to Georgia and was 
elected to the state senate in 1849, became judge 
in 1855 and was governor from 1857 to 1865. 
At the outbreak of the Civil War, Governor 
Brown, who was an active secessionist, seized 
the United States forts and arsenals, and later 
he raised an army of 100,000 old men and boys 
to defend the state against Sherman’s raid. After 
the war he advised his state to accept the terms 
of reconstruction offered, and for a time he acted 
with the Republican party. He was appointed 
chief justice of the state supreme court in 1868. 
In 1872 he again joined the Democratic party, 
and in 1880 he was elected United States senator. 


Browne, Charles Farrar (1834-1867), an 
American humorist, best known as “Artemus 
Ward.” Originally a printer, he became editor 
of papers in Ohio, where his humorous letters 
became very popular. He subsequently lec¬ 
tured in California and Utah and in England, 
where he also contributed to Punch. His writ¬ 
ings consist of letters and papers by Artemus 
Ward, a pretended exhibitor of wax figures and 
wild beasts, and are full of drollery and eccen¬ 
tricity. 

Brown'ie, in Scotland, an imaginary spirit 
formerly believed to haunt houses, particularly 
farmhouses. He was believed to be very useful 
to the family, particularly to the servants, for 
whom he was wont to do many pieces of drudgery 
while they slept. The brownie bears a close 
resemblance to the Robin Goodfellow of England 
and to the Kobold of Germany. 

Brown'ing, Elizabeth Barrett (1806- 
1861), a famous English poet. She grew up at 
Hope End, near Ledbury, Herefordshire, where 
her father possessed a large estate. She was 
always extremely delicate, and she had been 
injured by a fall from her pony when a girl, 



ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING 


but her mind was. sound and vigorous and was 
disciplined by a course of severe and exalted 
study. She early began to commit her thoughts 
to writing, and in 1826 she published anonymously 
a volume entitled An Essay on Mind, with 
Other Poems. In 1840 she received a severe 
shock from the drowning of her brother, and 


Browning 

for a time her life was despaired of. Several 
years were spent in the confinement of a sick¬ 
room, but she was far from idle during this 
time, and some of her best-known poems, 
among them The Cry of the Children and Lady 
Geraldine’s Courtship, appeared in 1844. This 
last poem contained a compliment to Robert 
Browning, who called to thank her. Their 
acquaintance grew into a mutual love, and in 
1846 they were married, greatly against the 
wishes of her father. It proved an unusually 
happy union. From the time of their marriage 
until Mrs. Browning’s death, the poets lived in 
Italy, and here Mrs. Browning’s health improved. 
She died in the Casa Guidi, as she had wished. 

The Prometheus Bound (from the Greek of 
Aeschylus) and Miscellaneous Poems appeared 
in 1833; the Seraphim and Other Poems in 1838; 
Casa Guidi Windows, a poem on the struggles 
of the Italians for liberty in 1848-1849, was 
published in 1851, and the longest and most 
finished of all her works, Aurora Leigh, a narra¬ 
tive and didactic poem in nine books, was pub¬ 
lished six years later. Two posthumous vol¬ 
umes, Last Poems and The Greek Christian 
Poets and the English Poets (prose essays and 
translations), were edited by her husband. 
Her Sonnets from the Portuguese, written during 
her engagement to Browning and not shown 
even to him until after their' marriage, bear 
comparison with the finest sonnets in the Eng¬ 
lish language and perhaps surpass all other love 
sonnets. The title From the Portuguese was 
given them simply as a disguise. 

Browning, Robert (1812-1889), one of the 
great poets of the Victorian era. His life was 
uneventful, but in the main happy. His father 
and his mother were in sympathy with his aspi¬ 
rations, and his education was such as to call 
forth his highest powers. The fact, too, that 
he inherited perfect health from his father had 
much to do with the pure physical enjoyment 
of life which he expressed so often in his poems. 
His education was received neither in a large 
school nor in a college, but from private tutors 
and from travel on the Continent. He wrote 
poetry while he was but a boy, and when the 
poems of Shelley and Keats came into his hands 
they confirmed him in his desire to be a poet, 
although they made him look with disfavor on 
his own early attempts. His first published 
works met with little general success, although 
they were praised by the critics. 

In 1844 Browning became acquainted with 
Elizabeth Barrett, through calling on her to 


Browning 

thank her for a compliment which she had paid 
him in one of her poems. The acquaintance 
grew into love, and they were married in 1846. 
Their life together was very beautiful, and her 
death in 1861 was a shock from which Browning 
never completely recovered. He removed from 
Italy, where all of his married life had been 
spent, to England, that he might educate his 
son; there he was very popular socially. He 
returned, however, to Italy later, where he died. 
Browning was a most productive writer. From 
the time that his first poem, Pauline, appeared, 
in 1832, until his death he wrote rapidly, revising 



ROBERT BROWNING 


little. This unwillingness to revise, which 
amounted practically to an inability, prevented 
Browning from attaining the faultless form 
which distinguished Tennyson’s works, but his 
poetry is by no means unmusical. Lines of 
great strength and beauty are frequent, and he 
attains at times a wonderful lyric lightness. 
One thinks, however, in reading Browning, less 
of the form than of the substance, and he is 
considered preeminent as a poet-thinker. The 
study of the human soul had for him the greatest 
fascination, and he was able to analyze it and 
to describe its experiences as perhaps no other 
English poet except Shakespeare has ever been 
able to do. His genius was distinctly dramatic, 
and had he lived in an age when the drama was 
the chief form of literary expression, he might 
have done his greatest work in that field. It is, 
however, in the dramatic monologue that he 
excelled. Such poems as My Last Duchess, 
Andrea del Sarto, The Bishop Orders His Tomb 
at Saint Praxed’s Church, Fra Lippo Lippi, A 


Brown-Sequard 

Forgiveness, are fine examples of his success. 
The Ring and the Book, considered by most 
critics Browning’s masterpiece, is a long poem 
made up of a series of monologues. The story 
is told simply in the first book, and in each of the 
remaining ones the view of some one speaker or 
class is expressed, and Browning is thus enabled 
to give some of his most subtle pictures of 
character. 

Besides the poems mentioned above, his best- 
known works are the dramas Strafford, A Blot 
on the ’Scutcheon, Colombe’s Birthday, In a 
Balcony, Pippa Passes, Paracelsus; Saul, Rabbi 
Ben Ezra and the poems comprised in the collec¬ 
tion known as Men and Women. 

Brown-Sequard, sa kahr', Charles Edouard 
(1818-1894), an American physician. His father 
was an American sea captain, his mother a 
French woman. He was a professor in the 
medical department -of Harvard University, 
1864-1868, and was connected with the Virginia 
Medical College. In 1869 he was appointed 
professor of pathology in the School of Medicine 
at Paris, in 1873 established a medical journal 
in New York and in 1878 became professor of 
medicine in the College of France. He wrote 
many scientific papers and contributed to the 
advance of his profession, but in his later years 
his reputation suffered from the advocacy of a 
certain remedy which proved to be worthless. 

Brownsville, Tex., the county-seat of 
Cameron co., on the Rio Grande railroad and 
on the Rio Grande River, opposite Matamoras, 
Mexico. The city contains the Cathedral of 
the Immaculate Conception, a convent and an 
academy. Notable buildings are the county 
courthouse and the United States customhouse. 
It is the center of a stock-raising district and has 
an extensive trade with Mexico. Brownsville 
was settled in 1848 and was incorporated in 
1853. It was captured by Mexican raiders in 
1859, and during the Civil War was taken from 
the Confederates by a Union army under Gen¬ 
eral Banks. Population in 1910, 10,517. 

Brown-Tail Moth, a European moth very 
destructive to orchard, forest and shade trees, 
was introduced into New England about 1890. 
The female deposits her eggs on the under side 
of a leaf during the first three weeks in July; 
they hatch 15 or 20 days later. The young 
larvae begin feeding on the outer coat of the 
leaf and when full-grown, spin a cocoon of 
grayish silk. The caterpillars pupate within 
their cocoons at the tips of twigs the latter part 
of June, and the moths emerge about the middle 


Bruce 

of July. The wings are pure white, the name 
brown-tail being given the moth on account of 
a bunch of brown hair at the tip of the abdomen 
of the female. The wing expanse of the female 
is about lb inches, the male being slightly 
smaller. The destructive work is done by the 
caterpillars, whose winter webs can be seen at 
the tips of twigs from October to April. Webs 
should be removed and burned. Spraying with 
kerosene emulsion or strong soap suds destroys 
the caterpillars. (See Insecticides.) On morn¬ 
ings during the flying season hundreds of the 
moths can be seen collected on lamp poles. 
Web destruction is by far the best means of 
exterminating the moth. See Gypsy Moth. 

Brown Thrash'er, often incorrectly called a 
brown thrush, a large, handsome, reddish-brown 
bird, common in the eastern United States, 
where it is considered one of the finest native 
songsters, not much inferior to the mocking 
bird. It is a good mimic, and in the early 
morning or evening time it perches in the top 
of a tree and sings sometimes for an hour or more. 
It nests in shrubbery and brush piles. 

Brown University, an educational institu¬ 
tion in Providence, R. I., established in 1764 
by an act of the general assembly of the state, 
under the name of Rhode Island College. The 
College was founded at the request of the Bap¬ 
tists, under whose auspices it has always con¬ 
tinued, although it is non-sectarian. In 1804 
the name was changed to Brown University, in 
honor of Mr. Nicholas Brown, who had 
bequeathed the institution a large sum of money. 
Its scope was enlarged during the middle of the 
nineteenth century, and from 1890 to the pres¬ 
ent time its number of students has greatly 
increased. In 1891 a woman’s college was 
established, known as the Woman’s College in 
Brown University. The institution has over 90 
professors and instructors, about 1000 students 
and an endowment fund of $3,000,000. 

Brownwood, Tex., the county-seat of Brown 
co., is situated 140 mi. s.w. of Fort Worth, on the 
Fort Worth & Rio Grande and the Gulf, Colorado 
& Santa Fe railroads. The city has a beautiful 
location, and has grown rapidly. The chief 
industries include cotton-jinning and milling. 
It is an important shipping point for cotton, 
wool, pecans and other products. Population in 
1910, 6967. 

Bruce, Robert (1274-1329), the greatest of 
the kings of Scotland. In 1296, as earl of 
Carrick, he swore fealty to Edward I, and in the 
following year he fought on the English side 


Bruges 


Brunn 


against Wallace. He then joined for a time the 
Scottish army, returned again to his allegiance 
to Edward, and in 1299 he was appointed one 
of the four regents of the kingdom. In the 
three final campaigns he managed to keep up 
friendly relations with Edward and resided for 
some time at his court. In 1306, in a violent 
quarrel with Comyn, a claimant to the Scottish 
throne, he stabbed his adversary. He then 
assembled his vassals and claimed the crown, 
which he received at Scone. After being twice 
defeated, he dismissed his troops, retired to the 
Irish coast and was supposed to be dead; but 
in the spring of 1307 he landed on the Carrick 
coast, defeated the earl of Pembroke at Loudon 
Hill and in two years had wrested nearly all of 
Scotland from the English. He then advanced 
into Eng’and, laying waste the country; and in 
1314 he defeated at Bannockburn the English 
forces advancing under Edward II to the relief 
of the garrison at Stirling. In 1316 he went to 
Ireland to the aid of his brother Edward, and 
on his return in 1318, in retaliation for inroads 
made during his absence, took Berwick and har¬ 
ried Northumberland and Yorkshire. Hostilities 
continued until the defeat of Edward near 
Biland Abbey in 1323, and though in that year 
a truce was concluded for thirteen years it was 
speedily broken. Not until 1328 was the treaty 
concluded by wdiich the independence of Scot¬ 
land was fully recognized. Bruce did not long 
survive the completion of his work, but died at 
Cardross Castle in 1329. He was twice mar¬ 
ried, first, to a daughter of the earl of Mar, by 
whom he had a daughter, Marjory, mother of 
Robert II; and then to a daughter of the earl of 
Ulster, by whom he had a son, David, who 
succeeded him. 

Bruges, broozh, an old walled city of Belgium, 
capital of West Flanders, 55 mi. n. w. of Brus¬ 
sels, on the railway to Ostend. It is an impor¬ 
tant canal center and has over fifty bridges, all 
opening in the middle for the passage of vessels. 
Among its more noteworthy buildings are the 
Halles, a fine old building, with a tower 354 feet 
high, in which is a fine set of chimes; the Hotel 
de Ville; the Bourse; the Palace of Justice, and 
the Church of Notre Dame, with its elevated 
spire and splendid tombs of Charles the Bold 
and Mary of Burgundy. The principal canals 
are those to Sluis, Ghent and Ostend, on all of 
which large vessels can come up to Bruges. In 
the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries the city 
was one of the chief commercial places in Europe 
and was an important member of the Hanseatic 


League. Toward the end of the fifteenth cen¬ 
tury it began to decline, but it still carries on a 
considerable trade with northern Europe and 
is, through its canals, a center of Belgian com¬ 
merce. The manufactures include lace, textiles 
and tobacco, and there are shipbuilding yards 
and breweries. Population in 1910, 54,015. 

Bmm'mell, George Bryan (1778-1840), 
an English man of fashion, best known as Beau 
Brummell. He was educa'ed at Eton and at 
Oxford, and at the age of sixteen he made the 
acquaintance of the prince of Wales, afterward 
George IV, who made him a cornet in his own 
regiment of the Tenth Hussars and secured his 
rapid promotion. The death of his father 
brought him a fortune, which he expended in a 
course of sumptuous living, extending over 
twenty-one years, during which his opinions on 
matters of etiquette and dress were received as 
indisputable. His creditors at length became 
clamorous, and in 1816 he took refuge in Calais, 
where he resided for many years, supported 
partly by the remains of his own fortune and 
partly by remittances from friends in England. 
Subsequently he was appointed consul at Caen, 
but on the abolition of the post he was reduced 
to absolute poverty and died in a lunatic asylum 
at Caen. 

Brunelleschi, broo'nel les'ke, Filippo (1377- 
1446), an Italian architect, born in Florence. 
When at Rome with Donatello he conceived the 
idea of bringing architecture back from the 
Gothic style to the principles of Greece and 
Rome. In this he was successful, as his work 
opened the way for Bramante and others, but 
he himself did not depart entirely from the 
medieval art, as was shown by his design for 
the fa 9 ade of the Church of Santa Maria Novella. 
In 1417 he removed to Florence, where he lived 
the rest of his life. His great achievement was 
the dome of the Cathedral of Santa Maria at 
Florence, the possibility of erecting which was 
denied by other architects. It has remained, 
however, unsurpassed, for the dome of Saint 
Peter’s, though excelling in height, is inferior 
to it in massiveness of effect. Among other 
important works by him were the Pitti Palace 
at Florence and the Pazzi Chapel at Santa Croce. 

Brunhilde, broon hil'da. See Nibelungen- 
lied; Sigurd. 

Brunn, briin, an Austrian city, capital of 
Moravia, on the railway from Vienna to Prague, 
nearly encircled by the rivers Schwarzawa and 
Zwittawa. It contains a cathedral and other 
handsome churches, a landhaus, where the 


Brunswick 


Brunswick Black 


provincial assembly meets, several palaces, a 
barracks and a new theater. Brunn has exten¬ 
sive manufactures of woolens, which have pro¬ 
cured for it the name of the Austrian Leeds. 
There are other manufactures of leather, ma¬ 
chinery, chemicals and beer. It is the center 
of Moravian commerce, a great part of which 
is carried on by fairs. Brunn dates back to 
the ninth century, though the new town was not 
founded until five hundred years later. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 125,737. 

Brunswick, brum*wile, a city of Germany, 
capital of the duchy of the same name, situated 
on the Oker River, 35 mi. s. e. of Hanover, and 
on the railway from Hanover to Berlin. The 
streets of the older part of the town are narrow 
and winding and have all the characteristics of 
the cities of the Middle Ages. The most im¬ 
portant public buildings are the ducal palace; the 
Cathedral of Saint Blaise, erected in 1173; Saint 
Catherine’s church, 1172, and Saint Magnus’s 
church, 1031; the Gewandhaus, and the old 
Gothic Council House. The educational insti¬ 
tutions include a polytechnic school, a gymnasium 
and the Collegium Carolinum, an institution in 
grade between the common school and the 
university. The city also has a city museum 
and a public library. The leading industries 
are manufactures of woolens, linen goods, jute, 
machinery and chemical products. The city 
owns its gas plant and waterworks, slaughter 
houses and markets; it also has an excellent 
sewage system. It is an important railway 
center and carries on a good trade in home 
products, grains and manufactures. Population 
in 1910, 143,534. 

Brunswick, a duchy in the northwestern part 
of the German Empire. It is divided into several 
districts and is surrounded by the Prussian 
provinces of Hanover, Saxony and Westphalia. 
The northern portion is hilly, or undulating. 
The southeastern part contains a portion of the 
Harz mountain system and rises in some places 
to an altitude of more than 3000 feet. Deposits 
of iron ore, lead, copper and brown coal are 
found, and mining is an industry of some impor¬ 
tance. About one-half of the land is capable of 
tillage, and the leading crops are grain, flax, 
hops, tobacco and fruit. The manufacturing 
Industries include brewing, distilling and the 
manufacture of linens, woolens, leather, 
paper, also tobacco, soap and beet sugar. 
Brunswick is a state of the German Empire, 
sends two members to the Bundesrath and three 
deputies to the Reichstag. Its internal govern¬ 


ment is a constitutional monarchy. Population 
in 1910, 494,387. 

Brunswick, Ga., a city in Glynn co., 91 miles 
s. of Savannah, on Saint Simons Sound, 8 miles 
from the Atlantic Ocean, and on the Southern and 
other railroads. The first settlement was made 
by James Oglethorpe in 1735, but the commercial 
importance of the place did not develop till after 
the Civil War. There is a spacious harbor, and 
the chief exports are cotton, phosphates, tar, 
turpentine and pine lumber. The city has 
excellent hotel accommodations, and many 
points of public interest make it a popular sum¬ 
mer and winter resort. Population in 1910, 
10,182. 

Brunswick, Me., a town in Cumberland co., 
26 mi. n. e. of Portland, on the Androscoggin 
River and on the Maine Central railroad. The 
falls in the river afford water power for the 
manufactures, which include cotton goods, flour, 
and brass, steel and wooden specialties. Bow- 
doin College and the Medical School of Maine are 
located here. The first settlement, called Pejep- 
scot, was made in 1628 and was incorporated as 
Brunswick in 1717. Population in 1910, 6,621. 

Brunswick, Family of, a distinguished family 
founded by Albert Azo II, marquis of Reggio and 
Modena, a descendant, by the female line, of 
Charlemagne. He married Cunigunda, heiress 
of the counts of Altorf, thus uniting the two 
houses of Este and Guelph. From his son, 
Guelph, who was created duke of Bavaria in 
1071 and married Judith of Flanders, a descend¬ 
ant of Alfred of England, descended Henry the 
Lion, who succeeded in 1125 to the control of the 
duchy and by marriage acquired Brunswick 
and Saxony. Otho, the great-grandson of Henry, 
by a younger branch of his family, was the first 
who bore the title of duke of Brunswick (1235); 
By the two sons of Ernst the Confessor, who 
became duke in 1532, the family was divided 
into the two branches of Brunswick-Wolfen- 
buttel and Brunswick-Liineburg (House of 
Hanover), from the latter of which comes the 
present royal family of Britain. The Bruns- 
wick-Wolfenbiittel was the family in possession 
of the duchy of Brunswick until the death of the 
last duke in 1884. George Louis, son of Ernst 
Augustus and Sophia, granddaughter of James 
I of England, succeeded his father as elector of 
Hanover in 1698 and was called to the throne 
of Great Britain in 1714 as George I. 

Brunswick Black, a varnish composed 
chiefly of lampblack and turpentine, and applied 
to cast-iron goods to give them a glossy black 


Bmsa 


Brutus 


and enamel-like surface. Asphalt and oil of 
turpentine are also ingredients in some varieties. 

Brusa or Broussa, broo'sah, (in ancient times, 
Prusa), a Turkish city in Asia Minor, s. of the 
Sea of Marmora, about 20 mi. from its port, 
Mudania. The town is situated in a fertile 
plain, which is enclosed by the ridges of Olympus 
and abounds in hot springs, celebrated for 
their medicinal properties. Formerly Brusa 
contained many mosques, but earthquakes have 
so damaged them that their splendor has been 
lost, and they are in ruins to-day. The leading 
industries are the manufacture of carpets, gauze 
and silks of a very fine texture. The city is a 
very important commercial center of the Turks. 
Brusa represents the ancient Prusa, long capital 
of Bithynia, and one of the most flourishing 
towns in the Greek empire' of Constantinople. 
It was the residence of the Turkish sovereigns 
from 1329 until the transference of the seat of 
empire to Adrianople in 1365. Population, 
estimated at about 110,000. 

Brush, an implement made of bristles, fibers 
or wire, set in a back and used for smoothing, 
cleaning and other purposes. Brushes are of 
two classes, those having stiff fiber and those 
with flexible fiber. The stiff brushes are made 
of hogs’ bristles, whalebone, palm fibers and 
occasionally of wire. The flexible brushes are 
made of fine bristles and the hair from certain 
animals, such as the camel, badger, squirrel, 
sable and goat. These are chiefly used for 
painting, and the smallest kind are called 
pencils. Brushes having more than one tuft of 
fiber are made by fastening the tufts into holes 
in the back, by means of a wire. When the tufts 
have all been fastened, a piece of finished wood 
or other substance is glued upon the back, and 
then the tufts are cut the.same length. 

Brush, Charles Francis (1849- ), an 

American inventor, born in Euclid, Ohio, and 
educated at the University of Michigan. He 
became an analytical chemist and turned his 
attention to electric lighting. He is especially 
known as the inventor of the Brush dynamo for 
arc lighting, and of an electric lamp, as well as 
of a large number of devices which have been 
of great use in the development of the electric 
light. See Electric Light. 

Brush Turkey. See Mound Bird. 

Brus'sels, the capital of Belgium and of the 
province of Brabant. The city consists of a 
lower town and an upper town. The older or 
lower part is surrounded with fine boulevards, 
on the site of its fortifications, and is devoted 


almost entirely to commerce and industry. The 
upper town, which is partly inside the boulevards 
and partly outside, is the finest part of the city 
and contains the king’s palace, the government 
offices and the finest streets and hotels. Among 
the important buildings are the H6tel de Ville, 
a part of which dates from the fifteenth century, 
an imposing Gothic structure, with a spire 364 1 
feet in height, the square in front of it being 
perhaps the most beautiful of all the public places 
of Brussels, the Cathedral of Saint Gudule, begun 
about 1220, the finest of many fine churches, 
richly adorned with sculptures and paintings; 
the royal palace; the Palace of the Nation, and 
the Palace of Justice. The institutions com¬ 
prise a university, an academy of science and 
the fine arts and polytechnic school; one of the 
finest observatories in Europe; a conservatory 
of music; a public library containing 400,000 
volumes; a picture gallery, with the finest speci¬ 
mens of Flemish art, and many learned societies 
and educational organizations. The manu¬ 
factures and trade are greatly promoted by canal 
communications with Charleroi, Mechlin, Ant¬ 
werp and the ocean, and by the network of Bel¬ 
gian railways. The industries are varied and 
important. Lace, an ancient manufacture, is 
still of great importance, and the manufacture of 
cotton and woolen fabrics, paper, carriages and 
many minor products is carried on. There are 
breweries, distilleries, sugar refineries and 
foundries. During the Middle Ages Brussels 
did not attain great importance. It was fortified 
with walls by Baldric of Louvain in 1044, and in 
1430, when Brabant passed into the hands of 
the dukes of Burgundy, was a prosperous city. 
It became the seat of government during the 
rule of the Hapsburgs, early in the sixteenth 
century. It was bombarded and burned by the 
French in 1695, was again taken by the French 
in 1794 and was retained till 1814. From 1815 
to 1830 it was one of the capitals of the King¬ 
dom of the Netherlands, and in 1830 it was the 
center of the revolt which separated Belgium 
from Holland. In 1914 it was occupied by the 
Germans, the city having surrendered without a 
battle in order to save its beautiful buildings 
from bombardment. Population in 1910,665,806. 

Brussels Sprouts, one of the cultivated 
varieties of cabbage, having an elongated stem 
four or five feet high, with small clustering 
green heads like miniature cabbages. 

Bru'tus, the first king of Britain, a purely 
mythical personage, said to have been the son 
of Sylvius and the grandson of Ascanius, the son 





WILLIAM JENNINGS BRYAN 











Brutus 

of iEneas. He landed in Devonshire, destroyed 
the giants then inhabiting Albion and called the 
island from his own name. At his death the 
island was divided among his sons, Locrine, 
Cumber and Albanact. 

Brutus, Decimus Junius (84-43 b. c.), a 
Roman soldier who served under Julius Caesar 
in Gaul, was afterward commander of his fleet 
and was even chosen as Caesar’s heir in the 
event of the death of Octavius. Despite this, 
however, he joined in the assassination of 
Caesar. He was afterward for a short time 
successful in opposing Antony, but he was 
deserted by his soldiers in Gaul .and betrayed 
into the hands of his opponent, who put him to 
death. 

Brutus, Lucius Junius, an ancient Roman 
hero, son of Torquinia, and nephew of Tarquin 
the Proud. He saved himself from the 
persecutions of Tarquin the Proud by pretending 
to be insane, whence his name Brutus (stupid). 
On the suicide of Lucretia, however; he threw off 
the mask and headed the revolt against the 
Tarquins (See Lucretia). Having secured 
their banishment, he proposed to abolish the 
regal dignity and introduce a free government, 
with the result that he was elected to the consul¬ 
ship, in which capacity he condemned his own 
sons to death for conspiring to restore the mon¬ 
archy. He fell in a battle with the Tarquins 
about 509 b. c. Much of the story of Brutus 
is legendary. 

Brutus, Marcus Junius (85-42 b. c.), a 
distinguished Roman. He was at first an 
enemy of Pompey, but joined him on the out¬ 
break of civil war and remained with him until 
the Battle of Pharsalia. He then surrendered 
to Caesar, who made him in the following year 
governor of Cisalpine Gaul, and afterward of 
Macedonia. He soon, however, joined the con¬ 
spiracy against Caesar, and by his influence 
insured its success (See Caesar, Caius Julius). 
After the assassination he took refuge in the 
East, made himself master of Greece and Mace¬ 
donia and with a powerful army joined Cassius 
in the subjugation of the Lycians and Rhodians. 
In the meantime the triumvirs, Octavianus, 
Antony and Lepidus, had been successful at 
Rome, and were prepared to encounter the army 
of the conspirators, which, crossing the Helles¬ 
pont, assempled at Philippi in Macedonia 
Cassius appears to have been beaten at once 
by Antony; and Brutus, though temporarily 
successful against Octavianus, was totally 
defeated twenty days later. He escaped with 

29 


Bryan 

a few friends; but, seeing that his cause was 
hopelessly ruined, he fell upon the sword held 
for him by his friend Strabo, and died. 

Bryan, William Jennings (1860- ), a 

distinguished American lawyer, editor and 
statesman, born at Salem, Ill. He attended the 
public schools in his native village and com¬ 
pleted his education at Whipple Academy and 
at Illinois College, Jacksonville, Ill. He then 
entered the Union College of Law at Chicago, 
graduating in 1883, and began the practice of 
his profession at Jacksonville. In the following 
year he was married to Miss Mary Baird, who, 
having also received a legal education, was 
thereafter his adviser in both business and 
politics. In 1887 he removed to Lincoln, Neb., 
where he continued to practice law and also 
entered politics, affiliating with the Democratic 
party. He soon attracted public notice by his 
eloquent advocacy of free trade. By a vigorous 
personal canvas he was chosen to Congress from 
a Republican district by a huge majority and 
for two terms was a conspicuous member of 
that body. During this service he heightened 
his reputation as a political orator by several 
notable speeches in favor of free trade. In 1893 
he was Democratic candidate for the United 
States Senate, but was defeated. He then be¬ 
came editor of the Omaha World-Herald, but 
after a short time returned to his law practice. 

During his terms in Congress he had severely 
criticised the Cleveland administration for its 
attitude upon the money question, and at the 
Democratic national convention in Chicago in 
1896, by a remarkable speech urging the adop¬ 
tion of the policy of free coinage of silver at the 
ratio of sixteen to one, he captured the nomi¬ 
nation for the presidency. His candidacy was 
endorsed by the Populist and Silver Republican 
parties. Then followed one of the most note¬ 
worthy campaigns in American history, during 
which Bryan traveled more than 18,000 miles 
and made hundreds of addresses. He was 
defeated, however, by William McKinley, 
the Republican candidate. At the outbreak 
of the - Spanish-American War he organized 
a volunteer regiment and became its colonel. 
In 1900 he was again nominated for presi¬ 
dent by the Democrats, but was again defeated 
by McKinley. After his second defeat he 
founded a weekly paper called the Commoner, 
later changed to a monthly. In 1906 he 
made a tour around the world, w r hich he de¬ 
scribed in a series of letters to several Ameri¬ 
can newspapers. He was nominated a third 


Bryant 


Bryce 


time in 1908, but was again defeated. In 1912, 
though not a candidate, he was the dominating 
figure in the Democratic convention, and forced 
the nomination of Woodrow Wilson for presi¬ 
dent. He became secretary of state in Wilson’s 
cabinet, but resigned on June 8, 1915, because 
he was not in accord with the president on the 
policies to be pursued toward Germany and the 
other European nations at war. The president 
was in favor of the strict maintenence of the 
rights of the United States and other neutral 
countries, whereas Bryan favored a more cau¬ 
tious policy, including arbitration of the ques¬ 
tions under dispute. See War of the Nations. 

Bry'ant, William Cullen (1794-1878), an 
American poet and journalist, born at Cumming- 
ton, Mass., Nov. 3,1794. When but ten years old 
he contributed his first poem to a country news¬ 
paper, and at fourteen he published The Embargo. 
It was probably in his seventeenth year that 



Bryant wrote Thanatopsis, which in 1817 was 
published in the North American Review. 
During Bryant’s absence from home this poem 
was accidentally discovered by his father, who 
took it to Boston and showed it to several men 
prominent in literature. Their high recommenda¬ 
tion led to its publication in the Review. Before he 
was twenty-one Bryant had also written To a Yel¬ 
low Violet, Inscription for the Entrance to a Wood, 
To a Waterfowl and some other poems of less 
merit. He became a frequent contributor to the 
North American Review, most of his articles con¬ 
sisting of literary criticism. In 1821 he was 


invited to deliver a poem before the Phi Beta 
Kappa society of Harvard, and for the occasion 
he wrote The Ages, which, with several other 
poems, was published in 1825. In this same 
year he removed to New York and became 
associate editor of the New York Evening Post, of 
which, three years later, he became editor in 
chief. He retained this position until his death, 
which occurred from sunstroke June 12, 1878. 

Bryant’s place in American literature is 
unique; his career as author and journalist 
covered two-thirds of a century; he was the 
“Father of American Poets” and the model 
American writer of verse until the rise of Long¬ 
fellow. During the long period of his active 
life he retained to their fullest capacity his 
superb intellectual powers. He never ceased to 
be progressive and productive. Stoddard says 
of him: “He enjoyed the dangerous distinction 
of proving himself a great poet at an early age; 
he preserved this distinction to the last, for the 
sixty-four years which elapsed between the 
writing of Thanatopsis and the Flood of Years 
witnessed no decay in his poetic capacities, but 
rather the growth and development of trains of 
thought and forms of verse of which there was 
no evidence in his early writings.” Bryant was 
the poet of nature, but few of his poems are 
without the note of moralizing. Nearly all are 
short, and many of them are so well known as 
to be almost household words. Besides those 
already mentioned, may be cited To the Fringed 
Gentian, The Death of the Flowers , The Crowded 
Street, My Country's Call and The Battlefield, 
as among his popular poems. He also translated 
the Iliad and the Odyssey and published Letters 
of a Traveler; Letters from the East; Letters from 
Spain and Other Countries, and Orations and 
Addresses. 

While Bryant will always be remembered as 
a poet, he attained as an editor a distinction 
won by few. For fifty years he was associated 
with, and during most of the period was pro¬ 
prietor of, one of the leading journals of the 
country. His editorials were plain, direct, 
straightforward and convincing. An uncompro¬ 
mising abolitionist, he dealt telling blows against 
slavery through his editorials. His long services 
as a writer on public affairs were influential 
and he lived to see many of the reforms which 
he advocated become firmly established. 

Bryce, brise, James, Viscount (1838- ), 

British historian and politician, born at Belfast 
and educated at the University of Glasgow and 
at Oxford. He was admitted to the bar in 


Bryn Mawr College 


Buchanan 


1867. Three years later he was made regius 
professor of civil law at Oxford, a position he 
held for twenty-three years. From 1885 to 
1906 he was a member of Parliament. While 
serving in Parliament he gave a great impetus 
to the cause of national education in England, 
and this secured for him the chairmanship of 
the Royal Commission on Secondary Education 
in 1894. He was from the first a Liberal in 
politics and a strong advocate of Home Rule 
for Ireland, and was chief secretary for Ireland 
in 1905. From 1906 to 1913 Mr. Bryce served 
as Ambassador to the United States. Bryce’s 
most important literary work is his history of 
The Holy Roman Empire, and next to that is 
the American Commonwealth. 

Bryn Mawr, mar, College, an institution for 
the higher education of women, located at Bryn 
Mawr, Pa., and founded in 1880 by Joseph W. 
Taylor, who was a member of the Society of 
Friends. The college is characterized by its 
high requirements for admission and the general 
culture and high scholarship of its students. It 
maintains a faculty of sixty members and has 
about 450 students. 

Bryophytes, bri'o files, members of one of 
the four orders into which the non-flowering 
plants are divided. The two great classes of 
bryophytes are the liverworts and mosses. 
None of the plants have true roots, but develop 
other organs which perform the same work. 
Some have leaves, but others are leafless. See 
Mosses. 

Bubas'tis or Bubas'tus, the name given by 
the Greeks to an ancient Egyptian city, the 
home of the rulers of the twenty-second and 
twenty-third dynasties. The city was built in 
honor of the goddess Bubastis, and the ruins 
of several fine temples to her have been found. 
Outside of the city, cats, which were sacred to the 
goddess, were buried in great numbers. 

Bubon'ic Plague. See Plague. 

Buccaneers', the name given to a class of 
adventurers who in the sixteenth and seven¬ 
teenth centuries infested the Caribbean Sea and 
neighboring coasts and preyed upon commerce. 
The first were the Elizabethan seamen, including 
Drake and Hawkins, who operated against 
Spain with the consent and assistance of the 
British government, on account of the religious 
wars between the two countries. In the eight¬ 
eenth century, as the codes of international law 
became more settled and embodied more ad¬ 
vanced ideas, buccaneers or freebooters were 
compelled to adopt the methods of pirates, 


among whom Captain Kidd was perhaps the 
most famous. The next step was to the practice 
of marooning, that is, putting those whom they 
had robbed ashore on desert islands. By the 
end of the eighteenth century, all of these prac¬ 
tices had practically been abandoned. 

Bucentaur, bu sen'tawr, a mythical monster, 
half man and half ox. The name Bucentaur was 
also given to the splendid galley in which the 
doge of Venice annually wedded the Adriatic. 

Bucephalus, bu sej'a Ins, the favorite horse 
of Alexander the Great, which, according to 
legend, Alexander himself broke in. The horse 
died during Alexander’s expedition to India, 
and Alexander built over its grave a city called 
Bucephalia. 

Buchanan, bukan'an, James (1791-1868), 
fifteenth president of the United States, bom at 



JAMES BUCHANAN 


Stony Batter, Pa., and educated at Dickinson 
College. He studied law, was admitted to the 
bar in 1812 and soon obtained a large practice.. 
He then entered the army and served as a pri¬ 
vate during the War of 1812, was elected to the 
Pennsylvania legislature in 1814, and to Con¬ 
gress in 1821, where he remained ten years. In 
1831 Buchanan retired from Congress, and he 
was soon afterwards appointed United States 
minister to Russia, but was elected to the Senate 
in 1833. There he vigorously defended the 


Buchanan 


Buckboard 


president’s right to remove officials without the 
consent of the Senate. 

During Van Buren’s administration he gave 
his support to the establishment of an independ¬ 
ent treasury; under Tyler he sustained the 
veto power, opposed the ratification of the 
Webster-Ashburton Treaty and was one of the 
earliest advocates of the annexation of Texas. 
In 1845 he left the Senate and became secretary 
of state in Polk’s cabinet. While occupying this 
position he was largely instrumental in settling 
the northwestern boundary between the United 
States and British provinces. On the election 
of Pierce, Buchanan was appointed minister 
to Great Britain. He was a pro-slavery man 
and signed the Ostend Manifesto (See Ostend 
Manifesto). In 1856 he secured the Demo- 
cartic nomination for the presidency, and at the 
election he received 174 electoral votes, being 
elected over Fremont, the Republican, and Fill¬ 
more, the Know-Nothing. 

During Buchanan’s administration the con¬ 
troversy over slavery reached its crisis. Among 
the important events of his administration were 
the negotiation of a commercial treaty with 
China and the securing from England of an 
acknowledgment of the rights of neutral 
ships. 

While Buchanan did not favor secession, he 
held that the United States had no authority 
to prevent it and did not take steps to oppose 
the confiscation of government property in the 
South. Though he refused to withdraw the 
United States troops from South Carolina, he 
also refused to send them reenforcements. On 
retiring from office Mr. Buchanan went to his 
home in Lancaster, Pa., where he died. In 
1866 he published Mr. Buchanan's Adminis¬ 
tration on the Eve of the Rebellion . 

Buchanan, Robert William (1841-1901), 
an English poet and author, educated at the 
University of Glasgow. He was for many years 
a writer for the Contemporary Review, published 
several novels and some good poetry, and wrote 
the plays of A Man's Shadow and Dick Sheri- 
,dan. His criticisms, under the title of The 
Fleshly School of Poetry and The Voice of the 
Hooligan, on Rossetti and Kipling, respectively, 
stirred up much discussion. 

Bucharest or Bukharest, boo'karest', the 
capital of Rumania., situated on the Dimbovitza 
River about b3 mi. n. of the Danube, in a fertile 
plain. It is, in general, poorly built. Among the 
chief buildings are the royal palace, the national 
theater, the university buildings, the national 


bank, the mint and the archiepiscopal church. 
There are also handsome public gardens. The 
manufactures are varied, but unimportant; the 
trade is considerable, the chief articles being 
grain, wool, honey, wax, wine and hides. The 
mercantile portion of the community is mostly 
foreign, and the whole population presents a 
curious blending of nationalities. The city 
became the capital of Wallachia in 1665; in 1862 
it was made the capital of the united principali¬ 
ties of Wallachia and Moldavia. A treaty was 
concluded here in 1812 between Turkey and Rus¬ 
sia, by which the latter obtained Bessarabia and 
part of Moldavia. Population, 1910, 293,435. 

Buck, Dudley (1839-1909), an American 
musical composer, born at Hartford, Conn. 
He studied in Leipzig, Dresden and Paris, settled 
in Chicago for several years, then became organ¬ 
ist of Boston Music Hall and afterwards of Holy 
Trinity Church, Brooklyn, where he remained 
for twenty-two years. He wrote a cantata, 
which was performed under the direction of 
Theodore Thomas at the inauguration of the 
Centennial Exhibition of 1876, and he also com¬ 
posed many pieces for the organ and numerous 
anthems. The Festival Te Deum is one of his 
best known works. 

Buck Bean, Bog Bean or Marsh Trefoil, 

a beautiful plant, common in spongy, boggy 
soils, and found in Britain, throughout Europe, 
in Siberia and in North America. It is from six 
to twelve inches in height, and it flowers in early 
summer. The beautiful clustered flowers are 
waxy white and are covered on the inner surface 
with a coating of dense fleshy hairs. The whole 
plant, the root especially, has an intensely bitter 
taste and formerly ranked as a tonic. 

Buck' board, a four-wheeled carriage, having 
a plank attached to the hind axle and to a cross¬ 
bar in front. The crossbar is attached to the 



BUCKBOARD 


front axle by a kingbolt. The buckboard may 
contain one or more seats. The vehicle obtains 
its name from the fact that it was originally 
constructed so as to buck against, or withstand, 
the rough usage of the poor roads in the New 
England and Middle States. 



Buckeye 

Blick'eye, an American name for certain 
S[>ecies of horse-chestnuts. Ohio is called the 
Buckeye State. See Horse-Chestnut. 

Buckingham, George Villiers, Duke of 
(1592-1628), a favorite of James I and Charles I 
Df England. In 1623, when the earl of Bristol 
was negotiating a marriage for Prince Charles 
with the infanta of Spain, Buckingham went 
with the prince to Madrid to carry on the suit in 
person. The result, however, was the breaking 
off of the marriage and the declaration of war 
with Spain. After the death of James, Buck¬ 
ingham was sent to France, as proxy for Charles 
I, to marry Henrietta Maria. 

In 1626, after the failure of the Cadiz expedition, 
he was impeached, but was saved by the favor 
of the king. Despite the difficulty in obtaining 
supplies, Buckingham took upon himself the 
conduct of a war with France, but his expedition 
in aid of Rochelle proved an entire failure. In 
the meantime the spirit of revolt was becoming 
more formidable; the Petition of Right was 
carried despite the duke’s exertions, and he was 
again protected from impeachment only by the 
king’s prorogation of Parliament (See Petition 
of Right). He then set out on another expedi¬ 
tion to Rochelle, but was assassinated while 
embarking. 

Buckingham, William Alfred (1804-1875), 
an American politician, noted as the “war gov¬ 
ernor” of Connecticut. He was born in Lebanon, 
Conn., and in 1825 began a business career in 
Norwich, where he amassed a considerable 
fortune. He was active in politics, being several 
times elected mayor of Norwich, and from 1858 
to 1866 was governor of Connecticut. Largely 
through his influence the state contributed to 
the Union armies more than one-half of its 
able-bodied men between the ages of eighteen 
and forty-five years. In 1869 Buckingham was 
elected to the Senate, where he remained until 
his death. During the last years of his life he 
was active in the cause of temperance and was 
a conspicuous member of the Congregational 
Church. 

Buckingham Palace, a royal palace in Lon¬ 
don, facing Saint James’s Park, built in the 
reign of George IV, and forming one of the resi¬ 
dences of the British sovereign. 

Buck'land, Francis Trevelyan (1826- 
1880), an English naturalist. After continued 
study of medicine he became house surgeon at 
Saint George’s Hospital and later was assistant 
surgeon in the Second Life Guards. On the 
establishment of the Field, he joined the staff 


Buckwheat 

and was a constant contributor. In 1866 he 
commenced a weekly journal of his own, Land- 
and Water. His interest in fish culture led him 
to establish at his own cost a museum at South 
Kensington, which developed into the Inter¬ 
national Fisheries Exhibition in 1883. His 
best known books are his Curiosities of Natural 
History, The Logbook of a Fisherman and Zoolo¬ 
gist and the Natural History of the British Fishes. 

Buck'le, Henry Thomas (1821-1862), an 
English historical writer. At the age of eighteen 
he gave up his position in his father’s counting- 
house and devoted himself entirely to study. 
His chief work, a philosophic History of Civili¬ 
zation, of which only two volumes were com¬ 
pleted, was characterized by much novel and 
suggestive thought and by the use of a vast store 
of materials drawn from the most varied sources. 
He died at Damascus. 

Buck'ner, Simon Bolivar (1823-1914), an 
American soldier and politician, born in Ken¬ 
tucky. He was educated at West Point and 
served with distinction in the Mexican War. 
At the outbreak of the Civil War he joined the 
Confederate army and performed good service 
throughout the war, especially in the defense of 
Fort Donelson, at Murfreesboro and at Chicka- 
mauga. On May 26, 1865, he surrendered the 
last army corps of the Confederates to General 
Canby, of the Federal army. In 1896 he was a 
candidate for the vice-presidency on the National 
(Gold) Democratic ticket, with Senator Palmer 
of Illinois. 

Buck'tails, a name at first given to the 
Tammany Society of New York City, from the 
fact that the members for a time wore bucks’ 
tails as badges. The organization opposed 
Clinton’s canal policy, and from this fact the 
name bucktail was finally applied to any one who 
disapproved of that policy. Under the leader¬ 
ship of Martin Van Buren, the faction gained 
control of the Democratic state organization. 

Buck'thorn, the name of a large genus of 
trees and shrubs, several species of which belong 
to North America. The common buckthorn, 
a British and North American shrub, grows to 
seven or eight feet in height, has strong spines 
on its branches, elliptical and serrated leaves, 
male and female flowers on different plants, a 
greenish-yellow calyx, no corolla and a round, 
black berry. It flowers in May. One species 
in the Pacific states yields the cascara bark which 
is used medicinally. 

Buck'wheat, a plant producing a three-sided 
seed and usually styled a grain, though really 


Bucyrus 

very different from the grains and belonging to 
the same family as the pieplant. The origin of 
buckwheat is not known, but it is supposed to be 
a native of Asia and was therefore named 
Saracen wheat 
by the French. 

The plant has 
smooth,branch¬ 
ing stems, green 
leaves with 
dark veins, and 
white flowers. 

It takes its 
name from a 
German word 
meaning beech 
wheat, because 
of the resem¬ 
blance of the 
seeds to the 
beechnut. 

Buckwheat 
grows in poor 
soil and is ex¬ 
tensively culti¬ 
vated in China 
and other East¬ 
ern countries as 
a food plant. 

In Europe the 
seed is used principally as feed for stock and 
poultry, but in the United States it is quite 
extensively used to make flour from which 
delicious cakes are prepared. Buckwheat is 
quite generally grown in the United States east 
of the Mississippi River and from Pennsylvania 
northward. Compared with other crops, how¬ 
ever, the amount produced is small. 

Bucyrus, bu si'rus, Ohio, the county-seat of 
Crawford co., 61 mi. n. of Columbus, on the 
Sandusky River and on the Pennsylvania and 
other railroads. The neighboring country is 
engaged in agriculture and stock-raising, and 
the city has important manufactures. The 
products include machinery, heating apparatus, 
furniture and wagons. There is a park in the 
city, and there are numerous mineral springs 
in the surrounding region. Bucyrus was settled 
in 1818 and was incorporated in 1829. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 8122. 

Bud. A bud is an undeveloped stem, leaf or 
flower and is a provision for carrying living parts 
safely through winter or an unfavorable season. 
By opening a large leaf-bud, such as one may 
find on a hickory tree, it is possible to see the 


Budapest 

regular transition from the perfect leaves within, 
to the very simple, hairy scales that act as pro¬ 
tective organs on the outside. The leaflets are 
packed away in perfect and regular order, always 
the same in any one kind of plants. For instance, 
the two halves of the cherry leaf are folded 
together with the under surfaces outward; in 
the common wood sorrel, each leaflet is folded 
smoothly, and then the three are packed away 
closely side by side. Special means of protec¬ 
tion for the delicate inner parts are provided by 
nature in the way of waterproof varnish, warm 
woolly coats and thick, strong husks. 

Budapest, boo'da pest, capital of the kingdom 
of Hungary, made up of Buda on the right bank 
of the Danube, and Pest on the left bank, the 
two connected by several fine bridges. Buda, 
the smaller and more ancient of the two, is 
situated on and about a hill, w T hich is crowned 
with a citadel and the royal palace. The city 
is noted for its bitter-water springs, such as the 
Hunyadi Janos and others. Pest, on the east 
bank of the river, lies in a sandy plain and has 
an extensive frontage on the Danube. It has 
many beautiful buildings, among which are the 
new houses of Parliament, an academy of science, 
a national picture gallery, a national museum, a 
university and the royal opera house. The city 
is well endowed with educational and scientific 
institutions. Budapest is known also for its 



beautiful streets, the finest of which is Andrassy 
Strasse, probably one of the finest streets in 
Europe. In commerce and industry, Budapest 
ranks next to Vienna in the Empire. Its chief 












Buddha 

manufactures are machinery, cutlery, glass, 
metal and leather articles, cement and liquors. 
The production of flour and bran is very exten¬ 
sive, and the milling industry an important one. 
The history of Buda dates back to about 150 
a. D., when the city was the site of a Roman 
camp. In the sixteenth and seventeenth cen¬ 
turies it belonged to the Turks and it stood many 
sieges in this time. In 1848, under the Haps- 
burgs, it was taken by the Hungarians, after a 
heroic defense by Hentzi. Pest is of later origin, 
having been first a town inhabited by Germans in 
the thirteenth century. In the middle of the 
nineteenth century it became the capital of the 
Hungarian kingdom, and in 1873 it was united 
with Buda as Budapest, since which time its 
growth has been exceedingly rapid. Population 
of Budapest in 1910, 880,371. 

Buddha, hood'ah, (the Wise or the Enlight¬ 
ened), the sacred name of the founder of Bud¬ 
dhism, an Indian sage who appears to have lived 
in the sixth 
century B. c. 

His personal 
name was 
S'ddhartha, 
and his fam¬ 
ily name 
Gauta m a; 
and he is 
often called 
Sakya- muni 
(from Sakya, 
the name of 
his tribe, and 
muni, a San¬ 
skrit word 
meaning a 
sage). His 
father was 
king of Kap- 
ilavastu, a 
few days’ 
j ourney 
north of Benares. Of the youth of Buddha little 
is known, except what comes through legends. 
These have been used by Edwin Arnold in his 
Light of Asia. Buddha’s father, noticing his habit 
of religious dreaming and his desire for solitude, 
built for him a palace and surrounded him with 
every luxury that would induce him to remain at 
home. But fearing age, disease and death, the son 
left his father’s court and studied with the Brah¬ 
mans. He then went into solitude under a bo- 
tree and resolved to remain till he had gained 


Buddhism 

a knowledge of the past, the present and the 
origin of evil. After a long period of meditation, 
fasting and self-torture, he came to the conclusion 
that this life is one link in a chain of transmi¬ 
gration, and that only extinction of all desire 
will deliver from suffering. Commencing at 
Benares, he began to teach his new faith, in 
opposition to the prevailing Brahmanism. 
Among his earliest converts were the monarchs 
of Magadha and Kosala, in whose kingdoms he 
passed most of the latter portion of his life, 
respected, honored and protected. See Bud¬ 
dhism. 

Buddhism, bood'iz’m, the religious system 
founded by Buddha, one of the most prominent 
doctrines of which is that Nirvana, or an absolute 
release from existence, is the chief good. According 
to Buddhism pain is inseparable from existence, 
and consequently pain can cease only through 
Nirvana; and in order to attain Nirvana our 
desires and passions must be suppressed, the 
most extreme self-renunciation practiced, and 
we must, as far as possible, forget our own 
personality. In order to attain Nirvana eight 
conditions must be kept or practiced: right view, 
right judgment, right language, right purpose, 
right profession, right application, right mem¬ 
ory and right meditation. The five funda¬ 
mental precepts of the Buddhist moral code are 
not to kill, not to steal, not to commit adultery, 
not to lie and not to give way to drunkenness, 
to which are added five others of less importance, 
binding more particularly on the religious 
class, such as to abstain from repasts taken out 
of season and from theatrical representations. 
There are six fundamental virtues to be practiced 
by all men alike, namely, charity, purity, patience, 
courage, contemplation and knowledge. These 
are said to “conduct a man to the other shore.” 
The devotee who strictly practices these virtues 
has not yet attained Nirvana, but is on the road 
to. it. The Buddhist virtue of charity is uni¬ 
versal in its application, extending to all creatures 
and demanding sometimes the greatest self- 
denial and sacrifice. There is a legend that the 
Buddha, in one of his stages of existence (for he 
had passed through innumerable transmigrations 
before becoming “the enlightened”), gave him¬ 
self up to be devoured by a famishing lioness, 
which was unable to suckle her young ones. 
There are other virtues, less important, indeed, 
than the six cardinal ones, but still binding on 
believers; lying is forbidden; evil-speaking, 
coarseness of language and even vain and 
frivolous talk, must be avoided. The essential 



Budget 


Buffalo 


theories of Buddhism are the theory of trans¬ 
migration (borrowed from Brahmanism), which 
requires no explanation, but is so complete that 
a worm may become a supreme Buddha; the 
theory of the mutual connection of causes, and 
the theory of Nirvana. Sakya-muni, or Buddha, 
did not leave his doctrines in writing; he declared 
them orally, and they were carefully treasured 
up by his disciples and written down after his 
death. The canon of the Buddhist scriptures, 
as we now possess it, was the work of three suc¬ 
cessive councils and was finished at least two cen¬ 
turies before Christ. Buddhism was pure, moral 
and humane in its origin, but it came subse¬ 
quently to be mixed up with idolatrous worship 
of its founder and other deities. In many 
things it ranks next to the Christian religion, 
but it is selfish, in that all these acts of wisdom 
are for the individual himself, in order that he 
may gain annihilation. Although now long 
banished from Hindustan by the persecutions of 
the Brahmans, Buddhism prevails in Ceylon, 
Burmah, Siam, Anam, Tibet, Mongolia, China, 
Java and Japan, and its adherents are said to 
number 147,900,000. 

Budget. A budget concerns the fiscal opera¬ 
tions of a government. In its first stage, it is 
a report, laid before the proper legislative body, 
giving a statement of the operation of fiscal 
laws during a preceding period, usually one or 
two years, and an estimate of what may be ex¬ 
pected during a like period to come. The 
necessity for such orderly presentation rests up¬ 
on the fact that in all constitutional governments 
the people have the final decision as to raising 
money and are in full control of the national 
finances. In Great Britain the budget is pre¬ 
sented to the House of Commons by the chancel¬ 
lor of the exchequer; in Canada by the minister 
of finance. In the United States the Com¬ 
mittee on Appropriations in the House of Repre¬ 
sentatives prepares the list of expenditures for 
the coming year, while the Committee of Ways 
and Means prepares the laws to raise the neces¬ 
sary amount of money. Usually the president 
and his cabinet consult as to such estimates, 
which are then transmitted to Congress for in¬ 
formation only, since that body accepts, rejects 
or amends such estimates as it sees fit. 

Buena Vista, bwa'na vees'ta, Battle of, an 
important battle of the Mexican War, between 
an American force of 5000, under General 
Zachary Taylor, and a Mexican army of 17,000, 
under Santa Anna. It was fought on February 
22 and 23, 1847. The Mexicans were the first 


aggressors, making several unsuccessful attempts 
to dislodge Taylor from a strong position on 
Angostura Heights. One of these attempts 
was all but successful, only the poor generalship 
of Santa Anna saving the Americans from 
defeat. On the second day the Mexicans were 
driven from the field. The losses of the Ameri¬ 
cans were about 750; of the Mexicans, fully 
2000. The battle was the last important 
engagement of the northern campaign. 

Buenos Ayres, bwa'nose i'rais, (good air), 
the capital of Argentine Republic, situated on 
the La Plata River, 175 mi. from its mouth. 
The city is well 
laid out, has 
numerous boule¬ 
vards and a park. 

The Plaza de la 
Victoria, 1200 
feet long and 640 
feet wide, occu¬ 
pies a prominent 
position in the 
central part of 
the city and is 
surrounded by 
public buildings, 
among which are 
the hall of Con¬ 
gress, the govern¬ 
ment palace, the municipal building and the 
departmental palace, the Hotel Argentine, the 
Episcopal palace and the cathedral. There are, 
besides these buildings, a number of Roman 
Catholic and Protestant churches and about 
twenty theaters. The educational institutions 
include the national university, considered the 
finest in South America, a normal school and 
numerous public and private schools. Buenos 
Ayres is the leading manufacturing town of 
South America, and its industries give employ¬ 
ment to over one hundred thousand men. 
Among the manufactures are machinery, car¬ 
riages, leather, boots and shoes, textiles, hides, 
tobacco and spirits. The city is also the leading 
commercial port of the country and of the conti¬ 
nent, its annual trade exceeding $150,000,000. 
Population in 1910, 1,329,697. 

Buffalo, a name given to several species of 
wild cattle, the best known of which is the com¬ 
mon or Indian buffalo, larger than the ox and 
with stouter limbs, originally from India, but 
now found in most of the warmer countries of 
Asia. The buffalo is less docile than the com¬ 
mon ox and is fond of marshy places and rivers. 

























BUENOS AYRES, ARGENTINA 

National legislative building, with gardens in foreground. A view of a little known city which rivals Paris in beauty 























Buffalo 


Buffalo 


The female gives much more milk than the cow, 
and from the milk the ghee, or clarified butter, 
of India is made. The hide is exceedingly 
tough, and a valuable leather is prepared from it, 
but the flesh is not very highly esteemed. Another 
Indian species is the amee, the largest of the ox 



CAPE BUFFALO 


family. The Cape Buffalo is distinguished by 
the size of its horns, which are united at their 
bases, forming a great bony mass on the front 
of the head. It attains a greater size than an 
ordinary ox. The name is also applied to wild 
oxen in general, and particularly to the bison of 
North America. See Bison. 

Buf'falo, N. Y., the county-seat of Erie co., 
and the second city of the state, situated at the 
eastern end of Lake Erie, 540 mi. e. of Chicago 
and 410 mi. n. w. of New York, on the New York 
Central, the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern, 
the Grand Trunk, the Michigan Central, the 
Wabash, the Lackawanna, the Pennsylvania, 
the Lehigh Valley and numerous other railroads, 
and at the western end of the Erie Canal. The 
city is built upon a slight elevation from the 
lake, which affords an excellent view of the 
Niagara River and the Canadian shore. The 
streets are broad and regular and contain many 
large shade trees. Main Street, the principal 
business thoroughfare, runs north from the lake 
front. This, Niagara and other streets meet 
near Lafayette Square, which is the principal 
business center and is surrounded by large office 
buildings. The most important parks are the 
Front, along the lake shore, Humboldt Park, in 
the eastern part of the city, and Delaware Park, 
adjoining the grounds of the state hospital for 
the insane. These and other parks are connected 
by a boulevard system. The city has one of 
the best systems of electric railways in the coun¬ 
try, power being furnished by the dynamos at 


Niagara. Several belt lines of railway also 
encircle the city. Among the prominent build¬ 
ings are the government building, which cost 
$2,000,000, the city and county hall, the Masonic 
Temple, the state hospital for the insane, the 
Ellicott Square building, New York Telephone, 
Marine Bank, Electric and Iroquois buildings 
and a large number of churches. The elevated 
portions of the city are also notable for the 
many fine residences which they contain. 

Buffalo is one of the most important lake 
ports and is an extensive trade and manufac¬ 
turing center. Its location at the foot of Lake 
Erie and at the terminus of the New York 
State Barge Canal make it an important trans¬ 
fer point in the traffic between the East and the 
West. The city has over ten miles of wharfage, 
which extends along the Buffalo River and the 
harbor, and its harbor is protected by a govern¬ 
ment breakwater, the longest in the world. 
Every advantage is furnished for the storage 
and transshipment of grain and other commer¬ 
cial products. The grain elevators have a 
capacity of 30,000,000 bushels and facilities for 
handling over 5,000,000 bushels per day. 
Buffalo is the second city in the country in its 
live stock trade, and it also has a large trade in 
coal. As an iron manufacturing center it ranks 
next to Pittsburgh. There are also large oil 
refineries, distilleries and breweries, and manu¬ 
facturers of leather, starch, soap, clothing and 
other materials, besides extensive meat-packing 
establishments. 

The educational institutions include an ex¬ 
cellent public school system, about 50 parochial 
schools, schools for manual training, domestic 
arts and vocational training. There are many 
private schools and academies and several 
institutions of collegiate rank, including the 
state normal school, the University of Buffalo 
and Canisius College. There are about 75 
philanthropic institutions, prominent among 
them being the Buffalo Orphan Asylum, Ger¬ 
man Orphan Asylum (Roman Catholic), Saint 
Vincent’s Asylum, Saint Mary’s Institute for 
Deaf-Mutes, German Hospital, Children’s Hos¬ 
pital, Sisters of Charity Hospital, and the 
Buffalo General Hospital. The city owns a 
special tuberculosis hospital, built at a cost of 
$1,000,000. The Buffalo Public Library and the 
Grosvernor Library, also open to the public, 
together contain over 425,000 volumes. The 
Buffalo Historical Society and the Albright Art 
Gallery each occupy magnificent marble struct¬ 
ures in Delaware Park. 



Buffalo Bill 


Building 


The site of the city was first visited by La Salle 
in 1679. In 1792 the first white settler appeared, 
and the locality became a center for fur traders. 
Between 1798 and 1803 the township was laid 
out. The growth of the settlement was slow, 
and in 1813 it was completely destroyed by the 
British. Two years later the town was rebuilt, 
and from that time on its growth has been steady. 
In 1901 the Pan-American Exposition was held 
at Buffalo. Population in 1910, 423, 715. 

Buffalo Bill. See Cody,William Frederick. 

Buffalo Bur, a weed, native of America, 
common in the western and in the eastern states 
and in Germany and England. It is allied to the 
potato plant and has small spiny balls filled with 
black seeds which are easily distributed and 
cling readily to passing animals. It closely 
resembles the horse nettle, but is distinguished 
from it in being more bushy and lighter. Its 
spread may be checked by preventing its seed¬ 
ing whenever the yellow flowers appear, and by 
thorough cultivation. See Weeds. 

Buffalo Grass, a strong-growing, nutritious 
North American grass, so called from once form¬ 
ing a large part of the food of the buffalo, or 
bison. The blades of this grass are about six 
inches long, and when burned by the summer 
sun they become crisp, curly and light brown in 
color. It is still a valuable fodder on the cattle 
ranges of the West. 

Buffalo Moth. See Carpet Beetle. 

Buff Leather, a sort of leather prepared from 
the skin of the buffalo and other animals. It is 
dressed with oil, like chamois, and it is very soft 
and flexible. Belts, pouches, gloves and other 
articles are made from it. 

Buffon, bu foN', George Louis Leclerc, 
Count de (1707-1788), a celebrated French 
naturalist and philosopher, born at Montbard, 
in Burgundy. In 1739 he was elected a member 
of the Academy of Sciences, and in the same 
year he was appointed superintendent of the 
Royal Gardens at Paris (now the Jar din des 
Plantes ), where he devoted his time to the study 
of natural history and prepared his great life 
work, Natural History. 

Bug, the name given to any insect belonging 
to the order Hemiptera. The beak is bent to¬ 
ward the breast and is adapted for sucking or 
piercing. Among the most common and trouble¬ 
some bugs are the bedbug, chinch bug and louse. 
In the United States the word is used synony¬ 
mously with beetle 

Bug'gy, in the United States the name given 
a light, one-horse, four-wheeled vehicle, with or 


without a top or hood. In England, however, 
the term means a light, one-horse, fouo-wheeled 



TOP BUGGY 


vehicle, with or without a hood, such as, in the 
United States, is called a cart. 

Bu'gle, a wind instrument, resembling the 
trumpet but having a shorter tube and a smaller 
bell-shaped opening. Its chief use is in sounding 
the call in cavalry regiments, as the trumpet is 
used with infantry. In peace the soldier is 
reminded of every routine duty by a special call 
from a bugler, while in war his marches and 
movements are directed and guided by its calls. 

Buhlwork, bule'wurk, a form of art consisting 
of inlaid decoration, used especially in cabinet 
work and said to have been invented by Andr£ 
Charles Boule, a French cabinetmaker, in the 
reign of Louis XIV. It consisted at first of 
unburnished gold, brass, enamel or mother-of- 
pearl, worked into designs of flowers, landscapes 
and varied scenes and inserted in a ground of 
dark-colored metal, wood or tortoise shell; but 
at a later period the use of wood of different 
colors was introduced by Reisner, and to his 
process the modern practice of buhlwork is 
chiefly confined. The work is done with veneers. 

Buhrstone, bur'stone, a hard, coarse-grained 
rock, composed principally of quartz which 
contains small fossils. When dressed, buhr¬ 
stone presents a rough surface, valuable for 
cutting or grinding. For this reason it has been 
extensively used for millstones. Buhrstone is 
found in France, Belgium, Scotland and Ala¬ 
bama. That found in France is the most 
valuable, and before the invention of the present 
process of manufacturing flour most of the mill¬ 
stones in the United States came from these 
quarries. 

Building, bild'ing, the art of constructing 
buildings; also, the structure erected. Building 
includes all those mechanical operations neces¬ 
sary to fashion or construct the materials and to 






Building 


Building-stone 


erect these materials into a finished structure. 
The most important trades connected with 
building are carpentry, masonry, brick-laying, 
plastering, iron-working, quarrying, painting 
and glazing. Taken together, these are often 
spoken of as the building trades. There are also 
numerous other industries closely related to 
building, but classed as manufactures, such as 
the making of brick, glass, nails, screws and 
other hardware, all of which are used in building. 

The main parts of a building are the founda¬ 
tion, the body and the roof. The foundation 
is of great importance. It should be firm and 
so laid that it will not move. The construction 
of foundations for small buildings is a simple 
matter. They are made of brick, stone or wood, 
but the last is seldom used except for temporary 
structures. Stone or Wck foundations are laid 
in trenches, which should be deep enough to 
extend below the frost line. For country 
buildings rough stones called rubble are often 
employed. The foundations for large buildings, 
such as those erected in cities, often require the 
greatest of engineering skill. They must be 
sufficiently strong to support the weight of the 
building and must rest upon soil or rock which 
will not move. The kind of foundation in such 
cases depends very largely upon the nature of 
the soil and the weight of the structure. Where 
a firm foundation cannot be reached except by 
excavating to a great depth, piles are often used. 
These are driven down until they reach a rock 
or other layer which will hold them firmly, their 
tops are then fastened together by wooden or 
iron beams, and the space between is filled with 
concrete. This makes a very firm foundation 
and one which will support a building of great 
weight. A more recent plan is to use concrete 
pillars instead of piles. These are made by 
excavating a round hole, until the rock below is 
reached, and then filling this with concrete, 
so as to make a firm support. The supports of 
the building are then placed upon these con¬ 
crete pillars. 

The body of the building is designed to meet 
the requirements for which the structure is 
erected. It may be of wood, brick or stone. 
When the exterior walls are of brick or stone 
they seldom need a frame, and the framework 
necessary is that for supporting the partitions 
and floors. However, if the building is of wood, 
the frame is erected first, then this is covered on 
the outside with boards and siding, and on the 
inside with lath and plaster. The partitions are 
built in a similar way. In large cities buildings 


are now generally constructed with steel frames. 
The frame consists of girders of rolled steel, 
which are strongly riveted together and braced. 
These girders contain ledges, upon which the 
brick or stone forming the exterior walls is 
supported. Such buildings are very strong and 
contain much less material in the exterior walls 
than would be necessary were the steel frame 
dispensed with. By using tiling for partitions 
and floors, steel-frame buildings can be made 
so that they are practically fireproof. Some of 
these structures in New York City exceed thirty 
stories m height, and the Masonic Temple in 
Chicago is twenty-one stories high, but sixteen 
stories is the usual limit allowed. 

The style of roof of the building depends upon 
the size and style of the building. Small build¬ 
ings usually have roofs sloping from the middle 
downward to the sides, forming what is called 
a double roof. The triangular ends of such 
buildings are known as gables. Tall buildings 
have a flat roof, which has a slight incline to one 
side. Roofs are cohered with shingles, slate 
tin or tar and gravel. The shingles and slate 
are generally used for steep roofs, and tin or 
gravel for the flat roofs. See Architecture. 

Building and Loan Associa'tions or Build¬ 
ing Societies, joint-stock benefit societies for 
the purpose of raising by periodical payments 
a fund to assist members in obtaining landed 
property and houses. These are mortgaged to 
the society till the amount of the snares drawn 
on shall be fully repaid with interest. These 
societies may be divided into two classes, 'pro¬ 
prietary and mutual. The former take money on 
deposit, paying interest therefor, and give loans 
for building purposes, or the like, repayable by 
installments. The profit of the company lies 
in the difference between the rate charged to 
borrowers and the rate paid to depositors. In 
the mutual societies, each depositor becomes, 
to the extent of his deposit, a stockholder. One 
who wishes to borrow money to invest in land 
or to build a home may subscribe for a certain 
number of shares, equal in value to the amount 
of money he borrows, mortgaging his property 
as security. He pays for this stock by small 
periodical installments (usually weekly or 
monthly) until the stock is paid for. There¬ 
upon he surrenders his stock and his mortgage 
is canceled. Many states have strict laws govern¬ 
ing such institutions. 

Building-stone, stone suitable for the con¬ 
struction of buildings, foundations, piers and 
other like structures. Granite, slate, limestone, 


Bulacan 


Bulgaria 


marble and sandstone are the building-stones 
in most common use in the United States. There 
are numerous other stones, however, suitable for 
finishing interiors, such as serpentine and 
onyx. Granite is the strongest and slate the 
most durable of building-stones. Dolomite is an 
excellent building-stone and is extensively used 
in England. 

All stone disintegrates from the action of the 
air and moisture. If porous, like limestone, it 
absorbs a great deal of water, and the contrac¬ 
tion and expansion of this in freezing and thaw¬ 
ing destroy the stone. For this reason soft 
sandstones are not durable for exteriors. Other 
stones do not usually absorb enough moisture to 
be injured in this way, though stones containing 
iron, or other substances which the water dissolves, 
frequently become discolored. Stone generally 
withstands weather best when used near the 
locality where it is quarried. A kind of artificial 
stone known as concrete is now in quite general 
use in the place of building-stone. 

Bulacan, bu lah halin ', a town on the island 
of Luzon, Philippine Islands, 22 mi. n. w. of 
Manila, with which it is connected by river. 
It is composed principally of native huts. The 
chief industries are sugar-boiling and the manu¬ 
facture of silk matting. The town was an 
important military point during the insurrection 
following the occupation of the islands by the 
United States. Since the war it has been made 
a military post. Population, about 14,000. 

Bulb, a modified leaf-bud formed on a plant, 
either upon the ground or beneath its surface. 



BULBS 

a, section of onion bulb; b, leaf from onion bulb; 
c, bulb of lily. 

Roots grow from the base, and from the center 
a stem grows. The bulb is formed by the 
bases of leaves or by thin coats and layers, which 
are, in reality, modified leaves. The function 


of a bulb is to store nourishment to enable plants 
to complete their growth more rapidly than 
would be possible from the seed. The onion, 
tulip and common lily are good examples of 
bulbs. 

Bulbjil, bull’bull, the Persian name of the 
nightingale, rendered familiar in English poetry 
by Moore, Byron and others. 

Bulga'ria, a constitutional monarchy, sit¬ 
uated in the southeastern part of Europe. 
It is bounded on the n. by Rumania, on the e. 
by the Black Sea, on the s. by Turkey and on the 
w. by Servia. The area is 37,200 square miles, 
or a little greater than that of Indiana. The 
Balkan Mountains traverse the country from 
east to west, and other ranges extend across it in 
various directions, so thaft nearly all of the sur¬ 
face is mountainous or hilly. The highest sum¬ 
mits do not exceed 10,000 feet. Bulgaria is 
drained by the Danube and its tributaries and 
the Kamtchik, while the southern portion, or 
Eastern Rumelia, is drained by the Maritza, 
which flows southward into the Aegean Sea. 

The country has a temperate climate, averag¬ 
ing cooler in the uplands than along the coast 
of the Black Sea. The winter usually lasts from 
November till March, except in the southern 
portion, where it is much shorter. The rainfall 
throughout is sufficient for agriculture. 

The mineral industries are decidedly limited. 
Deposits of gypsum and coal are found, and 
there is some iron and peat, but these are 
not worked to a sufficient extent to give them 
any industrial importance. The soil is fertile 
and the climate favorable for agriculture; con¬ 
sequently, this industry employs a large part of 
the inhabitants. The methods employed are 
very primitive, yet good crops are usually 
obtained. The land is divided into small 
holdings and is leased from the government, 
with the exception of forests and pasture land, 
which are held in common, without rental. The 
largest crops are wheat, com, barley, oats, rye 
and potatoes. Fruits and vegetables are grown 
with success, and in some portions of the country 
roses are raised for export. 

The Danube is navigable; there are a number 
of seaports on the Black Sea, and about a thou¬ 
sand miles of railway have been completed. 
Most of the commerce is carried on over the 
waterways. The exports consist of live stock, 
grain, tobacco, fruit, attar of roses and textiles, 
while the imports include coal, machinery, tools, 
firearms and other manufactured goods. Most 
of the foreign trade is with Austria-Hun- 





Bullet 


Bull 

gary, Germany, Great Britain, France and 
Turkey. 

The principal towns are Sofia, the capital, 
Philippopolis and Varna, the chief seaport. 
The country is governed under a constitution 
which places the executfve power in the hands 
of the czar. The legislative department consists 
of a national assembly, composed of one deputy 
for every 20,000 inhabitants and elected by 
general suffrage. The executive department is 
divided into eight sub-departments, each in 
charge of a minister, and these ministers con¬ 
stitute the czar’s advisory council. The 
judiciary consists of district courts, and local 
courts under justices of the peace. Courts of 
appeal and a supreme court are at the capital. 

The Bulgarians are a branch of the Slavs. 
They preserve the Bulgarian language, and in 
religion generally belong to the Greek church, 
though there are a few Christians of other faiths in 
the country. There are also some Mohammedans. 

At the Congress of Berlin in 1878, Bulgaria 
was made a constitutional monarchy, but was 
placed under the suzerainty of Turkey, to which 
it agreed to pay annual tribute. In fact, how¬ 
ever, this tribute was never paid. In 1885 
Eastern Rumelia was annexed to Bulgaria. 
On October 5, 1908, Prince Ferdinand declared 
Bulgaria an independent state, and assumed 
the title of czar. This was but an incident in the 
struggle between Turkey and her Christian 
. provinces. In October, 1912, the Balkan 
states — Bulgaria, Montenegro, Servia and 
Greece—united in a war against Turkey, the 
immediate cause being Turkey’s refusal to grant 
reforms in Albania and Macedonia. The- allies 
besieged and took Scutari, Janina, Adrianople 
and other Turkish fortresses, so that by the end 
of the war, only a small strip remained of Euro¬ 
pean Turkey. Population in 1910, 4,329,108. 
See Balkan War. 

Bull, a letter, edict or rescript of the pope. 
It is published or transmitted to the churches 
over which he is head, and contains some decree, 
order or decision. In many cases a leaden seal, 
impressed on one side with the heads of Saint 
Peter and Saint Paul, on the other with the 
name of the pope, is attached to the bull. If 
the bull be a “Bull of Justice,” the seal is attached 
by a cord of hemp; if a “Bull of Grace,” the 
cord is of red or yellow silk. Pope Leo XIII 
ordered the use of ordinary instead of Gothic, 
characters on the less important bulls. 

Bull, John, the name used to signify the 
personification of the English people. It was 


first used in Arbuthnot’s The History of John Bull, 
designed to ridicule the duke of Marlborough. 

Bull, Ole Bornemann (1810-1880), a famous 
violinist, born at Bergen, Norway. Though suf¬ 
fering many early misfortunes, he achieved great 
triumphs both in Europe and in America, chiefly 
on account of his wonderful technique, which 
probably has never been surpassed. Though 
self-taught, he gained by close study a thorough 
acquaintance with the old masters, and his 
interpretation of their works was unusually 
appreciative. Having losf all his money in a 
scheme to found a colony of his countrymen in 
Pennsylvania, he afterward settled near Cam¬ 
bridge, Mass., where he spent most of his later 
life. He died in Norway. 

Bull'dog, a variety of the common dog, 
having a short, broad muzzle and a projecting 
lower jaw which causes the lower front teeth 
to protude beyond the upper. The head is 
massive and broad, the lips are thick and loosely 
hanging, the ears drooping at the extremity, the 
neck thick and short, the body long and stout, 
and the legs short and sturdy. The bulldog 
has a very obstinate nature, and when once 
it has fastened its teeth in an enemy it will hold 
on in spite of severe punishment. For this reason 
it is often employed as a watchdog and was 
formerly used in the barbarous sport of bull¬ 
baiting. Bulldogs show great affection for their 
masters, but are liable to be surly and vicious 
with strangers. The bull terrier came originally 
from a cross between the bulldog and terrier. 
It is smaller than the bulldog, lively and very 
courageous. 

Bull'et, a projectile intended to be discharged 
from such firearms as a rifle, musket, pistol or 
revolver. Bullets formerly were solid spherical 
masses, but of late many changes have been 
made in their shape and structure. Those used 
for rifles of recent construction are elongated 
and generally rounded or conical at the apex, 
somewhat like half an egg drawn out. They 
are sometimes made of lead covered with cop¬ 
per, but the fact that copper poisons the wound 
has caused such bullets to be little used. For 
a similar reason, bullets that flatten when they 
strike an object are condemned in modern 
warfare, because of the ragged wounds they 
make. Bullets used for hunting, however 
often have hollow points, to ensure spreading. 
Some modern bullets are covered with a thin 
envelope of hard nickel; this prevents stripping, 
that is, the passage of the bullet through the 
barrel without rotation. 


Bullfighting 


Bull-trout 


Bull'fighting is among the favorite diver¬ 
sions of the Spaniards. The fights are usually 
held in an amphitheater having circular seats 
rising one above another, and are attended by 
vast crowds who eagerly pay for admission. 
The combatants, who make bullfighting their 
profession, march into the arena in procession. 
They are of various kinds—the picadores, com¬ 
batants on horseback, in the old Spanish knightly 
garb; the banderilleros, combatants on foot, in 
gay dresses, with colored cloaks or banners; 
and lastly, the 'matador (the killer). As soon as 
the signal is given, the bull is let into the arena. 
The jricadores, who have stationed ther&selves 
near him, commence the attack with their 
lances, and the bull is thus goaded to fury. 
Sometimes a horse is wounded or killed and 
the rider is obliged to run for his life. The 
banderilleros assist the horsemen by drawing the 
attention of the bull with their cloaks and try 
to fasten on the bull their banderillos —barbed 
darts ornamented with colored paper, and often 
having squibs or crackers attached. If they 
succeed, the squibs are discharged, and the bull 
races madly about the arena. In case of danger 
they save themselves by leaping over the wooden 
fence which surrounds the arena. The matador 
now comes in gravely with a naked sword and 
red flag and aims a fatal blow at the animal. 
The slaughtered bull is dragged away and 
another is let out from the stall. During the 
season at Madrid there is at least one fight a 
week, and eight or more bulls are sacrificed in 
a single afternoon. It is not often that a man 
is injured. 

Bull'finch, a favorite cage bird of the Ger¬ 
mans. Its body is a bluish-gray, with bright 
red on the breast. The crown of the head is 
black, as is also the short, thick, rounded bill. 
Bullfinches are found wild in Britain, southern 
Europe and Asia, are readily tamed and may 
be taught to sing a great variety of musical airs. 

Bull'frog, a frog found in most parts of the 
United States and Canada, but chiefly abundant 
in the Southern states. It is of a large size, 
sometimes measuring as much as a foot in 
length, and is of an olive-green or reddish-brown 
color, with large brown or black spots and with 
a yellow line along the back. It receives its 
name from the remarkable loudness of its voice, 
which is a hollow bass that can be heard distinctly 
for a long distance. The bullfrog inhabits 
swamp lands around lakes. In feeding it does 
not confine itself to insects and worms, as do 
the smaller frogs, but eats fish and other frogs 


and the young of birds and animals. The hind 
legs of the frog are often used as food and also 
as bait for fish. 

Bull'head. See Catfish. 

Bull Run, Battles of, two important battles 
of the Civil War. The first, which was fought 
July 21, 1861, was the first important battle of 
the war. The Confederates, to the number of 
31,000, were posted along Bull Run Creek. 
McDowell, who was commanding 28,000 Union 
soldiers, determined to attack their position, and 
he began by sending Tyler, Heintzelman and 
Hunter to turn the Confederate left wfing. This 
movement was successful, but McDowell failed 
to follow up his advantage by occupying the 
strategic position at Manassas Junction, and 
chose to follow the fleeing enemy. After a time 
the Federals were repulsed by the forces of 
General Jackson, who there gained his sobriquet 
of “Stonewall.” With the aid of reenforce¬ 
ments, Generals Joseph Johnston, Beauregard, 
Jackson and Kirby Smith directed a fresh attack 
and completely routed the Union forces. This 
victory of the Confederates spread consternation 
throughout the North and caused a correspond¬ 
ing elation among Confederate sympathizers. 

The second Battle of Bull Run, also known 
as the Battle of Manassas, occurred August 29 
and 30, 1862, between an army of 40,000 men, 
under General Pope, and a somewhat smaller 
Confederate force under “Stonewall” Jackson. 
The latter had occupied a strong position near 
Manassas Junction and was attacked at day¬ 
light, August 29, by General Sigel. The battle 
raged fiercely all that day, with the advantage 
slightly in favor of the Federals. General 
Longstreet reenforced Jackson at nightfall, and 
on the following day the exhausted Union troops 
were compelled to retire, leaving the Confederates 
in possession of the field. The disastrous end¬ 
ing of Pope’s campaign enabled Lee to invade 
Maryland, and there was great fear in the 
North that he might advance to Washington. 

Bulls and Bears. See Bear and Bull. 

Bull’s'-eye. 1 . A round piece of thick 
glass, convex on one side (See Lens), inserted 
into the decks, ports or skylight covers of a 
vessel, for the purpose of admitting light. 2. A 
small lantern with a lens in one side of it, to 
direct the light in any desired direction. 3. In 
shooting, the center of a target, of a different 
color from the rest of it and usually round. 
See Archery. 

Bull'-trout, a large species of fish of the 
salmon family, thicker and clumsier in form 


Bulow 


Buncombe 


than the salmon, but so like it as sometimes to 
be mistaken for it by fishers. It attains a weight 
of 15 to 20 pounds and lives chiefly in the sea, 
ascending rivers to spawn. 

Bulow, bii'lo Friedrich Wilhelm, Baron 
von (1755-1816), a Prussian general. He was 
actively engaged against the French at the 
earliest periods of the revolutionary war; and 
his services in 1813 and 1814, especially at 
Grosbeeren and Dennewitz, were rewarded with 
an estate and the title of Count Bulow von Den¬ 
newitz. As commander of the.fourth division 
of the allied army he contributed to the victo¬ 
rious close of the Battle of Waterloo. 

Bulow, Hans Guido von (1830-1894), a 
pianist and composer, born at Dresden. He 
first studied for the law, but later he adopted 
music as a profession and studied the piano 
under Liszt. He made his first public appear¬ 
ance in 1852, with only moderate success, but 
in 1855 became leading professor in the Conserv¬ 
atory at Berlin, in 1858 was appointed court 
pianist and in 1867 musical director to the 
king of Bavaria. His most famous compositions 
include an overture and music to Shakespeare’s 
Julius Caesar, an “orchestral ballad,” The 
Minstrel's Curse, a symphonic poem, Nino ana, 
and numerous songs, choruses and pianoforte 
pieces. He is considered one of the first of 
pianists and orchestral conductors. 

Buloz, bu lo f , Francois (1803-1877), a 
French editor, who conducted, from 1831 to 
his death, the Revue des Deux Mondes, the 
celebrated French fortnightly literary magazine. 
From 1835 to 1845 he had charge, also, of the 
Revue de Paris. 

Bul'rush, the popular name for almost any 
large, rush-like plants growing in marshes. It 
is most correctly given to a large species of 
scouring rush or equisetum. See Horsetail 
Rush. 

Bul'wer-Lyt'ton, Edward George Earle, 
Lord Lytton (1803-1873), an English novelist. 
He graduated from Cambridge, spent some time 
in Paris, and on his return to England became 
estranged from his mother, because he made a 
marriage of which she did not approve. Obliged 
thus to provide for himself, he turned to litera¬ 
ture, and plays and novels followed one another 
rapidly. From 1831 to 1841 and from 1852 to 
1866 Bulwer was in Parliament, and he attained 
considerable influence. He was made a baronet 
in 1838, and raised to the peerage as Baron 
Lytton in 1866. Of Bulwer’s plays, some of 
which have been very popular on the stage, the 



BUMBLEBEE 


best known are Richelieu, Money and the Lady 
of Lyons ; while among his novels may be men¬ 
tioned The Last Days of Pompeii, the most 
popular of his works; The Last of the Barons, 
his greatest historical novel; Rienzi, My Novel 
and The Caxtons. Despite the affectation of 
Bulwer’s style and of his sentiments, his books 
have always been popular because they have 
stories of interest to tell. 

Bum'blebee, a large bee, well known in 
most parts of the world but particularly numer¬ 
ous in the northern hemisphere, where often it 
reaches the Arctic regions. Bumblebees live in 
small colonies, where 
about half the bees 
are workers and the 
remainder males and 
females. They are 
not so orderly of 
perfect in their fam¬ 
ily life as the honey¬ 
bees, as may be 
seen in the round¬ 
ish, oval, scattered 
cells of different size 
found in a single 
nest. Bumblebees collect honey and store it, 
but at the end of the season the colony breaks 
up and only a few females survive. One of 
their chief values seems to be the aid they 
render in the cross-fertilization of plants, and 
it is a curious fact that some species of clover 
cannot be grown successfully in countries where 
there are no bumblebees, for no other insect 
can fertilize the plants. 

Bunce, buns, Francis Marvin (1826-1901), 
rear admiral of the United States navy. He 
graduated from the Naval Academy in 1857. 
At the opening of the Civil War he was placed 
in charge of the Penobscot, and he afterward had 
command in the land and naval engagement 
which resulted in the capture of a part of Morris 
Island, July 10, 1863. After the war he had 
charge of the Boston Navy Yard until 1869; 
in 1896 he commanded the fleet which maneu¬ 
vered off Charleston, and he was in command 
of the Brooklyn Navy Yard during the Spanish- 
American War. 

Buncombe, bun'kum, a term meaning talking 
for talking’s sake, bombastic speech-making. 
It is said to have originated with a congres¬ 
sional member from the County of Buncombe 
of North Carolina, who declared that he was 
only talking for Buncombe, when attempts were 
made to cut short his lengthy speeches. 


Bungalow 


Bunyan 


Bun'galow, in India, a house or residence, 
generally of a single floor. The native bunga¬ 
lows are constructed of wood, bamboo or like 
material, but those of the Europeans are gener¬ 
ally built of sun-dried bricks and have a thatched 
or tiled roof. They are often very elegantly and 
richly furnished and invariably are surrounded by 
a veranda, the roof of which serves as a protec¬ 
tion against the sun. In the United States the 
name bungalow is now commonly applied to 
small houses of only one story, of any material, 
but inexpensive. For illustration of a typical 
bungalow, see Volume V, Architecture. 

Bunion, bun'yun, an enlargement and inflam¬ 
mation of the joint of the great toe, arising 
from irritation of the small membranous sac 
located there. Bunions, which are usually 
caused by a tight shoe, begin in a small, tender 
spot, which swells and, if not cured, may become 
a very painful sore and cause a permanent 
deformity of the toe. 

Bun'ker Hill, Battle of, one of the most 
important battles of the American Revolution, 
fought on June 17, 1775. The British army of 
10,000, under Generals 
Gage, Howe, Clinton 
and Burgoyne, was 
occupying Boston. 

The American army, 

15,000 strong, was 
commanded by Gen¬ 
eral Artemas Ward, 
with headquarters at 
Cambridge. Learning 
that the British in¬ 
tended to seize Bunker 
Hill, overlooking 
Charlestown, the 
Americans silently, 
during the night, forti¬ 
fied the adjoining 
height, known as 
Breed’s Hill. The 
British, discovering bunker hill monument 
the redoubt at daybreak, opened fire from their 
ships of war in Charlestown Harbor. They 
finally landed a force and advanced upon the 
position of the Americans, but were repulsed 
with great loss. A second attack, during which 
Charlestown was burned, was no more success¬ 
ful. The British rallied for a third attack, and 
the Americans, after resisting with stones and 
the butts of their rifles, having exhausted their 
ammunition, drew off with inconsiderable loss. 
General Joseph Warren, one of the most promi¬ 




nent of the patriots, was among the killed. The 
loss of the British was about 1000. On June 17, 
1825, Lafayette laid the corner-stone of the 
monument on the summit of Breed’s Hill; and 
Daniel Webster delivered the oration of the day. 
The monument is of granite and is 221 feet high. 
At the top is a chamber reached by a spiral stair¬ 
case. 

Bun'sen, Robert Wilhelm Eberard (1811— 
1899), an eminent German chemist. Among 
his many discoveries and inven- 
tions are the production of magne¬ 
sium in quantities, magnesium 
light, spectrum analysis, the elec¬ 
tric pile and the burner which bears 
his name. 

Bunsen’s Battery, a form of 
galvanic battery, the cells of which 
consist of cleft cylinders of zinc, 
within which is a porous earthen 
cup containing a rectangular prism 
or a rod of carbon. The outer cup, in which 
the zinc is placed, contains dilute sulphuric acid, 
and the earthen cup contains nitric acid. This 
battery works quickly and generates a strong 
current, but it is now little used, because more 
convenient patterns have replaced it. 

Bunsen’s Burner, a form of gas burner 
especially adapted for heating, consisting of a 
tube, in which, by means of holes in the side, 
the gas becomes mixed with air before burning, 
so that it gives a non-illuminating, smokeless 
flame producing intense heat. 

Bunt, a disease of w r heat, which is caused 
by the attack of a parasitic fungus. It is known 
also by the names smut ball, pepper brand and 
stinking smut. The diseased wheat takes on 
a bluish-green color and does not grow to its 
full height. The fungus is born in the ovary 
of the wheat and is formed when the wheat is 
young. It can do much injury to a crop, but 
can be prevented by careful selection and wash¬ 
ing of the seed with water or solutions of copper 
sulphate, formalin or corrosive sublimate. 

Bunt'ing, the popular name of a group of 
finches. In Britain the common bunting, or 
corn bunting, is seen in most cultivated districts, 
and in the arctic regions the snow bunting, or 
snowbird, is one of the few birds to be seen. 
In the United States the cowbird, or cow black¬ 
bird, is frequently called the cow bunting. 

Bun'yan, John (1628-1688), author of The 
Pilgrim's Progress. He was the son of a tinker 
and was bom at the village of Elstow, near Bed¬ 
ford. He followed his father’s employment, but 








Buonarotti 

(luring the civil war he served as a soldier, 
probably on the side of Parliament. Having 
joined, largely through the influence of his 
wife, a society of Baptists at Bedford, he at 
length undertook the office of public teacher 
among them, and this defiance of the severe 
laws against dissenters led to his arrest and to 
his imprisonment for twelve years (1660-1672). 
During a second imprisonment in 1675, he 



JOHN BUNYAN 


finished his long religious allegory, The Pilgrim's 
Progress. This book, a vivid, dramatic picture 
of the spiritual life of man, has, it is said, been 
translated into more languages than any other 
book except the Bible. Bunyan’s other work, 
often overlooked by reason of the superior merit 
of The Pilgrim's Progress, includes The Life 
and Death of Mr. Badman, The Holy War and 
Grace Abounding, an account of Bunyan’s spir¬ 
itual life. 

Buonarotti, bwo nahr ro’te. See Michel¬ 
angelo. 

Buoy, boo’y, or Boy, a floating object con¬ 
structed of wood or iron and placed as a guide 
to navigation in rivers and harbors. There are 
a great many varieties of buoys, each constructed 
in the manner best suited to its particular pur¬ 
pose. For instance, the can buoy is an iron 
cylinder with a dome-shaped bottom. The nut 
or nun buoy is composed of two cones placed 
base to base. Spar buoys are merely wooden 
poles anchored and held upright by a heavy 
weight on their lower end. These are used 
30 


Burbank 

where ice might destroy or carry away the can 
buoys. Some buoys are fitted with a lamp, 
which burns day and night; others carry bells 
which ring when the winds toss the buoy about, 
and still a third class is fitted with whistles, 
which are blown by air compressed and driven 
through them by the tossing waves. Charts of 
harbors locate the buoys, and all navigators 
understand not only the location of each, but 
the special information which each buoy can 
give. For instance, in the harbors of the 
United States the buoys are painted black on 
one side and red on the other. As a ship enters 
the harbor it sails so as to keep the red sides of 
the buoys on the starboard side of the ship. 
Danger buoys are painted with red and black 
horizontal stripes; mid-channel buoys have 
black and white stripes running vertically; 
while buoys that mark bad danger points are 
painted green. White buoys indicate safe 
anchorage. 

Burbage, bur’bij, Richard (1567-1619), a 
famous actor, the contemporary of Shakespeare. 
He was a member of the same company as 
Shakespeare, Fletcher and others, and filled all 
of the greatest parts of the contemporary stage 
in turn. He was the original Hamlet, Lear, 
Othello and Richard III, and played the leading 
parts in the plays of Beaumont and Fletcher and 
Ben Jonson. 

Bur'bank, Luther (1849- ), an Ameri¬ 

can naturalist, owner of a large experiment farm 
at Santa Rosa, Cal. He succeeded in producing 
many new and valuable forms of flowers, fruits, 
nuts, vegetables, grasses and trees. Among the 
flowers, he secured a brilliant crimson poppy 
from a yellow one, and he made the verbena 
take on the fragrance of the trailing arbutus. 
The Australian star-flower he developed into a 
new “everlasting” flower, in rose-pink and 
white colors, which may be used for the deco¬ 
ration of ladies’ hats. He improved the quality 
of many fruits and produced several distinc¬ 
tively new kinds. The most remarkable of these 
are the plumcot, a combination of plum and apri¬ 
cot; the pomato, which grows on potato tops; 
and the strange freak of a white blackberry. 
He hardened trees till they are able to with¬ 
stand colder climates, and he trained fruit trees 
till their buds and blossoms are not affected by 
frost. The worthless cactus he made to give up 
its thorns and to produce luscious, wholesome 
fruit. He raised blackberry bushes without 
stickers and improved the quality and size of 
tobacco. Plants have already been grown 10 






Burbot 

feet in height, with leaves 2 feet wide and 3 to 4 
feet long. These and other marvelous achieve¬ 
ments have been the results of patient, pains¬ 
taking labor, chiefly by cross-fertilization of 
many thousands of plants year after year, and 
the selection of the few that promise valuable 
results. See Agriculture, Vol. V. 

Bur'bo t, a fish of the cod family, found in the 
streams of the United States, England, northern 
Europe and Asia, 
shaped somewhat 
like an eel, but 
shorter, with a flat 
head. It has two 
small barbs on the 
nose and another 
on the chin. It is 
called, also, eel- 
pout or coney-fish. 

It never enters salt 
waters. The spotted 
burbot is found 
in the American 
northern lakes and 
rivers. It is a 
coarse and tasteless fish and is not valuable 
as food. 

Bur'dekin, a river of the northeast of Queens¬ 
land, Australia, with a course of about 350 
miles. With its affluents it waters a large extent 
of country, but it is useless for navigation. 

Burdett-Coutts, bur det' hoots', Angela 
Georgina, Baroness (1814-1906), an English 
philanthropist. She inherited immense wealth, 
and became popular through the liberal use of 
it in public and private charities. In 1871 she 
received a peerage from the government, and in 
1881 she married W. L. Ashmead-Bartlett, who 
assumed the name of Burdett-Coutts. 

Burdette, bur det ', Robert Jones (1844- 
1914), an American clergyman and humorist, 
born in Greensboro, Pa. He attended public 
school at Peoria, Ill., and in 1862 joined the 
Forty-seventh Illinois volunteers, serving through 
the war. He wrote for several papers after the 
war and finally became associate editor of the 
Hawkeye of Burlington, Iowa, through which 
paper he became known as a humorist. He 
began to lecture in 1877 and ten years later 
became a licensed preacher in the Baptist 
Church. Among his books are The Rise and 
Fall of the Mustache and Other Hawkeyetems 
and Chimes from a Jester’s Bells. 

Bur'dock, the popular name of a coarse- 
looking weed with round flower-heads, the 


Burgher Schools 

scales of which are furnished with hooks. In 
some countries the roots, young shoots and young 
leaves are used in soups, and the plant is culti¬ 
vated with this view in Japan. It is a common, 
troublesome weed in the United States, espe¬ 
cially where sheep are pastured. The plant is a 
biennial, and cutting down does not destroy it. 
The roots should be grubbed up before the 
plant has a chance to seed. 

Bureau, bu’ro, a writing table or a chest of 
drawers. The word is also used to mean the 
chamber of an officer of government and, in 
consequence, a department of officials. Bureau 
system, or bureaucracy, is a term often applied 
to those governments in which the business of 
administration is carried on in departments, 
each under the control of a chief; or, more 
broadly, to the system of centralizing the admin¬ 
istration of a country through regularly graded 
series of government officials. 

Bureau of Amer'ican Repub'lics, organized 
in 1890 after the first Pan-American Congress, 
and since 1910 known as the Pan-American 
Union. It is governed by a board comprising 
the secretary of state, who is ex-officio chairman, 
and the ministers and ambassadors from the 
twenty American republics to the United States. 

The purposes of the bureau are to dissemi¬ 
nate information between the countries asso¬ 
ciated, concerning the commercial conditions, 
trade and customs laws, patent, copyright and 
trade-mark laws, systems of weights and meas¬ 
ures of each; to secure the adoption of a common 
legal-tender silver coin and to perfect a plan for 
the arbitration of all disputes. The bureau 
issues a monthly bulletin and an annual report, 
which are regarded as standards of authority. 

Burgess, bur’jes, Frank Gelett (1866- ), 

an American writer and artist of the fantastic, 
born in Boston and educated at the Massachu¬ 
setts Institute of Technology. He worked as a 
railroad draughtsman, taught in the University 
of California, was a designer, wrote for and 
edited various magazines and lived in New York, 
London and San Francisco. He wrote the amus¬ 
ing Purple Cow, Nonsense Almanack, Goopes 
and How to be Them and many other like 
fancies. 

Burgher, burg'ur, Schools, the name now 
applied to public schools of higher grade in 
the towns of Germany, designed to educate 
children for practical life. These schools take 
their name from similar schools established 
early in the Middle Ages, for the purpose of 
giving a more practical education than was 



Burglary 


Burial 


provided by schools maintained by the Church, 
whose work was confined almost wholly to the 
study of Latin and the doctrines of the Church. 
The early burgher schools provided instruction 
in the mother tongue and arithmetic and the 
elements of geography. The teachers for these 
schools were usually selected by the local authori¬ 
ties instead of being provided by the Church. 
The organization and courses of study have 
gradually changed from time to time to meet 
the demands made upon them. Many of them 
are now known by other names, and they are 
practically identical with the realschvle. 

Bur'glary, “the breaking and entering by 
night into the dwelling house of another, with 
intent to commit a felony.” Every important 
word in this definition conveys a part of the 
meaning which distinguishes the offense of bur¬ 
glary from others known as larceny and robbery in 
the common law. Various states have changed the 
definition of the crime by statute, so that it 
includes more than the above definition. The 
usual punishment is imprisonment, the maxi¬ 
mum being rarely more than twenty years. 
The killing of a burglar in self-defense or in 
defense of family or property is not a crime. 

Burgos, boor'gos, a city of northern Spain, 
130 mi. n. of Madrid, once the capital of the 
kingdom of Old Castile and now the chief town 
of the province of Burgos. It stands on the side 
of a hill, on the right bank of the Arlanzon, and 
has dark, narrow streets full of ancient architec¬ 
ture, but there are also fine promenades in the 
modern style. The cathedral, commenced in 
1221, is one of the finest examples of Gothic 
architecture in Europe. It contains the tombs 
of the famous Cid and Don Fernando, both 
natives of Burgos, celebrated throughout Spain 
for their heroic achievements in the wars with 
the Moors. Population in 1910, 31,489. 

Burgoyne', John (1722-1792), an English 
general of the Revolutionary War. After serv¬ 
ing in various parts of the world, he was in 1777 
appointed commander of an army against the 
Americans, and took Ticonderoga. A part of 
his army fought a battle at Hubbardton, a 
detachment of Hessians was defeated at Ben¬ 
nington, Vt., and on October 17 Burgoyne 
himself was forced to surrender with his whole 
army at Saratoga. He was coldly received on 
his return to England and deprived of his com¬ 
mand, but Fox and Sheridan took his part and 
received his Parliamentary support. Latterly 
he occupied himself mainly with the writing of 
comedies, including The Maid of the Oaks, 


The Lord of the Manor and The Heiress, a play 
that still holds the stage. 

Bur'gundy, the name of a large and impor¬ 
tant former province of France, deriving its 
name from the Burgundians, a Germanic 
nation which established a kingdom embracing 
a great part of the basin of the Rhone, in 408 
A. d. Within a century they were conquered 
by the Franks. By the terms of the Treaty of 
Verdun in 843, there was a partition of the 
Frankish Empire, and a new kingdom of Pro¬ 
vence, or Cisjurane Burgundy, was formed, 
founded by Boso in 879 and including Provence, 
Dauphin^, the southern part of Savoy and a 
tract between the Jura and the Saone. A little 
later Transjurane Burgundy was established, 
consisting of northwestern Savoy and the part 
of Switzerland between the Reuss and the Jura. 
In 933 these two kingdoms united under the 
name of Arles, and in 1032 the kingdom was 
bequeathed to Emperor Conrad II of Germany. 

At the time of the union of the two kingdoms 
of Burgundy in 933, the northwestern portion 
remained a separate duchy, subject to the French 
crown and governed by a line of dukes from the 
House of Capet, which line became extinct in 
1361. Dating from the accession of Philip the 
Bold, the territory and power of Burgundy 
constantly grew and increased in importance. 
On the death of Charles the Bold in 1477 the 
duchy was seized by Louis XI, king of France, 
and annexed to France. The old county of 
Burgundy was known as Franche-Comte. The 
Burgundy of to-day forms the department of 
Cote-d’Or, Sa6ne-et-Loire, Yonne, part of Ain 
and part of Aube. The chief towns are Dijon, 
Auxerre, Chalon-sur-Sa6ne and Macon. 

Burgundy Wines, wines produced in the 
former province of Burgundy, especially in the 
Department of CotS-d’Or. In richness of flavor 
and all the more delicate qualities of the juice 
of the grape, they are inferior to none in the 
world. See Wine. 

Burial, ber'e al, the mode of disposing of the 
dead. Different peoples adopt different meth¬ 
ods of burial. The savage races expose the 
bodies to wild animals or birds of prey; the 
Hindus throw their dead into the Ganges 
River, and the Egyptians embalm the bodies and 
preserve them inviolate in costly tombs. However, 
the two most common methods have been inter¬ 
ment and burning. Both forms were practiced 
among the Greeks and Romans, though burning, 
or cremation, came to be almost the sole method 
during the later years of the Republic. The 


Buriats 


Burlington 


method of interring has varied; in some cases, 
as with the early Babylonians, the bodies were 
placed on the surface of the ground and mounds 
were raised over them, while in other cases 
deep graves were dug, or elaborate buildings 
constructed, to contain the urns or coffins in 
which the bodies were sealed. Among civilized 
nations of to-day cemeteries are set apart, in 
which the bodies are buried, as after the intro¬ 
duction of the Christian religion the practice of 
cremation almost entirely disappeared. Lat¬ 
terly, however, it has been revived, and it is 
considered by many persons to be a more sani¬ 
tary method, since it is certain that in many 
cases the hillside cemetery proves a source of 
contamination to the water supply of town and 
city. See Cremation; Embalming. 

Buriats, boo re ahts ', a nomadic Tartar peo¬ 
ple, allied to the Kalmucks, inhabiting that 
portion of Siberia around Lake Baikal. Their 
number is about 250,000. They live in huts 
called yurts , which in summer are covered with 
leather, in winter, with felt. They support 
themselves by their flocks, by hunting and by 
the mechanical arts, particularly the forging of 
* iron. 

Bu'rvn or Graver, an instrument of tempered 
steel, used for engraving on copper and steel. 
It is of a prismatic form, having one end attached 
to a short wooden handle, and the other ground 
off obliquely, so as to produce a sharp, triangular 
point. The burin is held in the palm of the 
hand and is pushed forward so as to cut a por- 
tiori of the metal. See Engraving. 

Burke, Edmund (1729-1797), a noted British 
writer, orator and statesman, who applied him¬ 
self both to literature and to law, though chiefly 
the former. In 1756 he published his essay On 
the Sublime and Beautiful, which procured 
him the friendship of some of the most notable 
men of his time. The great question of the 
right of taxing the American colonies was then 
occupying Parliament, and while Burke was a 
member for Bristol he made several wonderful 
speeches in which he criticised the measures of 
the ministry with regard to the colonies and 
advocated a policy of justice and conciliation. 
His speech On Conciliation with America is 
one of the finest examples of argumentative 
oratory in existence. In 1782 Burke was made 
paymaster general of the forces, and after the 
change of ministry in 1783 he took an active 
part in the famous impeachment trial of Warren 
Hastings. The clearness and eloquence of his 
oratory and his remarkable mastery of detail 


in the consideration of this case have never been 
surpassed. In his later struggles to combat the 
ideas and doctrines of the French Revolution 
he was separated from the Liberals and his old 
friend Fox, and from this time on until his 
withdrawal from Parliament in 1794 he was a 
consistent opponent of Revolutionary ideas. 

Burleigh, bur’ly, Lord. See Cecil, Wil¬ 
liam. 

Burlesque, bur lesk', a literary composition 
which excites laughter by its travesty of some 
other work or by a ludicrous mixture of things 
high and low. High thoughts, for instance, are 
clothed in commonplace language; high sounding 
words may be used to describe insignificant 
thoughts or facts. The most famous of the early 
writers of burlesque in England was Chaucer, 
who ridiculed some of the bombastic and long- 
drawn-out tales of the Middle Ages. Don 
Quixote, the most famous example of this class of 
works, was originally intended as a burlesque on 
the absurdly romantic tales of chivalry. As a form 
of the drama, burlesque was well known to the 
Greeks, and it has persisted steadily wherever 
dramatic forms have been cultivated. The 
dramas of W. S. Gilbert contain the strain of 
burlesque in their travesty of fads and affec¬ 
tations, but at present the burlesque means 
rather a mixture of travesty, vaudeville and 
ballet. 

Bur'lingame, Anson (1820-1870), an Ameri¬ 
can statesman, born in New York State. He 
graduated in law at Harvard in 1846, began to 
practice at Boston, became a state senator in 
1853, entered Congress in 1854 and remained 
there until March, 1861. He was challenged 
in 1856 by Preston S. Brooks, whose brutal 
assault upon Charles Sumner he had denounced 
in scathing terms. The duel was never fought. 
He was sent in 1861 as United States minister 
to China, and when he was recalled, in 1867, 
the Chinese government engaged his services 
as their diplomatic representative in Europe and 
America. He negotiated, in 1868, the treaty 
known by his name, between the United States 
and China, by which the latter first subscribed 
to the principles of international law. 

Bur'lington, Ia., the county-seat of Des 
Moines co., on the Mississippi River, 206 mi. 
s. w. of Chicago. The city is a railroad center, 
the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy intersecting 
here a number of other roads. There are exten¬ 
sive railroad shops; and the other important 
industries include pork packing and the manu¬ 
facture of agricultural implements, machinery, 


Burlington 

baskets, pearl buttons and furniture. The sur¬ 
rounding country is agricultural. The city has 
a public library, Burlington Institute College and 
a large auditorium with a seating capacity of 
7000. The city was first settled in 1833, and 
was the first capital of the territory. Burlington 
adopted the commission form of government in 
1910. Population in 1910, 24,324. 

Burlington, N. J., a city in Burlington co., 
on the Delaware River, 18 mi. above Phila¬ 
delphia, and on the Pennsylvania railroad. The 
place was settled, under the name of New Bev¬ 
erly, by Friends in 1677. The name was changed 
to Bridlington in honor of the Yorkshire town 
of that name. The pronunciation was Burling¬ 
ton; so the spelling was later changed to accord 
with it. There are manufactories of canned 
goods, shoes, stoves and other articles. The 
city has many fine old residences. Its important 
institutions include Saint Mary’s church, which 
was endowed by Queen Anne, the state Masonic 
home, Burlington college and Saint Mary’s Hall, 
an old Church school for girls. Population in 
1910, 8336. 

Burlington, Vt., a city of Chittenden co., 
on Lake Champlain, about 250 mi. n. of New 
York on the Rutland and the Central Vermont 
railroads. The city has an excellent harbor 
and is a very important lumber market. The 
manufactures include furniture, woolen and 
cotton goods. There are many charitable and 
educational institutions located here, among 
which are the State University of Vermont, 
Mary Fletcher Hospital and Bishop Hopkins 
Hall. The important buildings include the 
Fletcher Free Library, the Roman Catholic 
cathedral and Saint Paul’s Episcopal church. 
The town was first settled about 1780. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 20,468. 

Bur'ma, a province of British India, lying to 
the east of the Bay of Bengal. It is bounded 
on the n. by Tibet, on the e. by Yun-Nan, French 
Indo-China and Siam, on the s. w. by the Bay 
of Bengal and on the w. by Bengal, Manipur 
and Assam. Its extreme length from north to 
south is nearly 1250 miles. The area of the 
province is about 175,000 square miles, and 
with the dependencies known as the Shan states, 
about 245,000 square miles, or a little less than 
that of Texas. 

A large part of the surface is hilly or moun¬ 
tainous. The country is situated near the 
eastern extremity of the Himalayas, and moun¬ 
tain ranges traverse it from north to south. 
The maximum elevation of the range west of 


Burma 

the Irrawaddy is about 8500 feet, while on the 
northwest border the Patkoi hills rise to a height 
of 12,890 feet, with one summit exceeding 
18,600 feet. The land along the river valleys 
and the coast is low. 

The Irrawaddy drains the greater part of the 
country and flows southerly through the middle 
portion. To the east of this is the Salwin, 
which, with its tributaries, drains the eastern 
portion. These are the only very important 
rivers. 

In the north, owing to the elevation, the 
climate is temperate, but with this exception 
the country has the climate characteristic of 
the torrid zone. The lowlands are generally 
unhealthful to Europeans, and the wet and dry 
seasons follow the monsoons. During the sum¬ 
mer these winds blow from the southwest and 
cause a heavy rainfall along the coast and up 
the river valleys. On the coast ranges the annual 
rainfall varies from 120 to 160 inches, but in 
some localities among the mountains it is much 
greater than this. The mean temperature in 
the lowlands is from 80° to 90°, while in the 
interior it ranges from 50° to 60° in winter, and 
from 80° to 90° in the summer. 

Mineral Resources. Gold is found in the 
sand and gravel along some of the rivers, and 
silver, lead, copper, antimony, iron and tin are 
mined in limited quantities. There are also 
deposits of amber and serpentine and an abun¬ 
dance of coal and petroleum. Precious stones, 
including jade, rubies and sapphires, are often 
found in the sand and gravel in the northern 
part of the province. The mines have not as 
yet been developed, and the methods employed 
in working them are decidedly primitive. Some 
quarries are worked, and a good quality of ser¬ 
pentine, also of white marble, is obtained. 

Agriculture is the leading industry. The land 
is leased from the state, the rent constituting 
an annual tax. The principal products are rice, 
oil seeds, cotton, tobacco, sugar cane, tea and 
indigo. Rice is by far the most important 
product, and Burma is the leading country of 
the world in its production. Manufactures are 
few and limited and consist principally of the 
weaving of silk and cotton textiles. Some of 
the inhabitants are skillful workers in wood and 
gold, and their products are of considerable 
artistic value. 

Railways extend from Rangoon to Mandalay, 
and from Rangoon to Thayetm-yo and other 
important towns. The Irrawaddy is navigable, 
and there are three canals connected with it. 


Bumand 

Since the British occupation, the carriage roads 
have been greatly improved. The commerce 
consists in the exportation of rice and other 
agricultural products, and the importation of 
textiles, metals and other manufactured 
products and some food products. Most of 
the foreign trade is with China and Great 
Britain. 

The country is governed as a province of 
British India. The chief executive officer is a 
lieutenant governor, and he is assisted by a 
legislative council. For local administration the 
province is divided into eight divisions, each in 
charge of a commissioner. The divisions are 
again subdivided into districts. By far the 
larger portion of the inhabitants are Buddhists. 
The remainder are divided among Moham¬ 
medans, spirit worshipers and Christians. The 
principal towns are Mandalay, Rangoon and 
Maulmain. The first two are described under 
their appropriate titles. Most of the inhabitants 
are native Burmese and belong to the Mongolian 
branch of the human family. The eastern high¬ 
lands are inhabited by the Shans, and the hills 
to the north by the Karens, who still retain the 
habits and customs of the aboriginal tribes. 
The Burmese language is spoken, and the people 
have considerable literature, which is increased 
yearly by the publication of a number of books. 
Population in 1911, including the independent 
states, 12,115,217. 

Burnand', Sir Francis Cowley (1837- ), 

an English humorist, educated at Eton and 
Trinity College, Cambridge, and admitted to 
the bar in 1862. From 1880 to 1906 he was 
editor of Punch. 

Burne-Jones, Edward (1833-1898), an Eng¬ 
lish painter. He early adopted the profession 
of artist and came under the influence of Dante 
Gabriel Rossetti. He was one of the romantic 
school, known as the Pre-Raphaelites, who 
sought a return to the sincerity and purity of art 
that existed before the time of Raphael. He 
painted in water-color as well as oil, and his 
works are remarkable for richness of coloring 
as well as for poetic feeling. His subjects are 
from many sources—from the Bible, from Chris¬ 
tian and heathen story and from the legends of 
King Arthur. Among his best known works 
are Hope, Venus’s Mirror, The Golden Stair 
and Wine of Circe. 

Bur'net, the popular name of two plants of 
the rose family. Both are common in Europe, 
where they are cultivated on dry soils as fodder 
plants. The smaller plant has been introduced 


Burnley 

into America, and now grows wild in north¬ 
eastern United States and Canada. 

Burnett', Frances Eliza Hodgson (1849- 
), an American novelist, born in Manchester, 
England. She came to this country in 1865 and 
in 1873 she married Dr. S. M. Burnett. Her 
best known works are That Lass o’ Lowrie’s, 
Haworth’s, A Fair Barbarian, Through One 
Administration, A Lady of Quality, In Connec¬ 
tion with the DeWilloughby Claim and Little 
Lord Fauntleroy, her most successful work, 
which has also been very popular in its drama¬ 
tized form. 

Burn'ham, Sherburne Wesley (1838- ). 

an American astronomer, born at Thetford, Vt., 
and educated in Thetford Academy. He began 
life as a stenographer and followed this calling 
until he was appointed clerk of the United States 
circuit court for the northern district of Illinois, 
which position he held for a number of years. 
While practicing stenography, he took up the 
study of astronomy as a recreation and became 
deeply interested in the subject. He soon 
acquired remarkable skill for an amateur, and 
in 1876 he became connected with the Chicago 
Observatory. From this position he went to 
the Lick Observatory, when that was opened, 
and on the opening of the Yerkes Observatory 
he w T as appointed professor of practical astronomy 
in the University of Chicago. He has been 
remarkably successful in discovering and cata¬ 
loguing double stars, his discoveries along this 
line far exceeding those of any other observer. 
He published a catalogue of stars discovered 
by him from the founding of the Yerkes Observ¬ 
atory to 1900. 

Burn'ing. See Combustion. 

Burning Glass, a lens having both surfaces 
curved outward, so that it is thick in the center 
and thin at the edges. When the sun's rays 
pass through such a lens, they are all brought 
to a point called the focus. The heat at the 
focus is sufficient to set on fire wood, paper and 
similar substances. Glass globes when filled 
with water and set in the sun act as burning 
glasses and occasionally cause serious damage. 
See Lens. 

Burn'isher, a blunt, smooth tool, used for 
smoothing and polishing a rough surface by 
rubbing. The burnisher used by engravers is 
made of tempered steel and has slightly curved, 
polished sides and a rounded point. See 
Engraving. 

Burn'ley, a city of England on the river 
Burn, 22 mi. n. of Manchester. It is a modern 


Burnoose 


Bums 


town, with well-planned streets and excellent 
buildings, most of which are constructed of 
stone. The important structures are the town- 
hall, an exchange, a market hall and several 
churches. The city also has a mechanics’ insti¬ 
tute, a technical school, a grammar school, 
numerous public schools and Victoria Hospital. 
The leading manufactures are cotton and worsted 
goods and foundry products. There are also 
machine shops, collieries and quarries in the 
vicinity. The waterworks, gas and electric 
light plants, public markets and slaughter houses 
are owned by the municipality. Population in 
1911, 106,337. 

Burnoose', a large, loose garment or mantle, 
used by the Bedouin Arabs and the Berbers of 
northern Africa, commonly made of white wool, 
but sometimes also of red, blue, green or some 
other color, and having a hood which may be 
drawn over the head in case of rain. The 
Spanish albomoz is the same as the burnoose. 

Burns, Robert (1759-1796), the great lyric 
poet of Scotland, born near Ayr, January 25, 
1759. His father, a gardener, and latterly a 



ROBERT BURNS 


small farmer, was very poor, but did the best 
he could to educate his children. Robert Bums 
was instructed in the ordinary branches by a 
teacher engaged by his father and a few neigh¬ 
bors. To these common branches Robert after¬ 
ward added French and a little mathematics, 
but most of his education was obtained from 
general reading, to which he devoted himself 


earnestly. In this manner he learned what the 
best English poets might teach him and culti¬ 
vated the instinct for poetry which was a part 
of his nature. At an early age he had to assist 
in the labors of the farm; and when only fifteen 
years old he had to do the work of a man. In 
1781 he went to learn the business of flax dresser 
at Irvine, but the premises were destroyed by 
fire, and he was forced to give up the scheme. 
His father died in 1784, and Robert took a small 
farm, Mossgiel, in conjunction with his younger 
brother, Gilbert. Here he began to write poems 
which attracted the notice of his neighbors and 
gained him considerable reputation with educated 
men. This is not strange when we consider 
that such poems as The Cotter’s Saturday Night, 
To a Mouse and The Jolly Beggars were pro¬ 
duced at this time. 

His unhappy love affair with Jean Armour 
of Mossgiel decided him to emigrate to Jamaica 
and engage himself as assistant overseer on a 
plantation there. To obtain the funds neces¬ 
sary for the voyage, he published by subscription 
a volume of his poems, in 1786, and was about 
to set sail from his native land, when he was 
drawn to Edinburgh by a letter from an eminent 
man there, recommending that he should take 
advantage of the general admiration his poems 
had excited and publish a new edition of them. 
This advice was eagerly adopted, and the books 
sold far better than he had dared to hope. After 
remaining more than a year in Edinburgh, 
admired, flattered, and received in the highest 
society, he retired to the country with about 
$2500, which he had realized by the second 
publication of his poems. A part of this sum 
he advanced to his brother, and with the remain¬ 
der he took a farm at Ellisland, near Dumfries. 
In 1788 he was appointed to the office of excise¬ 
man, and his duties were conscientiously per¬ 
formed. He married Jean Armour in 1788 
It was during his residence on this farm that he 
wrote, in a single day, Tam O’Shanter. 

The farming at Ellisland was not successful, 
and in about three years Burns removed to 
Dumfries and relied on his employment as an 
exciseman alone. He continued to write and 
composed a number of beautiful songs adapted 
to old Scottish tunes. But his residence in 
Dumfries, and the society of the idle and the 
dissipated who gathered around him there, 
attracted by the brilliant wit that gave its charm 
to their meetings, had an evil effect upon Bums, 
whom disappointment and misfortunes were 
now making somewhat reckless. In the winter 



Bums and Scalds 


Burr 


of 1795 his health, strained by cares and dissi¬ 
pations, began to give way; and in the following 
summer he died. He left a wife and four chil¬ 
dren, for whose support his friends and admirers 
raised a subscription. Burns was an honest, 
proud, friendly, warm-hearted man, combining 
sound understanding and a vigorous imagina¬ 
tion with the high passions which were his 
misery and ruin. His poetry, at its best, when 
written in the Scottish dialect rather than in 
formal English, is marked by a tenderness, a 
simplicity, a close touch with life, which prove 
him among the greatest of the world’s song¬ 
writers. 

Burns and Scalds are injuries produced by 
excessive heat on the human body. They are 
generally dangerous in proportion to the extent 
of surface they cover. Congestion of the brain, 
pneumonia, inflammation of the bowels or lock¬ 
jaw are diseases which may follow an extensive 
bum. Hence, the treatment should be both 
local and constitutional. If there is shivering or 
exhaustion, hot brandy and water may be given 
with good effect, and if there is much pain, a 
sedative solution of opium. The local treatment 
consists in dredging the burn with fine wheat 
flour. An application of equal quantities of 
olive oil and lime water, called carron oil, is 
highly recommended by some. The wound 
should always be covered by cotton wool, or 
some other substance which will exclude the air. 
If blisters have formed, they may be opened 
delicately with a needle, the loose skin being 
kept in its place as a covering. 

Burn'side, Ambrose Everett (1824-1881), 
an American soldier. He graduated from the 
military academy at West Point in 1847 and 
went to Mexico as second lieutenant of Third 
Artillery. In 1852 he resigned his commission 
and engaged in the manufacture of firearms. 
At the beginning of the Civil War he took com¬ 
mand of a regiment from Rhode Island and 
took part in the first Battle of Bull Run. Later 
he was made brigadier general of volunteers 
and was ordered to Annapolis, Md., to organize 
a “coast division,” intended to operate along the 
lower Potomac and Chesapeake Bay. In 1862, 
as commander of the Department of North 
Carolina, he captured the Confederate garrison 
on Roanoke Island. He then relinquished the 
Department of North Carolina and was trans¬ 
ferred to the Army of the Potomac, was twice 
offered the chief command of the Army of 
Virginia and declined. His force held, with 
great loss of life, the stone bridge at Antietam, 


which was the important post of the battle, and 
when, after that battle, General McClellan was 
relieved, Burnside took the command. After 
the disastrous Battle of Fredericksburg he was 
superseded by Hooker and transferred to the 
Department of the Ohio. In August, 1863, he 
crossed the Cumberland Mountains to Knox¬ 
ville, where he lay fortified for a siege. General 
Sherman relieved him, and he devoted himself 
to reorganizing the ninth corps. During 1864 
and 1865 he served under Grant and took part 
in all the important battles. After the war he 
was connected with various railroad enterprises, 
was governor of Rhode Island from 1866 to 
1869, and from 1875 to his death was in the 
United States Senate. 

Burnt Off'ering, something offered and burnt 
on an altar as an atonement for sin; a sacrifice. 
The burnt offerings of the Jews were either 
some clean animal, as an ox, a sheep, a pigeon; 
or some species of vegetable substance, as bread, 
flour, ears of wheat or barley. 

Burr, Aaron (1756-1836), an American 
statesman, born at Newark, N. J. He gradu¬ 
ated at Princeton College, of which his father 
and grandfather (Jonathan Edwards) had been 
presidents, and in 1775 joined the patriot army. 
There he gained a high reputation, rising to the 
rank of lieutenant colonel. Retiring in 1779, 
he was admitted to the bar, soon became a 
leader in his profession, was elected attor¬ 
ney general of New York and in 1791 United 
States senator. 

In 1800 he %as a candidate for president of 
the United Stags', and received the same number 
of electoral votes as Jefferson, but the House of 
Representatives, chiefly through the influence of 
Hamilton, elected Jefferson, and Burr became 
vice-president. This disappointment, and a 
subsequent defeat in a contest for the governor¬ 
ship of New York, which he also attributed to 
Hamilton’s influence, with good reason, led him 
to force a duel upon his great rival. The meet¬ 
ing took place at Weehawken, not far from 
New York City, July II, 1804. At the signal, 
Hamilton fired into the air, but he fell mortally 
wounded at Burr’s first shot. 

Burr, branded a murderer by the people, fled 
to South Carolina, and though indicted for 
murder, returned after the excitement had sub¬ 
sided and completed his term as vice-president. 
But his political prospects in the United States 
were destroyed, and he therefore prepared to 
raise a force to conquer Texas, establish there a 
republic, with himself at its head, which might 


Burrard Inlet 

detach the Western states from the Union and 
give him vengeance for past injuries and failures. 
His scheme had progressed to an advanced stage, 
when the enterprise was detected, and Burr was 
tried for treason (1807). Though acquitted, 
his reputation was ruined. He spent some 
wretched years in Europe, and in 1812 returned 
to his law practice in New York. Here, shunned 
by society, he died on Staten Island, in a home 
given him by a friend. 

Bur'rard Inlet, an arm of the Gulf of 
Georgia projecting into British Columbia, just 
north of the United States boundary. It is nine 
miles long and forms an excellent harbor. Van¬ 
couver, the terminus of the Canadian Pacific 
railroad, is situated on its north shore. 

Bur'rillville, R. I., a town of Providence co., 
about 22 mi. n. w. of Providence. It has numer¬ 
ous manufactures of cotton and woolen goods. 
Population in 1910, 7878. 

Bui'ritt, Elihu (1811-1879), an American 
writer and lecturer, known as the “learned 
blacksmith,” born at New Britain, Conn. He 
was apprenticed to a blacksmith, but studied 
diligently in the intervals of his work and 
acquired proficiency in the ancient and most 
modern languages of Europe. Later he came 
into public notice as a lecturer on temperance 
and on the abolition of slavery, and he founded 
papers, missions and oiganizations to further 
these ends. In 1848 the first International Peace 
Congress was held under his guidance at Brussels. 
In 1865 he was consular agent at Birmingham, 
and in 1868 he Returned to live on his farm in 
America. His best known writings are Sparks 
from the Anvil', Thoughts and Things at Home 
and Abroad, and Chips from Many Blocks. 

Burroughs, buProze, John (1837- ), an 

American naturalist and essayist, born in New 
York. He was the son of a farmer, and his youth 
was spen{ partly in farm work. After teaching 
for a time and holding various government posi¬ 
tions, he withdrew to his New York farm, where 
he devoted himself to nature study, fruit culture 
and writing. His style is of the intimate and 
personal kind, easy and familiar, and as he has 
written most largely on nature subjects he has 
had a great influence toward a better appreci¬ 
ation of insect, bird and flower life. His works 
are remarkable not only for the accuracy of 
observation shown in them, but for the ability 
which he possesses to transfer to his readers his 
own interest in his subjects. Locusts and Wild 
Honey, Pepadon, Wake Robin, Sharp Eyes, 
Far and Near and The Ways of Nature are 


Burying Beetle 

books of essays on rural subjects, while Whitman: 
a Study, Literary Values and The Light of Day 
are more literary. Many of his papers were 
written at Slabsides, the rustic house which he 
built for himself on his little celery farm at 
Esopus, about a mile from the Hudson River. 
In 1903 Burroughs traveled through the western 
United States with President Roosevelt; Camp¬ 



ing and Tramping with Roosevelt contains an ac¬ 
count of these travels. His latest works include 
Leaf and Tendril, a volume of essays, and Bird 
and Bough, a volume of poems. 

Burton, Robert (1577-1640), an English 
clergyman and author. His vast out-of-the-way 
learning is curiously displayed in his Anatomy 
of Melancholy, which was published in 1621. 

Burton-upon-Trent, a city of England 
situated on the Trent River and the Trent and 
Mercy canal, 11 mi. s. w. of Derby. It is cele¬ 
brated for its malting and brewing industries 
and is the location of some of the largest breweries 
in the world. The town has a large number of 
churches, a girls’ high school, a good system of 
public schools, a number of almshouses, an 
infirmary, public libraries and reading rooms. 
Population in 1911, 48,275. 

Burying Bee'tle, the name of a genus of 
common insects that have a very keen sense of 
smell, which guides them to small dead animals, 
around and under which they burrow until the 
bodies are covered by the ground, sometimes to 
a depth of six inches. In these carcasses the 








Bushbuck 

beetles lay their eggs, and the young larvae, which 
hatch in less than a fortnight, find plenty of food 
awaiting them. 

Bush'buck, a’name given to several species of 
antelopes, but especially to a small species in 
South Africa, about four feet long and two and 
a half feet high, with triangular horns turned 
partially into a spiral. The male is dark brown 
with white below, and the female is reddish- 
brown above and white below. The white- 
backed, bushbuck lives in Sierra Leone, and has 
black, shining, pointed and nearly straight 
horns, short, slender limbs and sleek, glossy, 
deep-brown hair. 

Bush'el, a measure of capacity in the English 
system of weights and measures, used chiefly 
for measuring dry quantities. It contains 
2150.42 cubic inches, being equal to a cylinder 
8 inches deep and 18§ inches in diameter, 
interior measure. It is about equivalent to 
35.24 liters. In Great Britain an imperial 
bushel is also used, having a capacity of 2218.192 
cubic inches. A bushel is divided into 4 pecks, 
each peck into 8 quarts, each quart into 2 pints, 
each pint into 4 gills. It is also sometimes 
divided into 8 dry gallons. 

Bushire, boo sheer'. See Abushehr. 

Bush'men, a race of people who dwell in the 
western part of South Africa, in the immense 
plains bordering on the north side of the Cape 
of Good Hope. They are among the most 
degraded races of the world. They unite only 
for defense or pillage, have no established homes 
and do not cultivate the land, but support them¬ 
selves by hunting. Their language is exceedingly 
poor, consisting only of a certain clicking with 
the tongue and harsh, gurgling tones, for which 
we have no representatiqm. They are now under 
the control of the British government. 

Bushrangers, boosh'rane jurz, the name given 
in Australia to desperadoes or escaped convicts, 
who, formerly taking to the bush, supported 
themselves by levying contributions on the 
property of all within their reach. 

Business, biz'i nes, College, a school devoted 
to training its pupils in different lines of com¬ 
mercial work. The business colleges in the 
United States are presumed to be the outgrowth 
of the work of Mr. R. M. Bartlett of Cincinnati, 
who in 1846 began to give instruction in book¬ 
keeping and other commercial subjects to 
private pupils. By 1860 all leading cities of the 
country contained one or more business colleges, 
and since that time their number has greatly 
increased. For a number of years these schools 


Bustard 

possessed no special text-books, but as they 
increased in number and patronage special 
texts were provided. During the last quarter of 
the nineteenth century the development in all 
lines of industry made it necessary for the busi¬ 
ness colleges to extend their courses of study and 
provide instruction in a large number of branches. 
The courses of the best colleges now include 
instruction in commercial arithmetic, a thorough 
system of accounts, including banking and 
commission, shorthand and typewriting, com¬ 
mercial law and at least one modern language, 
usually German or Spanish. Many of the high 
schools of the country contain commercial 
departments, as do some of the best colleges. 
Most of the other commercial schools are con¬ 
ducted as private enterprises. 

Bust, in sculpture, a representation of the head 
and upper part of the body. This form of sculp¬ 
ture was practiced by the Greeks as early as the 
sixth century B. c. It is shown in the Ilermae, 
heads of Hermes mounted on pillars and erected 
along the roads to serve as guideposts. During 
the literary period of Greece, portrait busts came 
to be an important form of sculpture, and there 
remain to us to-day faithful likenesses of. such 
men as Socrates, Demosthenes, Plato and many 
others. The Romans also left a large number of 
busts which have been preserved to us. Since 
the sixteenth century portraiture has been 
represented in painting to a large extent, and 
sculptured busts have not been very popular. 

Bus'tard, a game bird, of which there are 
several species found in Europe and Africa. 



The head is flat, the neck thick and the bill some¬ 
what blunt and depressed. This bird is now 
rare in Britain, but it is found in the southern 




Butcher Bird 

and eastern parts of Europe and on the steppes 
of Tartary. The largest species weighs twenty- 
five or thirty pounds. Bustards can all run very 
rapidly, but they take flight with difficulty. 
Their food consists chiefly of juicy plants, though 
they eat earthworms and insects. 

Butcher Bird. See Shrike. 

But'ler, Pa., the county-seat of Butler co., 
31 mi. n. of Pittsburg, on the Conequenessing 
Creek and on the Baltimore & Ohio, the Penn¬ 
sylvania and other railroads. The borough is 
near deposits of oil, natural gas, coal and iron, 
and it has very extensive glass factories. It also 
contains planing mills, steel car works, flour 
mills and manufactures of silk, white lead, tools 
and other articles. There is a well-equipped 
public library and a fine courthouse. The place 
was settled about 1798 and was incorporated in 
1803. Population in 1910, 20,728. 

Butler, Benjamin F. (1818-1893), an Ameri¬ 
can lawyer, politician and general, born at Deer¬ 
field, N. H., and educated in Maine. He prac¬ 
ticed law in Lowell, Mass., became prominent 
in his profession and was elected to the legis¬ 
lature, where he urged labor reforms. He was 
appointed brigadier general of the state militia 
at the outbreak of the Civil War, became major 
general of volunteers in May, 1861, and was 
given command of the Department of Eastern 
Virginia, where he made a failure of an impor¬ 
tant expedition. The following March he com¬ 
manded an expedition sent to New Orleans, 
and from May to December commanded the 
city, arousing intense antagonism among the 
citizens by his arbitrary conduct. President 
Davis issued a proclamation declaring him to 
be an outlaw. In 1863 he was placed in com¬ 
mand of Virginia and North Carolina, with the 
Army of the James. In an attempt to cap¬ 
ture Richmond by operations from the south 
side of the James, he was checked by Gen¬ 
eral Beauregard. Later he was sent to Fort 
Fisher, N. C., but he was removed from com¬ 
mand by General Grant, and he returned to 
Massachusetts. 

In 1866 he was elected to Congress as a 
Republican, and he served until 1879, with the 
exception of two years. He took an active part 
in the impeachment of President Johnson. In 
1871 Butler was the unsuccessful Republican 
nominee for governor of Massachusetts, and in 
1878 and 1879 he was again defeated for the 
same office, as the Greenback candidate; but in 
1882-he was elected by the Democrats. In 1884 
he ran as the Greenback-Labor candidate for 


Butler 

president, but did not get any votes in the 
electoral college. 

Butler, Joseph (1692-1752), an English 
prelate and writer on ethics and theology. His 
great work i s The Analogy of Religion, Natural 
and Revealed, to the Constitution and Course of 
Nature, which acquired for him a wide repu¬ 
tation. 

Butler, Nicholas Murray (1862- ), an 

American educator, born in Elizabeth, New 
Jersey. He was educated at Columbia College 
and after graduation took special courses in 
Berlin and Paris. Following his studies abroad, 
he was appointed assistant in philosophy in his 
alma mater. He founded and was the first presi¬ 
dent of the New York College for the Training 
of Teachers, which institution has since been 
incorporated into Columbia University. It was 
through his influence, while a member of the 
state board of education of New Jersey, that 
manual training was introduced into the public 
schools of that state. In 1902 he was elected 
president of Columbia University, to succeed 
Seth Low, who had been elected mayor of New 
York. He is the editor of The Educational 
Review, The Teachers’ Library, the Great Edu¬ 
cators series, the Columbia University Contribu¬ 
tions to Philosophy and Education and Mono¬ 
graphs on Education in the United States. He is 
also a frequent contributor to educational 
periodicals. 

Butler, William Allen (1825-1902), an 
American author and lawyer. Mr. Butler wrote 
in 1857 a society satire in verse, Nothing to 
Wear, and was thereafter a liberal contributor 
to the magazines. 

Butler, William Orlando (1791-1880), an 
American soldier and politician, born in Jessa¬ 
mine co., Ky. At the opening of the War 
of 1812 he joined a company of Kentucky volun¬ 
teers and was present at the Battle of the River 
Raisin. During this engagement he was cap¬ 
tured, and after being released he joined the 
southern American army, taking part in the 
famous Battle of New Orleans, January 8, 1815. 
He resigned from the army in 1817 and became 
a successful lawyer in Kentucky. He was elected 
to the state legislature and later served two terms 
in Congress. As Democratic candidate for gov¬ 
ernor of Kentucky in 1844, Butler reduced the 
usual Whig majority from 28,000 to 4000. He 
served in the Mexican War and was appointed 
major general of volunteers, being connected with 
both General Taylor’s and General Scott’s cam¬ 
paigns, On February 18, 1848, about a week 


Butte 


Butter 


before the signing of peace, he was appointed 
commanding general of the American army. In 
the same year he again retired from military 
service and was Democratic candidate for vice- 
president on the ticket with General Cass. He 
was a delegate to the peace conference of 1861 
at Washington, but thereafter lived in retire¬ 
ment until his death. 

Butte, bute, an isolated hill or mountain 
rising abruptly above the surrounding country. 
Buttes abound in the Rocky Mountain region; 
many of them have been formed by the erosion 
of ancient plateaus, and they are prominent 
features in the landscape. The term is also 
applied to high mountains, though it is not gen¬ 
erally so used in the United States. See Plateau. 

Butte, Mont., the county-seat of Silver- 
bow co., 65 mi. s. w. of Helena, on the Northern 
Pacific, the Great Northern, the Union Pacific 
and the Milwaukee railroads. The city is in the 
midst of the largest copper mines in the world, 
and gold and silver mines are also near. The 
copper production is about half of the total 
for the entire United States. The city is dis¬ 
tinctly a mining town and has immense mills 
and smelting works. The streets are paved 
and there is an excellent street railway system. 
The public schools are well equipped, a public 
library is maintained and the Montana School 
of Mines is located here. The city was settled 
in 1864 and was incorporated in 1879. The 
population of the city proper in 1910 was 39,165, 
but the immediate suburbs make a total of 
about 60,000. 

But'ter, the fat of milk. Butter is now uni¬ 
versally used as an article of food in the tem¬ 
perate regions. It was formerly made from the 
milk of goats and sheep, but it is now all made 
from the milk of the cow. Butter of good 
quality has a golden yellow color, is granular 
in texture and has a delicate flavor. In judging 
the quality, flavor is the most important item 
and usually counts about one-half. Butter is 
an excellent article of food, as it is the most 
nutritious fat that can be eaten. For this reason 
and because of its pleasant taste, it is highly 
prized, and if of a good quality it commands a 
high price on the market. 

In England and some other countries butter 
is occasionally made by churning the new milk, 
but it is usually obtained by churning the cream. 
The first step in the process is separating the 
cream from the milk. This is done by setting 
the milk in a cool place in shallow dishes, by 
placing it in deep cans which are immersed in 


cold water, or by the cream separator. In the 
best dairies in the United States the separator 
has now replaced the other methods. It saves 
time and secures a larger proportion of the 
cream (See Cream Separator). The cream 
may be churned while it is sweet or it may be 
allowed to stand until it becomes slightly sour, 
or ripens. The ripened cream is usually pre¬ 
ferred, since it gives butter of a better flavor. 
While being churned the cream should be kept 
at a temperature of from 60° to 70°, and the 
time required should not exceed forty-five min¬ 
utes. Churning simply gathers the particles of 
fat together and separates them from the butter¬ 
milk. After the churning, the buttermilk is 
drawn off, the butter is washed and then 
worked, for the purpose of expelling any remain¬ 
ing milk or water that it may contain, and for 
absorbing the necessary quantity of salt. The 
working is done either by hand or in a machine 
called the butter worker. In creameries churn¬ 
ing and butter working are all done by machin¬ 
ery. In home dairies they are usually performed 
by hand labor. See Churn. 

Butter for shipment is made into prints, or 
bricks, or packed in firkins and shipped in bulk, 
according to the location of the dairy with refer¬ 
ence to the market. Those creameries and 
dairies near large cities usually find it to their 
advantage to put the butter up in prints or bricks, 
while those situated at a long distance from 
market secure better results by shipping their 
product in bulk. The best butter in the United 
States is made in creameries, which control the 
market in all large cities. However, we find that 
only a little more than one-fourth of the entire 
product of the country is made in this way. 
Most of the remainder is made on farms and is 
used in homes or sold to grocers and other small 
dealers. Much of this is of poor quality and is 
sold by the country dealers to large creameries, 
which make a business of renovating it. Reno¬ 
vated butter is generally known as process butter, 
and the United States law requires that all butter 
so treated shall be marked renovated. 

Denmark and Holland produce butter of the 
best quality, but the United States leads in 
quantity and produces about 1,500,000,000 
pounds a year, the value of which is nearly 
$270,000,000. The leading butter states are 
Iowa, New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois and 
Wisconsin. In Iowa and Wisconsin the cream¬ 
eries produce more than the farms, but in the 
other states named the reverse is true. See 
Creamery; Dairying; Milk. 


Buttercup 


Butterfly 


But'tercup or Crowfoot, a large genus of 
the crowfoot family, all of its species being 
annual plants, with stems bearing alternate 
leaves and usually bright yellow flowers, which 
appear singly or in clusters resembling a corymb. 
See Ranunculus. 

But'terfield, Daniel (1831-1901), an 
American soldier, born in Utica, N. Y. He 
entered the Civil War as colonel of the Twelfth 
New York militia, and took an active part in the 
Peninsula Campaign. He commanded a corps 
at Fredericksburg and was chief of staff at 
Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Lookout Mountain 
and Missionary Ridge. At the close of the war 
he had reached the rank of major general. 

But'terfly, the common name given to a large 
class of insects having scaly wings and flying 
by day. Butterflies are the most beautiful of 
insects and by their brilliant colors and graceful 
flight attract universal attention. They differ 
from moths in the following particulars: 1. The 
antennae, or feelers, of butterflies are club- 
shaped, while those of moths are thread-like or 
feather-form. 2. When at rest butterflies hold 
their wings in a vertical position, while those of 
the moth remain flat. 3. Butterflies fly by day, 
while with few exceptions moths fly at twilight 
or during the night. 

The body of the butterfly has three parts: 
head, thorax and abdomen. The conspicuous 
parts of the head are the two antennae, the eye 
clusters, or ocelli, and the tongue, which, when 
not in use, is coiled like the spring of a watch. 
Between the ocelli is a sucking apparatus, by 
means of which the insect draws its food up 
through the long tube constituting the tongue. 
The butterfly has six legs and four wings, all 
of which are attached to the thorax. The legs 
are weak and are used only when the insect is 
resting or feeding. The wings are large and 
strong; the first pair is usually triangular, the 
second pair, rounded. In some families, such 
as the swallowtails, the second pair of wings 
has long narrow or pointed extensions. The 
wings consist of membranes supported on a 
framework of tubes, which serve the double 
purpose of veins and air tubes. These tubes are 
double, one within the other. The air circulates 
through the outer and the blood through the 
inner. The membrane of the wings and the 
body of the butterfly are covered with minute 
scales, arranged like the scales on a fish or the 
shingles on a house. These scales, when viewed 
under a microscope, resemble feathers. They 
are highly colored and have a perfect structure. 


It is to them that the butterfly owes its bril¬ 
liancy and beauty. When a butterfly is caught 
by the wings, the scales rub off like a fine dust 
Their removal from the wings impairs the flight 
of the insect, or prevents it altogether. 

Butterflies feed on the nectar of flowers. In 
most species, life in the perfect state lasts but 
a few days; as soon as the eggs for the next 
brood are deposited, the insect dies. The male 
and female of the same species usually differ in 
color, and frequently in size, and are often taken 
for different species. 

Classification. Butterflies and moths con¬ 
stitute the insect order Lepidoptera, or scaly- 
winged insects (See Insects). The butterflies 
of North America are classed under the following 
families; 

1. “Brush-footed” Butterflies (Nympho- 
lidae). 

2. “Metal Marks” ( Lemonidae ). 

3. “Blues,” “Coppers” and “Hair-streaks” 
( Lycaenidae ). 

4. “Swallowtails” ( Papilionidae ). 

5. “Skippers” ( Hesperiidae ). 

These five families include all the 650 or more 
species of butterflies found within the United 
States. About 50,000 species are known in the 
world. 

The first and fourth of these families contain 
the most conspicuous and best known butterflies. 
Most of the specimens are large and characterized 
by brilliant coloring. The swallowtails and the 
diana are conspicuous species. A comparison of 
the species inhabiting tropical and semi-tropical 
climates with those of temperate latitudes shows 
that the former have more brilliant colors. The 
largest species of the tropics are the most gorgeous 
of insect creations. Their expanse of wing is 
often eight or more inches, and their coloring is 
more brilliant than that of the richest tropical 
flowers. 

The habitats of the other species, common in 
the Southern states, are as follows: The White 
Skirted Calico is a native of Texas; the Cloudless 
Sulphur is common from New England and the 
Great Lakes to the extreme southern points of 
South America; the Great Purple Hair-streak 
is common in Central America, Mexico and the 
Gulf States, and the Mimic is a native of Florida 
and the West Indies. 

Life History. Butterflies undergo & com¬ 
plete transformation, or metamorphosis; to 
complete their life histories they live in four forms: 
the egg; the larva, or caterpillar; the pupa, or 
chrysalis, and the imago, or perfect insect. 


Butterfly Weed 


Butterworth 


The eggs are deposited either singly or in 
clusters on or near the plant upon which the larva 
feeds. Each fertilized egg contains the germ of 
the larva and a fluid upon which this germ is 
nourished during the period of incubation. This 
period varies with the species, the locality and the 
season. In warm countries, and during the 
summer months, in temperate latitudes, the period 
of incubation does not usually exceed three 
weeks, while it may be less. But in cold climates 
the period is much longer, and in temperate 
climates the eggs deposited in the fall do not 
hatch until spring. See Nature Study, Vol. VI. 

The larva, or caterpillar, is the second stage 
in the development of the butterfly. The work 
of the caterpillar is to eat and grow, and it applies 
itself industriously to its task (See Caterpillar). 
The duration of the larva stage varies with the 
locality, the season and the species. In temper¬ 
ate climates the larva stage lasts from three to 
four months, while in the cold regions, where the 
winters are severe, the period is often ten months. 
When the second stage is completed, the cater¬ 
pillar is transformed into a pupa or chrysalis. 
While the caterpillars of moths generally spin 
cocoons of silk in which the pupa is enclosed, 
those of butterflies form a chrysalis having a 
hard, smooth outer case. The caterpillars of 
many species attach themselves by buttons of 
silk to the under side of leaves and change into 
naked chrysalides hanging head downward. In 
other species the chrysalis is attached at one end 
and also suspended by a silk cord attached to 
the branch a little more than half the distance 
between the first point of suspension and the 
other end of the chrysalis. Chrysalides thus 
suspended usually take a nearly horizontal 
position. With few exceptions chrysalides are 
of a dull color, resembling the object to which 
they are attached. In the pupa state the insect 
is to all appearances lifeless, yet it breathes 
through small pores, and the mysterious life 
processes of transformation are slowly operative. 
Many butterflies remain in the chrysalis only a 
few weeks, while some continue through the 
winter, or, in tropical climates, during the dry 
season, before the transformation is completed. 
When the imago, or perfect insect, emerges from 
the chrysalis, it retains some resemblances to the 
caterpillar, but in from two to four hours its 
form becomes perfect and it is ready for flight. 

Butterfly Weed or Pleurisy Root, a plant 
common in the United States and in southern 
Canada. The root, which is sharp and bitter 
when fresh, but merely bitter when dry, is useful 


as a medicine. The plant, which belongs to the 
milkweed family, has a strong, branching stem 
about eighteen inches high, that bears large 
bunches of orange-yellow flowers. 

Butterine, but'tur in, an artificial butter, 
prepared from beef suet, lard, milk, butter and 
vegetable oil. By the use of coloring matters it 
can be made to resemble butter of any given 
brand; but although wholesome when well made, 
it has not the delicate flavor and aroma of the 
highest class butters. See Oleomargarine. 

But'temut, the fruit of the white walnut, so 
called from the oil it contains. The tree bears a 
resemblance in its general appearance to the 
black walnut, but the wood is light in color. 

But'ter-tree, a name of several trees which 
yield oily or fatty substances resembling butter. 

But'terwort, a plant growing in bogs or soft 
grounds. The leaves are covered with soft, 
pellucid hairs, which secrete 
a liquor that catches small 
insects. The edges of the 
leaf roll over on the insect, 
which dies and serves as food 
for the plant. In the north 
of Sweden the leaves are em¬ 
ployed to curdle milk. 

But'terworth, Benjamin 
(1837-1898), an American 
statesman. He was educated 
at Ohio University and was 
admitted to the bar in 1861. 

He practiced law in Cin¬ 
cinnati, and in 1870 became 
United States district attor¬ 
ney and afterwards state 
senator. He was elected to 
Congress five times, his first 
term beginning in 1878. Mr. 

Butterworth was a Repub¬ 
lican, introduced the com¬ 
pulsory army retirement act 
in Congress and was appointed commissioner 
of patents in 1883 and commissioner of pensions 
in 1897. 

But'terworth, Hezekiah (1839-1905), an 
American editor and writer for young people. 
He had only a common school education, but 
he supplemented it by extensive travels in the 
United States and abroad. In 1870 he became 
an editor of The Youth's Companion in Boston, 
a position he held till 1894. He is the author of 
Zig-zag Journeys, In the Boyhood of Lincoln. 
The Patriot Schoolmaster and many other juvenile 
works, besides several volumes of poems and 





Buttons 


Byron 


essays. As a platform lecturer on literary sub¬ 
jects, travel and child training, he achieved some 
tame. 

But'tons, articles used for fastening together 
wearing apparel or for ornaments. Buttons are 
made of paper, glass, pearl, shell, horn, ivory, 
vegetable ivory, wood and iron. According to 
their pattern, buttons are divided into three 
general classes; hole buttons, shank buttons and 
covered buttons. Hole buttons have holes drilled 
in the center, through which they are sewed onto 
the cloth. Shank buttons contain a loop of wire, 
generally known as the eye, by means of which 
the button is attached. Covered buttons con¬ 
sist of wooden or iron molds covered with cloth. 

The manufacture of buttons became an 
important industry in England during the reign 
of Queen Elizabeth, and Birmingham was then, 
as now, its chief center. Metal buttons were 
manufactured in the United States at Philadelphia 
as early as 1750, and in 1800 a button factory 
was established at Waterbury, Conn., which 
town is now the center of metal button manu¬ 
facture in . America. The most important 
branch of the button industry in the United 
States, however, is the making of pearl buttons, 
of the shells of a species of fresh-water mussel 
found in large numbers in the Mississippi River. 
This industry began in Iowa, and factories are 
now found along the river from Red Wing, Minn., 
to Louisiana. The process of making these 
buttons is very simple. The shell is soaked 
until it is soft; it is then cut by tubular saws into 
circular pieces the size of the button. The holes 
are then drilled in these, and the buttons^are 
polished and finished. Owing to the brittleness 
of the shell, nearly all of the work has to be done 
by hand. 

There are many styles of buttons. Aside from 
the pearl buttons, those in most common use are 
made from vegetable ivory, which is susceptible 
of taking any color, from gutta-percha and from 
celluloid. Expensive metal buttons are used 
for special purposes, and a modern feature of 
the button industry consists in the manufacture 
of buttons to be worn as symbols of membership 
in some organization. Some of these, such as 
that used by the Grand Army of the Republic, 
are beautiful works of art and are made of bronze, 
gold or silver. Others, made of celluloid, con¬ 
tain mottoes, symbols or photographs. 

But'tress, in architecture, a projection on 
the outside of the walls of an edifice, intended 
to give additional support to the walls. It 
originated among the Byzantines, but attained 


its highest and most beautiful form in the Gothic 
architecture, where it came to be used wholly as 
an ornament. Flying buttresses , of a somewhat 
arched form, often spring from the top of the 
ordinary buttresses, leaning inward so as to abut 
against and support a higher portion of the 
building, thus receiving part of the pressure 
from the weight of the roof of the central pile. 

Butyr'ic Acid, an acid obtained from butter 
and found also in perspiration, cod-liver oil and 
othei substances. Butyric acid is a colorless 
liquid, having a smell like that of rancid butter; 
its taste is at first burning and biting, with a 
sweetish after-taste. 

Buz'zard, a hawk of a genus that is common 
both in Europe and the United States, though 
in the United States the name is more commonly 
applied to the turkey buzzard. The common 
buzzard of Europe is distributed over the whole 
of that grand division, as well as over the north 
of Africa. It feeds upon mice, frogs, toads, 
worms and insects, and is very sluggish in its 
habits. See Hawk; Turkey Buzzard. 

Buzzard’s Bay, a bay on the south coast of 
Massachusetts. It is 30 mi. long and from 5 to 
10 mi. wide. The Elizabeth Islands separate 
it from Vineyard Sound. It contains the harbors 
of New Bedford, Wareham, Sippican, Naske- 
tucket and Mattapoiset. Buzzard’s Bay is 
a popular summer resort. 

By'-law, a law made by an incorporated or 
other body, for the regulation, of its own affairs 
or of the affairs entrusted to its care. Town 
councils, railway companies and other bodies 
enact by-laws, which are binding upon all com¬ 
ing within the sphere of their operations. By¬ 
laws must of course be within the meaning of 
the charter of incorporation and in accordance 
with any higher law which binds the body or its 
members. 

By'ron, George Noel Gordon, Sixth Lord 
(1788-1824), a great English poet. Till the 
age of seven he was entirely under the care of 
his mother, and to her injudicious indulgence 
the waywardness that marked his after career 
has been partly attributed. On reaching his 
seventh year he was sent to the grammar school 
at Aberdeen, and four years after, in 1798, the 
death of his grand-uncle gave him the titles 
and estates of the family. Mother and son then 
removed to Newstead Abbey, the family seat, 
near Nottingham. Soon afterwards Byron was 
sent to Harrow, where he distinguished himself 
by his love of manly sports and his unsystematic 
reading, rather than by careful study. In 1805 


Byron 

he was entered at Trinity College, Cambridge. 
Two years later appeared his first poetic volume, 
Hours of Idleness, which, though containing 
nothing of much merit, was criticised with 
unnecessary severity by Brougham in the Edin¬ 
burgh Review. This criticism roused Byron and 
drew from him his first really notable effort, 
the celebrated satire, English Bards and Scotch 
Reviewers. 

In 1809, in company with a friend, Byron 
visited the southern provinces of Spain and 
voyaged along the shores of the Mediterranean. 
The fruit of these travels was Childe Harold's 
Pilgrimage, the first two cantos of which were 
published on his return in 1812. The poem 



LORD BYRON 


was immediately successful and Byron “awoke 
one morning and found himself famous.” Dur¬ 
ing the next two - years The Giaour, The Bride 
of Abydos, The Corsair and Lara appeared, and 
Byron’s literary reputation grew steadily. Dur¬ 
ing these years, however, he was living in the 
most reckless dissipation. In 1815 he married 
the daughter of Sir Ralph Milbanke; but the 
marriage turned out unfortunately, and in about 
a year Lady. Byron left him for her father’s 
house and refused to return. This rupture gave 
rise to much popular indignation against Byron, 
who left England, with an expressed resolution 
never to return. He visited France, the field of 
Waterloo and Brussels, the Rhine, Switzerland 
and the north of Italy; for some time lived at 


Byzantine Art 

Venice, and latterly at Rome, where he completed 
his third canto of Childe Harold. Not long 
after appeared The Prisoner of Chillon, The 
Dream, and Other Poems; and in 1817 Manfred, 
a tragedy, and The Lament of Tasso. From 
Italy Byron made occasional excursions to the 
islands of Greece, and at length he visited Athens, 
where he sketched many of the scenes of the 
fourth and last canto of Childe Harold. Between 
1817 and 1822 appeared, among other poems, 
five cantos of Don Juan and a number of dramas. 
While living at Pisa he enjoyed for a time the 
companionship of Shelley, one of the few men 
whom he entirely respected and with whom he 
was quite confidential. Besides his contribu¬ 
tions to the Liberal, a periodical established at 
this time in conjunction with Leigh Hunt and 
Shelley, he completed the later cantos of Don 
Juan, with Werner, a tragedy, and The Deformed 
Transformed, a fragment. These are the last 
of Byron’s poetical works. In 1823, troubled 
perhaps by the consciousness that his life had 
too long been unworthy of him, he threw him¬ 
self into the struggle for the independence of 
Greece. In January, 1824, he arrived at Mis- 
solonghi, where he was received with the greatest 
enthusiasm. The malarious air of Missolonghi 
began to affect his health, and on April 9, 1824, 
while riding in the rain, he caught a fever, which 
ten days later ended fatally. Byron’s natural 
force and genius were perhaps superior to those of 
any other Englishman of his time, and won for 
him in his own day a fame second to none of his 
contemporaries. After his death his work was 
for some time as far underrated as it had been 
ove&ated during his life, and it is only within 
the last few decades that a calm judgment has 
been passed on his writings. 

Byzantine, be zan'tin, Art, a style which arose 
in southeastern Europe after Constantine the 
Great had made Byzantium the capital of the 
Roman Empire (330 a. d.), and ornamented 
that city with all the treasures of Grecian art. 
To a certain extent Byzantine art may be recog¬ 
nized as the endeavor to give expression to the 
new elements which Christianity had brought 
into the life of men. The tendency toward 
Oriental luxuriance and splendor of ornament 
quite supplanted the simplicity of ancient taste. 
Richness of material and decoration was the 
aim of the artist, rather than purity of concep¬ 
tion. The style made use of Roman constructive 
principles, Oriental ornamentation and color, 
and Greek freedom and use of detail. 

With regard to the sculpture, the statues no 










Byzantine Empire 


Byzantine Empire 


longer displayed the freedom and dignity of 
ancient art. The true proportion of parts, the 
correctness of the outlines and, in general, the 
severe beauty of the naked figure or of simple 
drapery, exemplified in Greek art, were neglected 
for extravagant costume and ornamentation and 
petty details. From the sixth to the eleventh 
century, which was the best period of Byzan¬ 
tine art, figures were produced which possessed 
considerable beauty and preserved a dignity 
that was really difficult to obtain with such 
artificial forms as were created. The artists, 
who employed no models, naturally departed 
from nature, and their work is showy rather than 
beautiful. The figures, with their brilliant cos¬ 
tumes, may be readily recognized after they 
have once been pointed out. One of the favorite 
branches of the art was mosaic work, and in 
this the artists succeeded in obtaining a brilliant 
effect with costly stones. See Architecture, 
subhead Byzantine Architecture. 

Byzantine Empire, also called the Eastern, 
Greek, or Later Roman Empire. The existence 
of the Byzantine Empire as a separate dynasty 
lasted nearly 1000 years, from the death of Theo¬ 
dosius the Great, 395 a. d., to the fall of Con¬ 
stantinople, 1453. Theodosius the Great before 
his death divided his dominions between his 
two sons, Honorius and Arcadius, and the latter 
became the first of the Byzantine emperors (See 
Theodosius). He was a weak ruler, who made 
few attempts to hold the power in his Empire, 
but let it be exercised by his ministers. 

During the reign of Theodosius II (408-450) 
the regency was secured by his sister Pulcheria, 
and was retained even after he reached his 
majority. ’ She gave the Empire an able admin¬ 
istration, carrying on a successful war against 
the Persians and recovering for Yalentinian III 
the Western Empire, in return for which service 
the Byzantine territory received cessions to the 
westward. The ravages of Attila and the Huns 
in Thrace and Macedonia were averted only 
by the payment of annual tribute. On the death 
of Theodosius, Pulcheria was called to the throne, 
and she was the first woman to enjoy this dig¬ 
nity. She married Marcianus, whose successful 
reign continued four years after the death of his 
wife. Leo I, a hitherto almost unknown Thra¬ 
cian, succeeded, and he was himself succeeded 
in 474 by Zeno the Isaurian (474-491). Zeno 
was driven from his capital by Basilicus, but 
regained the throne. His Empire was threatened 
by Theodoric and the Goths, but the peril was 
averted by large presents, and the invaders weie 


induced to march westward to Italy. During 
Zeno’s reign occurred the disastrous fire at Con¬ 
stantinople, by which the library, with more 
than 100,000 manuscripts, was destroyed. Anas- 
tasius (491-518) built the famous “long walls” 
across the peninsula, to protect Constantinople 
from the inroads of the Bulgarians. 

Justin I (518-527) was succeeded by his 
nephew, the famous Justinian I (527-565), 
under whom the Byzantine Empire enjoyed the 
most glorious period of its existence (See Jus¬ 
tinian I; Belisarius). 

His unfortunate successor, Justin II (565-578) 
was harassed on one frontier by the Persians, 
on the other by the terrible Avars. Most of 
Italy was lost to the Lombards. The reign of 
Heraclius (610-641) presents a series of over¬ 
whelming reverses retrieved by glorious victories. 
The Persians took Syria, Palestine and Asia 
Minor, and the invading hordes advanced to a 
point within sight of Constantinople. Shrewdly 
gaining time by a humiliating treaty, Heraclius 
collected his forces and inflicted a defeat upon 
the Persians at Issus. 

The Moslem hordes of Arabs under Moham¬ 
med and his successors appeared next. Between 
635 and 641 Syria, Judea and all the African 
possessions were lost. What remained, how¬ 
ever, was more closely united than before, and 
from this time the Empire became distinctly 
Greek in character. The dynasty of Heraclius 
ended with Justinian II, who was assassinated 
in 711. The eighth and ninth centuries wit¬ 
nessed a peculiar internal religious controversy, 
which greatly weakened the defense of the Byzan¬ 
tines against their foreign foes. This was the 
war of the Iconoclasts, most violent under Leo 
III, the Isaurian (717-741), himself an ardent 
Iconoclast (See Iconoclasts). Leo’s successor, 
Constantine V (741-775), was also a zealous 
Iconoclast and closed many monasteries and 
convents. Image-worship was restored for a 
brief period by the Empress Irpne, who had 
obtained the throne by blinding her own son, 
Constantine VI, for whom she was guardian 
(797). She was ambitious to marry Charle¬ 
magne and thus to reunite the Eastern and 
Western empires, but her plan was not sup¬ 
ported. During the reign of Leo V (813-820), 
the Bulgarians overran Thrace and laid siege 
to Constantinople, but they were finally repulsed. 
The Saracens captured Crete and Sicily (824- 
827). Under Michael III (842-867), who 
reigned first under the guardianship of his 
mother, Theodora, the images were finally 


Byzantine Empire 

restored in the Greek Church. It is at this time 
that the Russians first appear as enemies of the 
Empire. 

The Macedonian dynasty (867-1057) was 
founded by Basil I, during whose reign the 
Saracens conquered Sicily and ravaged the 
Peloponnesus. His son, Leo II (886-912), 
called in the Turks to aid against the Sara¬ 
cens, and thus the former paved the way for 
future conquests. Under Basil II the Bulgarian 
kingdom was overthrown, and that country 
became a Greek province (1018), remaining so 
until 1186. About the middle of the eleventh 
century the Seljuk Turks became threatening, 
and in Italy the Byzantine possessions were 
nearly all seized by the Normans. Isaac, the 
first of the Comneni, reigned from 1057 to 1059. 
Under his successors the inroads of the Seljuks 
became more frequent, and by 1078 they had 
conquered nearly all of Asia Minor. 

The steady advance of the Mohammedan 
power alarmed all Christian Europe, and during 
the reign of Alexius Comnenus (1081-1118), 
began the wonderful movement of allied Chris¬ 
tendom known as the Crusades (See Crusades). 
As the hosts marched toward Asia Minor via 
Constantinople, the movement could not but 
have an important influence on the fortunes of 
the Byzantine Empire. Alexis wanted help 
against the Turks, but the vast numbers that 
came alarmed him, and their depredations 
within his territory led to serious conflicts, and 
finally, under later emperors, to open hostility. 
In 1204 Constantinople was taken by the Cru¬ 
saders, who established the Latin Empire (1204— 
1261), with Count Baldwin of Flanders as first 
emperor. This Latin Empire was never strong, 
and in 1261 the emperor of Nicaea, Michael 


Byzantium 

Palaeologus, captured Constantinople and 
reestablished the Greek Empire. 

Michael (1261-1282) founded the dynasty of 
the Palaeologi, which lasted until 1453. He 
made fruitless efforts to reunite the Greek and 
the Latin churches. His son, Andronicus II 
(1282-1328), attempted to repel the Turks, but 
in the following reign they took Nicaea and 
Nicomedia. In 1361 the Sultan Amurath took 
Adrianople, and he afterward conquered Mace¬ 
donia and part of Albania, whereupon the 
emperor, John (1341-1391), acknowledged him¬ 
self Amurath’s vassal and agreed to pay tribute. 
The Turks attacked Constantinople in April, 
1453, with an army of 400,000 men, under Sultan 
Mohammed II. The garrison held out until 
May 29, when the city was finally taken, Con¬ 
stantine, the last of the Byzantine emperors, 
falling in the thick of the fight. The various 
principalities and islands were conquered by 
1461, and the last vestige of the Byzantine 
Empire had disappeared. But it had not 
existed in vain; for all through the Dark Ages, 
when the Roman civilization of Western Europe 
had succumbed to the barbarians, the precious 
legacy of the ancients was guarded and pre¬ 
served for the modern world. And, furthermore, 
the Byzantine Empire stood as a bulwark 
against the barbaric hordes of Asia until the 
growing nations gathered strength to withstand 
their onsets. When we realize that without it 
all that was best in the world’s past would have 
been lost, all that is best in modern civilization 
retarded for hundreds of years, then only is the true 
significance of the Byzantine Empire understood. 

Byzantium, be zan'she um, the original name 
of the city of Constantinople- See Constan¬ 
tinople. 



C, the third letter in the English alphabet and 
in all other alphabets derived from the Latin. 
It occupies the same place as the Greek gamma, 
and it originally had a similar sound, that of 
hard g. In English, c now represents two 
perfectly distinct sounds, namely, the guttural 
sound belonging to k and the sharp or thin sound 
of s; while it also forms with h the digraph ch. 
It may be said, in general, that c has the k sound 
before the vowels a, o and u, the s sound before 
e, i and y. The digraph ch has three different 
sounds, as in church, chaise and chord. 

In music, C is the first or key note of the 
diatonic scale of C major. When placed after 
the clef sign, C is the mark of common, or £ 
time. As an abbreviation, C stands for one 
hundred and for Centigrade; c stands for cent. 

Caaba, kah'ha. See Kaaba. 

Cab, the name given to a carriage that is 
licensed for public service. In England the cab 
is called the hackney coach, and that name is 
sometimes applied to it in this country. It is 
a closed carriage, with an outer seat for the 
driver, and may carry two or four persons. 
Cabs are in very general use in all large cities. 

Cabal', the name given to a group of men who 
are banded together for the promotion of their 
own interests, especially political interests. The 
name is said to be derived from the initial letters 
of the names of the cabinet of Charles II— 
Clifford, Ashley, Buckingham, Arlington and 
Lauderdale. See Conway Cabal. 

Cabatuan, kah ha twahn ', a city of Panay, 
Philippine Islands, situated on the Tigum River, 
in the province of Iloilo. It is connected by 
roads with the important towns of the island 
and has a good trade. It was founded in 1732. 
Population, 18,000. 

Cab'bage, a plant of the mustard family, 
cultivated for its edible leaves, which in the com¬ 
mon varieties are crowded together in dense 
heads. The wild cabbage is a native of the 
coasts of Britain, but it is much more common 
on other European shores. The kinds most 


cultivated are the common cabbage, the savoy, 
the broccoli and the cauliflower. The common 
cabbage forms its leaves into heads or bolls, the 
inner leaves being nearly white. Its varieties 
are the white, the red or purple, the tree or cow 
cabbage, for cattle, and the very delicate Portugal 
cabbage. The garden sorts form valuable culi¬ 
nary vegetables and are used at table in various 
ways. In Germany pickled cabbage forms a 
sort of national dish, known as sauerkraut The 
cow cabbage of the Channel Islands attains 
gigantic proportions for a vegetable, and the 
stalks, which frequently grow to heights of twelve 
or sixteen feet, are used as rails for fences and as 
rafters for the thatched roofs of farm buildings, 
while shorter ones are made into umbrella 
handles and walking sticks, which are much in 
demand as curiosities among tourists. In the 
United States raising cabbages on truck farms 
near large cities constitutes an important industry. 

Cabbage Palm, a name given to various spe¬ 
cies of palm trees, because the terminal bud, which 
is of great size, is edible and resembles a cabbage. 
It is a species of the areca palm (See Areca). 

Cabbage Rose, a species of rose of many vari¬ 
eties, supposed tc have been cultivated from 
ancient times, and eminently fitted, because of 
its fragrance, for the manufacture of rose water 
and attar. The name Provence rose is some¬ 
times given this species. 

Cabbage Worm, the larvae (young) of the 
white butterfly common from early spring 
through the summer. There are several species. 
They are bluish green in color, about an inch and 
a half in length, and are very destructive, feeding 
on the leaves and burrowing into the head of the 
cabbage. There is an almost equally destruc¬ 
tive worm from the cabbage moth, dark in color. 

Cab'inet, the collective body of ministers who 
direct the government of a country. In the 
United States the cabinet is not formally recog¬ 
nized or named in the Constitution; but the 
name is given to the heads of administrative 
departments, considered as a collective body. 









Gable 


Cable 


It consists of the secretary of state, the secretary 
of the treasury, the secretary of war, the attorney 
general, the postmaster general, the secretary 
of the navy, the secretary of the interior, the 
secretary of agriculture, the secretary of 
commerce and the secretary of labor. These 
officers acts as an advisory board to the presi¬ 
dent. They are appointed by the president, but 
their appointments must be confirmed by the 
Senate, and they hold office until their successors 
are appointed and confirmed. Contrary to the 
English system, the United States cabinet mem¬ 
bers do not have seats in Congress; there is no 
premier, and the president, not the cabinet, is 
responsible for the acts of the government. The 
salary of members of the cabinet is $12,000 a year. 

In England, though the executive government 
is vested nominally in the crown, it resides 
practically in a committee of ministers called the 
cabinet. Every cabinet includes the first lord of 
the treasury, who is usually (not always) the 
prime minister or chief of the ministry and, 
therefore, of the cabinet; the lord chancellor; 
the lord president of the council; the chancellor 
of the exchequer; the first lord of the admiralty, 
and the five secretaries of state. Although the 
cabinet is regarded as an essential part of the 
institutions of Great Britain, it has never been 
recognized by act of Parliament. It began to 
take its present form in the reign of William III. 

Ca'ble, Atlantic, the name popularly applied 
to the first submarine telegraph connecting 
America and Europe. It extended from Heart’s 
Content, Newfoundland, to Valentia Bay, Ire¬ 
land, and was 2500 miles long. In 1854 the 
Atlantic Telegraph Company was organized 
through the efforts of Cyrus W. Field of New 
York, who secured the cooperation of English 
and American capitalists. The cable con¬ 
structed by this company was of the pattern in 
general use at the present time (See Cable, Sub¬ 
marine). 

The first cable was completed and loaded on 
two ships, which were loaned respectively by the 
governments of Great Britain and the United 
States. The first of these vessels, the Niagara, 
began laying the cable from Valentia, August 6, 
1857, but when several hundred miles had been 
paid out, the cable broke and the vessels were 
compelled to return to Plymouth, where the 
cable was stored until the following year, during 
which time enough new cable was made to supply 
the loss sustained by the break. At a second 
attempt the ships sailed to a point midway 
between the terminals, joined the cable together 


and proceeded in opposite directions. This 
cable was successfully laid, on August 17, 1858, 
connections with the transmitting and receiving 
instruments were completed, and congratulatory 
messages passed between the president of the 
United States and the queen of Great Britain; 
but after a short time the cable ceased to work. 

Notwithstanding all of the difficulties which 
he had encountered, Mr. Field continued to 
arouse interest in his enterprise. A third cable 
was constructed and loaded upon the Great 
Eastern, at that time the largest steamship that 
had ever been constructed. The laying of this 
cable began in August, 1865, but after a thousand 
miles had been paid out the cable broke, and the 
lost end could not be recovered. This necessi¬ 
tated the making of a new cable, which was 
successfully laid the following year and has 
continued to work, with few interruptions, since. 
The Atlantic cable has been followed by a num¬ 
ber of others, so that telegraph communication 
between the United States and European 
countries is now ample. See Field, Cyrus W.; 
Telegraph. 

Cable, Electric, a wire or an arrangement 
of wires for carrying an electric current. Origin¬ 
ally electric cables were designed to convey 
electricity under water or under ground, but 
since the employment of electricity for power, they 
are in general use for carrying the main current 
from the place where it is generated to points 
where it is needed for use. (For the construction 
of cables for carrying the current under water, 
see Cable, Submarine.) The ordinary electric 
cable consists of one or more copper wires 
enclosed in some non-conducting substance and 
protected from the moisture in the atmosphere. 
The entire structure is frequently enclosed in a 
thin coating of rubber. The cable is suspended 
upon poles, being attached* to glass or porcelain 
insulators in about the same manner as telegraph 
or telephone wires. By means of this arrange¬ 
ment an electric current can be carried at least 
two hundred miles from the place where it is 
generated and still retain sufficient force to 
operate machinery and electric cars. 

Cable, George Washington (1844- ), a 

popular American author, born in New Orleans. 
At the outbreak of the Civil War he entered the 
Confederate army and served until the close of 
the war. While serving as accountant for a 
cotton firm he wrote various papers for period¬ 
icals, and his early success encouraged him to 
devote himself entirely to literature. His 
sketches of Creole life revealed to the world an 


Gable 


Cable 


interesting phase of American social life hitherto 
almost unrecognized, and his keen observation 
and dexterous use of the Creole dialect at once 
found him a public on both sides of the Atlantic. 
Among his books are Old Creole Days; The 



GEORGE WASHINGTON CABLE 


Grandissimes; Madame Delphine; Dr. Sevier; 
The Creoles of Louisiana; The Silent South; 
Bonaventure; Strange, True Stories of Louisi¬ 
ana; John March, Southerner, The Cavalier and 
Kincaid’s Battery. Cable has also lectured with 
success on his chosen subject. 

Gable, Submarine, a cable laid on an ocean 
or river bed, for the purpose of carrying telegraph 
messages under water. A submarine cable con¬ 
sists of a core of copper wire made by twisting 
together from three to six wires, in an insulating 
case of gutta-percha, around which jute yarn is 
wound; a protecting case of wire rope, which in 
turn is wound with jute yam saturated with pitch 
or some other bituminous compound to protect 
it from the water. The size of the cable varies 
according to the stress which it must withstand. 
It is largest near the shore, where the wear is 
greatest and where it is subject to danger from 
anchors. In the deep sea the standard size is a 
little less than an inch in diameter. Cables are 
laid on the bottom of the body of water which 
they traverse, and they are anchored where they 
land, but otherwise they are not fastened. The 
ends are connected with transmitting and 
receiving apparatus constructed especially for 
this sort of telegraph and differing considera¬ 
bly from the ordinary telegraph instruments 
See Telegraph). The resistance to the 
electric current is much greater in the cable than 


in the ordinary telegraph line; consequently 
the receiving instruments need to be propor¬ 
tionately more delicate. The receiver in most 
general use consists of an apparatus containing 
a glass tube in the form of a siphon, one end of 
which dips into an ink reservoir while the other 
is drawn to a very fine tip which rests just above 
the surface of a paper tape that is caused to 
move uniformly over a table. When in action, 
the electric current swings the point of the pen 
to the right and left, and at the same time causes 
the ink to flow on the ribbon in minute drops, 
forming a wavy line, a part of which is above and 
a part below a line drawn lengthwise through 
the middle of the tape. The portions of the line 
on the upper half of the tape are read as dots, 
and those in the lower half as dashes. By use 
of this device the message is read in the Morse 
alphabet. 

The early cables were short, and connected 
places only a few miles from each other. The 
first successful attempt to telegraph under water 
was made by Prof. S. F. B. Morse, in 1842. He 
laid a copper wire, insulated by a covering of 
hemp, pitch, tar and rubber, from Governor’s 
Island to the Battery, in New York City, and 
was enabled to send and receive signals over it. 
The wire was soon caught by the anchor of a 
ship and broken, but the experiment was suffi¬ 
ciently successful to warrant the conclusion that 
cables of greater length could be made to work 
successfully. Ten years later a cable 75 miles 
long was laid between Dover and Ostend, and 
this also worked successfully. A little later a 
number of short cables were laid by European 
governments. In 1854 a company was organ¬ 
ized for the purpose of laying a submarine cable 
from Newfoundland to Ireland, a distance of 
2000 miles. The Atlantic Telegraph Company 
was organized the same year and for a similar 
purpose. This company constructed and laid 
the first Atlantic cable, which was completed in 
1858 (See Cable, Atlantic). The final success 
of the Atlantic cable demonstrated the feasibility 
of submarine telegraphy, and since 1866 the 
number of submarine cables has constantly 
increased, until now there is scarcely a habitable 
part of the globe that does not have telegraph 
communication with all the world. In 1905 
the ocean cables aggregated more than 225,000 
miles. Of this number 29,300 miles were owned 
by governments and 193,500 miles by private 
corporations. Most of the government lines 
are short, while the long lines are owned by 
private companies. See Cables, Pacific. 


Cables 


Cacao 


Cables, Pacific, the name of two submarine 
cables connecting North America with Australia 
and the countries of the Far East. The American 
cable was constructed and laid by the Pacific 
Commercial Cable Company; it extends from 
San Francisco to Manila, Philippine Islands, by 
way of Honolulu, the Midway Islands and 
Guam. Its entire length is 7613 miles. The 
average depth of the ocean bed over which it is 
laid is three miles. The construction and laying 
of the cable were completed within eighteen 
months of the organization of the company, and 
its completion on July 4,1903, placed the United 
States in direct communication with all of its 
island possessions in the Pacific without the use 
of foreign lines. 

The British cable connects British Columbia 
with Australia, and it was constructed conjointly 
by the governments of Great Britain-, Canada, 
New Zealand and Australia. It extends from 
Vancouver, British Columbia, to Palmyra, in the 
Fiji Islands, thence to the Norfolk Islands, from 
which branches extend to New Zealand and 
Queensland, Australia. Its entire length is 7986 
miles. It was completed in 1902, and it places 
the British possessions of the Pacific Ocean in 
direct communication with the United States 
and Canada. See Cable, Submarine. 

Cab'ot, George (1751-1823), an American 
statesman, born in Salem, Mass. He studied 
for a time at Harvard College, but left school 
to go to sea, becoming a captain before he was 
of age. He was chosen to the Massachusetts 
provincial congress in 1775 and was a member 
of the state convention which adopted the 
Federal Constitution. In 1791 he was chosen 
United States senator and was made secretary 
of the navy when that department was organized 
in 1798. He served but a month, however. 
He was a leading Federalist and was chosen 
president of the celebrated Hartford Convention 
in 1814. 

Cabot, John (1450-1498), an Italian navi¬ 
gator and explorer, born at Genoa. He removed 
to Venice, engaged in trade and later went to 
Bristol, England, where he was appointed to 
high offices. In 1496 King Henry VII issued 
to him letters patent, authorizing him to take 
possession of any lands which he discovered in 
the western seas. He sailed in the following 
May, skirted the coast of Labrador and returned 
to England, where he was made lord admiral. 
He prepared for a second voyage for the purpose 
of colonizing the lands which he had found, and 
set sail in the spring of 1498. All but one of the 


vessels were probably destroyed by storm. The 
exact extent of Cabot’s discoveries is not known, 
but the stories of a voyage along the whole 
Atlantic coast of America probably refer to one 
undertaken by Sebastian Cabot, son of John 
Cabot. 

Cabot, Sebastian (1474-1557), a noted navi¬ 
gator. He was the son of John Cabot, but little 
is known of his early life. There is a tradition 
that he accompanied his father upon the latter’s 
expedition in 1497, and that they made another 
voyage in 1498, but there is little evidence upon 
that point. In 1517 he probably made an 
attempt to discover the northwest passage, 
visiting Hudson Bay, and in 1526, when in the 
Spanish service, he visited Brazil and the 
La Plata River. In 1548 he again settled in 
England and received a pension from Edward VI. 

Cabral, ka brahl', Pedro Alvarez (1460- 
1526), a Portuguese navigator and explorer, 
famous chiefly for one voyage, made during the 
winter of 1500-1501. He set out for the East 
Indies by way of the Cape of Good Hope, but 
was driven west by adverse winds and the equa¬ 
torial current and touched Brazil, of which he 
took possession in the name of the king of 
Portugal. He then started out again for India 
and made the first commercial treaty of Portugal 
with the natives of the East. 

Cabul, ka bool'. See Kabul. 

Cacao, ka ka'o, or Cocoa, ko'ko, a tree about 
sixteen or eighteen feet high, from which cocoa 




CACAO 


and chocolate are prepared. It is a native of 
tropical America, but it is widely cultivated in 
the tropics of both hemispheres for its fruit, 
which consists of pointed, oval, ribbed pods, 
six to ten inches long, each enclosing from fifty 
to one hundred seeds in a white, sweetish pulp. 


Cachalot 


Cadiz 


The seeds, which contain about fifty per cent of 
fat, are pleasant to the taste and are used, both 
fresh and dry, as an article of diet. Cocoa is the 
name given to the ground seeds after the oil has 
been extracted. When prepared for sale it is 
often mixed with other substances (See Choco¬ 
late). If the cocoa is wanted for drinking pur¬ 
poses, it is ground to a flour-like powder and 
packed in tin boxes. If prepared for eating, or 
for the confectioners, several varieties are mixed, 
carefully blended and flavored with various 
substances upon which depend the quality of 
the cocoa. Cocoa butter is a common name given 
to the oil which is prepared from the bean and 
is much used by confectioners in making candy. 
When the butter is used for table purposes, a 
little half-churned cream or butter color is put 
in. When left white, cocoa butter is almost 
tasteless and odorless, and it is often used in 
the kitchen in place of cheap butter or lard. 
The cocoanut is the fruit of a very different plant. 

Cachalot, kash'a lot. See Sperm Whale. 

Cac'tus, a genus of peculiar plants which grow 
in dry, warm climates. The cacti generally are 
shrubs having juicy stems, which are covered 



MELON CACTUS 


with minute, scale-like leaves and clusters of 
sharp spines. In one species only are the leaves 
at all large. The fleshy stems assume many 
extraordinary forms, from the branching, tree¬ 
like cactus to the globe-shaped varieties, both 
of which are found in the southwestern United 
States, where the plants grow in abundance. 
Although the plant has been introduced 
and become naturalized in many parts of the 


Old World, yet all, with the exception of one 
species, are natives of America. Of some spe¬ 
cies the fruits are edible, and many furnish large 
and exceedingly beautiful flowers It is a 
cactus plant upon which the cochineal insect 
lives. See Cochineal; Cereus; Prickly Pear. 

Cad'dice Fly or May Fly, a little insect which 
looks much like a moth. Its eggs are laid in 
the water, attached to some plant, and when 
they hatch, the larvae, which have strong heads 
and jaws but very delicate bodies, form over 
the latter a firm case of mud, stones, grass 
or roots and live under the water until they 
are ready to emerge from the pupa state. In 
some species the cases are spiral, like snail shells. 
The caddis worms are hungry insects and destroy 
large quantities of fish spawn. 

Cad'doan Indians, a group of indian tribes 
now nearly extinct. Formerly they lived in the 
country from the Brazos River as far east • as 
Louisiana, and consisted of about a dozen agri¬ 
cultural tribes. 

Cade, kade, John (better known as Jack 
Cade) (?-1450), a popular agitator in England, 
the leader of an insurrection which broke out 
in 1450. Yeomen and tradesmen formed the 
bulk of the insurgents. The rebellion was polit¬ 
ical, not social like that headed by Wat Tyler, 
and it aimed to bring about the correction of 
numerous abuses. Cade defeated a detachment 
of troops sent against him and even ruled Lon¬ 
don for two days, causing one of the king’s 
favorites. Lord Say, to be beheaded. A promise 
of pardon caused his followers to disperse. 
Cade then fled, but was followed and killed. 

Cadet', a term applied in a general sense 
to the younger son of a noble house, as distin¬ 
guished from the elder son. The term is gener¬ 
ally applied also to a youth studying for the 
army at one of the military colleges or for the 
navy. In the United States, pupils at the West 
Point Military Academy and at the Naval 
Academy at Annapolis are termed cadets. 

Cad'illac, Mich., the county-seat of Wexford 
co., on Little Clam Lake and on the Grand 
Rapids & Indiana and the Ann Arbor railroads, 
96 mi. n. of Grand Rapids. It is picturesquely 
located in a noted hardwood timber district and 
has an extensive lumber business. Population 
in 1910, 8375. 

Ca'diz, a seaport of Spain, capital of a prov¬ 
ince of the same name, 60 mi. n. w. of Gibraltar. 
It is well built and strongly fortified, and is well 
paved and very clean. The chief buildings are 
the great hospital, the customhouse, the old and 


Cadmium 


Caesar 


new cathedrals, the theaters, the bull ring, 
capable of accommodating 12,000 spectators, 
and the lighthouse of Saint Sebastian. The 
Bay of Cadiz, a large basin enclosed by the 
mainland on one side and a projecting tongue 
of land on the other, has a good anchorage, and 
is protected by the neighboring hills. It has 
four forts, two of which form the defense of the 
grand arsenal, La Carraca, four miles from 
Cadiz, at which are large basins and docks. 
Cadiz has long been the principal Spanish naval 
station. Its trade is large, its exports being, 
especially, wine and fruit. Cadiz was founded 
by the Phoenicians about 1100 b. c. and was 
one of the chief seats of their commerce in the 
west of Europe. In the first Punic War it fell 
into the hands of the Carthaginians, and in the 
second Punic War it surrendered to the Romans. 
Population in 1910, 67,174. 

Cad'mium, a scarce metal which resembles 
tin in color and luster, but is a little harder. 
It is very ductile and malleable, and it fuses a 
little below a red heat. In its chemical char¬ 
acter it resembles zinc. It occurs in the form 
of carbonate, as an ingredient in various kinds 
of calamine, or carbonate of zinc. It is also 
found in the form of a sulphide, as the rare 
mineral greenockite. Cadmium forms many 
compounds, of which the sulphide, an orange or 
lemon-yellow powder used as a coloring agent 
under the name of cadmium yellow , is the most 
important. 

Cad'mus, in Greek legend the son of Agenor 
and the brother of Europa. When Europa was 
carried off by Jupiter in the form of a bull, 
Cadmus was directed by his father to hunt for 
her and not to return without her. With his 
brothers, he set forth on the long quest. One 
by one the brothers became tired out and stopped 
by the wayside, but Cadmus kept on until 
informed by an oracle that his search was use¬ 
less. This oracle also directed him to follow a 
cow which he should shortly meet; and where 
she should lie down there he was to found a city. 
He carried out these instructions, and the city 
which he founded was Thebes in Boeotia. 
After killing a dragon which guarded a fountain 
near the site of his proposed city, Cadmus sowed 
the teeth of the dragon and there sprang up a 
group of armed men. These men contended 
with one another until all but five of them fell, 
and these five became, with Cadmus, the first 
inhabitants of the new city. Many inventions 
and the introduction of the Phoenician alphabet 
into Greece were ascribed to Cadmus. 


Caduceus, lea du'se us, a winged rod entwined 
with serpents, borne by Mercury as an ensign 
of quality and office. In modern times it is 
used as a symbol of commerce, since Mercury 
was the god of commerce. The rod represents 
power; the serpents, wisdom, and the two wings, 
diligence and activity. 

Caedmon, kad'mon, the first Anglo-Saxon of 
note who wrote in his own language. He flour¬ 
ished about the end of the seventh century. 
He was originally a tenant, or perhaps only a 
cowherd, on the abbey lands at Whitby, but 
afterward was received into the monastery. 
His chief work (if it can all be attributed to 
him) consists of paraphrases of portions of the 
Scriptures, in Anglo-Saxon verse, the first part 
of which bears striking resemblances to Milton’s 
narrative in Paradise Lost. According to Bede’s 
Ecclesiastical History, Caedmon received one 
night a vision which commanded him to sing 
the praise of God, and his poetical work began 
at that time. 

Caen, kahN, the capital of the Department of 
Calvados, France, situated on the river Orne, 
10 mi. from the English Channel. Caen has 
many beautiful buildings, excellent specimens of 
the Norman style of architecture, among the best 
examples of which are the churches of Saint 
Etienne, also called Abbaye-aux-Hommes, built 
by William the Conqueror, and Saint Pierre, 
famous for its spire. Other public buildings 
are the castle, founded by William the Con¬ 
queror, a university, a museum and a public 
library containing 100,000 books. Caen is the 
center of a rich agricultural district, and it 
carries on extensive manufactures, including 
lace, crape, cutlery, metal goods and woolen and 
cotton goods. Valuable building stone is quar¬ 
ried here. Population in 1911, 46,934. 

Caesar, se’zar, a title, originally a surname of 
the Julian family at Rome, which after being 
dignified in the person of the dictator Caius 
Julius Caesar, was adopted by the successive 
Roman emperors. The title is perpetuated in 
the kaiser of the German Empire and in the 
czar of Russia. 

Caesar, Caius Julius (100-44 b. c) a 
famous Roman general, statesman and historian, 
son of a Roman praetor of the same name. His 
early sympathies were in favor of democracy, 
and they were strengthened by his marriage with 
Cornelia, daughter of Cinna. Refusing to 
divorce her at the command of Sulla, he was 
proscribed and compelled to flee from Rome, 
but after the death of Sulla he returned and 


Caesar 


Caesar 


again took part in public affairs. He espoused 
the cause of the people, and his relations with 
Pompey, a relative of whom he had married, 
combined with his personal talents to win him 
great power in the popular party. His attempt 
to procure the Roman franchise for the Latins 



CAIUS JULIUS CAESAR 

beyond the Po secured him the sympathies of 
the Italians. He was elected to various offices, 
and in all of them he increased his popularity 
by lavish expenditures and splendid public 
games. 

Catiline’s outbreak (63 b.c.) brought discredit 
on all members of the popular party, Caesar not 
excepted, although it is thought extremely 
unlikely that Caesar was concerned in it. After 
a year spent in Spain as propraetor, Caesar 
returned to Rome, where he became consul. 
To gain the assistance of colossal wealth, Caesar 
made a coalition with Crassus, who, being 
inferior in intellect, became a tool to work Caesar’s 
will in the accomplishment of his ambition to 
become master of the Roman world; and on 
Pompey’s return to Rome, Caesar succeeded 
in reconciling Pompey and Crassus. 

Just prior to taking up his duties as consul, 
Caesar formed with Pompey and Crassus the 
so-called First Triumvirate. This was not an 
organized form of government, but simply a 
union to promote the interests of its members, 
and in this it differed from the later trium¬ 
virates. As consul, Caesar won the favor of the 


populace by the agrarian law providing for the 
distribution of land among the poor. After the 
expiration of his term as consul, Caesar secured 
a military command in the West, where he hoped 
to make himself a position similar to the one 
held by Pompey in the East. Having received 
the right to conquer Gaul, with the command 
of four legions of soldiers, he was fairly launched 
upon the military career destined to make him 
master of the Roman world. For nine years he 
was in Gaul, and the final subjugation of the 
Gauls was accomplished in nine campaigns. In 
his first campaign he defeated the Helvetii, 
sending the survivors home to cultivate their 
land while he overthrew Ariovistus, a German 
prince who had invaded Gaul. His second 
campaign was against the Belgae, and in it he 
defeated four allied tribes united for the defense 
of Gaul. After wintering at Luca and spending 
large sums in hospitality, he turned against the 
Venetii, defeating them totally in his third 
campaign. His fourth campaign was against two 
German tribes invading Gaul, whom he defeated 
and followed across the Rhine. The same year 
(55 B. c.) he invaded Britain, and won from the 
senate a thanksgiving lasting twenty days. His 
second invasion of Britain (54) resulted in the 
subjugation of the Britons, but it was a nominal 
subjugation only, as he left no troops to hold 
the land. His sixth .campaign was against 
revolting Gallic tribes, who were soon reduced 
to obedience. His most brilliant victory was 
won in the next year over Vercingetorix, who led 
a revolt of nearly all the Gallic nations. In the 
eighth and ninth campaigns (51-50) he accom¬ 
plished the final subjugation of all Gaul. 

Meanwhile matters had changed much in 
Rome. A stronger alliance of the triumvirs 
had been formed at 
Luca, when Caesar 
was wintering there, 
but after the death 
of Crassus, Pompey 
was forced into a hos¬ 
tile attitude toward 
Caesar. In 52 Pom¬ 
pey joined the sen¬ 
atorial party against 
Caesar and procured 
the passage of a de¬ 
cree ordering the disbanding of Caesar’s 
army. Caesar, with his legions, promptly crossed 
the Rubicon, which separated his provinces of 
Gaul from Italy, and advanced toward Rome. 
Pom[»ey, with the senate and nobles, fled to 










Caesarea 

Greece, and in three months Caesar was master 
of all Italy. He enjoyed his victory but a short 
time before he hastened to Spain to overthrow 
Pompey’s legates there. On his return from 
this expedition he was appointed dictator, an 
office which he held but eleven days. In January 
he followed Pompey into Greece and defeated 
h im on the plains of Pharsalia, August 9, 48 b. c. 
When the news of this victory reached Rome, 
Caesar was appointed dictator for one year, 
consul for five and tribune for life. 

Before Caesar again returned to Rome he 
brought to a successful issue the Alexandrian War, 
undertaken to satisfy the claims of Cleopatra 
against her brother Ptolemy. Returning through 
Pontus, he defeated Pharnaces and informed the 
senate of his victory in the laconic dispatch, 
“Veni, vidi, vici” (I came, I saw, I conquered). 
He defeated the party of Pompey under Scipio 
at Thespius, and Cato killed himself at Utica 
rather than fall into the hands of this universal 
conqueror. Now undisputed master of the 
Roman world, Caesar showed his greatness and 
magnanimity by pardoning the followers of 
Pompey. The dictatorship was bestowed upon 
him for ten years by a grateful people, and his 
victories were celebrated by magnificent triumphs. 

After his return from defeating the two sons 
of Pompey in Spain (45), fresh honors were 
conferred upon him. He was made imperaior 
for life, and his portrait was stamped upon the 
coins of the realm. In the correction of the 
calendar, which had fallen into great confusion, 
he performed an important service, and he 
proposed many public improvements, such as 
founding public libraries, draining the Pontine 
marshes, enlarging the harbor at Ostia and 
digging a canal across the isthmus of Corinth. 
None of these designs, however, was he allowed 
to carry out. After the crown had been offered 
him at a public festival, the aristocracy, all of 
whom had received favors at his hands, conspired 
against his life. On March 15, 44 B. c., he 
was assassinated, receiving over a score of 
wounds from the daggers of men whom he had 
believed his friends. Caesar was one of the 
greatest generals the world has ever known, but 
he was almost equally great in other ways. As 
a statesman he was preeminent in his time; as 
an orator he was second only to Cicero; that he 
was a masterly historian is shown by his Com¬ 
mentaries on the Gallic and Civil Wars. 

Caesarea, ses a re'a, an ancient town of 
Palestine, 32 mi. n. of Jaffa. It was built by 
Herod the Great and was named for Augustus 


Cagliari 

Caesar. The town was elaborately laid out 
with an amphitheater, temples and many large 
structures. It was the military capital of 
Palestine, the Romans having their headquarters 
there. In the Bible it is noted as the place 
where Peter preached the gospel to Cornelius, and 
also as ttye scene of Paul’s two years’ impris¬ 
onment. After the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A. D., 
Caesarea became the metropolis of Palestine. 
During the early Christian centuries it continued 
to be a place of importance, but in the seventh 
century the town was conquered by the Moham¬ 
medans, and in 1101 it was captured and plun¬ 
dered by the Crusaders. After this it was 
rebuilt, but it was finally destroyed by the sultan 
Bibars in 1265. 

Caesarea Philippi, an ancient town of Pales¬ 
tine, north of the Sea of Galilee. The modern 
village of Banias, formerly Paneas, is located 
on the site of this ancient city. About 20 B. C. 
the emperor Augustus gave the region around 
this city to Herod the Great, who beautified it 
and dedicated it to Augustus. On the death 
of Herod, his son Philip built here a town and 
called it Caesarea. It became known as the 
Caesarea of Philip; hence the name, Caesarea 
Philippi. In Biblical history it is noted as the 
place where Jesus visited for a short period of 
rest, at which time he preached to his disciples. 
The name of the town was later changed to 
Neronias, in honor of Nero. 

Caesium, se'ze um, a rare metal, first discovered 
by Bunsen and Kirchoff by spectrum analysis in 
1860. It is soft, and of a silver-white color. It 
is always found in connection with rubidium 
and belongs to the same group of elements as 
lithium, sodium, potassium and rubidium, that 
is, the group of the alkali metals. 

Caffeine, kaf fe'in, or Theine, the’in, the 
active principle of tea and coffee, a slightly 
bitter, highly nitrogenous substance, crystallizing 
in slender, silk-like needles and found in coffee 
beans, tea leaves, Paraguay tea, guarana and 
kindred plants. Coffee contains from 0.8 to 
3.6 per cent of caffeine, and tea from 2 to 4 per 
cent. It is used in medicine to some extent, but 
in large doses it is a poison. 

Caf'tan. See Kaftan. 

Cagliari, lea lyah’re, the capital of the province 
of that name, and of the island of Sardinia, said 
to have been founded by the Phoenicians. It 
contains a cathedral, about thirty churches, an 
amphitheater, botanical gardens, three theaters, 
a university which was founded by Philip II 
of Spain in 1596, and a library which contains 


Cagliostro 


Cairo 


over 70,000 volumes. The chief manufactures 
are firearms, powder, soap, leather and cotton 
goods. The exports are grain, wine, oil, salt and 
goatskins. Cagliari is the emporium through 
which nearly all the trade of Sardinia passes. 
Population of commune in 1911, 61,013. 

Cagliostro, ka lyo'stro, Count Alessandro 
(1743-1795), an Italian adventurer, whose real 
name was Giuseppe Balsamo. In company with 
a certain sage named Althotas, he traveled over 
Greece, Egypt and Asia, and picked up con¬ 
siderable miscellaneous knowledge, which he 
used for the purpose of swindling people. 
Returning to Italy, he posed at various times as a 
physician, alchemist, philosopher, Freemason 
and necromancer. One of his specialties was 
an “elixir of youth.” He married a Venetian 
woman, Lorenza Feliciana, whose beauty and 
cleverness made her a valuable accomplice in 
his frauds. Together they traveled through 
Italy, France, Germany and England. In Paris, 
in 1785, he was implicated in the affair of 
the Diamond Necklace and was imprisoned 
for a time. On regaining his freedom he 
resumed his swindling schemes, but became 
more and more unpopular, until, finally, he was 
condemned to life imprisonment. His wife 
passed her last years in a convent. 

Cagot, kagot, a name given to a race of 
deformed dwarfs among the peasants of the 
Pyrenees. These people were shunned and set 
apart by their fellow Christians. The priest 
handed them the wafer at the end of a stick. 
The most repulsive labor was assigned to them 
by .the town authorities, but they were allowed 
to be carpenters and rope makers. 

Cahors, ka or ', a town in southern France, 
situated on a rocky peninsula. Under the 
Romans it was adorned with a temple, a theater, 
baths, an immense aqueduct and a forum, 
remains of which are still to be seen. Among 
the principal edifices are the cathedral and an 
episcopal palace, now converted into the pre¬ 
fecture. Population in 1906, 10,047. 

Caiaphas, ka'ya fas, a Jew, the high priest 
at the time of the crucifixion. He was deposed 
in 35 a. d., and Jonathan, the son of Annas, 
was appointed in his stead. (Matt, xxvi, 57.) 

Caicos, ki'kos, (Spanish, cayo, rock, islet, key), 
a group of islands belonging to the Bahamas. 
They consist of six islands, besides some unin¬ 
habited rocks, and they have an area of 169 
square miles. The largest, called the Great Key, 
is about 30 miles long. The inhabitants are few 
in number and are mostly engaged in fishing, 


the preparation of salt and the cultivation of 
sisal hemp. In 1873 the Turks Islands and the 
Caicos were united into a commissionership 
under the governor of Jamaica. Population, 
4774. 

Cain, kane, the eldest son of Adam and Eve. 
He slew his brother Abel. (Gen. iv.) 

Caine, kane, Thomas Henry Hall (1853- 
), an English novelist, born at Runcorn, 
England, and educated in the schools of the 
Isle of Man and Liverpool. He was educated 
to be an architect, but preferred journalism, 
and for six years was a leading writer on the 
Liverpool Mercury. On the invitation of Dante 
Rossetti, Caine went to London in 1881 and 
lived with Rossetti until the death of the latter 
in 1882. During the last year of the poet’s life 
Caine prepared his Recollections of Rossetti. 
This was followed by'his Songs of Three Cen¬ 
turies, and the next year by Cobwebs of Criti¬ 
cism. After this, Mr. Caine began his career 
as a novelist. After 1885 he produced, among 
other books, The Shadow of a Crime, The Son 
of Hagar, The Deemster, The Bondman, The 
Manxman, The Christian and The Eternal 
City. Several of his novels have been drama¬ 
tized. 

Cairn, a heap of stones built up over a grave, 
or as a landmark. These heaps are very com¬ 
mon in Great Britain, particularly in Scotland 
and Wales, where they are generally of a conical 
form. Some are evidently sepulchral, containing 
urns, stone chests or bones; some were evidently 
erected to commemorate some great event, 
while others appear to have had a religious 
significance. A religious or mystical meaning 
still attaches to the building of cairns among 
many primitive tribes, and they are usually 
erected, not all at one time, but by each passer-by 
adding a stone to show his interest in the object 
for which the heap was begun. 

Cairo, ki'ro, (Arabian, Masr-el-Kahira), the 
capital of Egypt and the largest city of Africa, 
situated on the right bank of the Nile, 150 mi. 
s. e. of Alexandria. The city is partly sur¬ 
rounded by a fortified wall, and is divided into 
several separate parts. The old Arabian quarter 
has narrow, crooked, unpaved streets, lined with 
high stone houses. The modern portion has 
such conveniences as gas-lighting and electric 
street railways, and has broad avenues and 
beautiful buildings. Among the chief interests 
of Cairo are the numerous mosques, which are 
considered the best examples of Arabic archi¬ 
tecture. The Gami-ibn-Tulun, erected about 


Cairo 


Calabash 


879, is the finest, and the Gami-Amra is the 
oldest. Of this, only a portion is left. Among 
other mosques are the Mehemet Ali, a structure 
of great merit, having high minarets of alabaster, 
and the mosque of Kait Bey, dating from the 
fifteenth century. Cairo formerly had many 
obelisks, but most of these have disappeared 
and are now in various European and American 
cities. 

Cairo ranks high as an educational center, 
among its institutions the most important being 
the El-Azhar, considered the oldest university in 
the world. Besides these, there are schools of 
art and medicine, a polytechnical school and a 
library which contains 50,000 volumes. Cairo 
is the residence of the khedive and is the seat 
of administration of Egypt. The trade is large, 
and the bazaars and markets are numerous. 
The manufactures include metal articles, tex¬ 
tiles and essences of flowers. Old Cairo was 
founded in 640 by Amru, the conqueror of 
Egypt, near the old town of Babylon. It was 
the capital of the country until 973. Through 
the Middle Ages the city was one of the chief 
centers of Mohammedan learning, and the cen¬ 
ter of trade between Europe and the East. 
From 1798 to 1801 it was held by the French, 
later passed to the Turks and through them to 
Mehemet Ali, the founder of the present dynasty. 
Population in 1907, 654,476. 

Cairo, ka'ro, III., the county-seat of Alexander 
co., at the junction of the Ohio and Mississippi 
rivers, on the Illinois Central, the Mobile & 
Ohio and other railroads. It is in an agricul¬ 
tural district, and it also has numerous manu¬ 
factures and a large trade in farm products and 
lumber. Cairo was settled about 1836, but its 
growth was hindered by frequent floods, until 
levees were constructed along the river. During 
the Civil War large quantities of military sup¬ 
plies were stored here by the Federal govern¬ 
ment. Population in 1910, 14,548. 

Caisson, kase'son , in civil engineering, a 
water-tight box, or casing, used in building 
structures in water too deep for the cofferdam, 
such as piers of bridges and quays. The caisson 
is sunk to the bottom of the river and is large 
enough to contain the entire structure to be 
built within it. The pneumatic caisson is an 
air-tight chamber, sunk to the bed of the stream 
and entered through an air lock. Ventilation is 
secured by air pumps. The term caisson is 
sometimes applied to floating docks. See Dock. 

Caisson, the ammunition wagon attached to 
a piece of field artillery. It consists of a limber, 


like that attached to the cannon itself, and a 
caisson proper, of two wheels on an axle, carry¬ 
ing two ammunition chests and various repair 
supplies. 

Caj'eput Oil, the volatile oil obtained from 
the leaves of the cajeput tree, a native of the 
Indian Archipelago and some parts of Aus¬ 
tralia, or from others of the same genus. It is 
highly valued for its medicinal properties, being 
regarded by the Malays as a cure for all ills. 
In the United States it is used externally in 
chronic rheumatism, and as a cure for cholera, 
dyspepsia and other disorders. Because of its 
high price, cajeput oil is often diluted with 
turpentine, oil of rosemary and other similar 
oils. 

Cal'abar Bean, the seed of an African plant, 
nearly allied to the kidney bean. It is so pow¬ 
erful a narcotic poison that six beans will pro¬ 
duce death. The calabar bean is the famous 



CALABAR BEAN 


“ordeal bean” of Africa, administered to persons 
suspected of witchcraft. If the accused vomits 
the bean and recovers, it is a sign of innocence. 
It is employed in medicine, chiefly as an agent 
for producing contraction of the pupil of the 
eye and for neuralgia, lockjaw and rheumatism. 

Cal'abash, a vessel made of a dried gourd 
shell or of a calabash shell, used in some parts 
of America and Africa for holding liquids. They 
are so close-grained and hard that they will hold 


Calabash Tree 


Calcite 


any liquid, and they may be put several times 
on the fire as kettles. 

Calabash Tree, the popular name of certain 
American trees or shrubs, given to them because 
of their large, gourd-like fruits, the hard shells 
of which are made into such domestic utensils 
as basins, cups, spoons and bottles. The name 
is also given to the baobab of Africa. 

Cala'bria, a name applied to the three prov¬ 
inces which constitute the southwest peninsula 
in which Italy terminates. The central region 
is occupied by the great Apennine ridge, to 
which whole colonies, with their cattle, migrate 
in the summer. Wheat, rice, saffron, anise, 
licorice, madder, flax, hemp, olives, almonds 
and cotton are raised in abundance. The sugar 
cane also comes to perfection here. The min¬ 
erals include alabaster, marble, gypsum, alum, 
chalk, rock salt and lapis lazuli. The fish¬ 
eries are valuable. Population in 1911, 1,404,- 
076. 

Calais, ka la', a fortified seaport town of 
France, in the Department of Pas-de-Calais, 25 
mi. s. e. of Dover. The Old Town, or Calais 
proper, has a citadel, and was till recently 
surrounded by fortifications, but the modern 
suburb of Saint Pierre having been united with 
Calais proper, both are now surrounded with 
forts and other works. The chief buildings are 
a Gothic cathedral, the old town hall and a 
museum. Calais has considerable exports, but 
the town derives its importance largely from being 
the chief landing place for English travelers to 
the Continent. It has important manufactures 
of cotton and silk bobbinet lace. In 1347 Calais 
was taken by Edward III of England, after a 
siege of eleven months, and in 1558 it was taken 
by the duke of Guise. Population in 1911, 
72,322. 

Calais, kal'is, Me., the county-seat of 
Washington co., 120 mi. e. of Bangor, on the 
Saint Croix River, opposite Saint Stephen, 
N. B. There are extensive marble and granite 
quarries; the town has a large lumber trade, 
and shipbuilding is an important industry. 
The first settlement was made in 1779. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 6116. 

Cal'aman'der Wood, a beautiful species of 
wood, the product of a tree, native of Ceylon, 
belonging to the same genus as the ebony and 
the persimmon tree. It resembles rosewood, 
but it is so hard that it is worked with great 
difficulty. It takes a very high polish and is 
used for chairs and tables, and it yields veneers 
of almost unequaled beauty. 


Calamianes, ka lah'me ah'nais, a cluster of 
islands in the western part of the Philippine 
Archipelago. They produce good timber, honey 
and wax. 

Cal'amint, a plant, some species of which 
are known respectively by the names of moun¬ 
tain balm, catmint, basil balm and wild basil. 
The first, also termed common calamint, has 
aromatic leaves, employed to make herb tea. 

Cal'amus, a genus of plants, the stems of the 
different species of which are the rattan canes 
of commerce. The genus holds a middle station 
between the grasses and palms, growing like the 
former but with flowers like the latter. The 
species are principally found in the hotter parts 
of the East Indies. See Sweet Flag. 

Calash, kah lash', or Caleche, a two-wheeled 
carriage, or sort of cart, having a folding top; 
it has a seat for two passengers and a narrow seat 
on the dashboard for the driver. The calash is 
in very general use among the French people of 
Canada. 

Calatrava la Vieja, kah'la trah'vah lah vya' 
hyah, a ruined city of Spain, situated on the 
Guadiana, near Ciudad Real. In the Middle 
Ages it was a strong fortress, but only a single 
tower now remains. Its defense against the 
Moors in 1158 is famous, because it originated 
the Knights of Calatrava, an order of chivalry 
founded by Sancho III. 

Calceolaria, kal'se o la're ah, or Slip'per- 
wort, a genus of ornamental plants. All the 
species are South American, but they are exten¬ 
sively cultivated as garden shrubs or as house 
plants in pots. Most of them have yellow flow¬ 
ers, some have brownish-purple ones and some 
have the two colors intermixed, while others are 
white. The greater number in cultivation are 
hybrids and not true species. They get their 
name from the shape of the corolla, which resem¬ 
bles a broad, short, much inflated slipper. 

Calcination, kal'se na'shun, the operation of 
roasting a substance or subjecting it to heat, 
generally with the purpose of driving off some 
volatile ingredients. It is the first step in the 
extraction of the majority of the common metals 
from their ores. In the manufacture of lime and 
cement, calcination is an essential process. The 
term was formerly also applied to the operation 
of converting a metal into an oxide or metallic 
calx; this is now called oxidation. 

Calcite, kal'site, a term applied to various 
minerals, all of which are modifications of crys¬ 
tallized carbonate of calcium. Calcite includes 
limestone, all the white and most of the colored 


Calcium 


Calcutta 


marbles, chalk and Iceland spar. Each of these 
is described under its title. 

Calcium, Ical'se um, in its pure state one of 
the rarest of substances, but in its combinations 
one of the most abundant and most widely 
distributed. It is a metallic basis of lime, and 
as a phosphate it forms the main part of the 
mineral matter of the bones of animals. As a 
carbonate it appears in chalk, limestone and 
marble, and as a sulphate it forms large deposits 
known as gypsum. Besides, it appears as a 
constituent in many minerals, such as fluorspar 
and Iceland spar, and is found in all soils, in the 
ash of plants, dissolved in sea water and in all 
springs. When quite pure it is a pale yellow 
metal with a high luster. It is about one and a 
half times as heavy as water, and is ductile and 
malleable. For the most part its salts are 
insoluble, or sparingly soluble, in water, but they 
dissolve readily in dilute acids. 

Calculating Machines, machines for per¬ 
forming various arithmetical operations, such as 
adding, multiplying, subtracting and dividing. 
Calculating machines are of many patterns. 



calculating machine 


The simplest form is the register used on street 
cars. This contains a number of wheels, 
each of which bears the ten figures used in reck¬ 
oning. When the cord which operates the 
register is pulled, the wheel representing units 
moves so as to mark the number next higher than 
the one previously registered. In making a 
complete revolution, this wheel registers the 10 
unit marks. At this point the second wheel is 
moved to mark 1. When the second wheel has 
marked 10, which would mean 100 for the first 
wheel, the third wheel marks 1, and so on. 

Calculating machines used in banks, insur¬ 
ance offices and other places where computations 
are extensive, have a keyboard arranged some¬ 
thing like that of a typewriter. The keys are 


arranged so that the numbers stand in columns 
from 1 to 9. When any key is pressed, it marks 
that figure upon a slip of paper. As many 
keys as the machine has columns can be pressed 
at once. The pressing of another key gives the 
result of additions or subtractions, and some 
machines have arrangements which will also 
give multiplications. The latest patterns of 
these machines are now operated by electricity. 
See Cash Register. 

Cal'culus, a general term applied to all 
classes of mathematical computations; specifi¬ 
cally, it is the name given to the highest branch 
of mathematics, whose field is investigation of the 
properties of variable quantities and especially 
of their rate of change. This rate of change is 
known as the differential of the variable. The 
processes and principles by which the differential 
of known variables is found is called differential 
calculus , The converse of these processes, that 
is, the finding of the variable, having known its 
differential, is called integral calculus. The 
problems of the latter class can be solved only 
in special cases. Calculus has been of inesti¬ 
mable value in the development of all the sciences, 
and it h.as made possible some of the most 
important recent advances in the fields of astron¬ 
omy, physics and mechanics. 

The theory of calculus was expounded almost 
simultaneously about 1670 by Sir Isaac Newton 
and William Leibnitz. The latter published 
his conclusions first, and the notation devised 
by him is now most commonly used. Newton 
called his theory the theory of fluxions or infini¬ 
tesimal calculus. The fluxion in his system was 
exactly equivalent to the differential explained 
above. Modern mathematicians have extended 
the method of calculus into other fields of 
mathematics, and hence separate branches of the 
subject have been developed, such as calculus 
of variations and calculus of functions. 

Calculus, in medicine, a general term for 
the stony formations which appear in various 
parts of the body, such as the bladder, the 
kidneys or the gall bladder. When the particles 
in the bladder are comparatively small, the 
disease is known as gravel. See Lithotomy. 

Calcut'ta, capital of British India and of 
Bengal, situated on the Hugh River, a branch 
of the Ganges. It is the headquarters of the 
governor general of India, and the seat of the 
Indian government. The city extends along 
the river bank for about 4J miles, and in breadth 
is about 1\ miles, the entire site of Calcutta 
proper being about 8 square miles Adjacent 



Calcutta 


Calendar 


to the city itself, however, are extensive suburbs, 
which include the large town of Howrah, on the 
opposite side of the Hugh, connected with 
Calcutta by a pontoon bridge. The houses of 
the south, or British, quarter of Calcutta are of 
brick and are elegantly built, in striking con¬ 
trast with the narrow, crooked ill-kept streets 
of the northern quarter, which is occupied by 
the natives. 

Outside the city, between the river and the 
fashionable quarter, lies Fort William, the 
largest fortress in India, a magnificent octagonal 
structure, which cost altogether $10,000,000, 
mounts over 600 guns, contains 80,000 stands of 
arms and will hold 15,000 men. The plain 
between Fort William and the city forms a 
favorite promenade. At the north side, called 
the Esplanade, stands the government house, or 
palace of the governor general, built by the 
Marquis Wellesley, at an expense of $5,000,000. 
Other edifices worthy of notice are the townhall, 
supreme court, government treasury, writers’ 
buildings, Metcalfe Hall, mint, theater, medical 
college, general postoffice, general hospital, the 
new cathedral and the old cathedral. There are 
also numerous educational institutions here. 

Calcutta has an extensive system of internal 
navigation, through the numerous arms and 
tributaries of the Ganges, and it almost monopo¬ 
lizes the external commerce of Bengal. The 
principal exports are opium, cotton, rice, wheat, 
jute, gunny bags, tea, indigo, seeds and raw 
silk. Of the imports the most important in 
respect of value are cotton goods, besides linens, 
silver, spirits and salt. In 1686 a factory of the 
East India Company was established here, and 
in 1700 three adjoining villages were presented 
to the company by the emperor of Delhi. The 
settlement was then fortified and was called 
Fort William, in honor of the king of England, 
but subsequently it received its present name, 
which had been that of one of the villages. 
Calcutta was made the capital of a presidency 
in 1707, but it first figures in history in connec¬ 
tion with the events of 1756. In that year it was 
attacked suddenly, and taken on June 20 by 
Surajah Dowlah, then nabob of Bengal. The 156 
white men of the garrison were imprisoned in the 
famous Black Hole, a room 18 feet long by 14 
feet wide, with only two tiny windows. During 
the night all but 23 of the 156 died from the 
intense heat and suffocation. Eight months later 
Clive and Admiral Watson recaptured Calcutta, 
which soon afterward entered on its modern 
career of prosperity. The town became the 


general seat of government of British India in 
1773. In 1911 the British government restored the 
capital to Delhi. Population in 1911,1,222,313. 

Caldecott, kal'de lcot, Randolph (1846-1886), 
a noted English artist. He entered a bank, but 
gave up banking for art. His first success was 
the publication, in 1875, of his illustrations of a 
volume of selections from Washington Irving’s 
Sketch-Book, under the title of Old Christmas. It 
was followed by his illustrations of Bracebridge 
Hall, Blackburn’s Breton Folk and Aesop’s 
Fables with Modem Instances. His most popu¬ 
lar work, however, was the series of colored 
books for children, including John Gilpin, the 
Elegy on the Death of a Mad Dog and the Great 
Panjandrum. 

Calderon de la Barca, kahl da rone'da lah 
bahr'kah, Pedro (1600-1681), after Lope de 
Vega the greatest Spanish dramatist, educated 
in the Jesuits’ College, Madrid, and at Sala¬ 
manca. Before his fourteenth year he had 
written his third play, and soon after he was 
twenty he won the praise of eminent critics. 
He served for a time in the army and later 
entered the priesthood, but he continued his 
dramatic writings. He left a large number of 
religious plays, in addition to his regular dramas, 
about one hundred twenty in number. He wrote 
his last play in the eightieth year of his age. 

Caledo'nia, the name by which the northern 
portion of Scotland and its inhabitants first 
became known to the Romans, when in the year 
80 Agricola occupied the country up to the line of 
the Firths of Clyde and Forth. He defeated the 
Caledonians in 83, and again at Mons Gram- 
pius in 84, in a battle of which a detailed descrip¬ 
tion is given by Tacitus. The Caledonians 
became the Scots and Piets of early English and 
Scotch history. See Scotland. 

Caledonian Canal, a waterway passing 
through Glenmore or the Great Glen of Scotland, 
allowing vessels of five hundred or six hundred 
tons to sail from the Atlantic tolthe North Sea, the 
whole distance from sea to sea being about sixty 
miles, of which only twenty-two consist of canal 
proper. The scenery is of the finest in Scotland, 
this route being extremely popular with tourists 

Cal'endar, a record or register showing the 
division of time into years, months, weeks and 
days. The name is derived from the word 
calends, which was the first day of the Roman 
month. On this day it was the custom among 
the Romans for the pontijex maximus to call out 
or proclaim the month and the festivals to be 
observed during the month. The first division 


Calendar 


Calhoun 


of time resulted from the regular occurrence of 
certain phenomena of nature; for instance, the 
changes of the moon suggested the division into 
months, making the months of twenty-nine or 
thirty days’ time. Then the regular motion of 
the sun and the occurrence of the seasons divided 
time into years. The division into weeks, the 
only division not based on natural causes, was 
based on the observation of the law of Moses, 
which decrees the seventh day as the day of rest. 
The year of the ancient Egyptians is based on 
the changes of season alone, without reference 
to the changes of the moon, their year consisting 
of 365 days, divided into twelve months of thirty 
days each, with five extra days at the end of the 
year. The year of the Jews consisted of twelve 
lunar months, with the thirteenth month inserted, 
when necessary, in order to accommodate it to the 
sun and the seasons. The Greek year had twelve 
lunar months of thirty and twenty-nine days, 
alternately. This made the year have 354 days, 
but a change was made later by which a month 
of thirty or twenty-nine days was introduced 
every other year. Still later another change was 
made by which the intercalary month was omitted 
once in about every eight years, making the 
average year have 365| days. The Greek 
month was divided into three decades of ten 
days each. 

The Romans divided their year into ten months, 
but in the course of time this was changed to 
twelve months, making 355 days, and an inter¬ 
calary month was sometimes introduced. The 
general confusion of this calculation led Julius 
Caesar to remedy the arrangement by the use 
of the Julian calendar, in which the year has 
365 days and every iourth year, or leap year, 366 
days, making the average year have 365J days. 
This calendar remained in use among the Romans 
until 1582, when it was found that the vernal 
equinox took place ten days earlier than its date 
in the calendar. Pope Gregory XIII remedied 
this error of time in the Gregorian, or Reformed, 
calendar, the one which is in use to-day. Pope 
Gregory ordained that ten days be subtracted 
from the year 1582, and every hundredth year, 
as 1600, 1700 and 1800, should be a common 
year and not a leap year, as in the old calendar, 
but every fourth hundred, as 2000, 2400, 2800 
and so on, should be a leap year. The new 
calendar was adopted in Spain, Portugal, Italy 
and France, the other countries, Switzerland, 
Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Hungary, 
Holland and Denmark following in succession. 
It was not until 1752 that the Gregorian calendar 


was adopted in England, with the commencement 
of the year set on January first. Sweden followed 
England in 1753. Russia and those countries 
following the communion of the Greek Church 
still retain the old Julian calendar, which differs 
twelve days from the new. 

During the French Revolution a new calendar 
was introduced by the decree of the National 
Convention, 1793, in which the new reckoning 
dated from September 22, 1792, the day when 
the new republic was supposed to have begun. 
This calendar had a year consisting of twelve 
months of thirty days each, and five days were 
added at the end of each year. Each month was 
divided into decades of ten days each. Napoleon 
reestablished the Gregorian calendar in 1805. 

Cal'ends. See Calendar. 

Cal'gary, the largest city in Alberta, Canada, 
on the Canadian Pacific and the Grand Trunk 
Pacific railways. The city lies on a beautiful 
plateau, nearly surrounded by the Bow and El¬ 
bow rivers and backed by high hills. It is a 
rapidly growing center for manufacturing and 
distributing, both for the agricultural districts in 
the neighborhood and for the mining sections in 
the Rocky Mountains. Water power, natural 
gas and electricity are used for industrial pur¬ 
poses and the city has forty miles of street rail¬ 
way and excellent waterworks. Among the 
numerous educational institutions are Calgary 
University, a normal school, high school and 
eighteen graded schools. Population in 1911, 
43,700. 

Calhoun, kal hoon', John Caldwell (1782- 
1850), a distinguished American statesman, born 
in South Carolina, of Scotch-Irish descent. 
Because of poverty, he received little early 
education. However, by arduous study and 
by the help of his brother-in-law, he was able 
to enter Yale College as a junior and graduated 
with high honors in 1804. He entered the pro¬ 
fession of law and began his practice in Abbey- 
ville, S. C., but soon his ability and integrity 
secured him an election to the legislature and 
then to Congress. He immediately became 
conspicuous as both orator and statesman. At 
first he was a warm follower of Henry Clay and 
was a strong nationalist in his views, favoring 
a powerful navy, the United States bank and a 
protective tariff. In 1817 he was made secretary 
of war and displayed remarkable ability. 

He was elected vice-president with John 
Quincy Adams in 1824, but during this admin¬ 
istration his views gradually changed, and he 
was elected vice-president with the radical 


Calhoun 

Democrat Andrew Jackson, in 1828. In this 
year also he became a prominent opponent of 
the protective tariff, as a representative of the 
agricultural states of the South, and prepared a 
famous paper affirming the right of a state to 
refuse to submit to any law of Congress which 
it considered unconstitutional. This led to a 
separation of interest between Calhoun and 
Jackson, which became constantly more marked 
until it culminated in the open contest over 
nullification in 1833. Calhoun urged nullifica¬ 
tion as a state right; Jackson took the opposite 
view, and by a firm and prompt display of 
Federal authority he succeeded in putting down 
the sentiment both for secession and for civil 
war. For the rest of his life Calhoun was a 



JOHN CALDWELL CALHOUN 


powerful advocate of states rights and, inciden¬ 
tally, of slavery, for it was upon the question of 
slavery, chiefly, that the states found themselves 
at odds with the Federal government. As a 
member of the Senate from 1832 to 1843, he 
supported President Van Buren’s sub-treasury 
scheme, denounced the tariff of 1842 and sup¬ 
ported the Webster-Ashburton Treaty. In 1844 
he was appointed secretary of state by President 
Tyler, was partly responsible for the annexation 
of Texas and indirectly for the Mexican War, 
though he opposed the latter. He again entered 
the Senate in 1845, and from that time on he 
was prominent chiefly as an ardent advocate of 
slavery and the Southern cause. His last speech 
was in favor of the Compromise of 1850, but it 
was read, on account of his illness, by a colleague. 
During his last months he wrote his famous 
32 


Calico Printing 

Disquisition on Government and his Discourse 
on the Constitution and Government of the United 
States, remarkable discussions of constitutional 
questions. Calhoun's personality, character and 
bearing were exceedingly attractive, and as 
orator and statesman he possessed abilities which 
have rarely been equaled in America; but envi¬ 
ronment and prejudice led him to advocate an 
impossible doctrine, namely, the construction of 
a powerful federal nation whose constituent 
states were practically independent. 

Cali, ka le', a town of Colombia, situated on 
the Cali River, near its junction with the Cauca, 
and 3100 feet above the sea. The city has some 
manufactures and carries on a good trade with 
the surrounding country. Cali was founded in 
1556. Population, 16,000. 

Cal'ico Printing, the art of applying colors 
to a cloth in such a manner as to form patterns 
and figures. This art originated in India and is 
sometimes used in stamping linen, woolen and 
silk, but generally in stamping the. variety of 
cotton cloth known as calico. Originally the 
patterns were carved on blocks of wood, which 
were laid on the cloth by hand. Each block 
contained the portion of the figure which 
impressed a single color, and great care was 
necessary in laying on the blocks, so as not to 
mar the pattern. 

Calico printing is now done by a printing 
press which in its general plan and structure 
somewhat resembles the cylinder press used for 
printing paper. The important parts of this 
press are a large cylinder, or drum, around 
which the cloth passes, and several smaller 
copper cylinders upon which the pattern is 
engraved, and which are so placed that as the 
cloth passes around the drum, the portion of 
the pattern upon each cylinder is impressed 
upon the cloth. Each of the engraved cylinders 
is supplied with coloring matter by contact with 
a wooden cylinder covered with cloth and dip¬ 
ping into a trough containing the dye. 

The figures are engraved upon the cylinder 
either by pressing them against a cylinder of 
hard steel, upon which the pattern is cut in 
raked figures forming dies, or by etching with 
acid. By either process the pattern is sunk 
into the surface of the engraved cylinder. When 
brought in contact with the dye, the figures are 
filled with the substance, and a steel plate called 
the color doctor presses against the surface and 
removes all dye except that in the sunken 
figures forming the patterns. As the cloth is 
pressed against the cylinder it absorbs the dye 


Calicut 


California 


from these figures and thus has the pattern 
stamped upon it. Each color or tint requires 
a separate cylinder, and, by increasing the size 
of the drum, as many as twenty colors can be 
used at a time. The engraved cylinders are so 
adjusted that the different parts of the pattern 
will fit to one another. 

Calico printing is done by three methods, 
known as direct printing, combined printing and 
dyeing and discharge and reserve methods. By 
the first method, the pattern is stamped directly 
upon the cloth in the colors which it is intended 
to contain. This method is now but little used, 
because the goods printed by it fade quickly. 
The combined printing and dyeing method makes 
use of mordants (See Dyeing) and is subject 
to a great many variations. It is based upon 
the principle that the same dye, when treated 
with different mordants, will produce different 
colors. By this method the mordants are stamped 
upon the cloth, and it is then dipped in a dye, 
after which the colors are fixed by exposure to 
air or to steam heat. This method produces 
what are known as fast colors, that is, colors 
that will not fade. The discharge and reserve 
method consists in treating the cloth so that 
certain portions of it are white when the 
process is completed. This is done either 
by stamping upon the cloth some substance, 
such as clay or wax, that the color will not 
penetrate, or by stamping upon certain 
parts of the figure a substance which, when 
moistened, will dissolve the color. Most of 
the patterns in blue and white are printed in 
this way. 

Cal'icut, a seaport of India, in the province 
of Madras, on the Malabar coast, 566 mi. s. e. 
of Bombay. It was the first port in India visited 
by Europeans, the Portuguese adventurer, Pedro 
da Covilham, having landed here about 1486, 
and Vasco da Gama in 1498. It has a large 
trade in timber and spices, and manufactures of 
cotton cloth, to which it has given the name 
calico. Population in 1911, 78,417. 

California, the Golden State, the second 
largest state in the Union, is bounded on the 
n. by Oregon, on the e. by Nevada and Arizona, 
on the s. by Mexico and on the w. by the Pacific 
Ocean. Its length from north to south through 
the center is 750 miles, its average width is 
200 miles, the area of the land surface is 158,297 
square miles, the water surface is 2645 square 
miles and the length of the coast line is 1200 
miles. It is more than five times the size 
of Maine, as large as Montana and Connect¬ 


icut combined and about two-thirds the area of 
the German Empire. Pop., 1910, 2,377,549. 

Surface and Drainage. The Sierra Nevada 
Mountains extend along the eastern boundary 
for nearly the entire length of the state, and 
west of these and nearly parallel with them is 
the Coast Range. At the north these are con¬ 
nected by spurs of the Cascades, which contain 
a number of prominent peaks, among them 
Mount Shasta, far-famed for its grandeur and 
beauty. To the south these ranges are connected 
by the Tehachapi Mountains. Within this 
mountain enclosure is a large plain over 400 
miles long and having an area of about 18,000 
square miles. The surface is mostly level and 
the soil fertile, making this plain one of the most 
valuable agricultural regions in the world. The 
plain is divided into the Sacramento and the 
San Joaquin valleys, each being occupied by its 
respective river. Between the spurs of the Coast 
Range, the foothills and the Sierra Nevadas are 
numerous fertile valleys, sheltered from wind and 
fog. When supplied with water these valleys 
produce abundant crops of semi-tropical fruits 
and of vegetables, for which this part of the 
state is famous. 

South of the Tehachapi Mountains is that part 
of the state usually known as Southern Cali¬ 
fornia. The region is more or less broken, but 
the mountains are not so high as those further 
north. Near the southern boundary is one of 
the most remarkable depressions in the world. 
Death Valley, whose surface is in some places 
more than 250 feet below sea level. This valley 
was once the bed of a salt bed. 

This blending of mountain, plain and valley 
gives to the scenery of California grandeur and 
beauty which must be seen to be appreciated. 
The state contains 41 peaks exceeding 10,000 
feet in altitude, eleven exceeding 13,000, and 
Mount Whitney, 14,898 feet, is the highest peak 
in the United States. The western slope of 
the Sierra Nevadas contains many deep canyons 
in which are found rushing streams and beau¬ 
tiful cascades. The most famous of these is 
Yosemite Valley (See Yosemite), because it is the 
most accessible, though it would have a number 
of rivals were they equally well known. Mountain 
lakes remarkable for the purity of their water 
are of frequent occurrence. Lake Tahoe, between 
California and Nevada, and a number of others 
rival the famous Swiss lakes in beauty. 

The great valley in the interior is drained by 
the San Joaquin and Sacramento rivers, which 
unite before they enter San Francisco Bay. and 


California 


California 


each of which is navigable for a considerable 
distance. Among the mountains and foothills 
are found numerous rapid streams, which are 
fed by melting snows and are used either for 
irrigation or for the production of electric power. 
West of the Coast Range the Salinas River 
waters the west central portion of the state, 
and in the north are the Klamath and the Eel. 
The mountain regions contain numerous lakes 
noted for their high altitude and beautiful 
scenery. The most widely known of these is 
Lake Tahoe. 

Climate. In latitude California extends 
from that of Savannah, Ga., to that of Boston, 
Mass., but the climate is entirely different from 
the Eastern states included between these paral¬ 
lels. The variations in temperature are due to 
altitude rather than latitude, and the climate in 
the northern end of the state is as mild and 
salubrious as in the southern. The great cen¬ 
tral valleys are so protected by the mountains 
that the same fruits grow in the north as in the 
south. The mildness of the climate is due very 
largely to the warm winds from the Pacific, 
which owe their temperature to the Japan Cur¬ 
rent. Except upon the high elevations, live stock 
can remain out of doors throughout the year, 
and there is always sufficient grass for grazing. 
Roses and other flowers blossom the year round, 
and oranges, lemons and other semi-tropical 
fruits are raised in the valleys throughout the 
state. The high altitudes of the Sierra Nevadas 
have a cool climate, and the highest peaks of 
this range are covered with perpetual snow. 
Instead of being divided into winter and summer, 
the year is characterized by wet and dry seasons, 
the former lasting from October to April, 
and the latter occupying the remainder of the 
year. The rainfall varies in different localities. 
In the mountainous regions and the San Joaquin 
and Sacramento valleys it is sufficient for nearly 
all agricultural purposes, though certain localities 
are greatly benefited by irrigation; but south of 
the Tehachapi Mountains the rainfall is very 
light and irrigation is necessary to successful 
tillage. 

Mineral Resources. The mining interests 
are widely extended over the state and include 
the mining of a large number of products. 
The annual output of the mines exceeds 
$66,000,000, and it is rapidly increasing. 
Among the most valuable of mineral products 
are gold, petroleum, found in all parts of the 
state, copper, silver, quicksilver, borax, manga¬ 
nese and various clays, valuable in manufactures. 


Gold is widely distributed, being found in thirty- 
four of the fifty-seven counties, and since its 
discovery, in 1848, more than $1,500,000,000 
worth has been taken from the mines. Dia¬ 
monds are found in some localities, and other 
precious stones occur in San Diego County. 

Agriculture. The great valleys of the Sac¬ 
ramento and San Joaquin are remarkably fertile 
and are adapted to all agricultural products 
suited to a temperate or semi-tropical climate. 
Grains, vegetables, all kinds of fruits, almonds 
and walnuts are extensively raised in this part 
of the state. The soil of the arid regions seems 
equally fertile, and wherever water can be 
obtained for irrigation, the farmer receives ample 
returns. The fruit-growing region south of the 
Tehachapi Mountains is all in the irrigated 
district. The leading fruit crops are prunes, 
oranges and grapes. Over 275.000 acres in the 
state are devoted to grape culture, and the 
orange crop amounts to about 40,000 carloads 
each year. The grapes are used for the table, 
for raisins and for wine. The total value of the 
fruit crop exceeds $65,000,000 annually. 

The mild climate and wide extent of grazing 
land make the raising of live stock an important 
and profitable industry. Poultry raising and 
dairying are also of considerable value, and in 
the valleys around Sacramento and in the 
vicinity of San Francisco truck gardening is 
extensively carried on. 

Manufactures. Since the discovery of petro¬ 
leum, the manufactures of California have 
developed rapidly. Many of the mountain 
streams also furnish the basis for electric power, 
some of which is conveyed long distances and is 
used in operating machinery. Shipbuilding is 
an important industry, and San Francisco con¬ 
tains one of the most complete ship-building 
yards in the country. There are also extensive 
sugar refineries in the state, and the lumber 
industry gives employment to about 22,000 men 
and yields an annual output of about $45,000,000. 
The canning of fruit and vegetables is the 
leading industry in several parts of the state, 
as is the manufacture of olive oil. 

Transportation. By many persons San 
Francisco is considered to have the finest harbor 
in the world, and within it are found ships from 
all countries of the Orient and from many ports 
of the United States and South America. The 
advantages which this harbor affords make 
San Francisco the most important seaport on 
the Pacific coast, and her foreign trade amounts 
to over $100,000,000. Railway connections 


California 


California 


with the other states of the Union are furnished 
by numerous trunk lines extending across the 
continent, and the Southern Pacific has lines 
extending from Los Angeles to Portland, Ore., 
with numerous branches, so that nearly all 
parts of the state are now within easy reach of 
railway transportation. Good harbors are also 
found at San Diego, San Pedro and Eureka. 
Electric lines connect some interior towns and 
those in and about Los Angeles, and form an 
extensive system, which affords cheap and con¬ 
venient transportation to the inhabitants of a 
large region. 

Government. The legislature consists of a 
senate of 40 members, elected for four years, 
and an assembly of 80 members, elected for 
two years. Sessions are held biennially. The 
executive power is vested in a governor, lieu¬ 
tenant governor, secretary of state, attorney 
general, controller, treasurer and surveyor- 
general, each elected for four years. The 
Supreme Court consists of a chief justice and six 
associates. The other courts are district courts of 
appeal, superior courts and justice courts. The 
present constitution was adopted in 1879. 

Education. The state maintains one of the 
best public school systems in the Union and has 
always been known for the high standard of 
qualification demanded of its teachers. The 
schools are provided with funds through a system 
of state taxation, and in addition to the common 
schools there are high schools in all counties 
except four, five normal schools for the training 
of teachers, and two universities—the University 
of California at Berkeley and Leland Stanford 
Jr. University at Palo Alto (See California, 
University of; Leland Stanford Junior 
University). The Preston School of Industry 
is maintained at lone. 

Institutions. The charitable institutions are 
asylums for the insane at Agnew, Napa, Stock- 
ton and Ukiah, the home for the feeble-minded 
at Glen Ellen and the school for the deaf, 
dumb and blind at Berkeley; also orphan asy¬ 
lums in different parts of the state. The penal 
institutions include prisons at Folsom and San 
Quentin and a state reform school at Whittier. 

Cities. The important cities are Sacramento, 
the capital, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Oakland, 
San Jos6, San Diego, Stockton, Berkeley, Ala¬ 
meda, Fresno City, Santa Rosa and Pasadena, 
each of which is described under its title. 

History. California takes its name from a 
fabled island that was supposed to exist in the 
western ssomewhere near the equator. Lower 


California was visited by the Spaniards in 1533, 
but the first exploration within the bounds of the 
present state did not occur until 1542, when 
Cabrillo visited the vicinity of Santa Barbara. In 
1597, Sir Francis Drake explored the coast as 
far north as the 43rd parallel and named the 
country New Albion. The first Spanish mission 
was founded in 1769 at San Diego, and by 1821 
twenty-one missions were in successful operation. 
In 1777, the Spaniards began the establishment 
of towns, which after the Mexican revolution in 
1821 gradually increased and expanded. The 
first American emigrant wagon reached the state 
in 1826. During the Mexican War the American 
forces under Colonel Fremont and Commodore 
Sloat took possession of Sonoma, San Francisco 
and other important posts. An attempt was 
made at Sonoma to organize a republic, but by 
the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo the territory 
became a possession of the United States. On 
Jan. 24, 1848, gold was discovered at Sutter’s 
Mill, near Coloma. The news of this discovery 
led to an influx of settlers from all parts of the 
world, and in 1849 the population exceeded 
100,000. Several attempts were made to form 
a state constitution, and finally, in 1849, a 
constitution which prohibited slavery was 
adopted, and in 1850 California was admitted as 
a free state under the compromises of that year. 
She took but little part in the Civil War. The 
completion of the Union Pacific Railway in 1869 
placed her in closer communication with the east, 
and since then her development has been rapid. 

California, Gulf of, an arm of the Pacific 
Ocean, on the west coast of North America, 
lying between the peninsula of Lower California 
and the mainland of Mexico. It is about 700 
miles long, in width it varies from 70 to 150 
miles, and in depth, from 600 to 6000 feet. The 
Colorado River is the most important stream 
flowing into it. Valuable pearl fisheries are 
found on the western shore. It was formerly 
known as the Sea of Cortez, having been first 
explored by Cortez. 

California, Lower, a territory of Mexico, 
comprising a peninsula jutting into the Pacific 
Ocean and separated from the mainland 
throughout its entire length by the Gulf of 
C lifornia. Its length is more than 750 miles, 
its width varies from 30 to 140 miles and its area 
is 58,328 square miles. It is largely mountainous 
and arid, but it is said to possess valuable 
agricultural and mineral resources. The chief 
towns are Loretto and La Paz, the capital. 
Population, 42,245. 


California 


Callao 


California, University of, a state university 
established at Berkeley, Cal., in 1868. It con¬ 
tains in Berkeley the colleges of letters, social 
science, natural science, commerce, agriculture, 
mechanics, mining, civil engineering and chem¬ 
istry; in San Francisco, the Mark Hopkins 
Institute of Art, the Hastings College of Law, 
the medical department, post-graduate medical 
department, dental department and California 
College of Pharmacy; and on Mount Hamilton, 
in Santa Clara county, the astronomical depart¬ 
ment which, contains the Lick Observatory. 
The department of anthropology was organized 
primarily for research and conducts excavations 
in Egypt, Peru and various parts of the North 
America. The university is supported by a 
tax of two per cent on each one hundred dollars 
of assessed valuation, by certain other special 
state appropriations and by an income from 
endowment funds aggregating over three million 
dollars. The faculty numbers about 400 and 
the average attendance is 6,000. The library 
contains 240,000 volumes. Tuition is free to 
residents of California. The university is espe¬ 
cially famous for its beautiful campus and 
buildings, planned by M. Bennard of Paris. 
Mrs. Phoebe R. Hearst has given millions of 
dollars to the institution. 

Calig'ula, Gaius Caesar Augustus Ger- 
manicus (12-41), the third emperor of Rome, 
the youngest son of Germanicus, and the nephew 
of Tiberius, whom he succeeded on the throne. 
In the beginning of his reign he mhde himself 
very popular by his mildness and his lavish 
expenditures. But at the end of eight months 
he was seized with a disorder which permanently 
affected his brain, and after his recovery his 
career was marked by a cruelty and licentious¬ 
ness little short of madness. He even considered 
himself a god and caused sacrifices to be offered to 
himself. At last a band of conspirators had him 
assassinated. 

Ca'liph, the name assumed by the successors 
of Mohammed in the government of the faithful 
and in the high-priesthood. Caliphate is there¬ 
fore the name given to the empire of these princes, 
which the Arabs founded in Asia and enlarged' 
within a few centuries to a dominion exceeding 
even the Roman Empire in extent. Shah, sultan, 
emir and other titles peculiar to the East have 
taken the place of caliph. 

Cal'isa'ya Bark, a variety of cinchona bark. 
See Quinine. 

Cal'isthen'ics, the art or practice of exercising 
the body for the purpose of giving strength to the 


muscles and grace to the carraige. The term is 
usually applied to the light systematic exercises 
that may be performed without any apparatus, 
or by the use of such light apparatus as indian 
clubs, dumb-bells and wands. 

Calixtines, kal liks'tinz, a sect of Hussites 
in Bohemia. They were so called from the 
Latin word calix, a cup, because they held that 
all should partake of the cup as well as of the 
bread, in the Lord’s Supper. 

Calix'tus, the name of three popes. Calix- 
tus I was a Roman bishop from 217 to 224, when 
he suffered martyrdom. Calixtus II, Guido 
of Vienne, pope from 1119 to 1124, was a son of 
the count of Burgundy. In the second year of 
his reign he expelled the antipope Gregory VIII 
from Rome. In 1122 he concluded with the 
German emperor, Henry V, the famous Con¬ 
cordat of Worms. Calixtus III, Alfonso Borgia, 
was pope from 1455 to 1458. Though aged and 
feeble, he tried to institute a crusade against the 
Turks, but he failed. An antipope, created by 
Frederick Barbarossa in 1178, and calling him¬ 
self Calixtus III, opposed Alexander III for 
nine years. 

Calking, kawk'ing, driving a quantity of 
oakum into the seams of the planks in a ship’s 
decks or sides, in order to prevent the entrance 
of water. After the oakum is driven very hard 
into these seams, it is covered with hot, melted 
pitch, to keep the water from rotting it. The 
joints of iron plates are also rendered water-tight 
by calking. 

Cal'la, the name of two different kinds of 
plants, one of which, a native of South Africa, 
is known there as the Ethiopian lily, but among 
us as the calla, or calla lily. It is really not a lily 
at all, but it is very popular because of the 
beautiful pure white spathe that surrounds the 
small greenish flowers. The other calla is a 
small flower that grows in the bogs of northern 
Europe and America. It has large heart-shaped 
leaves and a white spathe. From the root a 
starch used as a food is produced. See Arum. 

Callao, ka lyah'o, the chief seaport of Peru, 
situated on Callao Bay, 7 mi. w. of Lima. The 
city is divided into the old and the new towns, 
the latter having good streets and the conven¬ 
iences of a modern city. The leading manufac¬ 
tures are sugar, hides, lumber and iron. Callao 
has one of the best harbors on the Pacific and is 
an important commercial port. Nearly all the 
exports and imports of Peru pass through it. 
and more than a thousand ships enter and clear 
from its dock each year. Population, 34,000. 


Calling Hare 


Calvin 


Calling Hare. See Pika. 

Calliope, kal i'o pe, one of the Muses. She 
presided over eloquence and heroic poetry, and 
is said to have been the mother of Orpheus by 
Apollo. 

Calms, kahmz, Regions of, the regions in the 
Atlantic and Pacific oceans where there is no 
wind for long periods of time. The region of 
tropical calms lies just outside the belt of trade 
winds in each hemisphere. It is caused by the 
equal density of the warm and cool atmospheric 
currents in these latitudes. The region of 
tropical calms follows the sun in its yearly course, 
being farther north in summer and farther 
south in winter. The region of equatorial calms 
is at the equator, where the current is always 
upward. This also moves north and south with 
the sun. The tropical calms of the northern 
hemisphere are frequently known as the calms 
of Cancer, and those of the southern hemisphere 
are called the calms of Capricorn. See Horse 
Latitudes; Wind. 

Cal'omel, mercurous chloride, a preparation 
of mercury much used in medicine and also 
found native and known by the name of horn 
quicksilver. It is a white, tasteless powder, 
practically insoluble, and is used principally as 
a medicine, serving as a powerful cathartic. 
From one-half of a grain to ten grains may be 
given in a dose, but overdoses produce a species 
of poisoning that shows itself in a swelling of the 
gums and an abnormal flow of saliva. Calomel 
is prepared by grinding sulphate of mercury in 
a mortar with an equal quantity of mercury, and 
heating the compound with common salt in a 
retort until the sublimation of the mercury occurs. 

Calorim'eter, an apparatus for measuring 
absolute quantities of heat, or the specific or 
latent heat of bodies. Such an instrument may 
measure the heat given out by a body in cooling, 
from the quantity of ice it melts, or from the rise 
of temperature it produces in water around it. 
See Specific Heat. 

Cal'trop, a military instrument with four 
iron points disposed in such a manner that, 
three of them being on the ground, 
the other points upward; formerly 
scattered on the ground to impede 
the progress of an enemy’s cavalry. 

Also, the common name of the 
star thistle, found in waste places 
in the south of England. The CALTROP 
heads are covered with long yellow spines. 

Cal'umet, a kind of pipe used by the American 
Indians. Its bowl was usually of soft red soap¬ 


stone, and the tube was a long reed, ornamented 
with feathers. The calumet was used as a 
symbol or instrument of peace and war, its 
acceptance signifying agreement, its refusal, 
rejection of the terms. 

Cal'vary, the name applied to the place 
outside Jerusalem where Christ was crucified, 
usually identified with a small eminence on the 
north ide of the city. The term is also applied 
in Catholic countries to a kind of chapel, some¬ 
times erected on a hill near a city and sometimes 
on the exterior of a church, as a place of devo¬ 
tion, in memory of the place where Jesus suffered. 
A rocky mound or hill on which three crosses 
are erected, an adjunct to religious houses, is 
also called Calvary. 

Calve, kal va’, Emma (Emma de Roquer) 
(1866- ), a celebrated soprano vocalist, born 

in France. She made her debut in Faust, in 
1882, at Brussels, and thereafter sang with 
remarkable success in leading operatic r6les. 
She made her American debut at New York in 
1893 and has repeated the success won at that 
time on several later tours, both in opera and 
in recital. 

Cal'vert, George. See Baetimore, Sir 
George Calvert, Lord. 

Cal'vin, John (1509-1564), a famous reformer 
and Protestant theological writer, born at Noyon 
in Picardy. He went to Paris with the family of 
De Montmor, through whom he received an 
education, along with their own children, and 
there he gained his love for Latin, of which he 
became a master. Dissatisfied with the teach¬ 
ings of the Roman Catholic Church, he com¬ 
menced the study of law in Orleans. In 1532 
Calvin returned to Paris a decided convert to 
the Reformed faith, but he was soon compelled to 
leave on account of persecutions. After varied 
wanderings, he found a protector in Margaret of 
Navarre. In 1534 he returned to Paris, but in 
the autumn of the same year he retired to Basel, 
where he completed and published his great 
work, The Institutes of the Christian Religion, 
one of the most important documents of the 
Reformation period. 

After traveling for a time in Italy and other 
southern countries, he set out for Strassburg 
and on his way passed through Geneva, Switzer¬ 
land. There he was prevailed upon by Farel, 
a prominent reformer, to remain and assist in 
spreading the doctrines of Protestantism. With 
Farel he soon accomplished a remarkable change 
in the character of the city, both of its people 
and of its government. A Protestant confession 




Calycanthus 

of faith was adopted by the city and was made 
binding upon all citizens. His arbitrary rule, 
however, made him enemies, and he was expelled 
from Geneva, but his friends succeeded in effect¬ 
ing his recall a few years later. Thereafter he 
built up in the city a theocracy, with himself at 
its head. It directed not only the religious and 
political affairs, but controlled the social and 
individual lives of the people. This was not 
accomplished without some difficulty, however, 
and Calvin was compelled to pass through 
numerous serious controversies. One of these 
resulted, through Calvin’s orders, in the arrest 
and execution by burning of Michael Servetus, 
who was passing through the city. Servetus 
had committed no offense, except the writing of 
a book attacking the mystery of the Trinity. 

While acting as dictator and administrator of 
Geneva, Calvin found time also to maintain a 
correspondence through all Europe, and was 
consulted upon points of law and theology by 
leaders everywhere. Up to 1561 the Lutherans 
and the Calvinists were as one, but in that year 
the latter expressly rejected important points of 
the Lutheran doctrine, and the two parties 
thereafter separated, and at times were embroiled 
in controversy and even war. Calvin, however, 
died soon after this division, at Geneva. The 
essential principles of his theology are still 
embodied in the Presbyterian, and so-called 
Reformed Protestant, churches. See Presby¬ 
terians. 

Cal'ycan'thus, a genus of hardy American 
shrubs, of which one species, Florida allspice, 
has yellow flowers and is sweet-scented. 

Calyp'so, in Greek mythology, a nymph who 
inhabited an island on the shores of which 
Ulysses was shipwrecked. She promised Ulysses 
immortality if he would remain with her, and 
succeeded in detaining him for seven years, 
At the end of that time, however, she was 
ordered by Mercury to permit Ulysses to depart, 
and she aided him in preparing the raft on 
which he made his escape. 

Ca'lyx. See Flowers. 

Cam, in machinery, a simple contrivance for 
converting a uniform rotary motion into a varied 
sliding motion, usually a projecting part of a 
wheel or other revolving piece, so placed as 
to give an alternating or varying motion to 
another piece that comes in contact with it and 
is free to move only in a certain direction. 

Cambo'dia, a country in the Indo-Chinese 
peninsula, comprising an area of 40,530 square 
miles. The greater part of it is low and flat, 


Cambrian System 

with numerous streams, the chief being the 
Mekong. The soil is very ^fertile, producing 
large quantities of rice, sugar cane and maize, 
and the vegetation generally is marked by 
tropical luxuriance. Cattle are raised in large 
numbers. Among the wild animals are the 
elephant and tiger. Gold and precious stones 
are found. In early times Cambodia was a 
powerful state, exacting tribute even from Siam, 
but it gradually fell into decay, and early in the 
nineteenth century lost a large part of its domin¬ 
ions to Siam. Magnificent ruins attest the 
former prosperity of the country. Since 1863 
it has been a protectorate of France, and since 
1884 practically a French colony, though nomi¬ 
nally ruled by a king of its own. The chief 
town is Pnom-Penh, on an arm of the Mekong; 
the port is Kampot, on the Gulf of Siam. Popu¬ 
lation, estimated at 1,500,000. 

Cambon, kahN boN', Jules Martin (1845- 
), a French diplomat and legislator. He 
served in the Franco-German War and after¬ 
ward was given important official positions. 
He was made governor general of Algeria in 
1891, and from 1891 to 1902 he was French 
ambassador to Washington. The preliminaries 
of the treaty of peace which closed the Spanish- 
American War were negotiated by him. 

Cambrai or Cambray, kahN bra ', a fortified 
French city, on the Scheldt, in the Department 
of Du Nord, 104 mi. n. e. of Paris, long cele¬ 
brated for its manufactures of fine linens and 
lawns, whence similar fabrics are called cambrics. 
It is the seat of an archbishop and has a cathedral, 
an archiepiscopal palace, a townhouse and a 
public library. The League of Cambrai was a 
league formed in 1508 between Louis XII of 
France, the German Emperor Maximilian and 
Ferdinand of Spain, for the purpose of humbling 
the Venetian Republic. Population, 1911,26,600. 

Cam'brian Period, the oldest division of 
geologic time that is distinguishable by well 
preserved remains of animal life. The name 
is derived from Cambria, the ancient name of 
Wales, where the rocks formed during this 
period were first studied. See Cambrian Sys¬ 
tem; Geology; Paleozoic Era. 

Cambrian System, in geology, an extensive 
series of sandstones, conglomerates, slates and 
shales, lying under the Lower Silurian beds, 
and above the Archaean, and divided into the 
Upper and Lower Cambrian. Many fossils 
occur in the series, including sponges, starfishes, 
trilobites, brachiopods, lamellibranchs, ptero- 
pods, gasteropods and cephalopods. They may 


Cambridge 


Camden 


be regarded as the bottom rocks of the Silurian 
system, and are well developed in North Wales, 
hence the name, but can be recognized in many 
other regions. See Algonkian System; Silu¬ 
rian System. 

Cambridge, lcame'brij, Mass., a city in Mid¬ 
dlesex co., joining Boston on the northwest, with 
which it is connected by four large bridges over 
the Charles River. It is about three miles from 
Harvard Square, Cambridge, to the statehouse 
in Boston. Several trolley lines connect the two 
cities, which are shortly to be connected also by 
subway. The principal features of interest in 
Cambridge are Harvard University, Radcliffe 
College; Craigie House, occupied by General 
Washington and later the home of Longfellow; 
Elmwood, the dwelling of James Russell Lowell; 
the buildings of the Protestant Episcopal Divinity 
School; the Shepherd Memorial Church; Christ 
Church; a soldiers’ monument; the Howard 
Observatory and a botanical garden. Book 
printing and binding is one of the leading indus¬ 
tries. There are also large foundries and machine 
shops, meat-packing houses and extensive manu¬ 
factures of confectionery, soap, candles, pianos, 
furniture, boilers, chemicals, bricks and other 
articles. 

Cambridge was settled in 1630 as New Town, 
by Governor Winthrop, and in 1683 it became 
Cambridge. Between 1775 and 1776 Cambridge 
was occupied by the American army, and Wash¬ 
ington assumed command here in 1775 under a 
large elm, which is still standing. Cambridge 
received its city charter in 1846. Population in 
1910, 104,839. 

Cambridge, Md., the county-seat of Dor¬ 
chester co., 60 mi. s. e. of Baltimore, on the 
Choptank River and the Seaford & Cambridge 
railroad. It is in a rich agricultural district 
and has an extensive oyster-canning industry, 
besides manufactures of underwear and lumber. 
The place was settled in 1684 and was early 
incorporated as a colonial town. Population in 
1910, 6407. 

Cambridge, Ohio, the county-seat of Guernsey 
co., 85 mi. e. of Columbus, on the Baltimore & 
Ohio and the Pennsylvania railroads. The 
region has deposits of pottery clay, natural gas, 
coal and iron, and the city manufactures iron 
and steel products, glass and pottery. Cam¬ 
bridge was settled in 1806. Population in 1910, 
11,327. 

Cambridge, University of, one of the two 
great English universities, as old at least as the 
thirteenth century, is situated at Cambridge, 


Eng. The university comprises twenty colleges, 
of which Saint Peter’s College, founded in 1257, 
is the oldest, and Ayerst Hall, founded in 1884, 
is the youngest. Each of these colleges is a 
separate corporation and is governed by laws 
and usages of its own, although subject to the 
paramount laws of the university. The univer¬ 
sity is composed of a chancellor, a vice-chan¬ 
cellor, the masters or heads of colleges, fellows 
of colleges and students, and is incorporated as 
a society for the study of all the liberal arts and 
sciences. The senate, which is composed of all 
who have taken the degree of Doctor or Master, 
is the great legislative assembly of the univer¬ 
sity. The chief executive power is vested in 
the chancellor, the high steward and the vice- 
chancellor, who is the head of some college. 
Two proctors superintend the discipline of all 
pupils. Women who have fulfilled the condi¬ 
tions of residence and standing may be admitted 
to the examinations. Those who pass are placed 
in the published lists and receive certificates; 
but no degrees are conferred upon them. Two 
colleges, Girton and Newnham, have been 
established for women; but they are no part of 
the university, though many of the university 
lectures are open to students of these colleges. 
The annual income of the university was recently 
about $300,000, arising from various sources, 
including he fees at matriculation and those 
for degrees. The number of under-graduate 
students is about 3000. There are over 
forty professors in the various departments. A 
botanic garden, an anatomical school, an 
observatory and a valuable library containing 
more than 200,000 printed volumes, besides 
many manuscripts, are attached to the univer¬ 
sity. The new museums and laboratories for 
the study of science are among the most com¬ 
plete in the country. The university sends two 
members to the House of Commons. The right 
of election is vested in the members of the senate. 
See Oxford, University of. 

Cambyses, kambi’seez (?-522 b. c.), a son 
of Cyrus the Great, became, after the death of 
his father, king of the Medes and Persians, 529 
b. c. In the fifth year of his reign he invaded 
Egypt, conquering the whole kingdom within 
six months, but his expeditions against the 
Ammonites and Ethiopians failed. His violent 
and vindictive nature broke out in cruel treat¬ 
ment of his subjects, his brother Smerdis and 
his own wife being among his victims. 

Cam'den, N. J., the county-seat of Camden 
co., on the Delaware River, opposite Philadel- 


Camden 


Camel 


phia, Pa., and on the West Jersey & Seashore, 
the Atlantic City and the Pennsylvania railroads. 
There are numerous substantial buildings, 
including a theater, public, high and manual 
training schools, a Carnegie library, two hos¬ 
pitals, many notable churches, a city hall and 
a federal building. The city is an important 
shipping point and contains ship-building yards 
and extensive manufacturing establishments. 
The principal products are textile fabrics, foundry 
and machine shop products, chemicals and 
paints. The first settlement was made about 1681. 
The first ferry to Philadelphia was established 
in 1687. In 1773 Jacob Cooper laid out the 
present town and called it Camden. In 1828 
it was chartered as a city and twenty years later 
it was made the county-seat. Population in 
1910, 94,538. 

Camden, Battles of, two battles of the 
American Revolution, the first fought August 16, 
1780, between a force of 3000 Americans under 
Gates and 2000 British under Cornwallis. The 
latter was victorious, through strategic blunders 
on the part of Gates. The British loss was 
about 325 and the American fully 2000 in killed, 
wounded and captured. Among the slain was 
Baron Kalb. The so-called second Battle of 
Camden, or the Battle of Hobkirk’s Hill, was 
fought April 25, 1781, between an American 
force of 1400, under Greene, and a British force 
of about 950, under Lord Rawdon. The 
British were the aggressors, leaving their position 
at Camden to attack the strong American works. 
Owing to a misunderstanding of orders the 
central brigade of the American force fled in 
confusion, and the whole army was forced to 
retreat with a loss of 271 against a British loss 
of 258. 

Cam'el, a large cud-chewing animal, char¬ 
acterized by a long, arched neck, one or two 
humps on the back and a broad, fleshy pad on 
the sole of its foot, covering the toes. The 
native country of the camel is said to extend 
from Morocco to China, within a belt 900 or 
1000 miles in breadth. The common camel, 
having two humps, is found in the northern part 
of this region exclusively, from Turkestan to 
China. The dromedary, or single hump camel, 
or Arabian camel, is found throughout the entire 
length of this zone, on its southern side, as far as 
Africa and India (See Dromedary). 

To people residing in the vicinity of the great 
deserts, the camel furnishes an invaluable means 
of conveyance. It will travel three days under 
a load, and five days under a rider, without ' 


dryiking, and the stronger animals carry from 
700 to 1000 pounds burden. The camel’s power 



BACTBIAN CAMEL 


of enduring thirst is partly due to the peculiar 
structure of its stomach, to which are attached 
little pouches or water cells, capable of straining 
off and storing up water for use when journeying 
across the desert. It can live on little food, and 
that of the coarsest kind, consisting of leaves 
of trees and nettles, shrubs and twigs. In this 
it is helped by the fact that its humps are mere 
accumulations of fat, which form a store upon 
which the system can draw when the food supply 
is short. Hence the camel driver who is about 
to start on a long journey takes care to see that 
the humps of the animal present a full and 



ABABIAN CAMEL 


healthy appearance. Camels which carry heavy 
burdens will go about 25 miles a day, those 
which are used for speed alone, from 60 to 90 
miles. 

The camel is a rather passive animal, with 
much less intelligence than the horse or elephant; 

















Camellia 


Camera Lucida 


but it is very vindictive when injured. It lives 
from 40 to 50 years. Its flesh is esteemed by the 
Arab, and its milk is his common food. The 
hair of the camel serves in the East for making 
cloth for tents, carpets and wearing apparel and 
is imported into European countries for the 
manufacture of fine brushes for painting, and 
for other purposes. The alpaca and llama are 
the South American representatives of the 
family. 

Camel'lia, a genus of plants, with showy 
flowers and elegant dark green, shining, laurel¬ 
like leaves, nearly allied to the plants which 
yield tea. The camellia of Japan and China is 



CAMELLIA 


a lofty tree of beautiful proportions, which is the 
origin of many double varieties of our gardens. 
Besides this species, one with small, white, 
scentless flowers, and another with large, peony¬ 
like flowers, are cultivated in America. 

Camel'opard. See Giraffe. 

Camel’s Thorn, a name of several half-shrubby 
plants growing in the deserts of Egypt and the 
East. Some of the species yield from the 
leaves and branches a gummy substance known 
as manna. 

Cam'eo, the general name for all gems or stones 
cut in relief, that is, with raised figures, in con¬ 
trast to intaglios, which are hollowed out. In 
a special sense a cameo is a gem composed of 
layers of different colors, the figures so engraved 


in relief that they appear in one color and the 
background in another. Onyx, sardonyx and 
agate are the stones generally used for cameos, 
while various kinds of shells and fine glass are 
used in the production of artificial cameos. The 
ancients were very skillful in this style of engrav¬ 
ing, and there are still in existence many examples 
of wonderful workmanship, among which are 
some in the form of vases and dishes. 

Cam'era, an instrument used by photographers 
in taking pictures. The necessary parts are 
the box, the double convex lens, L, and a screen, 
B. The box is telescoped so that the screen 
can be moved to different distances from the 



lens. The screen is so attached that it can 
be replaced by the sensitive plate upon which 
the negative is formed. In the best cameras 
the lens contains two lenses, L and I/, as by 
their combination a much more perfect image 
can be formed. A is the rack and pinion used 
in moving the lens so as to secure a perfect focus 
of the image upon the screen. Cameras contain 
many other attachments, but these are for the 
purpose of making the use of the camera con¬ 
venient and enabling the operator to secure nice 
adjustments. The sides of the best cameras 
are made of leather and are known as the 
bellows. See Photography. 

Camera Lucida, loo'sid a, an instrument used 
for sketching objects seen through a magnifying 
glass. It consists of a glass prism having four 



sides, represented by ABCD. The sides AD 
and AB are perpendicular to each other, but 
CD and BC are so related that a horizontal ray 
of light striking CD at II is reflected to K, from 
which it is again reflected to E, where it passes 
through a double-convex lens. The eye placed 
above E sees the object on the paper at PP. 
















Camera Obscura 


Camomile 


The lens acts as a magnifying glass and enables 
the observer to sketch an enlarged image of the 
object as it appears on the paper. The camera 
lucida is in quite common use in laboratories for 
sketching minute parts of plants and animals. 

Camera Obscu'ra, an instrument used for 
sketching landscapes and other large objects. 
It consists of a closed box painted black upon 
the inside and containing a mirror placed at an 
angle of 45°. Just above the mirror is a ground 
glass screen. The front of the camera contains 
a lens similar to that used in the photographic 
camera. When the image of the object is 
thrown upon the mirror, it is reflected to the 
screen, upon which it can be easily sketched. 
The camera should be used in a dark room. 
Before the extended use of photography, the 
camera obscura was very generally employed 
by artists in preparing illustrations for papers 
and periodicals. It is now but little used except 
as a toy. 

Cam'eron, James Donald (1833- ), an 

American politician known as “Don” Cameron, 
the son of Simon Cameron. He was born in 
Harrisburg, Pa., graduated at Princeton and 
became connected with railroads and iron manu¬ 
facturing. From 1876 to 1877 he was secretary 
of war under President Grant and was then 
chosen United States senator to succeed his 
father. He was reelected in 1885 and 1890. 

Cameron, Simon (1799-1889), an American 
statesman, born in Lancaster co., Pa. He 
edited a newspaper in Harrisburg in 1822, 
supporting the candidacy of Andrew Jackson, 
and thus came to possess great influence in 
Democratic politics. He was elected to the 
United States Senate in 1845 and supported the 
Mexican War. In 1856 he joined the new Repub¬ 
lican party and was again elected senator. He 
was a formidable candidate for president in 
the convention of 1860, but was defeated by 
Lincoln, who, on becoming president, appointed 
Cameron secretary of war. He resigned under 
pressure in 1862 and was sent as minister to 
Russia. In 1866 he again became United 
States senator and he held that office until 1877, 
when he was succeeded by his son. He was a 
strenuous opponent of civil service reform and 
long was almost absolute master of Pennsylvania 
politics. 

Cameron, Verney Lovett (1844-1894), an 
English traveler and explorer. He entered the 
British navy in 1857, and in 1873 he was chosen 
to conduct an expedition for the relief of Doctor 
Livingstone. He was only in time to meet 


Livingstone’s servants with his body, but he con¬ 
tinued his journey west and was the first white 
man to cross central Africa from east to west. 
In 1878 he made a journey through Asia Minor 
and Persia. He published accounts of both 
journeys in his Across Africa and Our Future 
Highway. 

Cameroon, leak me roord. See Kamerun. 
Camil'lus, Marcus Furius (?-about 365 
B. c.), a Roman patrician, famous as the deliv¬ 
erer of Rome from the Gauls. In 396 B. c. 
he w r as made dictator during the Veientine War 
and captured the town of Veii by mining, after 
it had defied the Roman power for ten years. 
Two years later he besieged the Falerii and by 
an act of generosity induced them to surrender. 
In 367, after he had been appointed dictator 
four times, a new invasion of the Gauls called 
Camillus, now eighty years old, again to the 
front, and for the fifth and last time he defeated 
and dispersed the barbarians. 

Camisards, kam'i zahrdz, the name given to 
the Protestant insurgents of the C^vennes, a 
mountainous district of southern France. The 
liberty of the Protestants had been taken from 
them by the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 
1685, and severe persecution followed. The 
Camisards rose in revolt against this treatment 
in 1702, and the French government promptly 
sent an army against them. The insurgents 
held out for three years, but were then obliged 
to yield, as their leaders had been killed and 
their strength exhausted. 

Camoes or Camoens, ha mohNsh’, Luis de 
(1524-1579), the most celebrated poet of the 
Portuguese. He became a soldier and served 
in the fleet which the Portuguese sent against 
Morocco, losing his right eye in an engagement 
before Ceuta. Indignant at receiving no recog¬ 
nition of his services, he sailed for India in 1535, 
but being unfavorably impressed by the life led 
by the ruling Portuguese there, he wrote a satire 
which caused his banishment to Macao. Here 
he wrote the earlier cantos of his great poem, 
the Lusiad, an epic poem in ten cantos. Its 
subject is the voyage of Vasco da Gama to the 
East Indies, but many other events in the history 
of Portugal are also introduced. Returning to 
Goa in 1561, he was shipwrecked and lost all his 
property except his precious manuscript. After 
much misfortune, Camoes in 1570 arrived once 
more in his native land, poor and without 
influence, as he had left it. The Lusiad was 
printed at Lisbon. 

Cam'omile. See Chamomile. 


Camorra 


Campbell 


Camor'ra, a well-organized secret society, 
once spread throughout all parts of the kingdom 
of Naples. At one time the members, known 
as Camorristi, were all-powerful, levying a kind 
of blackmail on all markets, fairs and public 
gatherings, claiming the right to settle disputes 
and hiring themselves out for any criminal 
service, from the passing of contraband goods 
to assassination. Though originally a secret 
society, the Camorra did not find it necessary 
under the regime of the Bourbons to conceal 
its operations; but under the present govern¬ 
ment of united Italy, the society, if it has not 
quite ceased to exist, has lost almost all its power, 
except in the wilder parts of southern Italy. 

Campagna di Roma, ham pah'nya de ro'mah, 
the coast region of middle Italy, in which Rome 
is situated. It is from 30 to 40 miles wide and 
100 miles long, and forms the undulating, mostly 
uncultivated plain which extends from near 
Civita Vecchia to Terracina and includes the 
Pontine Marshes. The district is volcanic, and 
its lakes, Regillus, Albano and Nemi, are 
evidently craters of extinct volcanoes. The soil 
is very fertile in the lower parts, though its 
cultivation is much neglected, owing to the 
malaria which makes residence there during 
midsummer very dangerous. In ancient times 
the Campagna, though never a salubrious dis¬ 
trict, was well cultivated and populated, the 
villas of the Jtoman aristocracy being numerous 
here. 

Campa'nia, the ancient name of a province of 
Italy, in the former kingdom of Naples, which, 
on account of its beauty and fertility, was a favor¬ 
ite resort of wealthy Romans, who built there 
magnificent country houses. It comprises the 
modern provinces of Caserta, Naples, and parts 
of Salerno and Avellino. Cumae, the oldest 
Greek settlement in Italy, near which was the 
Lake of Avernus, celebrated in fable as the 
entrance to the lower regions; Puteoli; Naples; 
Herculaneum and Pompeii, destroyed by an 
eruption of Vesuvius in 79 A. D.; Baiae; Stabiae; 
Salernum, and Capua, its ancient capital, were 
the principal cities of Campania. The province 
is still the most beautiful and fruitful part of 
Italy. 

Campanile, lcam pa ne'la, a name applied to 
a bell tower, constituting a separate building 
adjacent to a church to which it belongs, and 
commonly used in the churches of Italy. The 
most famous examples are the Campanile of the 
Cathedral at Florence, designed by Giotto in 
the fourteenth century, and the Leaning Tower 


of Pisa, inclining thirteen feet from the perpen¬ 
dicular, Saint Mark’s Campanile, 302 feet high, 
was a landmark of Venice for over one thousand 
years, dating from 900 A. D. In 1902 it col¬ 
lapsed; work of restoration began in 1905, and 
the new Campanile was completed in 1912. 

Campanini, kahm pa ne'ne, Italo (1846- 
1896), an Italian tenor, born in Parma. He 
first discovered that he possessed a fine voice 
while fighting in Garibaldi’s army, at the age 
of fourteen. Later he studied in Parma and 
made his debut there in the opera La Sonnam- 
bula. He was generally considered the greatest 
operatic tenor of his day. 

Campan'ula, a large genus of herbs, with 
bell-shaped flowers, usually of a blue or white 
color. It includes several American species 
which are known to all lovers of wild flowers. 
The harebell flower, found in all the states on 
damp rocks and rocky hillsides, is an exceed¬ 
ingly pretty and delicate plant. The Canter¬ 
bury bell is a European species, with large 
tubular flowers, formerly popular in gardens. 

Campbell, kam'b’l, Alexander (1788-1866), 
an American theologian, born in Ballymina, Ire¬ 
land. He came to America in 1807 and was for 
a time in the ministry of the Presbyterian church. 
But accepting ardently the views of his father, 
Thomas Campbell, as set forth in the “ Declara¬ 
tion and Address, ” calling for larger unity among 
divided churches, he began to agitate the ques¬ 
tion of larger union among Christian bodies upon 
the foundation of New Testament teaching with¬ 
out other creeds or formulations. This led pres¬ 
ently to the organization of the body of people 
known as Disciples of Christ, or the Christian 
Church, known in some communities at one time 
as Campbellites. He founded Bethany College 
in West Virginia, of which he was president until 
his death. He was the editor of the Christian 
Baptist and later of the Millennial Harbinger. 

Campbell, Sir Colin, Lord Clyde (1792- 
1863), a famous British soldier, born in Glas¬ 
gow. He was educated at the high school at 
Glasgow and afterward at the military academy 
at Gosport, and in 1808 he received an ensign’s 
commission in the Ninth Regiment of Foot. 
He served in Spain under Sir John Moore and 
Wellington, had a part in the expedition to the 
United States in 1814 and from 1819 to 1825 
was in the West Indies. In 1842 he was in 
China, and on the termination of the Chinese 
War he saw active service in India. On the 
outbreak of the Crimean War he became major 
general, with the command of the Highland 


Campbell 

Brigade, and took a prominent part in repulsing 
the Russians at Balaklava. He was appointed 
to the first command at the outbreak of the 
Indian mutiny, relieved Havelock and Outram 
at Lucknow and crushed the rebellion entirely 
before the end of the year. He was created a 
peer, with the title of Baron Clyde, aad had a 
large income allotted him. In 1862 he was 
made field marshal. He was buried in West¬ 
minster Abbey. 

Campbell, Thomas (1777-1844), a noted 
English poet. After leaving Glasgow Univer¬ 
sity, where he had won a reputation by his 
poetical translations from the Greek, he lived 
for a short time in Edinburgh. He rose suddenly 
to fame on the publication, in 1799, of his 
Pleasures of Hope. In 1803, after spending 
some time in Germany, Campbell published an 
edition of the Pleasures of Hope with the addi¬ 
tion of the lyrics Hohenlinden, Ye Mariners of 
England and The Exile of Erin. In 1809 he 
published Gertrude of Wyoming and The Battle 
of the Baltic. In 1820 he became editor of the 
New Monthly Magazine, a position which he 
held for ten years. He took an active part in 
the foundation of London University, and in 
1827 he was elected rector of Glasgow Univer¬ 
sity. He died at Boulogne and was interred in 
the Poets’ Corner, Westminster Abbey. 

Campbell-Ban'nerman, Sir Henry (1836- 
1908), a British statesman. He is a Campbell, 
and the additional name of Bannerman was 
added under the terms of the will of a maternal 
uncle. He entered Parliament as a member 
for Stirling district, Scotland, in 1868 and has 
represented that district ever since. Through¬ 
out Gladstone’s career, Campbell-Bannerman 
was loyal to him and served as secretary for war 
in Gladstone’s administrations of 1886 and 1892. 
He has also served as secretary to the admiralty 
and chief secretary for Ireland. In 1899 he 
became the Liberal leader of the House of Corn- 
mans, and in 1905 he succeeded Balfour as 
premier. Although his career was not brilliant, 
he proved himself possessed of many of the 
best qualities of leadership. Personally he was 
exceedingly popular. 

Campeachy or Campeche, kam pe'chee, a 
seaport of Mexico, situated on the west coast 
of the peninsula of Yucatan, at the mouth of 
the San Francisco River. Shipbuilding and 
the manufacture of cigars are the chief indus¬ 
tries. A considerable trade in campeachy wood 
and wax is maintained, but the harbor is shallow 
and can be entered only by vessels of light 


Camphor 

draught. Population, 17,000. 

Camp Fire Girls, an organization for girls, in¬ 
tended to take the place among them that the 
Boy Scouts takes among boys. They are led to 
take pleasure in performing those particular 
tasks and in fulfilling those distinctive duties 
that will be theirs when they assume life’s re¬ 
sponsibilities. This necessitates instruction in 
a wide range of practical studies. They are 
taught domestic activities, how to conserve their 
health, made to acquire an understanding of 
nature lore, while religious and patriotic senti¬ 
ments are also inculcated. There are three de¬ 
grees, Wood Gatherer, Fire Maker and Torch 
Bearer. The symbol of the organization is fire, 
emblematic of service and romance. The watch¬ 
words are Work, Health and Love. The first 
two letters of the watchwords form the word 
Wohelo, which is the slogan for general use. 
Organized in 1911, the movement has already 
reached into almost every state. 

Camphor, kam'fur, a whitish,translucent gum, 
with a bitterish, aromatic taste and a strong 



characteristic smell. The common camphor of 
the shops is obtained from a laurel, a native of 
China and Japan, now naturalized in many 


Campobello 


Canada 


other countries. Camphor is prepared chiefly 
in the island of Formosa, though it is also 
exported from Japan and to a small extent from 
China. Borneo camphor is the product of a 
tree 100 to 130 feet high, found in Borneo and 
Sumatra. It is not procured by distillation, but 
is found in masses, secreted naturally in cavities 
in the trunk and greater branches. Numerous 
other vegetables, such as thyme, rosemary and 
sage, are found to yield camphor by distillation. 
In medicine, camphor is used both as an external 
and internal stimulant. In small doses it relieves 
pain; in large doses it acts as a poison. Its 
odor being obnoxious to insects, it is much 
used to protect specimens in natural history. 
It evaporates or volatilizes at ordinary temper¬ 
atures. 

Campobel'lo, an island in the Bay of Fundy. 
It is 8 miles long, belongs to New Brunswick, 
Canada, and has a famous lighthouse on its 
northern extremity. The island is well wooded 
with fir and larch. Population in 1911, 1230. 

Campo-Formio, kahm'po jor'myo, a town in 
Italy, 66 mi. n. e. of Venice, famous for the 
treaty of peace between Austria and France, 
which was signed in its neighborhood on Oct. 
17, 1797. Its chief provisions were that Austria 
should cede the Belgian provinces and Lom¬ 
bardy to France, receiving in compensation the 
Venetian states. 

Campos, Icahm'posh, Arsene Martinez 
(1834-1900), a Spanish statesman and general. 
He served in Africa and in Mexico and in 1869 
joined the army of Cuba. After his return to 
Spain he refused to recognize the republic which 
was proclaimed on the abdication of Amadeus, 
and was imprisoned. Released in the following 
year, he headed a movement for the restoration 
of Alfonso XII, the son of the deposed Isabella, 
to the throne. His success in this insurrection 
won him the highest rank in the army. After 
putting down the insurgents in Cuba in 1878, 
he returned to Spain, where he advocated a 
just policy toward Cuba. In 1895, when the 
new insurrection arose in Cuba, he was sent 
to put down the insurgents, but was recalled in 
a short time, as his methods did not find favor 
with the Spanish government. 

Campo Santo, kahm'po sahn'to, (holy field), 
the Italian name for a burying ground, used 
especially to designate the more remarkable of 
these places, those which are surrounded with 
arcades and are richly adorned. The most 
famous Campo Santo is that of Pisa, which 
dates from the twelfth century, and which has 


on its walls frescoes of the fourteenth century 
of great interest in the history of art. 

Campus Martius, kam'pus mar’shus, a large 
open space in the suburbs of ancient Rome, 
consisting of the level ground between the 
Quirinal, Capitoline and Pincian hills and the 
River Tiber, set apart for military exercises 
and sacred to the god Mars. In the latter period 
of the Republic it was a suburban pleasure 
ground for the Romans, and it was laid out 
with gardens, shady walks, baths and theaters. 
The site is now occupied by a thickly-settled 
portion of the modern business city. 

Cam'wood, a red dyewood, imported from 
tropical • West Africa and obtained from a 
leguminous tree. This wood is of a very fine 
color and is used in turning for making knife 
handles and other similar articles. The dye 
obtained from it is brilliant, but not permanent. 
It is called sometimes barwood, though this name 
belongs to another tree. 

Ca'na, a village of Palestine in Galilee, the 
scene of Christ’s first miracle, probably repre¬ 
sented by Kana-el-Jelil, a modern village nine 
miles north of Nazareth, containing ancient 
ruins. 

Canaan, ka'nan. See Palestine. 

Ca'naanites, in general, the name given to the 
heathen nations found dwelling in Palestine 
west of the Jordan. At the time of the Israel- 
itish invasion these different nations were the 
Hittites, Jebusites, Hivites and Amorites. It is 
not to be inferred from the collective name applied 
to them that all these peoples were the descend¬ 
ants of Canaan. On the contrary, their origin 
can be traced to a number of different sources. 

The Canaanites were gradually subdued by 
the Israelites, but in Solomon’s time all paid 
tribute. In language, government, morals and 
religion these people were different from the 
Israelites, the principal feature of their religion 
being the worship of Baal and Asherah, his 
consort, who was called “the happy.” The 
symbol of Asherah was the stem of a tree, 
though this was sometimes carved into an image. 
The symbol of Baal was probably a cone, and 
represented the rays of the sun. It was undoubt¬ 
edly the mingling of these symbols in large 
numbers which constituted the groves of Baal, 
so frequently mentioned in the historic books 
of the Old Testament. The immoral practices 
connected with the worship of Asherah were 
particularly obnoxious to the Hebrews. 

Can'ada, Dominion of, the largest and most 
important British colony, occupying all of 






BANFF AND BOW RIVER VALLEY, ALBERTA, CANADA 



















Canada 


Canada 


North America north of the United States, 
except Alaska. It is bounded on the n. by the 
Arctic Ocean, on the e. by Baffin’s Bay, Davis 
Strait and the Atlantic Ocean, on the s. by the 
United States and on the w. by the Pacific Ocean 
and Alaska. Its greatest length from east to 
west is. 2700 miles, and from north to south, 
1600 miles. Its area is 3,729.665 square miles, 
of which 125,755 square miles are water. Canada 
is larger than the United States and nearly as 
large as the continent of Europe. 

Surface and Drainage. In respect to sur¬ 
face, Canada can be divided into three great 
regions: the eastern highlands, the central plain 
and the western or Rocky Mountain highlands. 
The eastern highland region extends from the 
Atlantic coast westward to the southern extremity 
of Hudson Bay. It is characterized by ranges 
of low mountains and hills and approximately 
level plains. The highest land is found on the 
coast of Labrador, where some of the peaks 
reach up to 8000 feet. The Laurentian Moun¬ 
tains, north of the Samt Lawrence River and 
nearly parallel with it, in some places attain a 
height of about 4000 feet. Detached summits 
or buttes from this range are found westward 
as far as Montreal, the mountain of Montreal 
being one of these peaks, and to the south of the 
river and a little east of this several others rise. 
Extending westward from the eastern highland 
region is the great central plain of Canada, 
which is a continuation northward of the plain 
in the United States. Along the international 
boundary this is about 700 miles wide and 
terminates in the foothills of the Rocky Moun¬ 
tains, which form a part of the boundary between 
Alberta and British Columbia. Extending 
northward, this plain includes the northeastern 
corner of British Columbia, and then its western 
boundary follows the Rocky Mountains between 
Mackenzie and Yukon. The Rocky Mountain 
highlands begin with the foothills of the Rocky 
Mountains in Alberta and extend westward to 
the coast. This region embraces the provinces 
of British Columbia and Yukon, and the southern 
part of it is broken by numerous ranges of the 
Rockies and coast ranges. See British Colum¬ 
bia, subhead Surface and Drainage. 

About 250 miles north of the Saint Lawrence 
River and running parallel with it as far as 
Ontario, is a low ridge, known as the Height of 
Land, separating the waters of the Saint Law¬ 
rence basin from those flowing into the eastern 
side of Hudson Bay. After entering Ontario 
this height of land continues westward north of 


the Great Lakes until it reaches a point a little 
west of Lake Nipigon, when it bends southward 
and extends diagonally across Minnesota to the 
headwaters of the Red River of the North. 
From here it bends to the northwest, and after 
traversing Dakota in an irregular line, reenters 
the Dominion at the northwestern corner of 
this state. It then extends westward near the 
international boundary until it reaches the Rocky 
Mountains. Another similar divide starts in 
Alberta a little north of Edmonton and extends 
northeasterly through that province and across 
Saskatchewan nearly to the eastern boundary, 
when it bends to the north and northwest and 
extends through Mackenzie to Lake Aylmer, 
thence northeasterly to Melville Peninsula! 
This divide separates the waters flowing into 
Hudson Bay on the west from those finding 
an outlet in the Arctic Ocean through the Backs, 
Coppermine and Mackenzie rivers. 

The Saint Lawrence, with its tributaries, is 
the largest and most important river system. 
Its basin includes the Great Lakes, nearly one- 
half of which belong to Canada. From the 
north the important tributaries are the Saguenay, 
the Saint Maurice and the Ottawa, while the 
most important tributaries from the south are the 
Richelieu and the Saint Francis. The northern 
part, or the region between James Bay and the 
Atlantic Ocean, is low and contains a number of 
lakes. All of the central plain south and east 
of the watershed crossing Alberta is drained into 
Hudson Bay. The important rivers are the 
Saskatchewan and its outlet, the Nelson, and 
the Churchill. The most important lake in this 
region is Lake Winnipeg. To the north and 
west of the watershed we find the Athabasca, 
Mackenzie, Coppermine and Backs rivers, 
which furnish drainage for the northern part of 
Alberta, Saskatchewan and nearly all of the 
great province of Mackenzie. In the northern 
part of this region are numerous large lakes, the 
most noted being Athabasca, Great Slave Lake 
and Great Bear Lake. West of the main range 
of the Rocky Mountains the principal rivers are 
the Columbia, the Frazer, the Skeena and the 
Stikine. See British Columbia, subhead Sur* 
face and Drainage. 

Climate. In latitude Canada extends from 
near the 40th parallel to the North Pole, and its 
great extent from north to south, as well as the 
varied local conditions between the Atlantic and 
Pacific coasts, gives the Dominion a great variety 
of climate. The cold currents in the Atlantic 
which flow along the coasts of Labrador and 


Canada 


Canada 


Newfoundland impart to this region a cold, damp 
climate; hence the provinces of Nova Scotia, New 
Brunswick and Quebec have severe winters, fre¬ 
quently accompanied by great depths of snow, 
and short, hot summers. While the rainfall in 
this region is not heavy, it is everywhere sufficient 
for agriculture. The southern portion of Ontario 
on account of its proximity to the lakes, has a 
much more equable climate, but in the northern 
portion and in the heart of the continent, oc¬ 
cupied mostly by Manitoba and Saskatchewan, 
the extremes of an interior continental climate are 
manifest. In Manitoba the summers are hot, 
while during winter the thermometer often 
descends to 50° below zero. However, the dry 
atmosphere of this region mitigates the severity 
of the cold. To the westward and along the 
eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains, the 
climate is much more salubrious, owing to the 
Chinook winds, which modify the severity of the 
winter (See Chinook), while to the west of the 
principal mountain range British Columbia, 
owing to the influence of the warm winds from 
the Pacific, has a comparatively mild climate 
throughout the year (See British Columbia 
subhead Climate). The Yukon and the North¬ 
west Territories have an arctic and sub-arctic 
climate. With the exception of a few areas in 
the center of the great plain, all portions of the 
Dominion have ample rainfall. 

For vegetation and animals, see North Amer¬ 
ica, subheads Vegetation and Animal Life. 

Mineral Resources. Canada is abundantly 
supplied with valuable minerals. Iron of 
excellent quality is found in abundance in Que¬ 
bec, Ontario and British Columbia. The dis¬ 
trict around Lake Superior and Lake Huron has 
valuable deposits of copper and some silver. 
Nova Scotia contains some of the richest coal 
fields in North America, and on Vancouver 
Island in British Columbia are valuable mines of 
bituminous coal, while in Alberta and Saskatche¬ 
wan are found large areas of lignite of good 
quality. The area of the entire coal measures of 
Canada is estimated at about 100,000 square 
miles. Gold has been found in nearly all prov¬ 
inces, but it occurs in paying quantities only 
in Yukon and British Columbia, where gold 
mining has become an important and extended 
industry (See British Columbia; Yukon, 
subhead Mineral Resources). In Ontario occur 
nickel mines, which produce more than half 
of the world’s output of this metal. Petroleum 
and salt are also found in the peninsula between 
Lakes Erie and Ontario, and there are valuable 


quarries of asbestos and building stone, the latter 
being widely distributed through the Dominion. 

Agriculture. The extreme northern part 
of the Dominion is too cold to admit of culti¬ 
vating the soil, but the soil and climate of the 
southern provinces, and of nearly all of the vast 
interior and of the valleys in British Columbia, 
are well adapted to tillage. Agriculture is the 
leading industry of Canada, and seven-tenths 
of the people are engaged in some sort of agri¬ 
cultural occupation. Each province is espe¬ 
cially adapted by soil and climatic conditions to 
certain lines of agriculture, and in every case 
those occupations which are best adapted to each 
locality constitute its chief industries. The 
great interior is being rapidly, developed, and it 
constitutes one of the greatest wheat regions in • 
the world. In general, the important crops are 
wheat, potatoes, oats, barley, peas, beans, beets, 
and, in some locations, tobacco. Cattle, horses 
and sheep are raised in large numbers, and dairy¬ 
ing has become a very important industry, 
Canada ranking as the first country in the 
world as an exporter of cheese. For detailed 
description of Canadian agriculture, see articles 
under the different provinces. 

Lumbering. Canada has a more extensive 
forest area than any other lumber-producing 
country in the world. Beginning with the 
eastern highland region, this extends in an 
unbroken line entirely across the continent south 
of Hudson Bay. It varies in width from 200 
to 300 miles. It contains large quantities of 
spruce, pine, hemlock, balsam and hard woods 
in the eastern portion; quantities of white pine 
in the central and the Douglas fir in the western. 
Lumbering is one of the most important indus¬ 
tries, especially in Quebec, Ontario and British 
Columbia. Much of the product finds a market 
in the United States. 

Fisheries. The fisheries of Canada furnish 
an important industry and are among the most 
valuable in the world. The most extensive 
fisheries are along the Atlantic coast, and the 
inhabitants of the maritime provinces—Prince 
Edward Island, Nova Scotia and New Bruns¬ 
wick—are extensively engaged in this industry. 

In British Columbia the taking and canning of 
salmon is second in importance only to the cod 
fisheries of the Atlantic coast. 

Manufactures. The Dominion has an 
abundance of raw material, and in those prov¬ 
inces where fuel is plenty and convenient there 
are many inducements to the upbuilding of 
manufacturing industries. However, manufac- 







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. 








Canada 


Canada 


turing has developed later than almost any other 
industry of the Dominion, largely because other 
industries yielded good products, and manu¬ 
factured goods could be obtained from the 
United States and Great Britain at less expense 
than they could be produced at home. With the 
development of the country, however, manu¬ 
factures have multiplied. The leading industries, 
aside from the manufacture of lumber, are the 
manufactures of furniture, finishings for inte¬ 
riors, wood pulp, leather, boots and shoes, and in 
Quebec and Ontario, cotton and woolen goods. 
Nova Scotia and some other provinces have 
smelting works and foundries. 

Transportation and Commerce. The Saint 
Lawrence River and its system of canals furnish 
a waterway into the interior of the country (See 
Sault Sainte Marie Canal; Welland Canal). 
The Grand Trunk, Canadian Pacific and Inter¬ 
colonial railways, with connecting lines, furnish 
the eastern and central provinces with ample 
railway facilities. The Canadian Pacific, extend¬ 
ing from Montreal to Vancouver, forms a trunk 
line across the continent. This makes connec¬ 
tion with lines from the United States at Sault 
Sainte Marie, Winnipeg and several other places 
of lesser importance. In all, the Dominion has 
over 25,000 miles of railway. The Grand 
Trunk Pacific, the construction of which has been 
guaranteed by the Dominion government, will, 
when completed, make another transcontinental 
line, extending from Winnipeg, across Saskatch¬ 
ewan, Alberta and British Columbia, to the 
Pacific, and northward through Yukon to Daw¬ 
son, in the Klondike region. This will furnish 
an outlet for a large area of country well adapted 
to agriculture and stock raising. Canada has 
excellent mail facilities and ample telegraph 
and telephone lines for the needs of her popu¬ 
lation. • The commerce is extensive. About 
four-fifths of the exports are sent to the United 
States and Great Britain, and nine-tenths of 
the imports are received from these countries. 
The leading exports are lumber, live stock, 
agricultural products, dairy products, fish, 
coal and other minerals, leather, wood pulp 
and wooden manufactures. The imports con¬ 
sist of manufactured goods, coal, iron, tea, 
coffee, sugar and cotton and woolen fabrics. 
The money system is similar to that of the 
United States, the dollar of one hundred cents 
being the unit. 

Government and Religion. The Domin¬ 
ion of Canada is a federation of states tech¬ 
nically known as provinces. Not yet organized 

33 


as provinces are the Yukon and the Northwest 
Territories. The areas of all the provinces and 
territories are given below in square miles: 


Alberta.- 255,285 

British Columbia. 355,855 

Manitoba. 251,832 

New Brunswick. 27,985 

Nova Scotia. 21,248 

Ontario.407,262 

Prince Edward’s Island . . . 2,184 

Quebee. 706,834 

Saskatchewan. 251,700 

Yukon. 207,076 

Northwest Territories .... 1,921,685 


The chief executive of the Dominion is a 
governor general, appointed by the king of 
England. He is assisted by a council, consisting 
of a prime minister and twelve other ministers, 
heads of departments. The legislative authority 
rests with a Parliament, consisting of two houses, 
the Senate and the House of Commons. The 
Senate consists of members w T ho are nominated 
by the governor general and hold their positions 
for life. Each senator must be a born or natural¬ 
ized subject, thirty years of age, and possessed 
of real or personal property to the value of at 
least $4000 in the province for which he is 
appointed. The House of Commons consists 
of members elected by the people for five years 
and apportioned among the provinces according 
to population. The franchise is uniform, a 
vote being given to every male citizen twenty-one 
years of age and possessed of a small property 
qualification. The Dominion government enacts 
all criminal law, establishes and maintains the 
penitentiaries and also enacts all laws relating to 
bankruptcy, solvency, marriage and divorce, 
naturalization, aliens and indians, and in general 
legislates upon all subjects not expressly assigned 
to the provincial legislatures. Each province 
has a separate parliament and is independent in 
all local matters. The provincial parliaments 
are chosen by popular suffrage, and the executive 
head of each province is a lieutenant governor 
appointed by the national government. Except 
in Nova Scotia and Quebec the provincial par¬ 
liaments are composed of one chamber, generally 
known as the legislative assembly. 

The administration of justice is based on the 
English system, except in the province of Quebec, 
where the old French law prevails. Judges of 
the provincial courts are provided by the 
general government and serve for life or during 
good behavior, but in the case of the province of 
Quebec they must be selected from the bar of 











Canada 


Canada 


that province. Each province has its lower 
courts, which have jurisdiction within the 
county, and also a supreme court, whose juris¬ 
diction extends over the province. The courts 
having jurisdiction throughout the Dominion 
are the exchequer, the marine court and the 
supreme court, which is the ultimate court of 
appeal in civil and criminal cases. Under certain 
conditions cases may be appealed to the king’s 
privy council. 

There is no State Church, and all religious 
beliefs are tolerated. In the province of Quebec 
the Roman Catholic faith predominates. In the 
other provinces the inhabitants are divided 
between the Church of England and the various 
evangelical denominations, Methodists, Presby¬ 
terians, Baptists and Congregationalists. 

Education. Each province manages its 
own educational affairs, on a plan somewhat 
similar to that in vogue in the various states of 
the Union. There is a provincial minister of 
education, who has general oversight over the 
public schools. For a fuller description of the 
educational system, see the subhead Education, 
in the articles treating of the different provinces. 

Cities. The chief cities are Ottawa, the 
capital, Montreal, Toronto, Quebec, Halifax, 
Saint John’s and Vancouver, each of which is 
described under its title. 

History. The Sagas of Iceland tell of the 
voyages of the Vikings, Eric and Leif, to the 
shores of North America, and it was by them, 
probably, that Canada was first visited. These 
ventures, however, amounted to nothing, and 
John Cabot made in 1497 the first real discovery 
of the North American continent. He planted 
on the shores of Newfoundland the standard 
of England, and it was on this that Great Britain 
based her claim to America. Within twenty 
years after Cabot’s visit, fishermen—English, 
Basque and Breton—began to visit the cod 
banks in great numbers. The French explorers 
entered Canada early in the sixteenth century, 
and the energy and good fortune of the French 
allowed them for a time to outstrip the British 
in the newly found territory. Jacques Cartier, 
the greatest of these early explorers, sailed three 
times to the New World between 1534 and 1,542 
and spent the winter of 1535-1536 on the site of 
Quebec. De la Roque, Sieur de Roberval, 
made an attempt to found a colony at Cape 
Rouge in 1541, but his attempt failed utterly. 
For fifty years from this time France paid little 
attention to Canada, although French fishermen 
still frequented the cod banks. The English, 


however, had by no means forgotten it. In 
1583 the first attempt at an English settlement 
was made by Sir Humphrey Gilbert, but his 
colony at Saint John’s, Newfoundland, was 
short-lived. The first permanent settlement in 
Canada was made at Quebec in 1608 by Cham¬ 
plain and a few years later a temporary settle¬ 
ment was made at Montreal. It was by Cham¬ 
plain, too, that the first alliance was made with 
the Hurons and Algonquins, which led later to 
the conflicts with the Iroquois. Quebec rapidly 
became the center of the fur trade, upon which 
the prosperity of New France—as French terri¬ 
tory in Canada was called—was based from first 
to last. 

Richelieu in 1627 organized the Company of 
New France, which held sway in Canada until 
1663 and possessed the monopoly of the fur 
trade. Meanwhile, the Jesuits had appeared in 
Canada, and for many years they exercised the 
most powerful influence over civil affairs there. 
When Colbert came to power in France under 
Louis XIV, the treatment of Canada by France 
was bettered somewhat, because he realized the 
value of the colony to the mother country. The 
fur trade was regulated by new rules, and 
women were taken to the colony from France 
as wives for the colonists. In 1672 Frontenac 
was made governor of New France, and it was 
under his rule that La Salle explored the upper 
Mississippi and that military posts were estab¬ 
lished at Niagara, Mackinac and in the Illinois 
territory. 

There had been, as early as 1629, clashes 
between the French and English in Canada, 
but it was not until the outbreak, in 1689, of 
the first of the so-called French and Indian Wars, 
that the real contest between the French and 
English for supremacy in North America began 
(See French and Indian Wars). In 1763, by 
the Treaty of Paris, France ceded to Great 
Britain Canada and all the territory east of the 
Mississippi, except the city and district of 
New Orleans, and renounced all claims to 
Acadia. 

For some years subsequent to this time, the 
Canadians, who had been harassed for so long 
by war, had a period of rest. The French in 
Canada found that their affairs were as well 
looked after under the new, as under the old, 
government, and that they were to be allowed 
the practice of their religion, and very few of 
them left Canada. From 1760 to 1764 the 
country was under military government, and for 
the ten years following 1764 it was under a pro- 


Canada 


Canada Goose 


visional government which consisted of a gov¬ 
ernor general, assisted by an executive council. 
In 1774 the Quebec Act was passed, which 
united to Canada the Great Lake territory, 
allowed Roman Catholics the free exercise of 
their religion and vested the rule of the territory 
in a governor and a legislative council appointed 
by the crown. 

Shortly after the passage of this act occurred 
the outbreak of the American Revolution. 
This was an important crisis in the history of 
Canada. Emphatic appeals were made to the 
Canadian French to join the American colonies 
in their rebellion; the country was invaded and 
seemed for a time destined to come under the 
control of the thirteen colonies. The province 
remained loyal to England throughout, how¬ 
ever, and the restoration of peace in 1783 
brought to it a distinct gain in the emigration 
from the United States to Canada of over thirty 
thousand American loyalists. These new inhab¬ 
itants proved to be among the foremost of the 
real makers of Canada. The area of Canada, 
however, was decreased by the Treaty of 1783, 
as the territory which forms Michigan, Wiscon¬ 
sin, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois was ceded to the 
United States. In 1791, by the Constitutional 
Act, Canada was divided into two provinces, 
Upper Canada and Lower Canada. Lower 
Canada had at this time a population of perhaps 
one hundred twenty-five thousand, most of whom 
were of French descent, while Upper Canada 
had a population of twenty thousand, who were 
almost entirely English. Each division was 
given a government of three branches: a legis¬ 
lative council to be appointed by the king, an 
assembly chosen by popular vote and a governor 
and executive council to be appointed by the 
king. English laws and institutions were not 
imposed on the French provinces. New Bruns¬ 
wick, Nova Scotia, Cape Breton and Prince 
Edward Island were given administrations similar 
to those of the other two provinces. 

The Constitutional Act by no means settled 
the difficulties in Canada, as from the first much 
dissatisfaction was felt in both provinces. The 
War of 1812 between England and the United 
States drew them together somewhat and united 
them for a time more firmly to the mother 
country, but after the close of the struggle the 
dissatisfaction again became apparent. In 1837 
both Upper and Lower Canada were disturbed 
by an insurrection, and in 1840 it became plain 
to the British government that the wisest policy 
was to reunite them. In 1840, therefore, the 


act to reunite the provinces of Upper and Lower 
Canada became a law. Provision was made 
under the new constitution for a legislative 
council, whose members were to be appointed 
for life by the governor; for a legislative assem¬ 
bly, to consist of an equal number of members 
from Upper and Lower Canada; for a governor, 
to be appointed by the crown, and for an execu¬ 
tive council, to be chosen by the governor from 
the legislative council and the legislative assem¬ 
bly. By an act of the British Parliament in 
1867, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Upper 
and Lower Canada were formally joined into 
one Dominion of Canada, and British Columbia 
and Prince Edward Island were added later. 
The legislature of Newfoundland decided in 
favor of joining the dominion, but the popular 
vote was against the union, and Newfoundland 
remained separate. The vast territory of the 
Hudson Bay Company was purchased by the 
Dominion in 1869, and in 1884 this led to an 
insurrection of colonists and natives under Louis 
Riel. The insurrection was put down, and the 
great so-called Northwestern Territory was after¬ 
ward divided into Keewatin, Mackenzie, Yukon, 
Assiniboia, Saskatchewan, Alberta and Atha¬ 
basca. These last four were in 1905 united in¬ 
to two provinces, Alberta and Saskatchewan. 
In 1914 Canada responded promptly to Great 
Britain’s call for soldiers in the war against 
Germany; the first Canadian contingent com¬ 
prised 30,000 men. See War op the Nations. 

Population. The population is chiefly of 
English, Scotch, French and German descent, 
with many immigrants from these countries and 
the United States. Population, 1911, 7,204,527. 

Canada Balsam, bawl'sam, a resinous sub¬ 
stance obtained from the balsam fir, common in 
Canada and the United States, and also from 
Fraser’s balsam fir and the hemlock spruce. 
It is used in medicine and in making varnishes, 
and because of its almost perfect transparency, 
in the preparation of objects for the micro¬ 
scope. 

Canada Goose, an American wild goose, 
common in temperate North America. It is 
from thirty to thirty-five inches long, is brownish 
above and lighter below, with head, neck, bill 
and feet black and with a white patch over each 
cheek. In early spring Canada geese may be 
seen flying north at a considerable distance 
above the earth in a > shaped flock. At 
their head is a leader, an old gander, who directs 
the flight, and the others following may often 
be heard giving t their loud, coarse “honk” as 


Canal 


Canada Hemp 


they fly past. They breed in the north, and when 
the frosts come they migrate again to the south. 

Canada Hemp, a perennial herb of the dog¬ 
bane family, native of North America. It has 
a strong fiber, used by the indians for making 
twine, nets and various woven fabrics. 

Canada Thistle, one of the most common 
and injurious of all weeds. It grows in the 
United States from New England to the middle 
west and propagates itself by seeds and by its 
creeping roots. It bears purplish flowers about 



three-quarters of an inch in diameter. This 
weed grows very freely in large open fields and 
among various kinds of grains. To prevent 
the growth of the Canada thistle, diligent culti¬ 
vation of the land and alternate sowing of 
heavy, hardy crops are necessary. 

Cana'dian River, a river that rises in the 
northeastern part of New Mexico and flows 
easterly through Texas and Oklahoma and 
unites with the Arkansas at Tamaha. It forms 
a part of the former boundary between Okla¬ 
homa and Indian Territory. The quantity of 
water it carries varies greatly at different seasons. 
Its length is 900 miles. It is the most impor¬ 
tant tributary of the Arkansas. 


Canal', an artificial watercourse for the trans¬ 
portation of goods or passengers by boats or 
ships, or for purposes of drainage or irrigation 
(See Drainage Canal, Chicago; Irrigation). 
This article treats of canals for navigation. 
Probably the first canals were constructed for 
the purposes of irrigation, and there is a tradition 
that the Egyptians constructed a canal across 
the Isthmus of Suez before 2000 b. c. About 
600 B. c. Nebuchadnezzar opened the royal 
canal between the Tigris and the Euphrates 
rivers. While we have no direct evidence of 
the fact, it is supposed that the Chinese were 
familiar with canals long before they were 
known in Europe, and the Grand Canal, com¬ 
pleted by them in the thirteenth century, is the 
first work of its kind after the beginning of the 
Christian era. The Romans constructed many 
canals for navigation, and these may be consid¬ 
ered the origin of the present canal systems of 
Europe. 

Canals are of necessity excavated on a level 
and cannot be adapted to a change in surface 
by grades, as can railroads. When the route 
traversed is so uneven that the construction of 
the canal on one level will involve too great 
expense, it is constructed on two or more levels 
called reaches, and each reach is connected with 
those above or below by the means of locks, 
inclines or lifts (See Lock). All canals are con¬ 
structed on practically the same plan. When the 
excavation is in soft earth, the banks slope and 
the channel is wider at the surface than at the 
bottom. When excavated in rock, the banks 
are usually perpendicular. Canals are carried 
across valleys on embankments or aqueducts. 
The top of the embankment is fashioned into 
the channel, which is lined with cement, but in 
case a bridge is used the structure serves as the 
support of a channel, which is constructed of 
steel or of wood and may or may not be lined with 
cement. The construction of a canal often 
necessitates works of great magnitude, such as 
deep cuts, high embankments, tunnels and 
aqueducts, and on account of the expense entailed 
most canals are government works. In the 
European countries they are constructed by the 
national governments, and in the United States 
some have been constructed by the national 
government and others by state governments. 

Canals vary in size from a small ditch, exca¬ 
vated to connect two bodies of water, to channels 
that will float the largest ocean steamships. 
Those which are constructed for large steamers 
are known as ship canals. In general the bot* 






Canal 


Canaries 


tom of the canal should be twice as wide as the 
widest boat that is to navigate the channel, 
and the depth of water should exceed the draft 
of the largest boats by at least one and one-half 
feet, since it requires less power to move a boat 
through a canal having an abundant supply of 
water than through one whose channel is just 
large enough to admit of the passage of the boat. 

European Canals. Canals have been in 
general use in Europe since the beginning of the 
fifteenth century. The early canals contained 
only one level, but since the invention of the canal 
lock in 1480 they have been constructed to con¬ 
tain numerous levels. One of the most famous 
canals of Europe is the Languedoc Canal, 
connecting the Bay of Biscay with the Mediter¬ 
ranean. This canal was constructed between 
1666 and 1681; it was 148 miles long, contained 
119 locks and had a rise of 600 feet. At the 
time it was the most gigantic work of the kind 
that had been attempted. Many of the rivers 
of Russia, Prance and Germany have been 
canalized , that is, they have been dredged so 
as to make them navigable, and by connecting 
these streams by short canals thousands of 
miles of waterway have been provided, so that 
it is possible for boats to pass between almost 
all of the important commercial cities of Europe. 

American Canals. The first canal in the 
United States was constructed around the falls 
in the Connecticut River at South Hadley, 
Mass., in 1793. Washington and other leading 
statesmen early saw the advantages of canals 
to connect the interior of the country with the 
Atlantic and with adjoining navigable rivers; 
yet it was a long time before any extended works 
were attempted. The Erie Canal, completed 
in 1825, was really the first enterprise in this 
country worthy of note (See Erie Canal). 
Between 1825 and 1850 several important canals 
were constructed. Most of these were for the 
purpose of connecting the Great Lakes with the 
Ohio River, or of connecting the coal mines 
in Pennsylvania with tide water. The last and 
greatest canal undertaken by the United States 
is that across the Isthmus of Panama. See 
Panama Canal. 

A system of canals in the United States and 
southern Canada forms a navigable waterway 
between the Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean, 
by the way of the Saint Lawrence River. These 
canals begin at the rapids of Sault Sainte Marie, 
Michigan. The most important of them are the 
Soo Canal, the Welland Canal and the canals 
around the long Sault, the Cedar and the Lachine 


Rapids in the Saint Lawrence River. Their 
combined length is about 74 miles, and they 
afford the passage of steamers drawing fourteen 
feet of water. The mileage of canals in the 
leading countries of the world is shown in the 
following table: 


COUNTRY. 

MILES. 

Russia. 

12,000 

United States. 

4,300 

Great Britain. 

3,900 

France. 

3,000 

Austria-Hungary. 

2,750 

Germany. 

2,700 


See Erie Canal; Sault Sainte Marie 
Canal; Suez Canal; Welland Canal. 

Canal Do'ver, Ohio, a city in Tuscarawas co., 
75 mi. s. of Cleveland, on the Tuscarawas River, 
the Ohio Canal and on the Baltimore & Ohio 
and several lines of the Pennsylvania railroad. 
It is near deposits of coal, iron and other minerals, 
and it contains iron and steel mills and manu¬ 
factures of racing sulkies, roofing and other 
articles. It was settled in 1807 and was incor¬ 
porated in 1865. Population in 1910, 6621. 

Canaletto, kah'na let’to, Antonio (1697- 
1768), a Venetian painter who excelled in 
architectural painting. He is chiefly celebrated 
for his pictures of Venice, which give accurate 
and striking views of palaces, churches and promi¬ 
nent buildings. Bernardo Belotti (1724- 
1780), a nephew of Antonio who was a member 
of the Academy of Painters. Both painters 
developed the pictorial treatment of architecture 
to a high point. 

Canal Zone. See Panama Canal. 

Canandaigua, lean’an da'gwah, N. Y., the 
county-seat of Ontario co., on Canandaigua 
Lake, 29 mi. s. e. of Rochester, on the New 
York Central and the Northern Central railroads. 
The manufactures include agate ware, tinware, 
leather and malt liquors. The town was first 
settled in 1789 and became a village in 1815. 
Population in 1910, 7217. 

Cana'ries or Canary Islands, a cluster of 
islands in the Atlantic, 60 or 70 mi. w. of the 
northwest coast of Africa, belonging to Spain. 
They are thirteen in number, seven of which are 
of considerable size: Palma, Ferro, Gomera, 
Teneriffe, Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura and 
Lancerota. All are volcanic, rugged and moun¬ 
tainous, frequently presenting precipitous cliffs 
to the sea. The principal peak is that of Ten¬ 
eriffe, 12,182 feet. The area of the whole has 
been estimated at 2850 square miles. The fine 
climate and the fertility, which owes little to 
cultivation, justified the ancient name of Fortu- 







Canary 


Cancer 


note Islands. There are no rivers of note, 
though streams are not infrequent. The exports 
consist of cochineal, wine, raw silk and fruits. 
Of the Guanches, the mysterious tribe who orig¬ 
inally inhabited these islands, we know little. 
The islands were discovered and conquered by 
the Spaniards between 1316 and 1334; they then 
passed into the hands of the Portuguese, but 
were reconquered toward the end of the fifteenth 
century by the Spaniards, who subdued the 
inhabitants and now constitute the great bulk of 
the population. The fortified capital is Santa 
Cruz, and the city Laguna is the seat of the 
Roman Catholic bishop. The Canaries form a 
Spanish province. Population in 1910, 418,809. 

Canary, a small finch, originally from the 
Canary Islands, but introduced, into Europe 
several hundred years ago. Canaries have been 
bred in captivity so long that many remarkable 
varieties have developed, scarcely resembling 
the greenish little bird of Madeira. The top- 
knots of some, the long, slender shapes of others, 
the yellows, browns, reds and blacks seen in 
their plumage are all unnatural. The Scotch 
fancy canary, with his long, slender, curved body, 
bent almost to a semicircle, is one of the strangest 
results of breeding. In the Harz Mountains 
and other parts of Germany and in the British 
Islands, the raising of canaries is quite an impor¬ 
tant industry, and large prices are paid for the 
highest type of singing birds. In the United 
States a good bird may often be bought for a 
dollar, but sometimes $150 has not been con¬ 
sidered too high a price to pay for an especially 
fine singer. The birds require a clean cage, 
good seed, some green food, lime and plenty of 
cold water. Beyond this they need little care 
and thrive almost anywhere. Several books 
have been written on the care of canaries, among 
which may be mentioned Holden's Canaries 
and Cage Birds. In the United States the name 
wild canary is often given to the American gold¬ 
finch, or thistle bird, which, though entirely 
different, does somewhat resemble the captive 
canaries. See American Goldfinch; Birds, 
color plate, Fig. 3. 

Canary Seed, the seed of the canary grass. 
The seed is used as food in the Canaries, Bar¬ 
bary and Italy. It has been successfully culti¬ 
vated in England and the European continent, 
where it is used extensively as a food for cage 
birds. 

Canary Wood, the light orange-colored wood 
of two trees of the laurel family, belonging to the 
Canaries and Madeira. 


Can'by, Edward Richard Sprigg (1819— 
1873), an American soldier, born in Kentucky. 
He graduated at West Point, served on the 
frontier and took an active part in the Mexican 
War. In 1861 he became colonel of the Nine¬ 
teenth United States infantry, distinguished 
himself in various positions and during the draft 
riots in New York City had command of the 
United States troops. He captured Mobile, 
and at the end of the war he received from 
General Richard Taylor the surrender of the 
last Confederate army in the field. In 1873, 
Canby was sent, with two others, as commissioner 
to treat with the Modoc indians, who, under 
their chief, “Captain Jack” had sought refuge 
in the lava beds of Oregon. He was treacher¬ 
ously killed with his companions, while under a 
flag of truce. 

Cancellation, Jcan'sel la'shun, in mathematics 
the process of striking out equal factors in the 
dividend and the divisor. It is based upon the 
principle that if a number is multiplied by 
another number and its product is divided by the 
same number, the two operations offset each 
other, or cancel; hence, both operations may be 


. , „ . 5X3 6^X4 

omitted, lor instance, —-— = o; —-— 


8 . 


See Arithmetic. 

Cancer, Jcan’sur, the common name of a 
malignant tumor growing in some part of the 
body. At the center of the growth, which 
gradually penetrates the tissues, the cancer ele¬ 
ments predominate, while nearer the margin they 
become fewer, and, finally, along the lymphatics, 
there are only small isolated groups of cancer 
cells. This makes it difficult for the surgeon 
to cut out the growth completely, and gives rise 
to the popular notion that a cancer has roots. 
Cancers are divided into two classes, sarcomas 
and carcinomas, or true cancers. Sarcomas 
spread by the blood, which carries cells to 
various parts of the body, where they set up 
little colonies. This form of cancer is not 
hereditary, but it is common in early life and 
occurs at any age. It may follow injury or 
develop in preexisting mild growths. If the 
skin or membrane at the surface gives way, the 
sarcoma projects as a bleeding mass. 

In carcinomas, or true cancers, the cells multi¬ 
ply rapidly. Extension occurs usually by the 
lymphatics and rarely by the blood vessels. 
Cancer rarely occurs in people under forty. 
Its development is often started by local irrita¬ 
tion, as by a pipe stem on the lip, gallstones in the 
gall bladder and the rubbing of a corset steel on 




Cancer 

the breast. Continued irritation or a single 
injury may excite the growth. Heredity seems 
to have some influence, though this may be 
simply heredity of the habits that predispose to 
cancer—such as excessive feeding, disproportion¬ 
ate use of meats and the excessive use of salt. 
The parasitic origin of cancer is often urged, 
but it has never been proved. Cancer is more 
common in women, and it is rare in those who are 
tuberculous. It is increasing in some countries. 

In all forms of cancer the favorite treatment 
is early and complete removal by knife, cautery 
or chemical caustics. Cutting off the blood 
supply checks the growth. The Roentgen or 
X-ray is being applied to external cancer, with 
asserted benefit and some undoubted cures. 
The injection of solutions of nucleinic acid into 
and around the tumor is being extensively tried, 
and the reports are exceedingly encouraging. 

Cancer, (the crab), the fourth sign of the 
zodiac, entered by the sun on or about the 
twenty-first of June and quitted a month later. 
The symbol is 235. The constellation of Cancer 
is no longer in the sign of Cancer, but at 
present occupies the place of the sign of Leo (See 
Zodiac). The Tropic of Cancer is the name 
given to the northern tropic. See Tropics. 

Candahar, kahn da hah/. See Kandahar. 

Can'dia. See Crete. 

Can'dle, an artificial material for making 
light, made by running tallow, wax, spermaceti 
or paraffin around a wick. Ancient Roman 
candles consisted of the pith of a kind of rush, 
surrounded with tallow or wax. In England, 
during the Anglo-Saxon period, ordinary candles 
were merely masses of fat plastered round 
splinters of wood. Candles are made by two 
processes, dipping and molding, but chiefly by 
the latter. In large manufactories, machinery 
is employed in molding as well as in dipping. 
Wax candles are seldom molded, on account of 
their adhesion to the molds and their contrac¬ 
tion in cooling. A different method of manu¬ 
facture, termed basting, is accordingly resorted 
to. Wax candles are still employed in the 
Catholic and Greek churches, as indispensable 
accessories of the altar. Sperm candles are 
composed of spermaceti mixed with beeswax. 
Paraffin candle manufacture is now carried on 
on a most extensive scale. Paraffin candles are 
much in demand on account of their cheapness 
and the clearness and brilliancy of their light. 
The indians of Alaska make candles of a fish 
called the candlefish. They run a wooden or 
rush wick through the body lengthwise, then 


Candy Making 

dry the fish. When lighted at the tail, it bums 
like a candle. 

Can'dleber'ry or Wax Tree or Wax Myrtle, 

a shrub growing from four to eighteen feet high, 
and common in North America, where candles 
are made from its small berries, which are covered 
with a greenish-white wax, popularly known as 
bayberry tallow. The wax is collected by 
boiling the berries in water and skimming the 
surface. A bushel of berries yields from four to 
five pounds of wax. 

Candlefish, a sea fish of the salmon family, 
of about the size of the smelt, frequenting the 
northwestern shores of America. It is con¬ 
verted by the indians into a candle, simply by 
passing the pith of a rush or a strip of the bark 
of the cypress tree through it as a wick, when 
its extreme oiliness keeps the wick blazing. 
The oil is extracted and is sometimes used as a 
substitute for cod-liver oil. 

Can'dlemas, a church feast, instituted in 492 
in commemoration of the presentation of Christ 
in the temple and of the purification of Mary. 
It falls on February 2, and on this day, among 
Catholics, lighted candles are carried about in 
procession, and all candles and tapers which are 
to be used in the churches during the entire 
year are consecrated. The feast is retained by 
the Anglican Church and is also observed by 
the Lutherans. See Woodchuck. 

Candle-nut, the nut of a tree of India, Java, 
the Moluccas and the Pacific islands. It is 
about the size of a walnut and yields an oil used 
for food and for lamps, while the oily kernels 
are also strung together and lighted as torches. 

Candy Making. The chief ingredient of 
candy is sugar. A small amount of glucose is 
added to the sugar to give the proper consis¬ 
tency. This composition is boiled in water 
until the syrup is thick and almost clear. This 
syrup is then poured out upon huge marble 
slabs, where it is allowed to cool for a time. 
It is then worked by means of long iron paddles, 
much as a plasterer would stir mortar. Under 
this treatment it becomes hard, white and almost 
crystalline. This process is sometimes carried 
on in copper kettles, which not only cook the 
ingredients,, but beat them white and hard by 
means of a rotating dasher. The candy is now 
ready to be cast into various sizes and shapes. 
Candy is cast in cornstarch molds. The starch 
is placed in narrow, shallow boxes and smoothed 
off at the top. The boxes are run under a press, 
the lower part of which is covered by projec¬ 
tions of just the size required. When the press 


Cane 


Cannes 


goes down, a little hammer taps the top of it 
automatically, and the cornstarch is punctured 
with rows of smooth, clear-cut holes. When the 
molds are complete, they are filled from a tank 
with cream candy. Marshmallows are cast in 
the same way. When the candy in the molds is 
dry and hard, the boxes are taken to a machine 
called the “starch-buck.” Here the starch and 
candy are dumped into a hopper, under which 
is a series of sieves. The starch falls through 
the meshes, and the candy is carried on through 
a series of brushes to take off the remaining starch. 

Chocolate creams are dipped by means of a 
little wire spoon, after which they are placed on 
a piece of oilcloth and set in a frame to dry. 
For the manufacture of lozenges and candy 
hearts, the sugar is mixed cold in large tubs, 
and the lozenges are pressed out in molds. Mot¬ 
toes are printed on the hearts with a rubber 
stamp. For cocoanut candy, the nutfe are 
bought whole, and the hard, white meat is taken 
out and placed in a kettle, where it is boiled 
and violently stirred at the same time, by means 
of rotating dashers. Sugar is added, and when 
the mass is sufficiently cooked it is placed on a 
marble slab and rolled down even with a long, 
cylindrical roller. Cocoanut is colored and 
molded into various forms and is sliced up in 
strips with a patent cutting machine. Caramels 
are made of sugar and pure cream, carefully 
boiled together until the product is of proper 
consistency, and then poured on marble slabs 
to cool. They are then cut and wrapped. 
Hard candy is made of sugar boiled over an 
open fire and then colored in various shades. 
The batches are mixed and rolled out by hand 
until they are the size of an ordinary stick of 
candy, after which they are cut up into the 
regular lengths. Rock candy and many of the 
sugared nuts are made by crystallizing sugar. 
A tin box, in which numerous strings run from 
top to bottom, is filled with sugar and set away 
in a warm place. The crystals of sugar form 
on the strings and harden there, thus making 
the well-known rock candy. In the same way 
crystals are allowed to form on almonds and 
other nuts and fruit. 

Cane, a term sometimes loosely applied to 
any small and smooth rod, of the thickness of 
a walking stick or less; but more correctly 
limited to the stems of the smaller palms and 
the larger grasses. We thus speak of sugar 
cane or bamboo cane among the latter; while 
among the former this name is particularly 
appropriated to the species of the rattan. To 


this genus belong the canes largely imported 
from the tropical regions of the East, for making 
bottoms of chairs and couches. 

Canel'la, White, a tree belonging to the 
West Indies, growing to the height of 10 to 50 
feet, with a straight stem, branched only at the 
top. It is covered with a whitish bark, which 
is freed from its outward covering, dried in the 
shade and brought to Europe in long quills, 
somewhat thicker than those of cinnamon. It 
is moderately warm to the taste and is esteemed 
as a pleasing and aromatic bitter. 

Cane Sugar. See Sugar, subhead Cane 
Sugar. 

Ca'nis Ma'jor, (the greater dog), a constella¬ 
tion of the southern hemisphere, remarkable 
because it contains Sirius, or the Dog Star, the 
brightest of all stars. 

Can'ister. See Case Shot. 

Can'ker, the name given to a collection of 
small ulcers in the mouth, especially of a child. 
Canker is also the name of a disease to which 
fruit trees are especially liable. It begins in 
the younger shoots and gradually extends to the 
trunk, in time killing the tree. 

Cankerworm, the destructive larva of certain 
moths, very common in northeastern United 
States and Canada. Cankerworms attack 
apple and pear trees, especially, though other 
trees suffer when the insects are numerous. 
The larvae appear at about the same time as 
the leaves, and they are voracious feeders. 
When disturbed they drop from the leaves and 
hang suspended on silk threads. If they reach 
the ground they must climb the trunk to resume 
their feeding. The female is compelled to climb 
the trunk in order to lay her eggs, and accord¬ 
ingly the defense against cankerworms is to 
surround the trees in spring time by bands, 
over which the insects cannot crawl. See 
Measuring Worm. 

Cannae, lean* nee, a town of south Italy, 
province of Bari, near the mouth of the Ofanto, 
formerly the Aufidus River. The place is of 
historical importance, because it was the scene 
of the battle in which the Roman army sus¬ 
tained a terrible defeat by Hannibal in 216 B. C. 
The Romans numbered 80,000 infantry and 
6000 cavalry, whereas Hannibal’s army con¬ 
sisted of 10,000 cavalry, but only about 40,000 
infantry. Of the Romans 70,000 fell, including 
the consul Lucius Paulus and eighty men of 
senatorial rank. Hannibal lost not quite 6000 

Cannes, lean, a seaport of France, on the shore 
of the Mediterranean, in the Department of 


Cannibal 


Cannon 


Alpes-Maritimes, famous as a winter resort, 
and as the place where Napoleon landed when 
he returned from Elba, March 1, 1815. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 26,000. 

Can'nibai, a person who eats human flesh. 
The Spanish discoverers found the practice of 
eating human flesh to exist among the Caribs, 
a West Indian tribe, and from their name came 
the word cannibal. Since that time it has been 
found that the practice existed among ignorant 
and barbarous tribes in all parts of the world. 
In some instances cannibalism seems to have 
been of the nature of a religious rite, the victims 
being first sacrificed to a god and later eaten; 
but in many other cases the practice appears 
to have been rather the natural result of ferocity 
or to have originated in a natural demand for flesh. 
Only a few of the indian tribes of the United 
States indulged in cannibalism to any great extent. 

Can'ning, a process of preserving fruits, 
vegetables and meats, by enclosing them in air¬ 
tight cans. This process was discovered in 
1795 by a Frenchman named Nicholas Appert, 
and it was introduced into the United States 
about 1815, though as an industry canning was , 
not developed until some time after that date. 
The principle underlying canning is that the 
germ which causes fermentation must be killed 
or driven off from the articles in order 
to preserve them. Since heating always kills 
this germ, the articles are cooked either before 
or after being placed in the can. In most of 
the factories in the United States the fruits and 
vegetables are first cleaned and sliced, then 
placed in cans. The covers are soldered on 
and a small hole is left in the cover to allow the 
steam to escape. The cans are then placed in 
a steam boiler and subjected to a high tempera¬ 
ture, until the contents are thoroughly cooked. 
The vents are then closed by placing a drop’ of 
solder over them, the cans are run through a 
tank of water, as a test for leakage, are then 
allowed to cool and finally are labeled and 
packed for market. 

Canning has become an important industry 
in the United States. By its means nearly all 
fruits are preserved in excellent condition, and 
such vegetables as green corn, beans, peas and 
tomatoes are canned in large quantities. Both 
fresh and salt meats are preserved in this man¬ 
ner in the packing houses, and the canning of 
salmon is one of the most important industries 
on the Pacific coast. Menhaden, sardines, hali¬ 
but and other fish are also preserved in large 
quantities in this way. 


Canning, George (1770-1827), a British 
statesman. Three years after entering Parlia¬ 
ment in 1793, he was under-secretary of state, 
and in the following year he began the publi¬ 
cation of a satirical paper, the Anti-Jacobin. 
From 1804 to 1806 he was treasurer of the navy, 
and he twice held office as secretary for foreign 
affairs. In the movements for the abolition of 
the slave trade, the repeal of the Corn Laws 
and Catholic emancipation he was deeply inter¬ 
ested, and his efforts had much to do with the 
ultimately successful outcome of the agitation 
on these questions. He was made prime min¬ 
ister in 1827, but he died in the same year. 

Canning, Stratford, Sir. See Stratford 
de Redcliffe, Viscount. 

Can'non, a big gun or piece of ordnance. 

Historical Development. The precise 
period at which engines for projecting missiles 
by mechanical force were supplanted by those 
utilizing explosive materials is a matter of con¬ 
troversy, the invention of cannon being even 
attributed to the Chinese, from whom the Sara¬ 
cens may have acquired the knowledge. They 
were brought into use in France as early as 1338. 
At first they were made of wood, well secured 
by iron hoops, the earliest being somewhat con¬ 
ical, with wide muzzles, and the later, cylin¬ 
drical. They were then made of iron bars 
firmly bound together with iron hoops like casks. 
Bronze was used in the second half of the four¬ 
teenth century, toward the close of which cast-iron 
ordnance came into use. A form of breech¬ 
loading cannon was introduced in the sixteenth 
century. Cannon were formerly dignified with 
great names. Twelve cast by Louis XII were 
called after the twelve peers of France, and 
Charles V had twelve called after the twelve 
apostles. Later, such names as the following 
came into general use; cannon royal, or car- 
thoun, carrying 48 pounds; culverin, 18; demi- 
culverin, 9; falcon, 6; basilisk, 48; siren, 60. 
Cannon were then named from the weight of 
the balls which they carried—6-pounders, 
12-pounders; but they are now usually desig¬ 
nated by their caliber or diameter of bore. Thus 
a gun with a bore 6 inches in diameter is called 
a 6-inch gun; with a bore of 8 inches, an 8-inch 
gun, etc. 

Great improvements and changes in the 
manufacture of cannon have been introduced 
in recent times. Not long ago they were all 
made of iron, brass or gun metal (a variety of 
bronze), by casting. The introduction ot ritied 
small arms led the way to that of rifled cannon 


Cannon 

and the adoption of heavy armor for ships of 
war rendered guns of enormous power and 
magnitude necessary in order to penetrate 
their sides. The increased inertia of the pro¬ 
jectiles and their rapid rotation in these rifled 
guns tried the piece so severely that cast iron 
and bronze were discarded in favor of steel. 

Manufacture. The process of making 
modern cannon begins in the office of the factory 
draughtsman, and the drawings and figures of 
every dimension are made with the greatest 
accuracy. Specifications when completed go to 
the shop, where the forgings of steel are all in 
waiting. The gun is made up of a central tube, 
covered by a jacket, which is bound by rings on 
the outside. The gun goes through a long 
course of lathes and boring machines; some of 
these lathes are 130 feet long, have a swing of 8 
feet and are capable of boring a gun 50 feet long 
and weighing more than 120 tons. The gun 
may be turned on the outside and bored on the 
inside at the same time. When a gun leaves the 
lathe it is carried along to a revolving machine, 
by a traveling crane overhead. The revolving 
machine plows the interior surface of the gun 
with a spiral groove, which gives the shell a 
rotary motion when fired. These cuttings are 
made accurate to the thousandth part of an inch. 
The climax of the operation is the assembling 
of the gun. The principle of the whole process 
lies in keeping the tube of the cannon cool and 
expanding the jacket by means of hot air so it 
will slip easily over the tube. When the jacket 
cools it contracts and grasps the tube almost as 
closely as if they were one piece of metal The 
heating is done entirely by hot air. In the pit 
there is one furnace filled with coils of pipe, 
through which air is forced by a compressing 
pump. The air underneath is heated by a gas 
fire. In this condition it is forced through the 
cylindrical compartment in which stands the 
gun-jacket and is passed off by a chimney. After 
the heating process has gone on for a day or two, 
the lid of the jacket apartment is lifted and the 
top of the steel cylinder is measured to see if 
the expansion has made it large enough to fit 
over the tube. It is necessary that the inside 
diameter of the jacket be about one tenth of an 
inch greater than the exterior ot the tube. The 
tube of the cannon is placed upright in the pit, 
for the reception of the jacket. Inside of the 
tube cold water is kept flowing, so that the steel 
will be as much contracted as possible. When all 
io ready, the lid of the jacket apartment is thrown 
open, and the traveling crane carries the jacket 


Cannon 

directly over the tube, where it is accurately 
plumbed, so that it will slip down over the tube 
without touching it. This operation must be 
performed very quickly, so that the jacket will 
not contract too much. After the jacket has 
been put on, the gun remains in the pit for about 
two days to cool, when it is taken to the lathe 
again to be prepared for the hoops, or cylindrical 
pieces of steel. Nine of these are shrunk on 
while the gun is in a horizontal position. There 
are other methods by which cannon are built, 
and sometimes they are made of successive hoops 
of steel laid one about another so that each layer 
will shrink upon the other. Successful experi¬ 
ments have been tried in winding a gun with 
heavy square wire; but the cannon whose manu¬ 
facture we have described at length is the one 
that has developed into the tremendous modern 
engine. 

Use. A cannon must deliver an accurate, 
destructive and rapid fire without harm to 
its gun crew, and must be adapted to the distinct 
purpose for which it is to be used. The engineer 
in planning the gun must provide for the strains 
which are due to its weight and the tendency ol 
the explosion to tear the gun either lengthwise or 
crosswise. The powder chamber is slightly 
larger than the bore and slopes down to it. The 
slower burning powders are gradually coming 
into use, and in this way the force is communi¬ 
cated to the shell gradually, and some of the 
terrific strain upon the breech is relieved and 
distributed along the barrel toward the muzzle. 
Cannon are never placed in use until after they 
have been carefully tested, both for strength 
and accuracy. The breech of the cannon is an 
improved piece of mechanism which must move 
swiftly and smoothly into its place and yet be 
strong enough to bear the terrific recoil of the 
discharge. Various forms of mechanism are in 
use, but in the United States most of the cannon 
are fitted with what is called the interrupted 
screw. In the latest modification of this, the 
breech block is divided into twelve or more 
longitudinal sections, every fourth one of which 
is blank, while the others have screw threads and 
vary in diameter. One-twelfth of a turn of 
the breech block will engage three-fourths of its 
surface into the breech. The Vickers-Maxim 
breech mechanism, adopted recently for the 
heavy guns in the United States navy, has the 
advantage of ejecting automatically the exploded 
primer and raising the new load into position at 
the gun breech. See Gun Carriage; Artil¬ 
lery. 


Cannon 

Cannon, Joseph G. (1836- ), an American 

lawyer and statesman, born at Guilford, N. C. 
He was admitted to the bar in Illinois and was 
state’s attorney for Vermilion County (1861- 
1868). From 1873 to 1891 and from 1893 to 



1913 he served in the House of Representatives. 
He was again elected for the term 1915 to 1917. 
Cannon was for years the Republican leader in 
the House, was a member of important com¬ 
mittees, served several terms as speaker, and was 
frequently mentioned as a candidate for presi¬ 
dent of the United States. 

Cano, kah'no, Alonso (1601-1667), a painter, 
sculptor and architect, who has been called the 
Michelangelo of Spain. He studied painting 
under Herrera. He first made himself known 
by his statues for the great church of Lebrija, 
and he came to the notice of the king, who 
appointed him court painter and architect. 
Later he was given a position in Granada, his 
native town, and he remained there until his 
death. His works show accuracy, combined 
with simplicity and great beauty. 

Canoe, lea noo f , a light boat, narrow in the 
beam and propelled by paddles, often in con¬ 
junction with sails. The name was originally 
given to the boats of uncivilized races, but its 
application has been considerably extended, and 
canoes of home make may be seen on the waters 
of most civilized countries. They are of the 
most diverse materials and construction. The 
simplest ones were hollowed out of a single log 


Canova 

and were known as dugouts. The indian canoes 
of Canada are of birch bark covering a wooden 
frame. The Eskimo kaiak consists of a light 
wooden frame covered with seal skins sewed 
together with sinews, and having only one open¬ 
ing to admit the boatman to his seat. In the 
islands of the Pacific the natives have double 
canoes, united by a strong platform and serving 
in this way as one vessel. See Canoeing. 

Canoeing, lea noo'ing, a summer sport that 
has gained considerable popularity in all parts 
of the country. The canoes are of various 
forms and sizes and may be propelled entirely 
by paddling or by the use of sails. A canoe is 
sharp at both ends; the form most commonly 
seen in paddling resembles somewhat the 
indian birch bark canoe and is known as the 
open Canadian canoe. This, with a form almost 
as popular, known as the decked canoe, is shown 
in the accompanying drawing. Canoeing is a 
delightful pastime wherever there are lakes, 
rivers and forests. The boat draws little water 
and under skillful management can be taken 
successfully through rapids and can be sent with 
great speed over the still water. Every summer 
many people leave the cities on camping excur¬ 
sions and with their canoes are able to explore 



CANOES 


many delightful places that otherwise would be 
entirely inaccessible. There are canoe clubs in 
many localities, and there is also a national 
association, which provides for meets and racing 

Canon, kan'yon. See Canyon. 

Canova, ka no'va, Antonio (1757-1822), an 
Italian artist, one of the most prominent figures 
of modern times in the field of sculpture. At 
the Academy of Venice he had a brilliant career, 
and in 1779 he was sent by the senate of Venice 
to Rome, where he produced his Theseus and 
the Slain Minotaur. In 1783 Canova undertook 
the execution of the tomb of Pope Clement XIV 
in the Church of the Apostles, a work inferior to 
his second and perhaps his best public monument, 
the tomb of Pope Clement XIII in Saint Peter’s. 
Psyche and Butterfly, Hebe, the colossal Herodes 








Canovas del Castillo 


Canton 


Hurling Lichas into the Sea, the Pugilists and 
the group of Cupid and Psyche are among his 
more noted works. In 1796 and 1797 Canova 
finished the model of the celebrated tomb of the 
archduchess Christina of Austria and made the 
colossal model of a statue of the king of Naples. 
He afterward executed in Rome his Perseus 
with the Head of Medusa, which, when the 
Belvedere Apollo was carried to France, was 
thought not unworthy of its place and pedestal. 
In 1802 he was invited by Bonaparte to Paris to 
make the model of his colossal statue. 

Canovas del Castillo, hah'no vas del ha steel ' 
yo, Antonio (1828-1897), a Spanish statesman. 
He became a journalist, soon drifted into politics 
and in 1852 was elected to the Cortes. His 
views from the outset were always liberal-con¬ 
servative, and he was prominent in the move¬ 
ment for placing Alfonso XII on the throne. 
He was prime minister of Spain in 1874 and 
1875, and during the next twenty years he held 
the office several times. He was killed by an 
anarchist. 

Can'so, Gut, or Strait, of, a narrow strait 
or channel, about 17 miles long, separating Nova 
Scotia from Cape Breton Island. One of the 
Atlantic cables lands here. 

Canta'brian Mountains, the general name 
given to the various mountain ranges extending 
from the western Pyrenees along the north coast 
of Spain to Cape Finisterre. Their length is 
slightly over 300 miles, and in elevation they vary 
from 3000 to 8800 feet. The highest peaks are 
near the center of the range. They present 
numerous bold promontories and headlands 
along the coast. 

Cantaloupe, ban'ta loop, a small round 
variety of muskmelon, globular, ribbed, of pale 
green or yellow color, and of delicate flavor. It 
was first grown in Europe at the castle of Canta¬ 
loupe. 

Cantata, ban tah'ta, a name given to a class 
of musical and vocal compositions, usually in 
the form of oratorios, including solo and chorus 
numbers and instrumental accompaniment. The 
cantata is shorter than either oratorio or opera, 
and when written upon a sacred theme, differs 
from the former in being less symbolical; when 
written upon a secular theme, it differs from 
opera in its lack of scenic accessories. See 
Opera; Oratorio; Music. 

Canterbury, ban'tur ber'ry, a city of England, 
in Kent, 55 mi. e. s. e. of London. It is especially 
famous for its cathedral, which was built between 
the eleventh and fifteenth centuries and is a 


magnificent specimen of the different styles of 
Gothic architecture. Here was situated the 
famous shrine of Thomas h Becket, to which 
multitudes of pilgrims came annually. Among 
the other churches here are Saint Martin’s and 
Saint Dunstan’s, both of which are famous. 
There is also a grammar school, founded by 
Henry VIII; Jesus Hospital, founded in 1595; 
a guild hall, and an art gallery. The chief trade 
of the town is in hops and grain, and the city 
was formerly noted for its silk manufactures and 
for its damask linen. Canterbury existed before 
the Roman invasion, was made an important 
military station by the Romans and later became 
the capital of the Saxon kingdom of Kent. The 
archbishopric was founded in 597. The most 
famous of the archbishops have been Saint 
Augustine, Saint Dunstan, Thomas h Becket, 
Cranmer and Laud. The archbishop of Canter¬ 
bury is the primate of all England. He crowns 
the ruler in Westminster Abbey and is given 
many other privileges. Population in 1911, 
24,628. 

Can'tilev'er. See Bridge, subhead Can- 

tilever Bridges. 

Canton', (Chinese, Kuang-chow-foo), a nim- 
portant city of southern China, in the province 
of Kwang-tung (of which name Canton is a 
corruption). The city proper is enclosed by a 
wall seven miles in extent, and is divided into 
two parts by a wall running east and west, the 
larger portion, north of this wall, being called 
the old, that on the south of it, the new, city. 
It is also defended by four strong forts, erected 
on hills on the north side. The foreign mer¬ 
cantile houses and the British, French and 
American consulates have as their special 
quarter an area in the suburbs of the southwest 
of the city, with water on two sides of it. In 
the European quarter are churches, schools and 
other buildings in the European style. The 
river opposite the city for the space of four or 
five miles is crowded with boats, a large number 
of which are fixed residences of many thousands 
of people. The industries of Canton are varied 
and important, embracing the manufacture of 
silks, cotton goods, porcelain, glass, paper, 
sugar, lacquered ware, firecrackers and metal 
goods. It was the chief foreign emporium in 
China until 1850, when Shanghai began to sur¬ 
pass it and other ports to compete with it. Can¬ 
ton was not formally opened to foreign trade 
until the close of the seventeenth century. In 
1841 the British captured the forts of Canton 
and retired from the city only on the payment 


Canton 

of £6,000,500. From 1857 to 1861 the city was 
again occupied by the British and French armies. 
Population, estimated at about 900,000. 

Can'ton, III., a city in Fulton co., 28 mi. 
s. w. of Peoria, on the Chicago, Burlington & 
Quincy and the Toledo, Peoria & Western rail¬ 
roads. It is in a fertile agricultural district and 
has coal mines and manufactures of implements, 
cigars, tile and brick. The town was settled 
about 1832 and now owns its waterworks. Pop¬ 
ulation in 1910, 10,453. 

Canton, Ohio, the county-seat of Stark co., 
60 miles s. e. of Cleveland, on the Pennsylvania, 
the Baltimore & Ohio and the Cleveland & 
Canton railroads. It is situated in a wheat¬ 
growing district, with coal, limestone and pot¬ 
tery clay in the vicinity. The manufactures of 
agricultural implements, iron bridges, machinery 
and stoves are the principal industries. The 
city has electric lights, street railways and well- 
paved streets. It was for many years the home 
of the late President McKinley. Population in 
1910, 50,217. 

Canute' (about 994-1035), king of England, 
Denmark and Norway. He became king of 
England on the death of his father, Sweyn, in 
1014, and confirmed the Danish power in Eng¬ 
land. He began by devastating the eastern 
coast and extended his ravages in the south, 
where, however, he failed to establish himself 
until after the assassination of Edmund Ironside, 
when he was accepted king of the whole of 
England (1017). Canute, who began his reign 
with barbarity and crime, afterward became a 
humane and wise monarch. He restored the 
English customs at a general assembly, ensured 
to the Danes and English equal rights and equal 
protection of person and property and even 
advanced English subjects to the most important 
posts. At the death of his brother in 1018 he 
gained Denmark; in 1028 he conquered Norway, 
and in 1031 he made Malcolm of Scotland admit 
his superiority. 

Can'vas, a strong, coarse cloth, usually made 
of hemp or flax. It is extensively used for sails, 
tejits and awnings. The canvas used for the 
sails of large vessels is made of flax and is called 
sailcloth. A lighter and thinner variety, called 
duck, and made of linen or cotton, is used for 
small sails. Duck of finer quality is a favorite 
material for men’s- and women’s summer outing 
costumes. The canvas used by artists for oil 
paintings is usually of linen. 

Ganvasback, a sea duck living in the inland 
waters of North America, where it feeds upon 


Cape Breton 

the roots of the wild celery. It is a large bird, 
and, as it is considered the finest of water fowl 
for the table, it is being hunted to extinction. 
The plumage is black, white, chestnut-brown 
and slate color. As it has a reddish head, it is 
often confused with the redhead, a duck that 
is often substituted for it in the markets. 

Can'yon or Canon, the Spanish word for tube 
or funnel, applied by the Spanish Americans, 
and hence in North America generally, to long 
and narrow river gorges or deep ravines with 
precipitous and almost perpendicular sides. 
Canyons are numerous in the Rocky and Sierra 
Nevada mountains, and some of them, particu¬ 
larly the canyons of the Yellowstone, Yosemite 
Valley and the Grand Canyon of the Colorado, 
are numbered with the world’s greatest scenic 
wonders. 

Caoutchouc, koo'chook. - See India Rubber. 

Cap, a covering for the head. It differs 
from a hat in having no brim. Caps made of 
worsted, fur or some other soft material, with 
or without a visor, are worn by men and in some 
countries by women. Among the ancient Greeks 
and Romans, caps were worn as a sign of free¬ 
dom; hence, the cap became in all nations a 
symbol of liberty. A cap made of lace and silk 
or muslin was formerly a fashionable style of 
head-dress for women, but is now not much 
worn except by servants. 

Cape Ann, a promontory off the northeast 
coast of Massachusetts, 31 mi. n. e. of Boston. 
On this cape are the towns of Gloucester, Rock- 
port and Pigeon Cave. There are valuable stone 
quarries here. 

Cape Bar'row, the most northerly point of 
Alaska. A government station is located here. 

Cape Blanco, blahN’ko, a name given to 
several capes. 1. A cape off the west coast of 
Africa, on the Atlantic. 2. The most northerly 
point of Africa, on the northern coast of Tunis. 
3. A cape on the west coast of Morocco. 4. The 
most westerly point of Oregon, in the United 
States, on the Pacific coast. A lighthouse is 
located here. 

Cape Bret'on, an island of the Dominion of 
Canada, separated from Nova Scotia, to which 
province it belongs, by the narrow Gut or Strait 
of Canso. Its length is 100 miles, and its great¬ 
est breadth is 85 miles. The surface is rather 
rugged, and only small portions are suited for 
agriculture, but it possesses much timber and 
valuable minerals (several coal mines being 
worked), and the coast abounds in fish. Tim¬ 
ber, fish and coal are exported. The island 




Cape May 


Cape Catoche 

belonged to France from 1632 to 1763, when 
it was ceded to England, and Louisburg, its 
capital, was long an important military post. 
Population in 1911, 122,084. 

Cape Catoche, ka to'chay, a cape which is at 
the extreme northwestern point of Yucatan. 

Cape Charles, a cape at the southern extrem¬ 
ity of Northampton co., Va. It is at the 
entrance of Chesapeake Bay and is 25 miles 
north-northeast of Norfolk. 

Cape Clear, a promontory 400 feet high at 
the southern extremity of Clear Island, the 
most southern point of Ireland, about seven 
and a half miles southeast of Baltimore, County 
Cork. Clear Island is about three and a quarter 
miles long and about a mile broad. 

Cape Cod, a noted peninsula, 65 mi. long and 
from 1 to 20 miles broad, on the south side 
of Massachusetts Bay, forming Barnstable 
County in the State of Massachusetts. It is 
mostly sandy and barren but some portions are 
fertile and produce a large yield of cranberries, 
the cultivation of which is the leading agricul¬ 
tural industry. Other portions are well wooded. 
Provincetown, on the northern extremity of the 
peninsula, has an excellent harbor and is one 
of the most important fishing ports on the Massa¬ 
chusetts coast. A sea-level ship canal between 
Cape Cod and Buzzards Bay was completed early 
in 1914. It is about 12 miles long and from 25 
to 30 feet deep. It shortens the trip from 
New York to Boston by over 60 miles, and al¬ 
lows coasting ships to avoid the rough weather 
of the open sea. 

Cape Col'ony. See Cape of Good Hope, 
Province of. 

Cape Com'orin, the southernmost extremity 
of the peninsula of India. A short distance from 
the cape are the remains of the once famous 
town of Cape Comorin, consisting of a fort, 
village, church and some ancient temples. 

Cape Farewell, a cape at the southern extrem¬ 
ity of Greenland, situated in latitude 59° 49' n. 
and in longitude 43° 56' w. 

Cape Fear, 'a cape in North Carolina, extend¬ 
ing from Smith Island into the Atlantic; the 
southern extremity of the state. Navigation is 
dangerous around this point, because of the 
character of the waters. 

Cape Fear River, a river in North Carolina, 
formed by the Deep and the Haw rivers, which 
unite at Haywood, in Chatham County. It 
flows in a southeasterly direction and enters the 
Atlantic Ocean at Cape Fear. It is about 250 
miles long. 


Cape Finisterre, je ne stair*, the most western 

cape of Spain, on the coast of Galicia. 

Cape Flat'tery. a cape in the State of Wash¬ 
ington, bounded on the n. e. by the Strait of Juan 
de Fuca and on the s. w. by the Pacific Ocean. 

Cape Girardeau, je rahr do’, Mo., is located 
on the Mississippi River, 131 mi. s. of Saint 
Louis, and on the Frisco and other railroads. 
Saint Vincent’s College, a Catholic institution, 
and a state normal school are located here. 
It has extensive stone quarries, lumbering plants^ 
flouring mills, machine shops and other factories. 
It is one of the oldest towns in the state, having 
been settled by the French about 1765. Pop¬ 
ulation in 1910, 8475. 

Cape Hat'teras, a cape on the coast of North 
Carolina, the projecting point of a long reef of 
sand, which storms and shoals make dangerous 
to navigation. A lighthouse over 190 feet high 
has a light that flashes every ten seconds, and 
three quarters of a mile south there is another 
steady white light 35 feet above the sea. 

Cape Haytien or Haitien, ha'te en, a town 
on the north coast of Hayti. It has an excellent 
harbor, but has declined in importance during 
the last century. It exports coffee, cacao, log¬ 
wood, hides and honey. Population, about 
29,000. 

Cape Henlo'pen, a cape on the east coast of 
Delaware, at the entrance of Delaware Bay. 
This cape is 13 miles southwest of Cape May. 

Cape Hen'ry, a cape on the coast of Virginia, 
at the entrance of Chesapeake Bay, not far from 
Cape Charles. There are here a life-saving 
station and a lighthouse. 

Cape Horn or Cape Hoorn, the southern 
extremity of an island of the same name, forming 
the most southerly point of South America. It 
is a dark, precipitous headland, 500 to 600 feet 
high, running far into the sea. Navigation 
round it is dangerous on account of frequent 
tempests. The cape was first doubled in 1616 
by Schouten, a native of Hoorn, in Holland, 
whence its name. 

Cape Lisburne, liz'bum, a cape on the north¬ 
western coast of Alaska. It is of importance by 
reason of its deposits of coal. 

Cape Look'out, a point of land on the east 
coast of North Carolina, about 85 mi. s. w. of 
Cape Hatteras. 

Cape May, N. J., sometimes called Cape City 
or Cape Island City, situated in Cape May co., 
being the southernmost city of New Jersey, on 
the Atlantic City and the West Jersey & Sea¬ 
shore railroads. It is a popular watering place, 


Cape Mendocino 

has many commodious hotels and a very pleas¬ 
ant climate. The industries are gold-beating, 
canning, oyster raising and fishing. Population 
in 1910, 2471. 

Cape Mendocino, men do se t no, the most 
westerly point of California, on the Pacific coast. 

Cape of Good Hope, a promontory near the 
southern extremity of Africa, at the termina¬ 
tion of a small peninsula extending south from 
Table Mountain, which overlooks Cape Town. 
This peninsula forms the west side of False 
Bay, and on its inner coast is Simon’s Bay and 
Simon’s Town, where there is a safe anchorage 
and a British naval station. Bartholomeu Dias, 
a Portuguese, who discovered the cape in 1487, 
called it Cape of Tempests, but John II of Portu¬ 
gal changed this to its present designation. It 
was first doubled by Vasco da Gama in 1497. 

Cape of Good Hope, Province of the, 
occupies the southern extremity of Africa and 
extends northward to the twenty-fifth parallel 
of south latitude. It is bounded on the north 
by German Southwest Africa, Bechuanaland, 
Orange Free State and Natal, the Orange 
River forming the dividing line along part of 
the northern boundary. The area is estimated 
at about 277,000 square miles, or a little less 
than the combined areas of Texas, Massachu¬ 
setts and New Jersey. 

In the southern portion of the province and 
along the coast the surface is mountainous 
and consists of rugged ranges, which rise in a 
series of successive elevations and enclose lofty 
plateaus and plains. These ranges run nearly 
parallel to the coast and attain their greatest 
elevation inland, where in some places the peaks 
are from 7000 to 10,000 feet high. The highest 
points in the northern portion are in the Draken- 
berg range, on the border of Natal. Table 
Mountain, rising directly above Cape Town, 
has an elevation of 3550 feet. Compass Moun¬ 
tain, in the Snow Mountains in the south central 
portion, is the highest point and has an eleva¬ 
tion of 8500 feet. The northwestern region is 
less mountainous. The eastern coast is very 
regular, but the southern and western coasts 
have numerous indentations which form good 
harbors. The Orange River, which forms part 
of the northern boundary, receives a number 
of small tributaries. There are also a few small 
streams, flowing respectively into the Atlantic 
and the Indian oceans. None of these is 
navigable. 

The climate is temperate in the south and 
semi-tropical in the north. The temperature is 


Cape of Good Hope 

quite even and mild. Except along the coast in 
the southeast district, the rainfall is light, and 
the entire region is considered remarkably 
healthful. 

The province is rich in minerals. Coal is 
found and worked in a number of localities. 
There are also deposits of copper, gold, silver 
and other metals, but the most important min¬ 
eral is the diamond, which is found in very large 
quantities in Griqualand West, near Kimberley. 
For a number of years the annual yield of these 
diamond mines has exceeded $20,000,000 in 
value (See Diamond; Kimberley). 

A lack of rainfall prevents the fullest devel¬ 
opment of agriculture. All of the region is remark¬ 
ably well adapted to grazing, and large numbers 
of cattle, horses, sheep and, especially, Angora 
goats are raised. Wherever the rainfall will 
admit, the land is tilled and good crops of wheat, 
indian com and other grains are raised. Vege¬ 
tables and fruits thrive remarkably well in 
regions having sufficient rainfall, and grapes 
are also raised and wine is made. Fruits and 
vegetables are frequently shipped to European 
countries. Ostrich farming is profitable, and 
over 160,000 birds are kept for their feathers 
(See Ostrich). The manufactures are of little 
importance and are confined to such local 
industries as the immediate needs of the people 
require. 

The matter of transportation was early taken 
in hand by the British government, and, consid¬ 
ering its internal conditions, the province has a 
large number of good roads. There are also 
over 3000 miles of railway connecting the impor¬ 
tant towns. Cape Town is the southern ter¬ 
minus of the Cape-to-Cairo railway, which is 
now constructed across the Zambesi, and another 
line extending northward from Port Elizabeth 
reaches Bloemfontein, Johannesburg and Pre¬ 
toria. From this several lines extending east¬ 
ward reach important points along the coast. 
Nearly all of these lines are operated by the 
government, as are the telegraph lines. The 
commerce of the province is quite large. The 
exports consist of wool and mohair, hides and 
tallow, ostrich feathers, vegetables, fruits and 
diamonds, while the imports are nearly all of 
manufactured products and such food stuffs as 
are not readily produced in the country. The most 
of the foreign trade is with the United Kingdom. 

The inhabitants consist of English, Dutch 
and natives, which are divided among the Hot¬ 
tentots, Kaffirs, Basutos and Griquas. There 
are also a number of Malays and, mingled with 


Cape Prince of Wales 

these, quite an extensive mixed race resulting 
from intermarriages. By far the larger part of 
the white population is of Dutch and English 
descent, and both the Dutch and English lan¬ 
guages are in use. Population in 1911,2,563,024. 

The province of the Cape of Good Hope is 
governed, like the other British provinces in 
South Africa, by an administrator, appointed 
by the governor-general for five years. The 
legislative department consists of a council of 
fifty-one members, elected for terms of three 
years. An executive committee of four members, 
who need not be members of the council, forms 
a sort of cabinet. All ordinances passed by 
the council are subject to veto by the governor- 
general. A system of public schools is maintained, 
and there are four colleges. At the head of the 
educational system is the provincial university, 
which is only an organization for the pur* 
pose of conducting examinations and granting 
diplomas and degrees. The important cities are 
Cape To^n, Port Elizabeth and Kimberley, 
each of which is described under its title. 

The region was settled by the Dutch in 1652. 
In 1795 it was occupied by the British, but seven 
years later they relinquished it to the Dutch, 
only to take possession of it again in 1806. 
Thirty years later the Dutch settlers, or Boers, 
dissatisfied with British rule, emigrated in large 
numbers to the north and settled what are now 
Orange River Colony and Transvaal Colony. 
Between these settlers and the surrounding native 
tribes the colony was frequently involved in war. 
In 1902 British supremacy was thoroughly estab¬ 
lished. In 1910 the colony became an original 
province of the Union of South Africa. See 
South African War; Orange Free State; 
Transvaal; South Africa, Union of. 

Cape Prince of Wales, a cape at the extreme 
western point of North America, in Bering Strait, 
at longitude 167° 59' 10" west. 

Ca'per, the unopened flower bud of a low 
trailing shrub which grows from the crevices 
of rocks and walls and among rubbish, in the 
countries bordering on the Mediterranean. 
The plant was introduced into Great Britain 
as early as 1596, but has never been grown on a 
large scale. The buds are pickled in vinegar 
and used in making sauces for meats. The 
flower buds of the marsh marigold and nastur¬ 
tium are frequently pickled and eaten as a sub¬ 
stitute for capers. 

Cape Race, the extreme southeastern point of 
Newfoundland. A lighthouse is located on this 
cape. 


Cape-to-Cairo Railway 

Capercailzie, ka pur kale'ze, or Cock of the 
Wood, the largest of the European grouse, 
weighing from nine to twelve pounds. The 
male has an ashy black neck; head, wings 
and shoulders brown, speckled with small black 
dots; a variable green breast, and a black belly 
with white spots. The tail feathers are black, 
with small white spots near the extremities. 
The flesh of the capercailzie is highly esteemed 
for the table in Scotland and Ireland. 

Capernaum, ka pur'na um, a town in ancient 
Palestine, frequently mentioned in the Bible. 
It was on the northwest shore of Lake Gennes- 
aret, but its exact site is unknown. Because it 
was so often visited by Jesus it was often called 
“his own city.” Many of his miracles were per¬ 
formed here, but it remained unrepentant. 
Peter, Andrew and Matthew had their homes 
in Capernaum. 

Cape Sa'ble, the name applied to two capes. 
1. The most southerly point of the mainland 
of Florida. 2. The southern extremity of Nova 
Scotia, Canada. 

Cape Saint Vincent, the southwest point of 
Portugal. It is noted for the naval victory 
gained here by the English, under Sir John 
Jervis (afterward earl of Saint Vincent), on 
Feb. 14,1797. over the Spanish. 

Cape San Lucas, loo’has, the most southerly 
point of the peninsula of Lower California. 

Capetian, ka pe'shan, Dy'nasty , the dynasty 
which ruled in France from 987 to 1328. It 
began with Hugh Capet, chosen king by the 
help of the clergy on the death of the last of the 
Carolingians, and closed with Charles IV, who 
died in 1328. Throughout this long period, 
during which, for the most part, son followed 
father in regular succession, the royal power 
greatly increased, and France became more 
nearly a centralized state. The growth of the 
royal power is shown by the fact that the custom 
of crowning the son during the father’s lifetime, 
common with the early kings of this House, was 
found unnecessary after the twelfth century. 

Cape-to-Cairo Railway, a trunk line of rail¬ 
way, projected by Mr. Cecil Rhodes, to extend 
through the interior of Africa from Cape Town 
to Alexandria. This railway project was pre¬ 
ceded by the Cape-to-Cairo telegraph, which 
it closely followed, and has been pushed forward 
rapidly. 

The road has been gradually extended north¬ 
ward from Cape Town. In 1909 it reached the 
southern boundary of the Kongo State, a distance 
of 2147 miles, and southward from Cairo to 


Cape Town 


Cape-to-Cairo Railway 

a distance of 1300 miles. The distance between 
the terminal points is being shortened year by 
year. Plans for completing the line are thor¬ 
oughly matured and though the time necessary 
for the completion of this gigantic enterprise 
will be longer than the promoters at first 
expected, in the near future Alexandria and 
Cape Town will be joined by a trunk line of 



through Lake Tanganyika, Lake Nyassa and 
Lake Victoria. By this route the construction 
of about 1900 miles of road will be saved. 

Six lines are projected or partially completed 
which will connect the main trunk line with 
various seaports on the eastern coast of the 
34 


continent. Beginning at the south, these are: 
1. The Natal railway from Durban into the 
Transvaal. 2. The Delagoa Bay railway from 
Lorenco Marques into the Transvaal. 3. 
The Beira railway, extending from Beira to 
Salisbury. All of these lines have been com¬ 
pleted to important points several hundred miles 
inland. 4. The German East African railway, 
beginning at Dar-es-Salaam and having one 
terminus at TJjiji, on Lake Tanganyika, and 
another on Victoria Nyanza. 5. The British 
East African railway, extending from Mombasa 
to Victoria Nyanza. This line of more than 600 
miles is completed. 6. A line from Suakim, on 
the Red Sea, to Berber or Kassala. The British 
East African, or Uganda, railway really forms a 
system by itself. The first train over this line 
reached Port Florence, on Victoria Nyanza, Dec. 
19,1901. The construction of the road required 
over five years, the first rail having been laid at 
Mombasa, on the coast, in August, 1896. Along 
the entire line the construction called for the? 
highest degree of engineering skill. The road 
passes through many deep cuts of solid rock 
and over thirty-eight viaducts of English make. 
The highest altitude is 3000 feet above the level 
of the sea, and the descents are unusually abrupt. 
The road traverses a region remarkable for the 
beauty of its scenery and for its natural resources, 
which are wholly undeveloped. By its com¬ 
pletion this portion of Africa is opened to com¬ 
mercial relations with the world, and ready means 
of transportation are given to 4,000,000 people. 

Cape Town, the capital of the province of the 
Cape of Good Hope and the legislative capital of 
the Union of South Africa, 30 mi. n. of the Cape 
of Good Hope. The city contains numerous 
parks and many beautiful buildings, among 
which are the Houses of Parliament, the Su¬ 
preme Court, the South African Museum, 
the cathedral, a number of churches and 
mosques and a synagogue. There are also 
numerous educational institutions, including cob 
leges and an examining university, besides the 
Cape Observatory. The harbor is protected by a 
breakwater over four thousand feet long, and the 
docks cover an area of sixteen acres. Cape 
Town is a port of call for nearly all vessels pass¬ 
ing around the Cape of Good Hope, and in 
commercial importance it is surpassed in rank 
only by Port Elizabeth. Its trade is with nearly 
all ports on the Atlantic and Indian oceans. 
It is connected by railway with all the important 
towns of the province and surrounding provinces 
and is the southern terminus of the Cape-to- 










Capital 


Cape Verde 

Cairo railway. Cape Town was founded in 
1652 by the Dutch and was held by them until 
1806, when it was taken by England. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, including the suburbs, 67,000, of 
whom 29,933 were white. 

Cape Verde, vurd, the extreme west point of 
Africa, between the Senegal and the Gambia, 
discovered by Fernandez in 1445. A group of 
baobab trees, with their green tops showing on 
the white coast, is said to have suggested the 
name. 

Cape Verde Islands, a group of ten or fifteen 
volcanic islands and rocks in the Atlantic, w, 
ot Africa, belonging to Portugal. Their area is 
1480 square miles. They produce rice, maize, 
coffee, tobacco, sugar cane, physic nuts and 
various fruits. Most of the inhabitants are 
negroes or of mixed race. The chief town is 
, Praya, a seaport on Santiago, the largest island. 
Porto Grande, on Sao Vicente, is a coaling 
station for steamers and has the best harbor 
* in the group. Population in 1910, 150,000. 

Cape Wrath, the northwest extremity of 
Scotland, in Sutherlandshire. It is a pyramid 
of gneiss bearing a lighthouse, the light of which 
is 400 feet above sea level. 

Ca'pias (Latin, you may take), the name 
given in law to a common-law writ requiring an 
officer to arrest a person and hold him in custody. 
The capias is rarely issued, having been super¬ 
seded by other statutory writs. 

Cap'illa ries, in anatomy, the fine blood 
vessels which connect the arteries with the 
veins. Some of the capillaries are so small 
that only one blood corpuscle at a time can 
pass through. They are largest in the marrow 
of the bones and smallest in the brain, and in 
certain organs they divide and subdivide, form¬ 
ing a network. The capillary walls are thin 
and composed of but one layer of tissue; through 
them the blood receives waste products and 
gives up nutritious material. The blood in the 
capillaries of the lungs receives oxygen and 
gives up carbonic acid. 

Cap illar'ity, the tendency of liquids in 
small tubes and porous bodies to rise above the 
level of the liquid in a vessel surrounding the 
smaller tube. Capillarity can be shown by 
placing small glass tubes or straws in a vessel 
of water colored with a little ink. If the tubes 
are of different size they will show that the 
liquid rises highest in the smallest tube. By 
innumerable tests in this manner was proved the 
principle that the smaller the tube the stronger 
the capillarity. Capillarity is due to the adhe¬ 


sion of the liquid to the walls of the tube or the 
vessel, and a close examination will show that 
the surface of a liquid in a vessel is concave, 
the portion touching the walls of the vessel 
being raised above that in the center. When 
mercury is confined in a glass vessel, the prin¬ 
ciple of capillarity is reversed, as there is no 
adhesion, and the surface of the mercury is 
convex. The part which capillarity plays 
among natural phenomena is a very varied one. 
By it the fluids circulate in the porous tissues 
of animal bodies, the sap rises in plants and 
moisture is absorbed from air and soil by the 
foliage and roots. For the same reason a sponge 
or lump of sugar, or a piece of blotting paper, 
soaks in moisture, and the oil rises in the wick 
of a lamp. 

Cap'ital, in trade, the term applied, as the 
equivalent of “stock,” to the money, or prop¬ 
erty convertible into money, used by a producer 
or trader for carrying on his business; in political 
economy, that portion of the produce of former 
labor which is reserved from consumption for 
employment in the further production of wealth. 
In the latter sense, it is commonly divided into 
two main classes—circulating capital and fixed 
capital. Circulating capital comprises those 
forms of capital which require renewal after 
every use in production, being consumed 
(absorbed or transformed) in a single use; 
for instance, raw materials. Fixed capital, on 
the other hand, comprises every form of capital 
which is capable of use in a series of similar 
productive acts; for example, machinery and 
tools. From the ordinary economic point of 
view capital is conveniently limited to material 
objects directly employed in the reproduction of 
material wealth, but from the higher social point 
of view many things less immediately concerned 
in productive work may be regarded as capital. 
Thus, Adam Smith includes in the fixed capital 
of a country “the acquired and useful abilities 
of all the inhabitants”; and the wealth sunk in 
prisons, education and other up ifting institu¬ 
tions plays, ultimately, a scarcely less important 
part in the production than that invested in 
directly productive machinery. The return 
which capital yields in production is termed 
interest, to distinguish it from rent, the return 
for the use of land, and wages, the return to 
labor. 

During recent years capital has shown a 
marked tendency to concentration; or, more 
accurately, the management of capital has tended 
to pass into a few hands. This has served to 


Capital 

draw more sharply the distinction between the 
capitalist and laboring classes and to increase 
their feeling of antagonism. Although most 
economists declare the interests of both sides 
to be ultimately identical, the crushing out of 
small owners and the fear of the absolute power 
to fix both the price of labor and of product 
which may, by absence of competition, come 
into the hands of the great owners, have created 
a strong opposition to the centralizing of capital. 
It has the advantage, however, of making possi¬ 
ble a lowered cost of production and of preventing 
wasteful competition. Various schemes for the 
public ownership and direction of capital are 
the inevitable outgrowth of the condition of 
dissatisfaction. See Socialism ; Trusts ; Trades 
Unions; Interest; Rent; Wages. 

Capital, an architectural term, usually 
restricted to the upper portion of a column, 
the part resting immediately on the shaft and 
separating it from the entablature, or other 
portion of the structure above the pillar. In 
classic architecture, each order has a peculiar 
form of capital, which is, more than anything 
else, its distinguishing characteristic. Belonging 
to the three orders of Grecian architecture, 
respectively, are the Doric, the Ionic and the 
Corinthian capitals, of which the first was later 
modified by the Romans in their Tuscan columns, 
and the last two combined in the Composite 
order. From these developed the Gothic capi¬ 
tals, which are widely varied in appearance. 
See Column. 

Capital Pun'ishment, in criminal law, pun¬ 
ishment by death. Formerly it was the ordinary 
form of punishment for felonies of all kinds; 
but a more accurate knowledge of the nature 
and remedies of crime, a more discriminating 
sense of degrees in criminality and an increased 
regard for human life have latterly tended to 
restrict, if not to abolish, the employment of 
the penalty of death. In 1765 in England there 
were 160 capital offenses on the statute books. 
The work of practical reform, inspired by 
Beccaria’s treatise on Crimes and Punishments, 
was initiated in 1770 by Sir William Meredith, 
but the modifications secured were few, owing 
to the opposition of the House of Lords, which 
continued down to 1832 to oppose systematically 
all attempts at criminal law reform. The reform 
was vigorously upheld by Sir Samuel Romilly, 
and after him by Sir James Mackintosh. After 
the passage of the Reform Bill in 1832, changes 
were rapid, until in 1861 only four capital 
crimes remained—setting fire to the royal dock- 


Capital Letters 

yards or arsenals, piracy with violence, treason 
and murder. At the present time the last of 
these may be regarded as the only capital crime 
in England and Scotland. In several other 
European countries—Sweden, Denmark, North 
Germany, Bavaria, Austria—there is even a 
greater unwillingness to enforce capital punish¬ 
ment than is found in Great Britain, though the 
penalty remains upon the statute books. In 
Belgium there has been no execution since 1863. 
In Switzerland capital punishment was abolished 
in 1874, and though the right of restoring it was 
allowed to each canton, in consequence of an 
increase of murders, only 7 out of a total of 22 
have availed themselves of it. In Rumania it 
was abolished in 1864; in Holland in 1870, and 
it has also been discontinued in Portugal. In 
several states of the Union—Michigan, Wiscon¬ 
sin, Minnesota, Kansas, Rhode Island and 
Maine—imprisonment for life has been sub¬ 
stituted as a penalty for murder in the first 
degree; in the remainder capital punishment is 
retained, though it was abolished for a short 
time in Colorado and Iowa. 

The manner of inflicting the punishment of 
death has varied greatly, the methods of olden 
times being often cruel and barbarous. In 
modern times among civilized nations, public 
opinion is strongly disposed to discountenance 
the death punishment by any but simple means. 
In Great Britain and in most parts of the United 
States, execution is by hanging, but in Vermont, 
New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Penn¬ 
sylvania, Ohio, North Carolina, South Carolina, 
Virginia, Kentucky and Arkansas, electricity 
is used. In Germany and France the sword 
and the guillotine are the usual means; in Spain, 
strangulation by means of the garrote. Since 1868 
the law of England has required all executions 
to take place privately within the prison walls, 
and this system was adopted in 1877 by Germany 
and widely in the United States. Capital pun¬ 
ishment cannot be inflicted, under the laws of 
most modem nations, upon persons who are 
insane. In military law, sentence of death may 
be passed for various offenses, such as sedition, 
violence, gross neglect of duty, desertion, assault 
upon superior officers or disobedience to lawful 
commands. 

Capital Letters, the large letters used in 
writing and printing. They are used most com¬ 
monly as the initial letters of certain words, or 
of all words in certain positions. During the 
Middle Ages, as well as in ancient times, there 
was no distinction between different kinds of 


Capitol 

letters, but the custom of illuminating the first 
letter of a book or of a chapter gradually gave 
rise to a more general use of large letters. In 
almost all countries, sentences and proper names 
begin with capital letters. In German every 
noun begins with a capital, and this was formerly 
the rule in English. Unlike most other languages, 
adjectives which are derived from proper names 
are in English begun with capitals, as French , 
Canadian. 

Capitol, the citadel of ancient Rome, standing 
on the Capitoline Hill, the smallest of the seven 
hills of Rome. It was planned by Tarquinius 
Priscus, but was not completed till after the 
expulsion of the kings. At the time of the civil 
commotions under Sulla it was burned down, 
and it was rebuilt by the Senate. It suffered the 
same fate twice afterward and was restored by 
Vespasian and by Domitian, who instituted there 
the Capitoline games. The important structures 
were the great temple of Jupiter; the Tabularium, 
a library containing the archives, and the temple 
of Juno Moneta. The Piazza di Campidoglio 
occupies the space between the summits of two 
hills, and it is surrounded on three sides by 
palaces, after the design of Michelangelo. On 
the east side is the museum of the capitol, which 
contains one of the finest collections of sculpture 
in Rome, some of the celebrated pieces being 
The Dying Gladiator (Gaul), The Marble Faun 
of Praxiteles and the Capitoline Venus', on the 
north side is the Palace of the Senators, and on 
the west is the Palace of the Conservators. In 
the center of the piazza is a bronze equestrian 
statue of Marcus Aurelius, one of the finest 
ancient works of its kind. 

The name of capitol is also given to the edifice 
in Washington where Congress assembles, and 
in the states, to buildings, sometimes called 
statehouses, where the legislatures meet. See 
Washington, subhead Public Buildings and 
Institutions. 

Cappadocia, kap'pa do'she ah, in antiquity, 
one of the most important provinces in Asia 
Minor, the'greater part of which is included in 
the modern province of Karaman. Its bound¬ 
aries varied greatly at different times. It was 
conquered by Cyrus and was ruled by independ¬ 
ent kings from the time of Alexander the Great 
until 17 a. d., when it became a Roman province. 

Capri, kah'pre, (ancient Capreae), an island 
belonging to Italy, in the Gulf of Naples, 5 miles 
long and 2 miles broad, rising to the height of 
about 1900 feet and everywhere well cultivated. 
The inhabitants are occupied in the production of 


Capstan 

oil and wine, in fishing and in catching quails 
at the seasons of their migrations. The leading 
towns are Capri in the east and Anacapri in the 
west, situated on the summit of a rock, and 
accessible by a stair of 522 steps. The emperor 
Tiberius spent here the last seven years of his 
life. The ruins of his palaces are still extant, 
and other ruins are scattered over the island. 
There is here a remarkable cavern, called the 
Grotto of the Nymphs, or the Blue Grotto. 
Population, 6206. 

Cap ricor'nus, (the goat), a constellation of 
the southern hemisphere and the tenth sign of 
the zodiac, marking the winter solstice about 
December 21. Capricornus was represented by 
(VJ ), the figure of a goat, or the figure having 
the fore part like a goat and the hind part resem¬ 
bling a fish. Capricornus is the name given to 
the southern tropic. See Tropics. 

Caprivi, kah pre've, Georg Leo, Count von 
(1831-1899), second chancellor of the German 
Empire. He entered the Prussian army in 
1849, served in the war of 1866 and the Franco- 
Prussian War and was advanced rapidly in 
rank. In 1882 he was given command of the 
third army division, and from 1883 to 1888 he 
was at the head of the admiralty, in which posi¬ 
tion he reorganized the navy. He held com¬ 
mand of the tenth army corps, stationed in 
Hanover. In 1890 he became Bismarck’s 
successor as chancellor, and proved himself a 
man of great strength and of much executive 
ability. 

Cap'sicum, a genus of annual, shrubby pfants, 
with a wheel-shaped corolla, projecting and 
converging stamens and a many-seeded berry. 
They are chiefly natives of the East and West 
Indies, China, Brazil and Egypt, but they have 
spread to various other tropical or subtropical 
countries, being cultivated for their fruit, which 
at times reaches the size of an orange, is fleshy 
and variously colored and very sharp to the taste. 
The fruit or pod is used for pickles and sauces, 
and also is valuable medicinally. Cayenne 
pepper and chili, the favorite condiment of the 
Mexicans, is prepared from species of capsicum. 
(See illustration on next page.) 

Cap'stan, a device used on ships for raising 
the anchor and other heavy weights. The old- 
fashioned capstans were made of wood, but 
those now in use are made of iron and steel. A 
capstan consists of an upright revolving post, 
which turns upon a spindle. It is usually con¬ 
cave in the middle, to give space for winding the 
rope, and may have large metal teeth, which 


Capua 


Caracas 


grip the links of an anchor chain. The tip or 
crown contains holes or mortises, in which levers 
are inserted for turning the capstan. The levers 
are usually long enough to enable two or three 
men to work upon each. On steamships cap¬ 
stans are operated by steam power or electricity. 

Cap'ua, a fortified city of Italy, in the province 
of Caserta, in a plain 18 mi. n. of Naples, on the 
Volturno. It is the residence of an archbishop 
and has a cathedral. The ancient city was 
situated 3§ miles southeast of the modern town. 
The site is now r occupied by the city Santa Maria 
di Capua Vetere. The ancient Capua was of 



CAPSICUM 


such extent as to be compared to Rome and 
Carthage. It was a favorite place of resort of the 
Romans, on account of its agreeable situation 
and its healthy climate, and many existing ruins, 
including an amphitheater, attest its ancient 
splendor. Population, 12,390. 

Capuchin, leap u sheen', Monkey, a name 
given to various species of South American 
monkeys, the hair of whose heads is so arranged 
that it has the appearance of a capuchin’s cowl. 

Capuchins, monks of the order of Saint 
Francis, so called from the capouch, or hood, 
which is the distinguishing badge of the order. 
They are clothed in brown or gray, go barefooted 


and never shave their beards. According to the 
laws of the order the monks must live by begging 
and may use no gold, silver or silk about their 
altars. The members of this order are most 
numerous in Austria. There are convents in the 
dioceses of Milwaukee and Green Bay, Wis., 
New York, N. Y., and Leavenworth, Kan. 

Capybara, lcah'pe bah'ra, a species of rodent, 
sometimes known by the name of the water hog. 
It attains the length of about three feet; it has 
a very large and thick head; a thick body, 
covered with short, coarse, brown hair, and 
short legs, with long feet. It has no tail. The 
capybara is common in several parts of South 
America, and particularly in Brazil. It feeds 
on vegetables and fish, which it catches some- 



CAPYBARA 


w’hat in the manner of the otter. In the water 
the animal is perfectly at home. Its flesh is 
edible. 

Car'acal, a species of lynx, native of northern 
Africa and southwestern Asia. It is about the 
size of a fox and is usually of a deep-brown color, 
having tufts of long black hair which terminate 
the ears. It possesses great strength and fierce¬ 
ness. 

Car acal'la, Baths of, celebrated baths at 
Rome, built in 212 A. d. They consisted of a 
group of buildings, the central one of w'hich con¬ 
tained large halls surrounded by gardens, th& 
whole covering 129,600 square yards. The 
thick w r alls were covered with marble and the 
floors were mosaic. The buildings were lavishly 
adorned with statuary and other works of art, 
many of which have been preserved. Water 
was supplied by the Marcian Aqueduct, and 
accommodations were made for 1500 guests. 

Caracas, lea rah'leas, a city of South America, 
capital of Venezuela, situated in a fine valley 
about 3000 feet above the Caribbean Sea, con¬ 
nected by railway with the port La Guayra, 
w hich is about ten miles distant. It is regularly 
laid out, and has some good buildings, including 


Caramel 


Carbonari 


a cathedral, a university, the federal palace and 
other government buildings. It has various 
parks and gardens, fair gas and water supply, 
telephones and tramways. The export trade 
is in cacao, coffee and tobacco. In 1812 the 
city was in great part destroyed by an earthquake, 
and nearly 12,000 persons were buried in the 
ruins. Population, 72,430. 

Car'amel, the brown mass which is produced 
when cane sugar is heated. It is used in cooking 
as a coloring and flavoring ingredient and in 
giving a brown color to spirits and other liquids. 
The name is also applied to a certain preparation 
of candy. 

Car'at, a weight of 3.17 troy grains, used by 
jewelers in weighing precious stones and pearls. 
It is divided into 4 carat grains, which, in turn, 
are divided into 2, 4, 8 or 16 parts for more 
accurate measurements. The term is also used 
to express the proportionate fineness of gold, 
a carat being of unit weight of metal. So, 
if of an alloy is pure gold, it is said to be 
“18 carats fine,” and when it is “24 carats 
fine” it is pure, or “solid gold.” 

Caravaggio, kah'ra vah'jo, Michelangelo 
Amerigi (1569-1609), a celebrated Italian 
painter, bom in Caravaggio. In his youth he 
prepared plaster for the artists; while engaged 
in this work he acquired the desire to become a 
painter. He studied at Milan and Venice, 
where he was influenced by the works of Gior¬ 
gione, and later went to Rome, where he found 
a patron in Cardinal del Monte. The tur¬ 
bulent disposition of Caravaggio involved him 
in frequent quarrels, in one of which he killed a 
companion at Rome. He was forced to flee 
and went to Naples and Malta. Caravaggio 
was the head of the naturalists and exerted a 
marked influence on the development of modern 
art. His paintings, though sometimes coarse and 
fierce, display grandeur and power. His most 
celebrated works are Entombment of Christ, 
Saint Sebastian and Supper at Emmaus. 

Car'avan, a Persian word used to denote the 
large companies which travel together across the 
Asian or African deserts, for the sake of security 
from robbers. Most numerous of these caravans 
are the associations of merchants; but caravans 
of pilgrims, going from Cairo or Damascus to 
Mecca, cross the deserts every year. Camels 
are used as a means of conveyance, on account 
of their remarkable powers of endurance. 

Car'avel, the name of different kinds of 
vessels; particularly, a small ship used by the 
Spaniards and Portuguese in the fifteenth and 


sixteenth centuries for long voyages. It was 
narrow at the poop, wide at the bow and carried 
a double tower at its stern and a single one at 
its bow. It had four masts and a bowsprit, and 
the principal sails were lateen sails. It was in 
command of three such caravels that Columbus 
crossed the Atlantic and discovered America. 

Car'away, a common biennial plant, with a 
tapering fleshy root, a striated, furrowed stem 
and white or pinkish flowers. It p oduces a 
well-known seed used by confectioners and 
bakers. 

Carbohy'drate, an organic compound, such 
as starch and cellulose, containing carbon and 
the elements of water. 

Carbol'ic Acid, Phenic Acid or Phenol, an 

acid obtained from coal tar. It is, when pure, 
a colorless crystalline substance, but it is usually 
found as an oily liquid, colorless, with a burning 
taste and the odor of creosote. Carbolic acid 
is now much employed as a healing agent and 
disinfectant. It may be taken internally, but 
its principal use in medicine is as an external 
application to unhealthy sores, to compound 
fractures and to abscesses after they have been 
opened, for it coagulates and forms a crust 
impermeable to air and to the organic germs 
floating in the atmosphere. 

Car'bon, one of the elements, existing uncom¬ 
bined in three forms, as charcoal, as graphite, 
or plumbago, and as diamond. The diamond 
is the purest form of carbon; in the different 
varieties of charcoal, in soft coal and in anthra¬ 
cite, it is more or less mixed with other sub¬ 
stances. Pure charcoal is a black, brittle, light 
and inodorous substance. It is usually the 
remains of some vegetable body, from which all 
the volatile matter has been expelled by heat; 
but it may be obtained from most organic 
matters, animal as well as vegetable, by ignition 
in closed vessels. The compounds of this 
element are more numerous than those of all 
the other elements taken together. With 
hydrogen, especially, it forms a very large num¬ 
ber of compounds, called hydrocarbons, which 
are possessed of the most diverse properties, 
chemical and physical. With oxygen, carbon 
forms only two compounds, but union be¬ 
tween the two elements is easily effected (See 
Carbonic-acid Gas). It is one of the regular 
and most characteristic constituents of both 
animals and plants. See Diamond; Charcoal.; 
Graphite; Bone Black; Coke. 

Carbonari, kahr'bo na're, (charcoal burners), 
the name of a secret political society, founded 


Carbonates 


Carboniferous Period 


in Italy during the reign of Murat in Naples. 
Its original object was the expulsion of the 
French and the establishment of a democratic 
government. Later, the strength of the society 
was turned against the Bourbon rulers of Italy. 

Carbonates, compounds formed by the 
union of carbonic acid with a base, as the car¬ 
bonate of lime and the carbonate of copper. Car¬ 
bonates are an important class of salts, many of 
them being extensively used in the arts and in 
medicine. 

Car'bon dale, Pa., a city of Lackawanna co., 
16 mi. n. e. of Scranton, on the Lackawanna 
River and on the Erie and other railroads. It 
is in the center of an important anthracite coal 
field, and the chief industry is mining. There 
are also silk mills, foundries and machine shops. 
It has a public library, an emergency hospital 
and a park in the center of the city. The place 
was settled in 1824 and was incorporated in 1851. 
Population in 1910, 17,040. 

Carbon Disulphide, disul'fide, or Carbon 
Bisulphide, a compound of carbon and sulphur, 
which is known as a thick, colorless liquid. 
When pure, it has rather a pleasant odor, but 
ordinarily, owing to the presence of impurities, 
it is very disgusting. It evaporates rapidly, and 
by passing a current of air over it very low 
temperature may be obtained in its use. It 
is a strong solvent for such substances as india 
rubber, gutta-percha, the resinf. and phos¬ 
phorus. 

Carbon'iC'ac'id Gas or Carbon Dioxide, a 

gaseous compound of carbon and oxygen, color¬ 
less, without smell, twenty-two times as heavy as 
hydrogen, and existing in the atmosphere to the 
extent of 3 volumes in 10,000. It cannot sup¬ 
port combustion and is poisonous to animals, 
although not so powerful as carbonic oxide. 
It is set free from fermenting liquors and from 
decomposing vegetable and animal substances, 
and is largely evolved fr6m fissures in the earth, 
constituting the choke damp of mines. Its 
solution in water has a pleasant, sour, biting 
taste, and aerated beverages of all kinds—beer, 
champagne and carbonated mineral waters—■ 
owe their refreshing qualities to its presence, for 
though poisonous when taken into the lungs, 
it is agreeable when taken into the stomach. 
Soda water is water charged with carbon dioxide. 
Since it does not support combustion, it is used 
as a fire extinguisher when put up in iron cans 
under pressure. This gas is formed and given 
out during the breathing of animals, and in 
burning, from the oxidation of carbon in the 


fuel. It exists in large quantities in all lime¬ 
stones and marbles. Plants absorb carbonic- 
acid gas from the air and transform it by the aid 
of light into plant tissue. From its weight it has 
a tendency to subside into low places, vaults and 
wells, rendering some low-lying places and 
many caves uninhabitable. 

Liquid Carbonic Acid. Carbon dioxide, 
when subjected to a pressure of about 450 pounds 
to the square inch and a temperature of 5° F. 
below zero, is easily changed to liquid. This 
acid is manufactured on a large scale by forcing 
the gas into steel cylinders by means of a powerful 
pump, until the pressure becomes sufficient to 
change the gas into liquid. The large quantities 
of carbon dioxide produced in the process of 
brewing are now saved and used in this way. 
Liquid carbon dioxide is also made directly in 
factories established for the purpose. It is used 
in the making of soda water and other efferves¬ 
cent drinks. 

Carbon'ic Ox'ide, a substance obtained by 
passing carbonic acid over red-hot fragments 
of charcoal, contained in a tube of iron or por¬ 
celain, and also by several other processes. It 
is a colorless, inodorous gas, having neither acid 
nor alkaline properties, is very poisonous and 
burns with a pale blue flame. 

Carbonif'erous Period, the last division of 
the Paleozoic era, named from the formation of 
the coal measures which took place at this time. 
East of the Rocky Mountains North America 
was probably all above the sea, though during 
the early part of the period what forms the 
great bituminous coal bed of the Mississippi 
basin may have been the bottom of a shallow 
lake. In all continents marshes and swamps 
became choked with a rich growth of vegetation, 
and during the period there were numerous 
elevations and subsidences of the land, as shown 
by the large number of veins found in the coal 
measures. The vegetation included rushes, club 
mosses, ferns and lepidodendrons, which are 
now extinct, all of which grew to a great size. 
Ferns often formed trees having trunks more 
than twenty feet in height, and club mosses 
attained a height of seventy-five or one hundred 
feet. It was from these plants that most of the 
coal was formed, and their universal distribution, 
as they are found in all coal measures, shows 
that the conditions of climate and moisture 
were uniform throughout the earth. The animal 
life of the period included insects, scorpions, 
amphibians, crinoids, mollusks and fishes. 
See Coal; Paleozoic Era ; Geology, Volume V. 


Carboniferous System 


Cardinal 


Carboniferous System, in geology, the great 
group of strata of rocks which lie between the 
Devonian system below and the Triassic system 
above. The rocks take their name from the 
quantities of coal, shale and other carbonaceous 
matter contained in them. They include the 
coal measures, millstone grit and mountain 
limestone, the first being uppermost and con¬ 
taining the chief coal fields that are worked. 
Iron ore, limestone, clay and building stone 
are also yielded abundantly by the carboniferous 
strata, which are found in many parts of the 
world, often covering large areas. See Carbon¬ 
iferous Period; Coal; Devonian System; 
Triassic System. 

Car borun'dum, an artificial abrasive, made 
by smelting sand and carbon in an electric fur¬ 
nace. It closely resembles corundum and is a 
valuable polishing material. Carborundum is 
made by mixing in proper proportions coke, 
sand, sawdust and a small quantity of salt, and 
smelting the mixture in an electric furnace 
specially constructed for the purpose. The heat 
required is more intense than that necessary for 
any other known process, and the time for con¬ 
verting the mixture into carborundum is about 
thirty-six hours. The only factory for this 
manufacture is at Niagara Falls. Carborundum 
is used in the place of corundum and emery 
and also for glazing brick and for the lining of 
furnaces that are subjected to great heat. It 
is made extensively at Niagara Falls. See 
Abrasives; Corundum; Emery. 

Car'buncle, a beautiful gem of a deep red 
color with a mixture of scarlet, found in the 
East Indies. When held up to the sun it loses 
its deep tinge and becomes the color of a burning 
coal. The carbuncle of the ancients is supposed 
to have been a garnet. 

Card, an instrument for combing, opening 
and breaking wool, flax and other fibers, freeing 
them from the coarser parts and other matter. A 
card is made by inserting bent teeth of wire in a 
thick piece of leather, and nailing 'this to an ob¬ 
long piece of board, to which a handle is attached. 
But wool and cotton are now generally carded 
in mills by teeth fixed on a wheel moved by 
machinery. 

Cardamom, kahr’da mum, the dried fruits and 
seeds of different species of plants called carda¬ 
moms. They have a sharp, aromatic taste. 
Those recognized in America as true or official 
cardamoms and known in commerce as Malabar 
cardamoms, are the produce of a plant of the 
mountains of Malabar and Canara. 


Cardenas, kahr’da nas, a seaport on the north 
coast of Cuba, 103 mi. e. of Havana, with which 
it is connected by rail. It is one of the principal 
commercial centers of the island, the chief 
exports being sugar, molasses and coffee. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 28,576. 

Car'diff, a seaport of Wales, situated at the 
mouth of the Taff River, 170 mi. w. of London. 
The important buildings are the Castle, erected 
in the eleventh century; theChurch of Saint John, 



CARDAMOM 

a, cross section of fruit; b, fruit; c, flower, d, seeds. 


built in the thirteenth century, and a public 
library. The leading industries are shipbuild¬ 
ing and the manufacture of iron, steel and tin 
plate. The town is located near large coal and 
iron mines and is an important commercial 
center. The docks are extensive and at high tide 
can be reached by the largest vessels. Popula¬ 
tion in 1911, 182,280. 

Car'dinal, a dignitdry of the Roman Catholic 
Church, next in rank to the pope. The cardinals, 
or members of the Sacred College, are appointed 







Cardinal Bird 


Caribbean Sea 


by the pope and help him in the management of 
the affairs of the Church. The number in the 
Sacred College may vary, though it was fixed at 
seventy by Sixtus V in 1586. There are but 
few English-speaking cardinals, the greater num¬ 
ber being Italians. The first cardinal of the 
United States was McCIoskey, 1875. On the 
death of the pope the Sacred College elect his 
successor, who must be one of their own number. 

The insignia of a cardinal are the cardinal’s 
red hat, given by the pope, but not worn; the 
biretta, or red cap' the sapphire ring; the purple 
cassock; the miter of white silk. 

Cardinal Bird or Redbird, a showy North 
American finch, with fine red plumage and a 
crested head. A black patch is conspicuous on 
each side of the bill. The cardinal whistles 
beautifully, and his clear, ringing note is a great 
favorite, especially in the Southern states, where 
the bird is often kept in captivity. It nests 
occasionally as far north as northern Illinois, 
and every spring is seen and heard with unceasing 
delight. The cardinal is easily tamed, and in 
city parks it often learns to come to the call of 
people who feed it with nuts. See Birds; also 
Finch. 

Cardinal Flower, the name commonly given 
to one of the lobelias, because of its large, very 
showy and intensely red flowers. It is a native 
of low, swampy places in the United States and 
is much cultivated in gardens in Britain. 
See Lobelia. 

Cards, Playing, pasteboard cards, bearing 
printed symbols and used for the purpose of 
playing games of chance. They are of ancient 
origin, being used probably by the Egyptians, 
the ancient Jews and the peoples of the Orient 
before the Christian era. They were probably 
introduced into Europe by the Crusaders or by 
the Moors. The set of cards commonly used in 
Europe and America is known as a pack or a 
deck and consists of fifty-two cards, in four 
suits or classes, known as clubs, spades, diamonds 
and hearts , distinguished by the shape of the 
spots, or pips, upon their faces, and by colors. 
Each suit contains thirteen cards, the first ten 
distinguished by the number of spots or pips; 
the last three, known as face cards and called 
Jack or Knave, Queen and King, respectively, 
bearing fantastic representations of human 
characters corresponding to these titles. Cards 
are used according to many sets of rules, for 
which see articles upon the common games, 
including Whist; Euchre; Casino; Cribbage; 
Draw Poker; Skat; Solitaire. 


Ca'rey, Henry (1696-1743), a British com¬ 
poser, dramatist and poet. He wrote the words 
and music of many popular songs, including 
Sally in Our Alley and, perhaps, God Save the 
King. 

Carey, Henry Charles (1793-1879), an 
American political economist, bom in Philadel¬ 
phia. His father, Matthew Carey, was a pub¬ 
lisher and political economist. He gave his son 
a liberal education, and at the age of eight the 
boy entered his father’s bookstore. He was 
successful in business and made a study of 
economic questions. Though at first a free 
trader, he became the foremost literary sup¬ 
porter of protection. He was the author of 
numerous economic works, the principal one of 
which, Principles of Political Economy (1840), 
was favorably received throughout the world. 
He was a member of the Republican party, 
supported the Union during the Civil War and 
was a trusted adviser of Lincoln and Chase. 
At his death he gave his valuable library to the 
University of Pennsylvania. 

Carey, William (1761-1834), a Baptist mis¬ 
sionary and oriental scholar, born near North¬ 
ampton, England. He began life as a shoe¬ 
maker, but during his apprenticeship studied 
by himself, and when twenty-five years of age 
was appointed minister of a Baptist congregation. 
In 1793 he was sent as the first Baptist mis¬ 
sionary to India and he devoted the remainder of 
his life to work in that country. He mastered 
the Hindu language, became connected with the 
Danish colony at Serampur and established a 
publishing house, which in less than thirty-five 
years issued over 200,000 Bibles or portions of 
the Bible, in over forty different oriental lan¬ 
guages. Carey became a noted Sanskrit scholar 
and prepared a Sanskrit grammar and dictionary, 
as well as similar works on other oriental lan¬ 
guages, and for thirty years he was professor of 
oriental languages at Fort William College, 
Calcutta. 

Car'ib, the race of indians originally inhabiting 
the West India Islands and the northern coast of 
South America, now practically extinct. They 
were a fierce and warlike race who traveled 
about in war canoes, and who were overcome by 
the Spaniards only after the fiercest of fighting. 
They protected their bodies from the sun by 
the use of paint and oil, but wore no clothing. 
They were man-eaters, and from the Latin form 
of their name the word cannibal is derived. 

Car ibbe'an Sea, that portion of the North 
Atlantic Ocean lying between the coasts of Cen- 


Caribou 


Carlisle 


tral and South America and the West India 
Islands. It communicates with the Gulf of 
Mexico by the Yucatan channel. The southern 
shores are rocky and high, but navigation is 
open. The chief arms are the gulfs of Hon¬ 
duras, Darien and Venezuela. The length of 
the Caribbean Sea from east to west is 1700 
miles. 

Car'ibou, the American reindeer, which is 
now rarely found south of Canada, but which was 
formerly common as far south as Connecticut. 
Caribou roam about in the summer, but in 
winter they gather together in herds, feeding 
on winter berries and the leaves of shrubs. 
Their large hairy hoofs enable them to travel 
easily in the snow. They have large antlers, 
one branch of which extends over the forehead 
in front. See Reindeer. 

Caricature, kar’i ka ture', a grotesque picture 
or representation of a person or thing, the pecu¬ 
liarities being so exaggerated as to appear ridicu¬ 
lous. The art is an old one and was practiced 
by the Egyptian and Assyrian artists, as well 
as by the Greeks and Romans. It was popular 
among all the European nations during the 
Middle Ages. The invention of printing made 
it possible to circulate caricatures more freely, 
but in many countries there was so little liberty 
allowed by the rulers that the art could not 
flourish. With the greater freedom of the press 
the growth has been more rapid. In the present 
day most of the daily papers and many of the 
magazines publish caricatures, which influence 
public opinion almost as much as that which 
is written. In the United States, Puck , Judge 
and Life; in England, Punch ; in France, Chari- 
vari; in Germany, Fliegende Blatter are period¬ 
icals devoted to caricature and humor. The fol¬ 
lowing is a list of some of the world’s famous 
caricaturists: of France, Callot, Daumier,Vernet, 
Gavami and Cham; of England, Hogarth, Gil¬ 
roy and Cruikshank; of the United States, 
Opper, Davenport, Nast, Bush, Bartholomew 
(Bart) and McCutcheon. 

Carleton, kahrVton, Sir Guy (1724-1808), 
a British soldier and colonial governor. He 
served during the French and Indian Wars in 
America, in 1766 was appointed lieutenant 
governor, and in 1775 governor, of Quebec. 
Later he took supreme command of the British 
forces in Canada, successfully repelled the 
American attacks in the early years of the Revo¬ 
lution and was raised to the rank of lieutenant 
general. In 1777 he was superseded by Bur- 
goyne, but at the close of the war succeeded Sir 


Henry Clinton as commander in chief. For his 
services he was created Baron Dorchester by the 
king and was granted a pension of £1000 a year. 
From 1786 to 1796 he was again governor of 
Quebec, proving a popular and able adminis¬ 
trator. 

Carleton, Will (1845-1912), an American 
author, bom in Hudson, Mich. He graduated 
at Hillsdale College in that state and soon after¬ 
ward began to lecture in various parts of the 
United States and Canada. His best-known 
works are poems of domestic life, as Farm Bal¬ 
lads , Farm Legends, Farm Festivals, City Bal¬ 
lads and other poems. They possess both vigor 
and pathos and have attained a wide popularity 
on both sides of the Atlantic. 

Carleton, William (1794-1869), an Irish 
novelist. His education commenced at a hedge- 
school and terminated with two years’ training 
in an academy. Afterward he went to Dublin 
to try his fortune, and there in 1830 was pub¬ 
lished his Traits and Stories of the Irish Peas¬ 
antry, which met with great success. Among 
his novels are Fardorougha the Miser, Valentine 
M’Clutchy, The Black Prophet and Willy Reilly. 
Carleton was given a government allowance of 
$1000 per annum several years before his death. 
He has been called “one of the truest, the most 
powerful and the tenderest delineators of Irish 
life.” 

Carlisle, kahr lile', a city in England, capital 
of the county of Cumberland, 52 mi. w. of New¬ 
castle. It has a splendid medieval cathedral, 
which is only partially preserved. The castle 
built by William Rufus is now used as barracks. 
The manufactures include cotton fabrics, hats 
and iron. Carlisle was originally a Roman 
station, was destroyed by the Danes in the 
ninth century and was rebuilt by William Rufus. 
Population in 1911, 46,400. 

Carlisle, Pa., the county-seat of Cumber¬ 
land co., 18 m. w. by s. of Harrisburg, on the 
Gettysburg & Harrisburg and the Cumberland 
Valley railroads. The borough is in a pro¬ 
ductive farming region, is laid out with wide 
streets and has several fine public buildings. A 
large United States Indian training school is 
located here, and it is also the seat of Dickinson 
College and of Metzger Institute for girls. The 
principal manufactures are chains, frog switches, 
shoes, flour, paper boxes and carpets. Mount 
Holly Springs is a beautiful summer resort in 
the near-by mountains. During the Whisky 
Insurrection of 1794, the militia had their head¬ 
quarters here, and on July 1,1863, the place was 


Carlisle 

bombarded by the Confederates. Population in 
1910, 10,303. 

Carlisle, John Griffin (1835-1910), an 
American statesman, born in Kentucky. He 
became a lawyer, served several terms in the 
state legislature, from 1871 to 1875 was lieutenant 
governor of the state and in 1877 took his seat in 
Congress. From 1883 to 1889 he served as 
speaker of the House of Representatives, and in 
1890 he was elected senator. He resigned in 
1893 to become secretary of the treasury in 
President Cleveland’s cabinet. In this position 
Mr. Carlisle gained fame as an advocate of the 
gold standard, and for his connection with the 
sale of bonds to replenish the treasury’s gold 
reserve. In 1897 he resumed the practice of 
law in New York. 

Carlos I (1863-1908), king of Portugal, was 
the son of King Luiz I and Queen Maria Pia, 
daughter of King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy. 
In 1886 he married Marie Amelie, daughter of 
the Duke of Orleans. In 1889 he ascended the 
throne. On Feb. 1 , 1908, Carlos and his eldest 
son were shot by revolutionists while driving in 
Lisbon. Manuel, his second son, ascended the 
throne, assuming the title of Manuel II. 

Carlos de Bourbon, Don (1788-1855), a 
pretender to the Spanish crown, the second son of 
Charles IV. Before the birth of Maria Isabella, 
he had been regarded as the heir of his brother, 
Ferdinand VII, and when, after the death of 
Ferdinand, Maria Isabella was declared queen, 
Don Carlos attempted to assert his right to rule 
by reason of the Salic Law (See Salic Law). 
Until 1839, when he was obliged to flee from the 
country, he kept up his struggle. In 1845 he 
resigned his rights to his sons, in whose favor 
there was an insurrection in 1860. 

Carlovingians, kahr'lo vin'je anz. See Car- 
olingians. 

Carlsbad, kahrls'baht. See Karlsbad. 

Carlsruhe, kahrls roo'e. See Karlsruhe. 

Carlstadt, kahrl'staht, Andreas Rudolf 
Bodenstein (1480-1541), a German reformer, 
one of Luther’s warmest supporters, excom¬ 
municated with him. In 1524, however, he 
began an opposition to Luther which resulted 
in the separation of the Calvinists and Lutherans. 

Carlyle, kahrlile Thomas (1795-1881), 
eminent Scottish writer, born at Ecclefechan, 
Dumfriesshire. He was intended for the Church 
and was carefully educated with that object in 
view. In his fifteenth year he was sent to the 
University of Edinburgh, where he developed a 
strong taste for mathematics. Having renounced 


Carlyle 

the idea of becoming a minister, he became on 
his graduation a teacher; but he disliked this 
work and in 1818 removed to Edinburgh, where 
he supported himself by literary work. His 
career as an author may be said to have begun 
with the issue in the London Magazine of his 
Life of Schiller, which was enlarged and pub¬ 
lished separately in 1825. In 1824 he published 
a translation of Legendre’s Geometry, with an 
essay on proportion, by himself, prefixed, and in 
the same year appeared his translation of 
Goethe’s Wilhelm Meister. His Specimens of 
German Romance was published in 1826, the year 
in which he married Miss Jane Baillie Welsh. 



Although there is no doubt that Carlyle and his 
wife were genuinely and deeply attached to each 
other, their life was far from peaceful, owing to 
Carlyle’s temper and his wife’s critical nature. 
After their marriage they lived for a time in 
Edinburgh, and then withdrew to Craigen- 
puttock. Here he wrote a number of critical 
and biographical articles for various periodicals; 
and here, too, he wrote Sartor Resartus (the tailor 
mended), the most original of his works. The 
publication of Sartor soon made Carlyle famous. 
He removed in 1834 to London, and three years 
later he brought out his French Revolution , a 
vivid dramatic picture of that great movement. 

During the years that followed Carlyle deliv- 












Carmack 


Carnegie 


ered several series of lectures, the most important 
of which is Heroes and Hero-worship. Chartism, 
published in 1839, and Past and Present, in 1843, 
were small works bearing on the affairs of the 
time. In 1845 appeared his Oliver Cromwell’s 
Letters and Speeches, with Elucidations, and in 
1850 his Latter-day Pamphlets came out. He 
next wrote a life of his friend John Sterling, 
published in 1851. The largest and most 
laborious work of his life, The History of 
Frederick the Great, next appeared, the first two 
volumes in 1858, the second two in 1862 and the 
last two in 1865; and after this time little came 
from his pen. In 1866, having been elected lord 
rector of Edinburgh University, he delivered an 
installation address to the students on the Choice 
of Books. While still in Scotland the sad news 
reached him that his wife had died suddenly in 
London. For the rest of his years he lived much 
in retirement, and he died in 4881 in Chelsea. 
Carlyle's Reminiscences and Life, with the 
Letters of Jane Welsh Carlyle, were published 
by James Anthony Froude, Carlyle’s literary 
executor, and for a time Carlyle’s reputation 
suffered greatly by some of the revelations con¬ 
tained in these works. 

Carlyle’s intense hatred of sham was expressed 
in the fiercest satire, and he attempted to drive, 
rather than to lead, men toward the truth he 
loved. The style of his works, his disjointed, 
rugged sentences, his fiery appeals, is on the 
whole a true picture of the man. 

Car'mack, Edward Ward (1858-1908), an 
American politician, born in Sumner co., 
Tenn. He was admitted to the bar and prac¬ 
ticed at Columbia, Tenn., was elected to the 
legislature in 1884, entered journalism and 
founded the Nashville Democrat in 1888, becom¬ 
ing editor in chief when that paper was merged 
with the Nashville American. In 1892 he became 
editor of the Memphis Commercial. He was 
elected to Congress in 1897 as a Democrat, and 
in 1901 he entered the United States Senate, 
where he became a prominent member of the 
Democratic minority. 

Carmagnole, kahr ma nyole', a name applied 
in the early times of the French Republic (1792- 
1793) to a highly popular song, and the dance by 
which it was accompanied. 

Car'mel, a range of hills in Palestine, extending 
from the Plain of Esdraelon to the Mediterranean. 
It has a length of about 16 miles and its highest 
point is 1850 feet above the sea. 

Car'melites, an order of monks of Our Lady 
of Mount Carmel, claimed by some to have been 


founded by the prophet Elijah, but as far as 
known, founded by Count Bertrand in 1156. 
Bertrand, with ten companions, went to Mount 
Carmel in Palestine and established the order, 
but on account of the Mohammedan persecu¬ 
tion they were obliged to remove and located in 
Cyprus. The habit of the order was brown, with 
a white cloak, from which they were known as 
the white friars. The Carmelites are character¬ 
ized by their self-denial in eating and drinking, 
and by the simple life which they lead. They 
were first confined to monasteries, but in the 
thirteenth century their order became mendicant, 
and in the sixteenth century one branch of the 
order was known as the Barefooted Carmelites. 

Carmine, kahr'mine, the fine red coloring 
matter, or principle, of cochineal, from which it 
is prepared in several w r ays. It is used to some 
extent in dyeing, in water-color painting and in 
coloring artificial flowers, confectionery' and 
other things. 

Carnation, kahr na'shun, the name given to 
many culti¬ 
vated varie¬ 
ties of the 
clove pink. 

Carnations 
are among the 
most popular 
of cultivated 
flowers, be¬ 
cause of their 
beauty, their 
fragr a n ce, 
their long life 
after they 
have been 
picked, and 
because they 
blossom at all 
seasons of the 
year if prop¬ 
erly cared for. 

Under culti¬ 
vation, in 
place of the 
original lilac 
of the wild 
pink of southern Europe, the carnation has 
assumed a wide variety of forms ard tints. 

Carnegie, kahr neg'y, Pa., Alleghany co., 
a borough on Chartier’s Creek, 6 mi. s. w. of 
Pittsburg. It is on the Pittsburg, Cincinnati, 
Chicago & Saint Louis and the Pittsburg, 
Chartiers & Youghiogheny railroads. There 



Carnegie 


Carnegie Institution 


are extensive iron, steel and lead works, and coal 
is largely mined here. Population in 1910, 
10,009. 

Cameg'ie, Andrew (1837— ), an Ameri¬ 

can capitalist and philanthropist, bom at Dun¬ 
fermline, Scotland, whence his father, a hand- 
loom weaver, emigrated to America in 1848. 



ANDREW CARNEGIE 


The family settled in Pittsburg, where Andrew 
obtained employment first as a telegraph messen¬ 
ger. He became an operator and was finally 
promoted to become division superintendent on 
the Pennsylvania railroad. A fortunate acquaint¬ 
ance with the sleeping-car patentee laid the 
foundation of his success; then came lucky 
ventures in oil and the starting of a rolling mill, 
from which has grown the largest system of iron 
and steel industries in the world. He was the head 
of the Carnegie Steel Company, the largest single 
interest in the formation of the United States 
Steel Corporation in 1901. In that year he 
retired from business, devoting himself to 
travel, literature and philanthropy. Among his 
chief benefactions are the following: $10,000,000 
to Carnegie Institute, a technical institution, 
Pittsburg; $10,000,000 to found the Carnegie 
Institution, Washington (See Carnegie Insti¬ 
tution); $10,000,000 to Scotch universities; 
$15,000,000 for a pension fund for American 
college professors; $5,000,000 for a benefit 
fund for the employes of the Carnegie Steel 
Company, and more than $40,000,000 for libra¬ 
ries in England, Scotland, and America, 
Carnegie Foundationf orthe Advancement 
of Teaching, founded by Andrew Carnegie in 


1905 and incorporated by Congress in 1906. 
The institution is endowed with a fund of $15,- 
000,000 and is administered by a board of five 
trustees, the executive officers of which consist 
of a president, secretary and treasurer. While 
the avowed object is to provide retiring pensions 
for teachers in universities, colleges and technical 
schools of the United States, Canada and New¬ 
foundland, in its practical application it has be¬ 
come an important factor in higher education. 
In effect, it has established uniform rules to 
which institutions must conform if they would 
enjoy its benefactions, thus standardizing re¬ 
quirements for students’ entrance, etc., tending 
to break down sectarian management of schools 
and establishing what will result in greater uni¬ 
formity in the work of professional schools. 

Carnegie Hero Fund, a fund of five million 
dollars set aside by Andrew Carnegie for the pur¬ 
pose of rewarding heroic actions. It is ad¬ 
ministered by a board of twenty-one trustees. 
The act to be rewarded must have been per¬ 
formed in the United States, Canada or New¬ 
foundland; it must consist in risking one’s own 
life to save the life of a fellow-being, and be an 
act outside of the usual line of duty of the one 
doing it. The reward consists of a suitable 
medal, or a sum of money, or of both. It may be 
granted to the widow or children of the hero. 

Carnegie Institution, an institution founded 
by Andrew Carnegie for the purpose of pro¬ 
moting higher education and original research. 
The plan is similar to that of the Smithsonian 
Institution. No degrees are to be granted, and 
no special grade of scholarship is to be required 
for admission to the privileges which the Insti¬ 
tution offers. According to the terms of the gift 
the scientific departments of the government are 
to place their records and museums at the disposal 
of the students. The institution was incorr 
porated Jan. 4, 1902, and the board of trustees 
was elected on Jan. 9. By terms of the grant 
the president of the United States, the president 
of the United States Senate, the speaker of the 
House of Representatives, the secretary of the 
Smithsonian Institution and the president of the 
National Academy of Sciences are ex-officio 
members of the board of trustees. The grant 
specifies the following purposes of the institution: 
1. To promote original research. 2. To dis¬ 
cover exceptional men in the various departments 
of study. 3. To increase facilities for higher 
education. 4. To increase the efficiency of 
universities and other institutions. 5. To in¬ 
sure prompt publication and distribution of the 





Carnelian 

results of scientific investigation. 

Came'lian or Cornelian, a red variety of 
chalcedony, usually of a clear, rich color. It 
takes an excellent polish and is used in common 
jewelry for seals, bracelets, necklaces and other 
ornamental articles. See Chalcedony. 

Camiv'ora, a large order of mammals, well 
represented by the cat and dog. The Carnivora 
vary in size and in habits of life, though most of 
them subsist wholly or partially on flesh. The 
teeth are large, strong, with sharp cutting edges, 
so they can cut and tear the flesh-food with ease. 
The Carnivora walk flat upon their feet, and the 
cats, in walking, retract the claws which arm 
their toes. The carnivora are natives of every 
country, with the possible exception of Australia, 
but the distribution of many species is peculiar 
and interesting. Bears are not found in Mada¬ 
gascar, and only one species is known in the 
tropical regions. The only Carnivora in Mada¬ 
gascar are practically peculiar to the island. 
The raccoon family is peculiar to the New World, 
while nearly all of the badger, sable and otter 
groups are confined to the Old World. No 
hyenas are found in the New World. In one 
group are the seals, sea lions and walruses, all 
of which are aquatic, and most of which are 
confined to the ocean; all these are more or less 
fish-like in form, and in general their limbs are 
enclosed within the skin. See Cat; Coyote; 
Dog; Ichneumon; Leopard; Lion; Skunk; 
Wolf, and articles relating to numerous other 
species. 

Carnivorous Plants, a group of plants of 
many different species, that use for food small 
animals, especially insects. Most of these plants 
live in moist places, where there is an absence 
of nitrogen, which is supplied by the insects. 
The sundews or droseras, the most common, 
have small, thick leaves supplied with sticky, 
sensitive hairs which hold and press around the 
insect when it alights. In the Venus’s flytrap 
the leaves are modified into hinged traps pro¬ 
vided with bristles. The pitcher plants also 
belong to this group. See Drosera; Venus’s 
Flytrap; Pitcher Plants. 

Carnot, Marie Francois Sadi (1837-1894), 
a French statesman, president of the French 
Republic from 1887 to 1894. He was educated 
as an engineer and advanced rapidly in his pro¬ 
fession, until he was appointed prefect of the 
lower Seine, during the siege of Paris, in 1871. 
After the fall of the city he was made a member 
of the National Assembly, and in 1886 he took 
office in the Brisson cabinet. On the resignation 


Carp 

of Gr6vy in 1887, Carnot was elected president 
of France. During a celebration given in his 
honor at Lyons he was killed by an assassin. 

Caroline Islands or New Philippines, a 
large archipelago in the North Pacific Ocean, 
between the Philippines and the Marshall Isles, 
first discovered by the Spaniards in 1543, if not 
by the Portuguese in 1525. The chief islands 
are Yap and Ponapi. The most important vege¬ 
table productions are palms, breadfruit trees and 
bananas. Germany purchased these islands from 
Spain in June, 1899. Population about 60,000. 

Carolingians, kar o lin'je anz, the second 
dynasty of the French or Frankish kings, which 
supplanted the Merovingians, deriving their 
name from Charles Martel. Charles Martel was 
mayor of the palace and virtual ruler under the 
weak Merovingian kings, and his son, Pippin 
the Short, after serving for a time as mayor of 
the palace, became king in 751. , Pippin was 
succeeded by Charlemagne and)Ibis brother 
Carloman. Charlemagne became sole king in 
771 and was succeeded in the Empire of the 
West by his son Louis the Pious. He divided 
his empire among his sons, and at his death 
(840) his son Charles the Bald became king of 
the part of his territory which corresponds to 
modem France. He died in 877, and was suc¬ 
ceeded by a number of feeble princes. The dynasty 
came to an end with Louis V, who died in 987. 

Carot'id Arteries, the two great arteries 
which convey the blood from the aorta to the 
head and brain. The common carotids, one on 
each side of the neck, divide each into an external 
branch, which passes up to the angle of the lower 
jaw, where it sends branches to the neck, face 
and outer parts of the neck, and an internal 
branch, which passes deeply into the neck, then, 
through an opening in the skull behind the ear, 
enters the brain and supplies it and the eye with 
blood. A wound in the carotids, unless it be a 
puncture, results in almost immediate death. 

Carp, a family of fresh-water fishes native to 



CARP 


southwestern Asia, but now acclimated in all 
parts of the world. Carp is a favorite food fish 














































































































Carpathian Mountains 


Carpetbaggers 


of Europe, but because of the coarseness of its 
flesh it is not so well liked in the United States. 
It thrives and multiplies rapidly in ponds and 
sluggish streams, and the United States Fish 
Commission has stocked many such bodies of 
water with it. The leather carps have no scales. 
Other species are brilliantly colored, while still 
others are dull. See Goldfish. 

Carpathian Mountains, a range of moun¬ 
tains in southern Europe, chiefly in Austria, 
forming a great semicircular belt nearly 800 
miles in length and partially inclosing the Plain 
of Hungary. The system includes a number of 
ranges, the Tatra range in the northwest having 
the greatest altitude, the highest peak being 
8737 feet. The lowest ranges are in the eastern 
portion and have an altitude of 5000 to 7000 
feet. The entire system is rich in minerals, 
including gold, silver, quicksilver, copper and 
iron. There are many small but very deep 
lakes in these mountains. 

Car'penta'ria, Gulf of, a large gulf, situated 
on the north coast of Australia, discovered and 
explored by Carpenter, for whom it was named. 
It contains numerous islands, and the shores are 
low. 

Car'penter, Matthew Hale (1824-1881), 
an American jurist and statesman, bom in Ver¬ 
mont. He spent two years at West Point, was 
admitted to the bar in 1847 and settled at 
Beloit, Wis., whence he removed to Milwaukee 
in 1856. He was considered the greatest consti¬ 
tutional lawyer of his time, and figured in many 
important cases, notably as counsel for Samuel 
J. Tilden before the Electoral Commission. 
From 1869 to 1875, he was United States senator 
from Wisconsin. In 1879 he was again elected 
to the Senate, and died in office. 

Carpenter, William Benjamin (1813-1885), 
an English physiologist and author of important 
scientific works, among which are his Principles 
of Human Physiology, Principles of Mental 
Physiology, Physiology of Temperance, Mes¬ 
merism and Spiritualism and many scientific 
papers on zoology and allied subjects. 

Carpenter-bee, a common name of a solitary 
bee which burrows into wood for a short distance 
and then excavates a tunnel for a foot or more 
lengthwise of the grain. Beginning at the bot¬ 
tom, the bee lays her eggs each in a separate 
cell, one above another, and all are filled with a 
plentiful supply of food for the larvae. 

Car'pet, a floor covering made of wool, cotton, 
hemp, or other material. Woven carpets were 
first used in Oriental countries and were woven 


in one piece, but now they are made in narrow 
strips, to be sewed together. They were intro¬ 
duced from the East into Europe. The first 
carpet factory in Europe was established in 
Paris in 1607. The chief carpets now in use 
are the following: Brussels carpets come from 
Brussels, Belgium, and are the most common in 
the United States and Europe. The back is of 
linen, and the face of raised worsted loops. It 
is woven in simple patterns of not more than 
five colors. Wilton carpets, made in Wilton, 
England, are similar to Brussels in manufacture, 
except that the loops are cut open and sheared 
smooth so as to make a velvet-like surface. 
The moquette carpet, made in the United States, 
looks like the Wilton, but is made by fastening 
little tufts of woolen thread to a canvas back. 
The ingrain is an all-wool carpet, woven with two 
or three webs of different colors. It is smooth- 
finished on both sides and is ustially reversible. 
The Persian, Turkish and Indian carpets are 
all woven by hand and are very valuable. 

Car'petbag'gers, the name first given to 
northern politicians who took up their residence 
in the Southern states, in order to become repre¬ 
sentatives of those states in Congress. The 
name is now especially applied to those Northern 
adventurers who settled in the South after the 
Civil War, and who from 1865 until 1876 
attempted to control the Southern states by 
becoming leaders of the colored voters. During 
this period the better class of whites was largely 
excluded from voting by the reconstruction 
measures of Congress. The state governments 
were administered by coalitions of unscrupulous 
whites and ignorant negroes, which levied enor- 



CARPENTER-BEE 


mous taxes, squandered the money in reckless 
extravagance and speculation and burdened the 
states with vast debts. These governments were 
known as carpetbag governments. See Recon¬ 
struction. 


Carpet Beetle 


Carriage 


Carpet Bee'tle, a small beetle about one- 
eighth of an inch long, marked with black, 
white and red. The larva is a short, hairy 
grub that feeds on carpets and woolen clothing. 
It is a very destructive animal, and its exter¬ 
mination is often very difficult. Pyrethrum 
powder and naphtha balls are helpful. It is 
sometimes called the buffalo moth. 

Car'pet Sweep'er, a device for sweeping 
carpets. The principal parts of a carpet sweeper 
are the bail, case, brush and wheels. The bail 
is a metal attachment which circles half way 
around the sweeper and to which the handle 
is attached. It is of malleable iron and comes 
to the sweeper factory warped and crooked. 
It is placed in a press, which, with a single 
blow, straightens it out completely. The bail 
is then polished on emery wheels or belts and 
is passed to a room where it is boiled in lye 
and copper and nickel-plated or Japanned, 
before receiving the final polish on cloth wheels, 
preparatory to being sent to the assembling rooms. 
The wooden case is usually made of oak. It is 
run through dry-kilns and allowed to season 
thoroughly before it is cut up into the proper 
sizes. The brush is a wooden roller thickly 
studded with bristles. The rollers are turned in 
machines which work automatically, and are 
given a coat of black filler before reaching the 
factory. The rollers are first placed in a machine 
which bores the holes for the bristles, which are 
also put in by machinery. The brush ia put 
through a machine where it is properly trimmed, 
and then it goes to the assembling room. The 
wooden wheels are turned out at the rate of 100 
a minute and are carefully finished and painted. 
The metal wheels are sent to the rubbering room, 
where rubber bands are put on. The tin for the 
bottom pans is cut and put in proper shape by 
automatic machinery. Every part of the 
sweeper is constantly moving toward the as¬ 
sembling room. In the assembling room the 
parts are put together and the machine tested. 

Carranza, Venustiano, Mexican general and 
popular leader, born about 1860. Carranza, who 
had been appointed governor of Coahuila by 
President Madero, refused to recognize the 
government formed by General Huerta. On 
March 26, 1912, the opponents of Huerta, call¬ 
ing themselves the constitutionalists, rose in 
arms and named Carranza commander-in-chief. 
Carranza lacks the spectacular qualities of Villa, 
his nominal subordinate, but he has proved a 
capable soldier and administrator. He organ¬ 
ized the constitutionalist government, with its 


seat at Hermosillo, and gave the northern part 
of Mexico a fair measure of order. See Mexico, 
subhead History. 

Carrara, kah rah'rah, a city of northern 
Italy, 59 mi. s. w. of Modena. It is surrounded 
by hills containing fine white statuary marble. 
Although the Carrara quarries have been worked 
for 2000 years, having furnished the material 
for the Pantheon at Rome, the supply is still 
practically inexhaustible. They employ 10,000 
men. Population in 1911, 42,000. 

Carrel, Alexis (1873— ), an American 

surgeon, born in Lyons, France, and educated 
at the University of Lyons. Before coming to 
America in 1905 he was a member of the faculty 
of medicine at Lyons. Since 1909 he has been 
an associate member of Rockefeller Institute for 
Medical Research. Dr. Carrel was winner of 
the Nobel prize in medicine in 1912. He has 
performed many operations before deemed im¬ 
possible, such as making veins do the work of 
arteries, and the reverse. His achievements 
in the surgical grafting of limbs, the transplant¬ 
ing of organs, such as kidneys, and the maintain¬ 
ing of life, growth and functional activity for 
protracted periods of time in organs and tissues 
apart from the body dimly outline important dis¬ 
coveries made by him in the field of medicine and 
surgery. He has shown that by the use of ap¬ 
propriate stimulating extracts the growth of 
tissue necessary for healing wounds and knitting 
broken bones can be greatly hastened. 

Carriage, Icar'rij, a wheeled vehicle, espe¬ 
cially designed for carrying passengers. The 
important parts of a carriage are the body, seat, 
top, hood, dashboard, apron, step, springs, 
running gear, perch, forward gear, clip, fifth 
wheel, tongue, shafts, singletree, doubletree, 
axle and wheel. The essential parts of wheel 
are the hub, spoke, felloe and tire. The 
body of the carriage is usually made of hard 
wood. It is put together with mortises and 
tenons, held by screws and glue and strengthened 
with iron braces. The top in some carriages, 
as in the coach, is supported on wooden uprights; 
in others it is made of an iron frame, which can 
be folded or opened into a braced position. 
This frame is covered with leather or canvas. 
The gear is made of wood and iron. The hubs, 
felloes, spokes and shafts and the frame to 
which the axles are attached are of wood. The 
axles are of steel, and the hubs are fitted with 
steel boxes. In the most modern pattern of 
carriages the wheels revolve upon ball bearings. 
The fifth wheel is made of steel or iron and is 


Carrier 


Carrot 


the device upon which the forward axle operates. 
Modern carriages are manufactured in a great 
variety of styles, each of which has its own 
particular name, but all may be grouped under 
two classes—two-wheeled and four-wheeled 
vehicles. See Brougham; Buckboard; Buggy; 
Cab; Calash; Cart; Chaise; Chariot; Coupe; 
Hack; Hansom; Wagon. 

Carrier, kar're ur, Common, an individual 
or corporation which transports goods and 
passengers for hire. Two rules of law govern 
the regulation of carriers: (1) they must carry 
any who apply to them, without discrimination; 
(2) they are responsible, in the case of trans¬ 
portation of freight, for the loss or injury of the 
goods entrusted to them, even without negli¬ 
gence on their part. This responsibility extends 
to all cases except those arising (a) through 
“act of God,” that is, accidents in which there 
is no human agency; (b) through act of a public 
enemy, that is, a government at war, or pirates; 

(c) through the act or default of the shipper; 

(d) through acts of public authorities; (e) from 
the nature of the goods transported; (f) from 
the ordinary wear and loss, such as perishable 
goods. The liability of the carrier begins when 
the goods have been placed in the hands of its 
agents, and its liability ends when they have 
been transported to the place agreed upon. 
This may be, in the case of a railroad, in its 
freight house at the point of destination; in the 
case of express companies, at the business or 
residence address of the consignee. The rela¬ 
tion of common carriers to the public has been 
changed in various ways by statutes of the states 
and may be changed to a limited extent by 
special contracts between shippers and the 
carrier. 

In relation to passengers , the carrier is bound 
to carry those whom it accepts, without negli¬ 
gence. In the case of accident it rests with the 
carrier to show that the accident arose from no 
fault of its own or on the part of its servants or 
agents. Hence, injured passengers or, in case 
of death, their nearest relatives, have a claim 
for compensation, provided they did not con¬ 
tribute to the injury by negligence. These same 
rules apply in general to carriers by water, 
together with certain special regulations appli¬ 
cable to these carriers alone. In case of danger 
from tempest or from enemies, ship passengers 
may be called upon by the captain or commander 
to lend their assistance for the general safety. 

Carrier Pigeon, pij'un, or Homing Pigeon, 
a variety of the common domestic pigeon, 
35 


which is sometimes used for the purpose of 
carrying messages. Carrier pigeons are large 
birds with long wings, a large mass of naked 
skin at the base of the beak and a circle of naked 
skin around the eyes. They have been used 
from the earliest times and are now kept in large 
numbers in various parts of the world, but 
more as a pleasure and curiosity than for any 
practical service. Their speed is marvelous, 
and the distance through which they can fly 
without rest seems almost incredible. An Ameri¬ 
can homing pigeon is known to have made a 
journey of 1040 miles without stopping. These 
birds cannot be induced to fly away from home, 
and are teachable merely because of the strong 
instinct which tells them where home is and 
leads them to fly straight to it. 

Car'roll, Charles, of Carrollton (1737- 
1832), an American statesman, born at Annap¬ 
olis, Md. At the outbreak of the Revolution 
he w r as the wealthiest man in the colonies and 
used his influence and means freely for the aid 
of liberty. In 1776 he was elected to the Con¬ 
tinental Congress from Maryland and signed 
the Declaration of Independence. He was again 
a delegate to Congress in 1777 and served on the 
committee which visited Valley Forge to inves¬ 
tigate complaints about General Washington. 
In 1788 he was elected the first senator from 
Maryland under the Constitution of the United 
States, serving until 1791. He was the last 
surviving signer of the Declaration of Independ¬ 
ence. 

Carroll, John (1735-1815), an American 
Catholic archbishop, a cousin of Charles Carroll 
of Carrollton. He was descended from the Car- 
rolls who emigrated to Maryland about the 
year 1689. In 1789 he was appointed first 
bishop in the United States, with his see in 
Baltimore. He was an ardent Federalist and 
one of the most powerful factors of his church 
in this country. For many years he was the 
only bishop in the United States, and in 1808 
he was made archbishop, with power over four 
sees. Congress invited him to deliver a pane¬ 
gyric on Washington, on Feb. 22, 1800. His 
writings are chiefly controversial. 

Carroll, Lewis. See Dodgson, Charles. 

Carrot, kar'rut, a plant of the parsley family, 
which is cultivated for its root. In the culti¬ 
vated variety it is slender, tapering and of a 
yellow or reddish color, but in the wild species 
the root is nearly white. In Germany the carrot, 
cut into small pieces and thoroughly dried, is 
used as a substitute for coffee, and in the United 


Carson 


Carteret 


States it has been extensively used to adulterate 
coffee. As an article of food the carrot is boiled 
and eaten as a vegetable, or is served as an 
ingredient of soup. In Europe it 
is extensively used as a food, but 
in the United States it is culti¬ 
vated more widely as fodder for 
cattle. In its wild state it becomes 
a troublesome weed. 

Car'son, Christopher (1809- 
1868), an American frontiersman, 
better known as “ Kit Carson.” He 
was born in Madison co., Kentucky, 
but was early taken to Missouri, 
where for a time he was appren¬ 
ticed to a saddler. In 1826 he 
began the adventurous life which 
made his name known everywhere 
in the West as the symbol of the 
highest ingenuity and daring. In 
that year he accompanied a party of hunters to 
New Mexico, later went several times to the : 
Pacific coast and acted as hunter for western 
army garrisons. He was with Fremont in sev¬ 
eral expeditions across the Rockies and also 
occasionally assisted western ranchers in driving 
cattle and sheep for long distances through the 
wild western country. At one time Carson alone 
took a drove of more than fifty mules and horses 
for a distance of five hundred miles through an 
almost uninhabited region. Appointed United 
States agent to the Utah and Apache indians in 
1854, he performed notable service for the 
government, through his friendship with influ¬ 
ential chiefs, and during the Civil War, as a 
scout in the southwest, he acted with great 
energy and skill in behalf of the Union, being 
brevetted brigadier general at the close of the 
war. Many of his thrilling adventures'as scout, 
guide, hunter, trapper and indian fighter were 
almost incredible. In cunning, quickness, 
resourcefulness and daring, he rivaled, if he 
did not excel, the most expert indians. 

Carson City, Nev., the capital of the state 
and the county-seat of Ormsby co., 31 mi. s. 
of Reno, on the Virginia & Truckee railroad. 
The city has a picturesque location in an agri¬ 
cultural region, near the base of the Sierra 
Nevada mountains and about 12 miles from 
Lake Tahoe. The principal industries are 
mining, lumbering and agriculture, and there 
are also railroad and machine shops. A gov¬ 
ernment mint and the state capitol are in the 
city, while the state prison is two miles to the 
southeast, and a United States government 


indian school is three miles to the south. Car- 
son City was founded in 1858, became the 
capital of the state in 1861, but was not chartered 
as a city till 1875. Population in 1911, 2466. 

Cart, a carriage with two wheels, with or 
without springs, fitted to be drawn by one 
horse. Light carts with springs are used for 
driving, and heavy carts for hauling sand, clay, 
rocks and other heavy freight. 

Cartagena or Carthagena, Jcahr'ta je'na, a 
seaport of Colombia, capital of the State of 
Bolivar, situated on the Caribbean Sea. It has 
a fine, strongly fortified harbor. ^The cathe¬ 
dral, two other churches, the government build¬ 
ing, a theater, a college and a seminary are the 
most important buildings. The leading manu¬ 
factures are chocolate and candles. The exports 
are cattle, hides, precious stones, coffee, cotton, 
ivory-nuts and rubber. The trade, which had 
partly gone to Sabanilla and Santa Marta, is 
being recovered since the reopening of the 
canal to the river Magdalena. Population, about 
25,000. 

Cartagena or Carthagena, a seaport of 

Spain, situated 31 mi. s. e of Murcia. Its 
harbor, which is one of the largest and safest in 
the Mediterranean, is sheltered by lofty hills. 

' It is a naval and military station, the arsenal 
containing barracks, docks, hospitals and 
machine shops. Lead smelting is largely carried 
on, and there are in the neighborhood rich mines 
of excellent iron. Esparto grass, lead, iron ore, 
oranges and other fruits are exported. Among 
the buildings worthy of note are the Hospital 
Militar, the Presidio and the Gothic cathedral 
of the thirteenth century. Cartagena was founded 
by the Carthaginians under Hasdrubal about 
243 B. c., and was called New Carthage. It 
was taken by Scipio Africanus (210 B. c.) and 
was long an important Roman town. It was 
ruined by the Goths and revived in the time of 
Philip II. Population in 1910, 96,983. 

Carte Blanche, kahrt blahNsh, (white paper), 
a blank paper authoritatively signed and entrusted 
to a person to fill up as he pleases. Thus, in 
1649 Charles II tried to save his father’s life 
by sending from the Hague to the Parliament, 
a signed carte blanche, to be filled up with any 
terms which they would accept as the price of 
his safety. In 1832 Earl Grey was said to have 
been armed with a carte blanche for the creation 
of new peers. The term is now used figuratively 
to mean a gift of unlimited powers. 

Car'teret, George, Sir (?-1680), an Eng¬ 
lish loyalist. When the civil war broke out in 



Cartesian Diver 


Cartier 




England between Charles I and Parliament, 
Carteret took the side of the king and served 
in the navy; after the Parliament had triumphed, 
he joined the French navy. Charles II, on his 
restoration, rewarded him and gave him, in 
company with Lord Berkeley, the territory 
which was given the name of New Jersey, in 
America. The annual rental of this territory 
was set at one peppercorn on demand. When, 
some ten years later, it became necessary to 
divide the territory, Carteret received East 
Jersey for his share. 

Cartesian, kahrte'zhan, Diver, a toy con¬ 
sisting of a small hollow glass figure, having a 
little opening some distance below the top and 
so light that it will float. The figure is placed 
in a narrow bottle or other cylindrical vessel, 
filled with wate^. The mouthpiece of the bottle 
is closed witb$,Mpiece of bladder or rubber so as 


to shut out tb 
brane the 
water enC 
of the 
the ejp /A e ft 
watefc. e C 
sum A ^ 

P 

h?* 


t 




4 > 
ie 




'Of 

% 

e ^e 




% 








% 


% 




*9 

if) 

* 


lir. Oh pressing upon this mem- 
jiside the figure is compressed, 
the figure sinks to the bottom 
|Vhen the pressure is removed, 
[’e of air in the figure drives the 
ie figure rises to the top. A 
f; made by taking a small vial, 
[with water and placing it up- 
,-ger bottle. By pressing upon 
pottle, the vial rises and falls, 
figure would do. 
f.mcient and celebrated city on 
of Africa. According to an 
jige was founded by Dido, a 
in 878 B. c., but it is more 
ras founded about 850 b. c. 
[its, as a trading post. It was 
[niles south of Utica and near 
Tunis. The city was built 
put three miles wide, across 
(vail of towers. All the sides 
j vails, and a double harbor 
s’ ships and for the navy. 

1 ge had a population probably 
, amounting, it is said, to 
had the largest navy in the 
iginians gradually acquired 
other Phoenician colonies of 
over the neighboring tribes, 
■came one of the greatest of 
Early in the sixth century 
is were allies of the Phoeni- 
■ere crowded by the Greeks. 
Greeks, they reduced the 
rnnded colonies there and 
ithe western Mediterranean 


and in Spain. Their first wars of importance 
were with the Greeks in the fifth century b. c., 
over the control of Sicily. The results were 
successes on each side and the final abandon¬ 
ment of the island by the Greeks. Rome was 
in the meantime conquering southern Italy, and 
thus the two nations were brought together. 
The wars which followed are called the Punic 
Wars (See Punic Wars). In 149, Rome, after 
a siege of two years of desperate fighting, cap¬ 
tured the city and destroyed it by fire. The 
emperor Augustus rebuilt the city in 29 b. c., 
and the New Carthage became one of the finest 
cities of the Roman Empire. To-day ther eare 
no remains of the ancient city but a portion of 
its wall. The religion of the Carthaginians con¬ 
sisted of the worship of the stars and fire, and 
Moloch was their chief deity, to whom human 
sacrifices were offered. 

Carthage, Mo., the county-seat of Jasper co., 
150 mi. s. of Kansas City, on the Spring River 
and on the Missouri Pacific, the Saint Louis & 
San Francisco and other railroads. The city is 
in an extensive lead region, has zinc mines, 
stone and lime works, flour mills, machine shops 
and other manufactories. It is an important 
trade center, and is also noted for its excellent 
public schools. The city itself was destroyed 
during the Civil War, but it was soon rebuilt. 
The place was first settled in 1833 and was 
incorporated in 1873. Population in 1910, 9483. 
Car'thage'na. See Cartagena. 

Carthusians, kahr thu'zhanz, an order of 
monks founded in the eleventh century by Saint 
Bruno of Cologne, who with six companions 
went to the desert of Chartreuse in the Alps, far 
above sea level, and built a small convent, donned 
coarse garments and lived as hermits. The 
members of the order fast frequently and eat no 
flesh or fish except what is given them. They 
usually have one meal a day, and this consists of 
bran bread. The dress is white, except a long 
black cloak and hood worn outside the monastery. 
The Carthusians were, from the beginning, well 
educated and given to hospitality and charity. 
At one time they had the finest convents in the 
world, of which La Grande Chartreuse, in ( 
France, and the Certosa di Pavia, south of Milan, 
are among the most celebrated. They originated 
the famous liquor chartreuse, from the sale of 
which they derive considerable revenue. It was 
from the name of this order that the term Charter 
House originated. 

Cartier, kahr tya' , Sir Georges Etienne 
(1814-1873), a Canadian statesman. He was 










Cartier 


Caruso 


admitted to the bar in 1835, took part in the 
rebellion of 1837 and had to leave Canada; but 
he was later pardoned, and in 1848 he entered the 
Canadian Parliament, becoming provincial sec¬ 
retary. In 1856 he became attorney general 
for Lower Canada, in which post he was active 
in behalf of legal reforms. In 1857 he was a 
member of the Macdonald ministry, and in 1858 
he himself became premier. lie was active in 
bringing about the confederation of Canada in 
1867, and held a post in the first Dominion 
cabinet. 

Cartier, Jacques (1494 ?-l557?), a French 
navigator, born at Saint Malo. He commanded 
an expedition to North America in 1534, entered 
the Straits of Belle Isle and took possession of 
the mainland of Canada in the name of Francis I. 
He subsequently went to found a settlement in 
Canada and built a fort near the site of Quebec, 
but it was soon abandoned. 

Cartilage, kahr’ti laj, or Gristle, gris”l, a 
pearly white, firm and very elastic tissue, occur¬ 
ring in vertebrate animals. When cut, the 
surface contains no visible cells, cavities or pores. 
It enters into the composition of those parts 
which must be firm yet easily bent. Temporary 
cartilages are substitutes for bone in the earlier 
periods of life, and they finally become bone. 
The extremities of the long bones at birth are 
cartilage. A good illustration of a temporary 
cartilage is found in the breast-bone of a chicken. 
The permanent cartilages are attached to the 
extremities of bones in the formation of a joint, 
are found in the external ear, aid in forming the 
nose and are the foundation of the eyelids, the 
trachea and the larynx. 

Cartoon', in painting, a drawing made on 
heavy paper or cardboard, and used as a model 
for a large picture in fresco, tapestry or oil color. 
The cartoon is made exactly the size of the pic¬ 
ture intended, and the design is transferred to 
the surface to be ornamented by tracing or other 
processes. The most famous cartoons are those 
painted by Raphael for the Vatican tapestries. 
Originally there were twenty-five, but they were 
neglected and changed hands so many times 
that now only seven remain, and these are at the 
South Kensington Museum, London. Some 
of the subjects represented are Paul Preaching 
at Athens, The Miraculous Draught of Fishes, 
The Death of Ananias and The Sacrifice at 
Lystra. In modern times the term is also 
applied to a pictorial sketch intended to ridicule 
some notable character, a party or some habit 
or belief. See Caricature. 


Cartouche, Icahr toosh ', a term to designate 
a tablet used for ornament or for receiving 
inscriptions, generally in the form of a scroll 
unrolled. In Egyptian architecture, cartouches 
were the oval or elliptical figures carved on 
monuments and temples to receive hieroglyphic 
inscriptions of different kinds. In heraldry 
the term denotes a kind of oval shield, much 
used by the popes and princes in Italy, and 
others, both clergy and laity. 

Cartridge, kahr'trij, a case of paper, parch¬ 
ment, flannel or metal suited to the bore of 
firearms, and holding the exact charge, including, 
in the case of small arms, both powder and 
bullet. The cartridges used for breech-loading 
rifles contain the powder in a case of solid brass 
and have the percussion cap by which they are 
ignited, fixed in the base. Su<ih cases can be 
refilled and used a number x>f tu es. Cartridges 
for large guns are usually mad of flannel and 
contain only the powder. A l ik cartridge is 
a cartridge without ball or shoi 
Cart'wright, Edmund (1 - 1823 ), the 

inventor of the power loom. -as educated 

at Oxford and took orders in, Church. At 


the age of forty his attention 

st attracted 

to mechanics, and in 1785 he 

ht his first 

power loom into action. 

*h much 

opposed both by manufacturt 

workmen. 

this loom made its way and in 

oped and 

improved form is now in unh 

Cart- 

wright spent much of his i 

similar 

inventions and fell into st 

circum- 

stances, from which a parli 

•ant of 

$50,000 relieved him. See Lc 

NG. 

Cartwright, Peter (1785- 

uneri- 

can clergyman and lecturer. 

ginia. 

He was ordained to the Me f 

■y in 

Kentucky in 1806 and beca 

•lder 

of his district, but removed 

323. 

There he became conspicuoi 

nee 

and earnestness as a preache 

his 

eccentricity of manner. It i 

ty 

years after his removal to I 

d 

twelve thousand persons. 

s 

candidate for congressman, 
by Abraham Lincoln. 

Caruso, Enrico (1873- ) 

singer, born in Naples. Ai 
churches, and he began syst 
age of eighteen, under 

Upon completion of his stu< 
his operatic career, singing i 
of Europe, and appearing 

1903, in New York City. 

1 


Carver 


Cascarilla 


instant success, becoming the most celebrated 
tenor of the day. Since that time he has 
visited America professionally nearly every 
year. He has commanded S3,000 for each of a 
long series of performances. 

Car'ver, John (1575-1621), the first gov¬ 
ernor of Plymouth colony in the New World. 
He was born in England and went to Leyden, 
then a refuge for the Puritans. He was an elder 
in the church and in 1620 sailed with the Pilgrims 
in the Mayflower, being unanimously elected 
governor before the landing. Carver was a 
prudent and firm ruler, but he died at Plymouth 
four months after his arrival. 

Carv'ing, as a branch of sculpture, the process 
of cutting a hard body, usually ivory or wood, 
into some particular shape by means of a sharp 
instrument. This art was common in ancient 
times among the Babylonians, who carved ivory 
and practiced gem engraving to a considerable 
extent. In early ages statues of the gods were 
made of wood, painted, and clothed with colored 
draperies. Carving in both ivory and wood 
became general for the decoration of the early 
Christian churches. During the last part of 
the Middle Ages, the art of wood carving was 
brought to a high degree of perfection in Ger¬ 
many, where it was practiced especially in the 
decoration of shrines and altars. The carving 
was very elaborate, sometimes representing whole 
scenes from well-known legends of the saints. 
Many Lutheran churches in Nuremberg retain 
these ornaments exactly as they stood in early 
times. In most countries of Europe the art has 
been largely displaced in recent times by molded 
work of various kinds and by metal casting. 

CaTy, Alice (1820-1871), an American 
novelist and poet. Her opportunities for getting 
an education were limited, but when she was 
eighteen she began writing verses and for the 
next ten years published many pieces, both in 
prose and verse, in newspapers and magazines. 
In 1850, with her sister Phoebe, she removed to 
New York, where, under the patronage of Horace 
Greeley, the sisters continued their literary work. 
While their verses are not always perfectly con¬ 
structed, yet they are sweetly musical and filled 
with the highest sentiment. IIagar, a Story 
of To-day, Lyrics and Hymns’, The Bishop’s 
Son, and Snowberries, a Book for Young People, 
are among her works of note. The poems of 
Alice and Phoebe Cary were published together. 
See Cary, Phoebe. 

Cary, Phoebe (1824-1871), an American 
poet, the sister and life-long companion of Alice 


Cary. Most of her writings were poems, but 
she frequently contributed prose to various 
periodicals. Besides what she published in 
conjunction with her sister, she wrote Poems and 
Parodies and Poems of Faith, Hope and Love. 
The hymn beginning “One sweetly solemn 
thought ” is the finest of her songs and, with the 
charming poems which she wrote for children, 
preserves her reputation. The best biography 
of the Cary sisters is A Memorial of Alice and 
Phoebe Cary, published by Mary Clemmer Ames. 
See Cary, Alice. 

Caryatides, kar'i at’i dcez, or Car'yat'ids, 

the name applied in Greek architecture to the 
figures of women dressed in long robes, standing 
upright in graceful positions and used as columns 
to support a roof. The most celebrated of these 
figures appear on the southwest porch of the 
Erechtheum, Athens. The corresponding male 
figures are called Atlantes. 

Cascade, has hade', Range, a range of moun¬ 
tains in the United Sates, British Columbia and 
Alaska, near the Pacific coast, to which it is 
parallel, extending from the Sierra Nevada, in 
California, northward to Alaska. In the United 
States, the Columbia and Klamath rivers cut 
their way through these mountains to the sea, 
forming deep gorges or canyons noted for the 
beauty of their scenery. The range contains 
several active volcanoes. The highest peaks 
are Mount Shasta, 14,510 feet; Mount Rainier 
or Tacoma, 14,444 feet; Mount Adams, 12,490 
feet, and Mount Hood, 11,225 feet. These 
mountains are of volcanic origin, and the highest 
peaks are extinct volcanoes. 

Cascade Tun'nel, a tunnel on the Great 
Northern railroad through the summit of the 
Cascade Mountains, in Washington. The length 
is 13,413 feet, or 2.6 miles. This is prolonged by 
extending the lining 200 feet at each end, to take 
the place of snow sheds. The width is sixteen 
feet, and the height is twenty-one feet six inches. 
The lining is of concrete and varies in thickness 
from twenty-three inches to three feet six inches. 
The construction was attended with many 
difficulties on account of the nature of the ground. 
A large portion of the excavation was through 
gravel containing large bowlders, and the pres¬ 
sure from above was tremendous. The ground 
also contained a great deal of water. 

Cas'caril'la, the bitter bark of a small 
euphorbia tree. It has medicinal properties 
resembling those of quinine; in fact, the name 
cascarilla has been commonly given to the 
Peruvian bark, in the region where it grows. 


Casco Bay 

Cas'co Bay, a bay of Maine, between Cape 
Elizabeth on the s. w. and Cape Small Point on 
the n e. Within the bay are more than 300 
small islands, most of which are very fertile; 
almost all are occupied by summer residences. 
Portland is situated on the west side of the 
bay, which forms one of the best harbors on 
the Atlantic coast. 

Casein, ka'se in, that substance in milk 
which is coagulated by the action of acids, and 
which constitutes the chief part of the nitrogen 
contained in it. Cheese made from skimmed 
milk and well pressed is fully half casein. Casein 
is one of the most important elements of animal 
food found in milk and leguminous plants. It 
consists of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen 
and sulphur. 

Case Shot, a charge of ammunition, formed 
by putting a quantity of small iron balls into a 
cylindrical tin box, called a canister, that just 
fits the bore of the gun. The shrapnel shell is 
a modern variety of case shot. 

Cashew, ka shoo', a tree common in the West 
Indies. Its fruit is a small, kidney-shaped, 
ash-gray nut that contains an acrid juice. The 
nut is used to flavor Madeira wine, and it is 
eaten cooked in various ways. The stalk or 
receptacle is large and fleshy and has an agree¬ 
able acid flavor. 

Cashmere, kash meer'. See Kashmir. 

Cash'mere Goat, a variety of goat, remarkable 
for its fine, silky fleece, and found in Tibet and 
India. The colder the region where the goat 
pastures, the heavier is its fleece. A full-grown 
goat yields not more than eight ounces of the 
valuable down which underlies the long hairs. 
A large shawl of the finest quality requires five 
pounds, and one of the inferior quality requires 
from three to four pounds. The flesh of the 
cashmere goat is suitable for food, and when well 
cared for the animal gives a rich milk. See 
Goat. 

Cash Register, a machine for recording the 
cash received for sales in retail stores. It con¬ 
sists of a metallic box, with keys arranged 
similarly to those on a typewriter, each key 
representing an amount purchased. When this 
amount is beyond the limit of the machine, it can 
be registered by pressing two or more keys at 
once. When the key is pressed, it throws a 
tablet, showing the amount of purchase, into 
such a position that it can be seen both by the 
customer and the salesman, and at the same 
time it opens the cash drawer. It also registers 
the amount purchased on a long roll of paper, 


Cassandra 

turned forward by a system of wheelwork that 
is under lock and key. The amount of the day’s 
sales is determined by adding the various amounts 
registered on this roll. Cash registers are now 
in very general use in stores and shops where 
small sales are made. Calculating attachments 
are now commonly employed in cash registers. 
See Calculating Machines. 

Casimir-Perier, ka ze meer'pa rya', Jean 
Paul Pierre (1847-1907), a French statesman. 
He was trained for a political career, but during 
the Franco-Prussian war greatly distinguished 
himself, receiving the cross of the Legion of 
Honor. In 1874 he was elected to the Chamber 
of Deputies, and three years later he entered the 
cabinet as under-secretary of state. He formed 
a ministry in 1893, but it was of short duration. 
On the assassination of Carnot in 1894, he was 
elected president of the French Republic, but 
he resigned in less than a year. 

Casino, kas se'no. See Cassino. 

Cas'pian Sea, a large lake or inland sea 
between Europe and Asia. It is 730 miles long 
and 330 miles wide, with an area of 170,000 sq. 
mi., and is the largest interior body of water on 
the globe. Russian territory surrounds it on 
three sides, Persia on the fourth. The Caspian 
receives several large rivers, including the Volga, 
Ural and Kura. It abounds in shallows, making 
navigation difficult. The water is less salt than 
that of the ocean, is of a bitter taste and of an 
ocher color. It does not have ebb or flow. The 
fisheries are valuable. Steam packets are now 
established on it. The Russians have also a 
fleet of war ships in the Caspian. 

Cass, Lewis (1782-1866), an American states¬ 
man, born in Exeter, N. H. He was admitted 
to the bar and became prominent in Ohio 
politics. He entered the army and by 1813 rose 
to the rank of brigadier-general. From 1814 to 
1830 he was governor of Michigan, from 1831 to 
1836, secretary of war, and 1836 to 1842, 
ambassador to France. In 1848 he was the 
Democratic candidate for the Presidency. Later 
he served twelve years in the United States 
Senate and was secretary of state in Buchanan’s 
cabinet. He believed in the Union, and voted for 
measures designed to maintain it, though some of 
these were in reality in the interests of slavery. 

Cassan'dra, in Greek legend, a daughter 
of Priam and Hecuba. She was endowed by 
Apollo with the gift of prophecy, but when she 
refused to accept his love, he became angry, and 
because he could not take from her the gift 
which he had bestowed, he ordained that no one 


Cassatt 

should believe her prophecies. She frequently 
foretold the fall of Troy and warned her country¬ 
men against the stratagem of the Wooden Horse 
(See Wooden Horse). No attention, however, 
was paid to her warnings. 

Cassatt', Alexander Johnson (1839-1906), 
an American capitalist and railway promoter, 
born at Pittsburg, Pa., educated at the Univer- 
isty of Heidelberg and Rensselaer Polytechnic 
Institute. After being engaged for a time in 
railroad surveys, he entered the service of the 
Philadelphia & Trenton railroad, and in 1867 
he became superintendent of motive power and 
machinery on the Pennsylvania railroad. He 
became general superintendent in 1870, general 
manager of the eastern division in 1871, third 
vice-president in 1874, first vice-president in 
1880 and president in 1899. 

Cas'sava, a South American shrub, about 
• eight feet in height, with broad, shining, hand¬ 
shaped leaves, and beautiful white and rose- 
colored flowers. A nutritious starch, called by 
the same name, is obtained from the white, soft 
root of the plant. It is prepared in the West 
Indies, tropical America and Africa. The 
tapioca of commerce is made from cassava. 

Cassel or Kassel, kahs'sel, the capital of the 
province of Hesse-Nassau, Prussia, on the Fulda 
River. 91 mi. n. n. e. of Frankfort-on-the-Main. 
Cassel is one of the most beautiful towns of its 
size in Germany. There are numerous fine 
buildings and educational and charitable insti¬ 
tutions. The city has manufactures of machin¬ 
ery, mathematical instruments, gold and silver 
wares, chemicals, knives, gloves, leather and 
porcelain. Population in 1910, 153,196. 

Cassia, hash'ah, a large genus of plants belong¬ 
ing to the pea family and found in the tropical 
parts of the world. The cassias consist of trees, 
shrubs or herbs. The leaves, which are com¬ 
pound, usually bear glands on their stalks. The 
leaflets of several species constitute the well- 
known Irug called senna, and both leaves and 
flowers are used as medicines. Cassia bark 
is a common name for the bark of an entirely 
different plant, belonging to the laurel family. 
Its flavor resembles that of cinnamon, and as it is 
cheaper it is often substituted for it. The cassia 
of the Bible was probably cassia bark. 

Cassino or Casino, kas se'no, a simple game 
played by two or more persons with a full pack 
of cards. The cards are dealt one at a time to 
each of the players and to the center. of the 
table, in succession, until four have been 
dealt to each. Those on the table are 


Cassiquiare 

turned face up. The player at the left of the 
dealer begins by taking from the table any cards 
that have the same value as one in his hand; 
or he may take any number of cards, the sum 
of whose spots equal any card in his; as, an 
eight will take all other eights, a six and a two, 
a five and a three, a three and a three and a two 
or any combination that makes eight. The 
player can play but one card in his turn, and if 
he can take none with it, he lays it upon the 
table, face up. He may, however, build; for 
example, if there is a two on the table and he has 
a three in his hand, he may lay this three upon 
the two and call five, providing he has in his 
hand a five with which to take the pile at his 
next turn. He may also build a pair upon the 
table, providing he has a third card of the same 
denomination with which to take the pair. An 
opponent may build from his hand on any pile 
excepting a pair. When the four cards have 
been played in rotation, four more are dealt to 
each player, and so on until the pack is exhausted. 
When all the cards have been played to the table, 
the one who takes the last “trick” has also the 
cards that remain. The points that count are 
Little Cassino (the two of spades), 1; Big Cas¬ 
sino (the ten of diamonds), 2; each ace, 1; the 
greatest number of cards held by a single player, 
3; the greatest number of spades held by a 
single player, 1. If at any time a player can 
take all the cards from the table, except in the 
last hand, it is called a sweep and counts 1 to the 
player. The usual game is 21 points. 

Cas'siope'ia, a bright constellation in the 
northern hemisphere, often called the “Lady in 



her Chair.” It contains fifty-five stars, five of 
which, arranged in the form of a W, are of third 
magnitude. 

Cassiquiare or Cassiquiari, kahs'se ke ah're 
a large river of South America, in Venezuela’ 








Cassiterite 


Castelar 


which branches off from the Orinoco and joins 
the Rio Negro, a tributary of the Amazon,^ thus 
connecting the two river systems. 

Cassit'erite, an ore of tin, from which most 
of the metal is obtained. It consists of 79 parts 
of tin and 21 parts of oxygen. Cassiterite is 
found in large quantities in Cornwall, England; 
Saxony; the Malay Peninsula, and at Banca, 
Australia. See Tin. 

Cassius Longinus, kash'us Ion ji'nus, Caius, 
a distinguished Roman, one of the assassins of 
Julius Caesar. In the civil war that broke out 
between Pompey and Caesar, he espoused the 
cause of the former, and, as commander of 
Pompey’s naval forces, rendered him important 
services. After the Battle of Pharsalia he was 
apparently reconciled with Caesar, but later he 
was among the more active of the conspirators 
who assassinated him, 44 B. C. He then, together 
with Brutus, raised an army, which was met by 
Octavianus and Anthony at Philippi. The 
wing which Cassius commanded was defeated, 
and, as he imagined that all was lost, he com¬ 
pelled one of his freedmen to kill him (42 B. fc.). 

Cas'sowa'ry, a large bird belongingto the same 
family as the ostrich and emu. It is a native 



of New Guinea and stands about five feet high. 
Its peculiar feathers hang down its sides, resem¬ 
bling long hair. Its head and neck are bare 
and bluish in color, and its head is crowned by 
ony crest of brilliant blue, scarlet and purple. 


The wings of the cassowary are so short that 
it is unable to fly, but its legs are pow¬ 
erful and it can run with great speed. To the 
natives it is a valuable bird, as it can be domes¬ 
ticated. 

Cast, in art, a representation or impression 
of a statue, bust or other model, by means of 
wax, plaster of Paris or some other substance. 
The model is covered with the plaster, so applied 
as to form a kind of shell over the surface, and 
is divided into sections which can be removed, 
one at a time. The different sections are put 
together when dry and form the mold; the 
mold is filled with liquid plaster, which soon 
hardens and is a reproduction of the model. 

Casta'lia, a celebrated fountain in Greece, 
sacred to Apollo and the Muses, and fabled to 
have the power of inspiring those who drank its 
waters. It issues from a fissure between two 
peaked cliffs adjoining Mount Parnassus. 

Cas'tanets, a musical instrument composed 
of two small concave shells of ivory or hard wood, 
shaped like spoons, placed together, fastened to 
the thumb and beat with the middle finger. 
This instrument is used by the Spaniards and 
Moors as an accompaniment to their dances 
and guitars. 

Caste, meaning breed or race, a term applied 
to a class or section of a people who are' marked 
off from others by certain restrictions, and whose 
burdens or privileges are hereditary. It was 
originally applied to the classes in India whose 
occupations, customs, privileges and duties are 
hereditary. It is probable that caste was 
originally grounded on a difference of descent 
and mode of living, and that the separate castes 
were originally separate races. It now prevails 
principally in India, but it is known to exist or 
to have existed in many other regions. 

Castelar, leaks ta lah r', Emilio (1832-1899), 
a Spanish statesman. In 1856 he was made 
professor of history in the University of Madrid, 
but, becoming involved in the republican disturb¬ 
ances of 1866, he had to take refuge in Switzer¬ 
land. He went back to Spain in 1868 and was 
returned to the Cortes in the following year. 
In 1873 he was elected president of the Cortes, 
under the newly-formed republic, but resigned 
in January, 1874. After the pronunciamento 
in favor of Alfonso XII, in December, 1874, 
Castelar retired from Spain, but in a year or 
two he returned and was for many years a 
member of the Cortes. Despite his early 
republican convictions, he was gradually forced 
to the opinion that Spain could be successfully 





Castellamare 


Castor and Pollux 


governed only by a king. He published many 
novels, essays, histories and political works. 

Castellamare, leas tel'amah'ray, a city of 
Italy, 17 mi. s. e. of Naples. The beautiful 
location, healthful climate and mineral springs 
of this place make it a popular pleasure and 
health resort. It has a royal palace, a cathedral, 
convents, a military hospital and a royal dock 
yard. The castle from which the city takes its 
name was built by Emperor Frederick II in the 
thirteenth century. The chief manufactures of 
the town are cotton, linen, silk and leather. 
The fisheries are of considerable importance. 
This city is near the ancient Stabiae, where 
Pliny the Elder met his death during the eruption 
of Vesuvius, in 79 a. d. Population, 32,600. 

Castiglione, kah'ste lyo’na, Baldassare 
(1478-1529), an Italian writer and statesman. 
Among his works, the Book of the Courtier, a 
series of imaginary dialogues covering all points 
of court life and etiquette, is the most celebrated. 

Castile, kas teeV, an ancient kingdom of 
Spain which formerly occupied a large part of 
what is now the Spanish peninsula, extending 
southward from the Bay of Biscay. Castile is 
interesting because of its historical associations. 
It was the ancient kingdom which formed the 
nucleus of the Spanish monarchy. In the latter 
part of the fifteenth century Isabella, heir to 
the throne of Castile, married Ferdinand, king 
of Aragon, and the two kingdoms were at first 
nominally and then formally united. Castile 
was one of the strongest states in the conflict 
with the Moors, and it was largely due to its 
military strength that these people were expelled 
from Europe. 

Cast'ing, one of the arts of a fisherman. 
See Angling. 

Cast I'ron. See Iron, subhead Cast Iron. 

Castle, kas r, l, an edifice serving at once as 
a residence and as a place of defense. The 
castles erected by the feudal lords and princes 
of the Middle Ages were wonderful structures, 
able to resist the strongest attacks. The impos¬ 
ing ruins of castles of this kind are still to be 
seen in England, Germany and France. Where 
the country permitted it, the castle was located 
on the top of a hill or on the summit of a lofty 
and inaccesible crag, and where there were only 
level lands it was surrounded by a moat or ditch 
that sometimes comprised several acres, across 
which a drawbridge was hung so that it could 
be raised in times of defense. Behind it was 
the outer wall, generally of great height and 
thickness, strengthened with towers at regular 


distances and pierced with loopholes through 
which missiles could be discharged at the assail¬ 
ants. The main entrance through the outer 
wall was protected by the barbican, with its nar¬ 
row archway and strong gates, and the 'portcullis, 
raised and lowered by chains and weights. 
Inside there were usually an outer and an inner 
court, and the strong, more or less detached 
building known as the keep, also called the 
dungeon or donjon, which formed the residence 
of the owner and his family. This was the most 
strongly constructed of all the buildings, to 
which the defenders retreated only in the last 
extremity. The walls were all strengthened by 
towers, either circular, square, oblong or many¬ 
angled, projecting both outward and inward. 
Such towers were capable of being defended 
independently of the castle. The invention of 
gunpowder was the doom of the castle, and now 
only a few remain habitable. 

Castle Gar'den, a large building in Battery 
Park, in New York City. It served first as a 
fort, and then it was used as a public hall for 
assemblies and concerts. Jenny Lind made her 
debut in America here. In 1855 Castle Garden 
became the landing place for immigrants. In 
1890 it was given to the city rmd has since been 
used as a public aquarium. 

Castlereagh, kas'’lra Robert Stewart, 
Viscount, second Marquis of Londonderry 
(1769-1822), an English statesman. At the 
time of the union of the Irish Parliament with 
that of England, which Castlereagh helped to 
bring about, he was transferred to the British 
Parliament. In 1805 he was made secretary 
of state of the departments of war in the colo¬ 
nies, and although he resigned the following 
year he again became minister for war in 1807. 
The attacks of George Canning on Castlereagh’s 
policy led to a duel between the two politicians. 
When Castlereagh came to office as secretary for 
foreign affairs in 1812, England was engaged in 
the war against Napoleon, and Castlereagh’s 
influence was perhaps stronger that that of any 
other one man in holding together the coalition 
against France. He was present at the Com 
gress of Vienna, at the Congress of Paris and at 
the Congress of Aix la Chapelle, and was pre¬ 
paring in 1822 to attend a congress at Verona 
when, in a fit of insanity, he committed suicide. 

Cas'tor and Pol'lux, in Greek mythology, 
twin gods, the sons of Jupiter and Leda, known 
also as Dioscuri. Pollux was immortal, and 
when his mortal brother was killed in battle, 
he begged to be allowed to give up his own life 


Castor Oil 


Catacombs 


for his brother’s. Jupiter, moved by this devo¬ 
tion, permitted the brothers to spend alternate 
days on earth and in the lower world. 

Castor Oil, the oil obtained from the seeds 
of a plant, a native of India, but now distributed 
over all the warmer 
regions of the globe. 

The oil is obtained 
from the seeds by 
bruising and press¬ 
ing. The oil that 
first comes away, 
called cold-drawn 
castor oil, is reck¬ 
oned the best. The 
castor oil of com¬ 
merce, which is used 
as a purgative, is 
chiefly imported 
from India. The 
plant is often culti¬ 
vated in gardens for 
ornament. 

Casuarina, kazh'~ 
u a ri’na, a genus of peculiar plants that have 
jointed leafless stems and branches that make 
the tree look like giant horse-tail rushes. 
There are both shrubs and trees in the genus 
and one of the latter grows to the height of a 
hundred fifty feet and furnishes a valuable 
wood. 

Cat, a well-known domestic animal, the 
same name being also given to the family that 
includes such animals as the lion, tiger, panther 


sharp claws and strong muscles make it a fierce 
enemy of birds and other small animals. Birds 
have no greater enemy, and one cat often drives 
the beautiful, friendly singing birds from a whole 
neighborhood. The cat is usually regarded as 
less intelligent than the dog, but possibly it has 
equal intelligence of another kind. It seems to 
have little real affection for mankind, though it 
enjoys being petted and shows signs of jealousy 
if neglected. It does become strongly attached 
to places, and it often will desert its friends who 
have removed, and return to the strangers who 
occupy its old home. Among the various breeds 
or races of cats, the tailless cat of the Isle of Man, 
and the Persian cat, with its long, silky fur, are 
among the most curious. The tortoise shell, 
with its color a mixture of black, white and 
brownish or fawn color, the large Angora and the 
blue, or Carthusian, and Maltese cats, with long, 
soft, grayish-blue fur, are other well-known 
species. See Zoology, Vol. V. 

Catacombs, kat'a kohmz, caves *or subterra¬ 
nean places for the burial of the dead, the bodies 
being placed in graves or recesses hollowed out 
in the sides of the cave. Caves of this kind were 
common among the Phoenicians, Greeks, Per¬ 
sians and many Oriental nations. In Sicily 
and Asia Minor numerous excavations have 
been discovered, containing sepulchers, and the 
catacombs near Naples are remarkably exten¬ 
sive. The term is said to have been applied origi¬ 
nally to the district near Rome which contains 
the chapel of Saint Sebastian in the vaults of 
which, according to tradition, the body of Saint 




TIGER CAT 


BLACK AND WHITE CAT 


and common cat. It is believed that the cat Peter was first deposited; but usually, in speak- 
was originally domesticated in Egypt, where it ing of the catacombs, we mean those subterra- 
was loved and venerated. The domestic cat nean burial places just outside the walls of 
belongs to a genus better armed for destruction Rome, which were made by the early Christians, 
of animal life than any other quadrupeds. The They consist of long, narrow galleries, usually 
short and powerful jaw, sharp, pointed teeth, about eight feet high and five feet wide, which 


Catalani 


Catania 


branch off in all directions, forming a perfect 
maze of corridors. When one story of them 
was no longer sufficient, staircases were made, and 
a second line of galleries was dug out beneath. 
The graves, or loculi, were cut into the walls of 
the gallery, one above another, to receive the 
bodies. They were closed laterally by a slab, 
on which there was occasionally a brief inscrip¬ 
tion or a symbol, such as a dove, an anchor or 
a palm branch, and sometimes all of these. 
The decorations have given us our chief infor¬ 
mation concerning art during the first four 
centuries of the Christian era. Some of the 
inscriptions and epitaphs are beautifully carved, 
some are merely scratched upon the slab and 
others are painted in red and black. In later 
times beautiful frescoes were common, in which 
are indicated the Christian faith and devotion. 
It is now regarded as certain that in times of 
persecution the early Christians frequently took 
refuge in the catacombs, since burial places had 
the right of protection by law, and gathered 
there to celebrate in secret the ceremonies of 
their religion. In early times rich Christians 
constructed underground burying places for 
themselves and their brethren, which they held 
as private property under the protection of the 
law. But in course of time, partly because 
catacombs came under the control of the Church 
and partly by accidents of proprietorship, these 
private burying grounds were connected with 
one another and became the property, not of 
particular individuals, but of the Christian com¬ 
munity. In the third century A. D. there were 
already several such common burying places 
belonging to the Christian congregations, and 
their number increased till the time of Constan¬ 
tine, when the catacombs ceased to be used as 
burying places. 

The term catacombs has also been applied 
to certain ancient subterranean quarries in 
Paris, which have been used since 1786 as 
burial places. It is said that six million bodies 
lie in these catacombs, where the bones are 
arranged in fanciful designs along the sides of 
the passages. 

Catalani, kah'ta lah'ne, Angelica (1780- 
1849), one of the most celebrated of Italian 
female singers. She made her first appearance 
on the stage at Venice in her sixteenth year. 
After filling the chief soprano parts in the best 
opera houses of Italy, she visited, successively, 
Madrid, Paris and London, enjoying everywhere 
great professional triumphs. Her voice had a 
range of nearly three octaves and rarely, if ever, 


has been excelled in sweetness, richness or flexi¬ 
bility. She retired in 1827, and soon after she 
established a free singing school for talented 
girls, near Florence, Italy. 

Cat'alep sy, a condition in which a person 
suddenly becomes unconscious and remains 
rigidly fixed in the attitude which he had assumed 
when the attack seized him. The attack may 
terminate quickly or it may continue for some 
time; the latter is liable to be the case when 
insane persons are attacked. The action of the 
heart and lungs continues, and the pulse and 
temperature remain natural. Catalepsy is gen¬ 
erally the consequence of some other disease. 

Catal'pa, a genus of trees, with simple leaves 
and large, gay, trumpet-shaped flowers. Some 
are natives of Japan and China, while others 
belong to the United States. They have been 
introduced into England and other parts of 
Europe and are popular ornamental trees. 

Cat amaran', a sort of raft used in the East 
Indies, Brazil and elsewhere. Those of the 
island of Ceylon, like those of Madras and other 



parts of that coast, are formetj of three logs 
lashed together. Their length is from 20 to 25 
feet and their breadth is 2\ to 3§ feet The 
name is also given to a sort of double-hulled 
pleasure boat remarkable for its speed. 

Cat'amount, the wild cat. The name is also 
given to the tiger and the puma. See Wild Cat. 

Catania, lea tah'ne a, a city on the east coast 
of Sicily, in the province of Catania, at the foot 
of Mount Etna, 31 mi. n. n. w. of Syracuse. It 
has been repeatedly visited by tremendous 
earthquakes, one of the worst of which was in 
1693, when it was almost entirely destroyed; and 
it has been partially laid in ruins by lava from 
eruptions of Mount Etna. 'The city was one 
of the most flourishing of Greek cities in Sicily 
and was important under the Romans. The 
ruins of the amphitheater, which was more 
extensive than the Colosseum at Rome, are still 
to be seen, as are the remains of the theater, 
baths, aqueducts, sepulchral chambers, hippo¬ 
drome and several temples. Catania has a con¬ 
siderable trade, and it manufactures silk and 




Catapult 


Catechism 


other fabrics, besides lava and amber ware. It 
exports grain, fruits, sulphur and wine. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 211,690. 

Cat'apult or Cat'apul ta, a machine which 
the ancients used to throw missiles, chiefly 
arrows or heavy stones. Catapults may be 
described as a kind of gigantic crossbow. See 
Slings, for the toy weapon used by American 
boys. 

Cat'aract, a disease of the eye, in which the 
crystalline lens, or its covering, becomes opaque 
and causes partial or entire blindness. The 
earliest approach of cataract is marked by a loss 
of the natural color in the pupil, which, as the 
disease progresses, appears to have a milk-white 
or pearly color. Cataract is most common in 
old or elderly people and is quite painless. It 
is treated by different surgical operations, all 
of them consisting in removing the diseased lens 
from its position opposite the transparent cornea. 
No medical treatment is successful. 

Cataract or Waterfall, the descent of a 
stream over a ledge or precipice occurring in its 
course. Slight cataracts like those in the Saint 
Lawrence River are called rapids, but some rapids 
are called cataracts, as the Cataracts of the Nile. 
A cataract is caused by a harder layer of rock, 
which does not wear away as rapidly as the 
formations below. The river gradually wears 
down the channel below this obstruction, and 
this creates a rapid or fall, according to the 
nature of the formation and the slope of the bed. 
In case of a deep, narrow channel worn below 
the projecting rock, a waterfall with nearly 
vertical descent is the result, like the falls at 
Niagara and Victoria Falls in the Zambesi 
Africa. When a series of obstructions occurs, 
one below the other, rapids are formed. Cata¬ 
racts are most numerous in mountain streams, 
where many of them are of great height and of 
remarkable beauty. The largest cataracts in 
the world are Victoria Falls in Africa, which are 
about a mile wide and nearly four hundred feet 
high; and Niagara Falls, which have a width 
of over four thousand feet and a height of 
160 feet. See Niagara Falls; Victoria Falls. 

Catarrh, ha tahr r , an increased secretion of 
mucus from the membranes of the nose, throat, 
bronchial tubes or other parts of the body. - 
Catarrh, as popularly recognized, is a disease of 
the nasal passages, throat or bronchial tubes only, 
but it is known by physicians to result wherever 
the mucous membrane becomes inflamed, 
whether caused by exposure to cold, the breath¬ 
ing of impure air, constipation or other agency. 


Cataw'ba, a tribe of indians, now practically 
extinct or mingled in blood with the whites, who 
formerly inhabited North and South Carolina. 
Pontiac was a descendant of the Catawbas. In 
general the tribe was friendly to the whites. 

Catawba River or Great Catawba River, a 
river in North Carolina, rising in the Blue Ridge. 
Below Rocky Mount, S. C., the stream is called 
the Wateree. The Catawba is about 250 miles 
long. 

Cat'bird, a common American thrush, so 
named becaused one of its calls sounds like the 
mewing of a cat. It is found throughout the 
Northern and Middle states, in thickets and 
shrubberies, where it lives an active existence, 



CATBIRD 


chiefly in the pursuit of insects. Its plumage 
is a deep slate color above and lighter below, 
with a reddish-brown patch on the lower tail 
coverts. Its song is varied and fine, largely in 
imitation of the songs of other birds. In winter 
it retires to the extreme southern parts of the 
United States, or even to Mexico and Central 
America. 

Catechism, katfe kiz’m, an elementary book 
containing a summary of principles in any 
science or art, but particularly in religion, 
reduced to the form of questions and answers. 
The first regulai catechisms appear to have been 
compiled in the eighth and ninth centuries, those 
by Kero of Saint Gall and Otfried of Weissenburg 
being most famous. Among Protestants the 
catechisms of Luther (1518, 1520 and 1529) 
acquired great celebrity and continue to be used 
in Germany. The catechism of the Church of 
England in the first book of Edward VI, March 
7, 1549, contained merely the baptismal vow, 
the creed, the ten commandments and the Lord’s 
prayer, with explanations. The part relative to 
the sacraments was added at the revision of the 



Category 


Catharine II 


liturgy, during the reign of James I. The 
catechism of the Church of Scotland is that 
agreed upon by the Assembly of Divines at 
Westminster, with the assistance of commissioners 
from the Church of Scotland and approved of by 
the General Assembly in the year 1648. What 
is called the Shorter Catechism, is merely an 
abridgment of the Larger and is the one in most 
comrpon use. The best known catechism 
among Protestant Dissenters was that of Doctor 
Watts. 

Cat'ego'ry, in logic, one of the fundamental 
principles underlying every thought and used in 
the organization of all knowledge. The ancients, 
following Aristotle, held that all beings or objects 
of thought may be referred to ten categories, 
namely: substance, quantity, quality, relation, 
action, passion, time, place, situation and habit. 
Plato admits only five: substance, identity, diversity, 
motion and rest’, the Stoics found four: subjects, 
qualities, independent circumstances, relative cir¬ 
cumstances. Descartes suggested seven divi¬ 
sions: spirit, matter, quantity, substance, figure, 
motion and rest. Others make but two categories, 
substance and attribute, or subject and accident; 
or three, accident being divided into the inherent 
and the circumstantial. In the philosophy of 
Kant the term categories is applied to the primi¬ 
tive conceptions, originating in the understanding 
independently of all experience. These he 
divides into four classes: quantity, quality, 
relation and modality. J. S. Mill applies the 
term categories to the most general heads, under 
which everything that may be asserted of any 
subject may be arranged. Of these he makes 
five: existence, co-existence, sequence, causation 
and resemblance. 

Cat'ena ry Curve, the curve which is formed 
by a heavy cord of the'same density and thick¬ 
ness throughout, when suspended between two 
points, with no pressure exerted on it save that 
of gravity. It is of chief interest and importance 
in the theory of arches and suspension bridges. 

Cat'erpil'lar, the larva or worm of butterflies 
and moths. The caterpillar has usually twelve 
segments or rings, not including the head, and 
is provided with strong, biting jaws that are in 
striking contrast with the mouth organs of the 
adult insect. It has three pairs of five-jointed 
legs, and other rudimentary stumps of legs on 
the abdomen. The body may be naked or 
covered with hairs, bristles or spines, which in 
caterpillars living an exposed life are usually 
brightly colored. The skin of the hairless 
species is often beautifully marked lengthwise 


or crosswise, or with ringed spots and eye-spots. 
The large head has six eye-spots on each side, 
a pair of short, three-jointed feelers, besides 
jaws and other mouth organs. Glands, some 
with unpleasantly odorous or stinging secretions, 
frequently occur on the skin. Most caterpillars 
live an active life, some roaming only at night, 
however, and their movements are usually 
upward. Some forms eat flesh, but the majority 
of them feed upon vegetation, and in some cases 
their ravages are almost intolerable. See Larva. 

Cat'fish, a large family of fishes inhabiting 
both fresh and salt water. All species are 
characterized by their smooth skin and the sharp 
spines, or thorns, at each side of the head, which, 
when the fish is frightened or attacked, are 
erected at right angles to the body. The fresh¬ 
water species in the United States are often 
known as horned pout and bullhead. The 
largest of these species, the Mississippi catfish or 
bullhead, is abundant in the lower Mississippi 
and its tributaries. Specimens weighing 150 
pounds have been taken, but the average weight 
is about 35 pounds. The flesh has a sweet 
flavor and is highly nutritious. 

Cat'gut, a cord made from the intestines of 
sheep, and sometimes from those of the horse, 
ass and mule, but not from those of the cat. 
The manufacture is chiefly carried on in Italy 
and France, by a tedious process. Catgut is 
used in the manufacture of the strings of harps, 
violins and other musical instruments and 
various other articles. The best strings are 
made in Milan and Naples, Italy. 

Cath'arine I (?-1727), empress of Russia. 
She was the daughter of poor parents, who died 
when she was three years old. In 1701 she 
married a dragoon of the garrison of Marienburg, 
and when the town was taken by the Russians 
in 1702, she was sent with others to Moscow, 
where she first saw Peter the Great. She 
acquired a great influence over him, and in 1712 
he married her. In 1724 she was crowned at 
Moscow, and on her husband’s death she became 
empress. 

Catharine II (1729-1796), empress of Russia. 
In 1745 she was married to Peter, nephew of 
the empress Elizabeth. Peter came to the 
throne on the death of Elizabeth in 1762, but 
Catharine, with the assistance of her lover, 
Gregory Orloff, and others, won over the guards, 
and after Peter had reigned for a few months 
he was deposed, thrown into prison and after¬ 
ward killed, while Catharine was proclaimed 
empress. On the death of Augustus III of 


Catharine de’ Medici 


Cathode Rays 


Poland she caused one of her favorites to be 
placed on the throne, and by this she profited 
in successive partitions of that country. By 
the war with the Turks, which occupied a con¬ 
siderable part of her reign, she conquered the 
Crimea and opened the Black Sea to the Rus¬ 
sian navy. Her dream, however, of driving 
the Turks from Europe and restoring the Byzan¬ 
tine Empire was not to be fulfilled. She im¬ 
proved the administration of justice, ameliorated 
the condition of the serfs, constructed canals, 
founded the Russian Academy and in a variety 
of ways contributed to the enlightenment and 
prosperity of the country. Her enthusiasm for 
reform, however, was summarily checked by the 
events of the French Revolution; and the dissi¬ 
pation and extravagance of her court were such 
that there was a danger of its exhausting the 
Empire. 

Catharine de’ Medici (1519-1589), the wife 
of Henry II of France, and the daughter of 
Lorenzo de’ Medici. She married the duke of 
Orleans, afterward Henry II, and was the 
mother of four sons, three of whom became 
kings of France. During the reign of her eldest 
son, Francis, she began to be prominent in state 
affairs*, and after his death, during her regency 
for Charles IX, the government was entirely in 
her hands. Her policy was to keep the two 
great parties of the Houses of Guise and Conde 
fighting against each other, taking care that 
neither should obtain the balance of power. 
Finally, finding that the House of Conde under 
the leadership of Admiral Coligny was becoming 
too strong, she entered into a plot with the 
Guises which resulted in the massacre of Saint 
Bartholomew’s Day. See Bartholomew’s 
Day, Saint. 

Catharine of Aragon (1485-1536), queen 
of England, the youngest daughter of Ferdinand 
of Aragon and Isabella of Castile. In 1501 she 
was married to Arthur, prince of Wales, son of 
Henry VII. Her husband died about five 
months after the marriage, and Henry VII, 
unwilling to return her dowry, caused her to be 
married to his remaining son, Henry, procuring 
a dispensation from the pope for that purpose. 
On the accession of Henry to the throne as 
Henry VIII in 1509, she was crowned wjth him, 
and despite the inequality of their ages retained 
her ascendency with him for nearly twenty years. 
Her children, however, all died in infancy, 
excepting Mary, and on the advent of Anne 
Boleyn, Henry affected to doubt the legality of 
his union with Catharine. See Henry VIII. 


Cathe'dral, the principal church of a diocese, 
so called from the fact that it possesses the 
episcopal chair or cathedra. This is really what 
distinguishes a cathedral from other churches, 
though most cathedrals are also larger and more 
elaborate structures than ordinary churches and 
have various dignitaries and functionaries con¬ 
nected with them. As regards architecture, 
cathedrals naturally vary much, both in style 
and plan. Those in England are almost all in 
the Gothic style and cross-shaped in arrange¬ 
ment, having connected with them a chapter 
house, side chapels cloisters and crypt. This 
style and arrangement is also common on the 
continent of Europe,'and in most modern cathe¬ 
drals, though other styles of architecture have 
been freely employed. The cathedrals furnish 
the most magnificent examples of the architec¬ 
ture of the Middle Ages. Among the most noted 
are the cathedral at Milan; the cathedral at 
Florence, begun about 1294, one of the finest 
specimens of the Italian-Gothic style; the 
Cologne cathedral, the cathedral of Notre Dame 
at Paris, and those of Amiens, Chartres and 
Rheims. The most noteworthy English cathe¬ 
drals are Saint Paul’s, London, dating from the 
seventeenth century, and those of Canterbury, 
Ely, Exeter, Lichfield, Lincoln, Norwich, Salis¬ 
bury, Wells and York. The cathedrals of 
Glasgow and Kirkwall are the only entire 
cathedrals in Scotland, exclusive of modern 
edifices. In the United States the Roman 
Catholic Cathedral of Saint Patrick’s, in New 
York, is the finest. It was built at a cost of 
about two and a half million dollars. This will 
be surpassed in size and grandeur by the Epis- 
copal Cathedral of Saint John the Divine in 
New York City, now in process of erectioa 
The Church of Saint Peter in Rome is often 
mistakenly called a cathedral (See Saint 
Peter’s Church). See Milan Cathedral; 
Cologne Cathedral; Notre Dame, Cathe¬ 
dral of; Canterbury; Lincoln Cathedral. 

Cath'etom'eter, an instrument for measur¬ 
ing exact differences of level between two points. 
In its simplest form it consists of a vertical 
graduated rod, upon which slides a horizontal 
telescope. With the telescope the observer 
sights the two objects under examination, and 
the distance on the graduated rod moved over 
by the telescope is the measure of the distance 
of height between the two objects. 

Cath'ode Rays, rays thrown off by the cathode, 
or negative electrode, in an atmosphere of 
extremely rarified air or other gas. The simplest 


Catholic Church 


Cato 


form of apparatus for producing cathode rays 
consists of a cylindrical glass tube from which 
the air has been exhausted and which has 
platinum wires inserted at each end. When 
such a tube is connected with the poles of an 
induction coil or an electrical machine, the dis¬ 
charge passes from one platinum point to another 
in the form of a brush of blue light or of a red, 
threadlike pencil of rays extending from one 
electrode to the other. In a tube from which 
the air has not been exhausted, the discharge 
takes the form of a spark. In the most perfect 
vacuum, all rays disappear and the tube seems 
filled with a green light, caused by the rays from 
the cathode. This apparatus is used in the 
production of the Roentgen rays, or X-rays, and 
the N-rays. See Crookes^ Tubes; Roentgen 
Rays; N-Rayb. 

Catholic Church, a phrase equivalent to 
universal church. It was first employed to dis¬ 
tinguish the Christian from the Jewish Church, 
the latter being restricted to a single nation, 
while the former was intended for the world in 
general. The name has been retained by the 
Church of Rome, which was the successor of 
the primitive church. To the adherents of 
this faith, the name is peculiarly significant of 
the characteristics of the Church—unity, visi¬ 
bility, indefectibility, succession, universality 
and sanctity. The expression is often qualified, 
especially by those not in the Church, by pre¬ 
fixing the word Roman. The Episcopalians 
claim for themselves the title Catholic, but it is, 
however, popularly used in almost all countries 
as synonymous with Roman Catholic. See 
Creed; Pope; Roman Catholic Church. 

Catholic University of America, a univer¬ 
sity at Washington, D. C., under the auspices 
of the Roman Catholic Church in the United 
States. It was incorporated and received its 
constitution from Pope Leo XIII, and was 
opened for instruction in 1889. The courses of 
study are intended primarily to give professional 
training, and to offer to graduates of Catholic 
seminaries and colleges facilities for- original 
research. The faculty numbers over fifty and 
the enrollment exceeds 400. Cardinal Gibbons 
was chancellor from its foundation. 

Cat'iline, (in full, Lucius Sergius Catilina) 
(108-62 b. c.), a Roman conspirator, of patrician 
rank. In his youth he attached himself to the 
party of Sulla, but his physical strength, passion¬ 
ate nature and unscrupulous daring soon gained 
him an independent reputation. He was elected 
praetor in 68 b. c. and governor of Africa in 67. 


In 66 he returned to Rome to contest the consul- 
ship, but was disqualified by an impeachment 
for maladministration in his province. He was 
deeply in debt, and, urged on by his necessities 
as well as his ambition, he entered into a con¬ 
spiracy with other disaffected nobles. The plot, 
however, was revealed to Cicero, and measures 
were at once taken to defeat it. Thwarted by 
Cicero at every turn and driven from the senate, 
Catiline fled and put himself at the head of a 
large but ill-armed following. The news of the 
suppression of the conspiracy and the execution 
of the ringleaders at Rome diminished his 
forces, and he led the rest toward Gaul. A 
Roman force surrounded the rebels and, driven 
to bay, Catiline turned upon the enclosing army 
and died fighting. 

Cat Island, one of the Bahama Islands, 
about 46 miles in length and 3 to 7 in its breadth. 
It was long thought that it was the Guanahani, 
or San Salvador, where Columbus first touched 
the New World in 1492. 

Cat'lin, George (1796-1872), an American 
writer and painter of the indians, bom in Wilkes- 
barre, Pa. After practicing as a lawyer for two 
years, he set up at New York as a portrait 
painter; and in 1832 he commenced special 
studies of indian types, living among them many 
years both in North and South America. His 
finely illustrated works are Manners, Customs 
and Condition of the North American Indians’, 
North American Portfolio’, Eight Years' Travel 
in Europe; Last Rambles among the Indians. 
Most of his paintings are now in the famous 
Catlin Gallery of the National Museum. 

Cat'nip or Cat'mint, a plant of the mint 
family, widely diffused throughout North Amer¬ 
ica and Europe. It grows erect to a height of 
two or three feet, has whorls of rose-tinged, 
whitish flowers, and stalked, downy, heart- 
shaped leaves. It has much the same fascination 
for cats as valerian root. 

Ca'to, Marcus Porcius (95-46 b. c.), a 
Roman soldier and statesman, called Cato of 
Utica, from the place of his death, to distinguish 
him from the censor, his great-grandfather. He 
earned a reputation as a volunteer in the war 
against Spartacus, served as military tribune in 
Macedonia and was made quaestor in 65 b c. 
His rigorous reforms won him general respect, 
and in 63 B. c. he was chosen tribune of the 
people. During the troubles with Catiline, 
Cato gave Cicero important aid, and at the same 
time he set himself to thwart the ambitious 
projects of Pompey, Caesar and Crassus. To 


Cato 


Cattle 


get rid of him, they sent him to take possession 
of Cyprus, but after successfully accomplishing 
his mission, he returned, opposed the law for 
conferring extraordinary powers on the trium¬ 
virs, and in 54 B. c. enforced a law against 
bribery. On the breach between Pompey and 
Caesar, he joined Pompey. After receiving news 
of Pompey’s defeat at Pharsalia, he sailed to 
Cyrene and effected a junction with Metellus 
Scipio at Utica. He took command of that 
city, but, its defense appearing hopeless after 
the defeat of Scipio, he stabbed himself with his 
sword. 

Cato, Marcus Porcius (surnamed Priscus, 
the Elder, and Sapiens, the Wise) (234-149 
B. c.), a celebrated Roman statesman. He 
inherited from his father, a plebeian, a small 
estate in the territory of the Sabines and spent 
the early years of his manhood in its cultivation. 
At the age of seventeen, he served his first cam¬ 
paign under Fabius .Maximus, was present at 
the siege of Capua and in 207 B. c. fought at 
the siege at Tarentum. After the war was ended 
he returned to his farm, but later, by the advice 
of Valerius Flaccus, removed to Rome, where 
his forensic abilities had free scope. He rose 
rapidly in rank, accompanied Scipio to Sicily 
as quaestor, became an aedile and in 198 was 
chosen praetor and appointed to the province 
of Sardinia. Three years later he gained the 
con ulship, and in 194 for his brilliant campaign 
in Spain obtained the honor of a triumph. In 
191 he served as military tribune against Antio- 
chus and then returned to Rome. For some 
years he exercised a practical consorship, scru¬ 
tinizing the characters of candidates for office 
and denouncing false claims and peculations. 
His election to the censorship in 184 set an 
official seal to his efforts, the unsparing severity 
of which has made his name proverbial. From 
that year until his death he held no public office, 
though zealously continuing his unofficial labors 
for the state. 

Cat’s-eye, a mineral, a variety of quartz, 
very hard and semi-transparent, and from cer¬ 
tain points exhibiting a yellow internal radiation 
resembling a cat’s eye. It js found in Ceylon 
and Malabar, and when cut and polished forms 
a gem of considerable value. 

Cat'skill, N. Y., the county-seat of Greene 
co., 34 mi. s. of Albany, on the Hudson River, 
at the mouth of the Catskill Creek, on the Cats- 
kill Mountain railway, and with ferry connec¬ 
tion to the New York Central on the eastern 
side of the Hudson. The village is a summer 


resort and an important point of departure from 
the steamship lines for many mountain resorts. 
It has manufactures of woolens, hosiery, paper 
and bricks. The place was settled about 1680 
by the Dutch. Population in 1910, 5296. 

Catskill Mountains, a fine range of moun¬ 
tains in New York State. They lie on the west 
side of, and nfearly parallel to, the Hudson, 
from which their base is, at the nearest point, 8 
miles distant. Their length is 50 miles and 
their width 30 miles. The two most elevated 
peaks are Mountain Slide, 4250 feet, and Hunter 
Mountain, 4025 feet. The Dunderberg is the 
scene of Washington Irving’s Rip Van Winkle. 
The Catskills are noted for the beauty of their 
scenery. 

Cat'sup. See Ketchup. 

Cat'tegat or Kat'tegat, a large gulf of the 
North Sea, between Demnark and Sweden. It 
is about 150 miles long and 90 miles wide. On 
account of its many shoals and its frequent 
storms, it is dangerous for navigation. The 
Cattegat is noted for its herring fisheries. 

Cat'tle, a term which in its broadest sense 
applies to all domestic animals, but as ordinarily 
used includes only the animals of the ox family— 
oxen, cows and steers. Cattle have been domes¬ 
ticated from the earliest times, and it is probable 
they were among the first animals tamed by 
man. It is supposed that our varieties were 
obtained from the wild cattle found centuries 
ago in Europe and Great Britain. There are 
now about 100 different breeds of domestic 
cattle. The best of these come from Great 
Britain, where they have been carefully bred for 
many years. Most of the breeds take their 
names from the locality in which they originated. 
All may be roughly classified into two groups, 
those that excel in the quality and quantity of 
milk, and those that are prized for beef. 

The first cattle introduced into America were 
brought to Mexico by the Spaniards about 1525. 
These increased rapidly and were the progenitors 
of the Texas cattle, now found in large numbers 
in that state and New Mexico and Arizona. The 
English and Dutch colonists also imported 
cattle soon after their respective settlements, 
so that within a few years from the time Ameri¬ 
can colonies were established, the farms were 
well stocked with cattle. 

Among the best-known breeds of beef cattle, 
the Shorthorns or Durhams excel, and they now 
outnumber all other breeds for beef purposes. 
Their color is red and white, or roan. They 
are squarely built, heavy animals. They fatten 


Catullus 


Cavalry 


easily, there is comparatively little waste in kill¬ 
ing and their flesh is excellent. Next to the 
Durhams are the Hereford#, which are good 
beef cattle, but inferior in milk-giving qualities. 
They are, however, good travelers and are well 
adapted to the large ranches where they must 
go some distance for water. Among the best 
breeds of dairy cows are the Galloways, which 
are natives of the lowlands of Scotland; the 
Jerseys, which came from the island of Jersey in 
the English Channel and are noted for their rich 
milk; the Holsteins, originally from the northern 
part of Germany, noted for the quantity of milk 
they give, and the Ayrshires, which produce a 
large quantity of milk of excellent quality. See 
Beef; Meat Packing; Milk. 

Catul'lus, Gaius Valerius (about 87-about 
54 B. c.), a famous Roman lyric poet. Almost 
all the known details of his life are derived by 
inference from his works and relate to such 
matters as his passion for Lesbia, his journey 
to Bithynia, his voyage home in his yacht and 
his pleasant villa. He was the first of the 
Romans who successfully caught the Greek lyric 
spirit, and he gave to Roman literature its most 
genuine songs. 

Cauca, kow'ka, a river in Colombia, South 
America, an important tributary of the Mag¬ 
dalena. In the upper part of its course it con¬ 
tains numerous falls, but in the lower part it is 
navigable. It give* its name to the province 
through which it flows. Its length is about 
700 miles. 

Caucasian, kaw ka'shan, Race. See Races 
of Men. 

Cau'casus, a range of mountains extending 
from the Black to the Caspian Sea and forming 
one of the natural barriers between Europe and 
Asia. The length of the main range is 940 
miles, and the width of the system varies from 
30 to 130 miles. The greatest height is attained 
in the center, where there are said to be more than 
twenty peaks exceeding Mont Blanc in altitude. 
Of these Elburz, 18,470 feet, is the highest. 
The lower slopes are covered with dense forests, 
mostly of evergreen, and the scenery is grand 
and gloomy. 

Cau'cus, a term applied to a meeting of mem¬ 
bers of a political party to agree upon candidates 
for office, or to propose party measures. Its 
origin is referred to an affray between some 
British soldiers and some Boston rope makers 
in 1770, which resulted in meetings of rope 
makers and caulkers, called by the Tories caucus 
meetings. The species of caucus first named 

36 


above has gradually changed from an informal 
gathering to one at which secret votes are cast, 
as at general elections, under the influence of 
laws to prevent corruption. The second kind 
of caucus is still much used in legislative bodies, 
to determine the policy of the party represent¬ 
atives, and to choose candidates for office in 
the body. Until 1824 candidates for president 
and vice-president were chosen by caucuses 
of members of Congress. 

Cau'liflower, a garden variety of cabbage, 
in which cultivation has caused the flowers to 
assume, when 
young, the form of 
a compact, fleshy 
head, which is 
highly esteemed as 
a table vegetable. 

Broccoli is a sim¬ 
ilar variety. 

Caulking. See 
Calking. 

Caus'tic.aname 
given to substances which have the property of 
burning, corroding or disintegrating animal or 
vegetable matter. Lunar caustic is a name given 
to nitrate of silver when cast into sticks for the 
use of surgeons. Caustic potash is the hydrate 
of potassium; caustic soda, the hydrate of sodium. 

Cavaliers, kav a leerz ', (horsemen), a name 
applied in history to the partisans of Charles I 
of England, as opposed to Roundheads, the name 
given to the adherents of the Parliamentary 
cause. 

Cav'alry, a body of troops which serve on 
horseback; one of the three great classes of 
troops, and a -formidable power when properly 
employed (See Infantry; Artillery). Cav¬ 
alry is well adapted to speedy movements, which 
enable a commander to avail himself of a decisive 
moment and strike quickly whatever weak 
point an enemy exposes. It is serviceable, too, in 
protecting the wings and center of an army; 
for intercepting the supplies of the enemy; for' 
procuring intelligence; for covering a retreat, 
and for foraging, as well as for many another 
purpose. Cavalry was an important arm of 
the service with the Greeks and Romans, but the 
Oriental armies seem to have used war chariots 
rather than cavalry. In medieval times mounted 
knights practically displaced infantry and 
caused the true value of concerted cavalry action 
to be forgotten; but under Charles XII of 
Sweden and Frederick the Great of Prussia, the 
value of cavalry was again recognized and it was 



Cave 


Cavite 


established in the important, though subordi¬ 
nate, position which it now holds. The cavalry 
has been armed usually with sabers and lances, 
but the destructiveness of modern firearms is 
leading to a change, so that now cavalry is 
being armed with revolvers and rifles and trained 
to make rapid marches and, if necessary, fight 
on foot as infantry. See Tactics. 

Cave or Cav'ern, an opening of some size in 
the solid crust of the earth beneath the surface. 
Caves are principally met with in limestone 
rocks, sometimes in sandstone and in volcanic 
rocks. Some have been formed by the upheaval 
of the earth’s crust, which caused some strata 
to slide over others in such a way as to leave 
caverns beneath. The size of these caverns 
may have been increased by the action of water. 
The caves in volcanic regions were undoubt¬ 
edly formed while the lava was in a plastic state; 
and they are supposed to be due to the expansion 
of gas, which formed caverns in the rock in a 
manner similar to that in which pores are formed 
in bread while baking. But water is the most 
important agency in the formation of caves, and 
most of the large caverns have been formed by 
its action. Caverns of this nature are generally 
found in limestone regions. 

Some caves are of great extent, such as Mam¬ 
moth Cave, in Kentucky, which has more than 
150 miles of passageways. Others are remark¬ 
able for their depth. The most noted of these 
is the Frederikshall, in Norway. The Wyandott 
Cave, in Crawford County, Ind., and the Luray 
Caverns, in Page County, Va., are celebrated for 
their beautiful stalactites and stalagmites (See 
Stalactite). Fingal’s Cave, on the Island of 
Staffa, is remarkable for the basaltic columns 
forming its walls and roof. 

Many caves contain the remains of animals, 
some of which are extinct, and some of which 
show that the animals living in the region at the 
time were similar to those now found in different 
parts of the world, as the remains of the reindeer 
and hyena, which are found in some caves in 
southern Europe. The reindeer now lives 
only in the high latitudes, and the hyena is found 
in South Africa. In some of these caves human 
bones are found intermingled with those of the 
animals, as are pieces of charcoal and rude 
implements, showing that men lived upon the 
earth at the same time as the animals whose 
skeletons are found. 

See Fingal’s Cave; Luray Caverns; Mam¬ 
moth Cave; Wyandott Cave. Consuls Shaler’s 
Aspects of the Earth. 


Cave Dwel'lers, a term carelessly applied 
to prehistoric races who lived in caves. They 
were at a low state of civilization, were ignorant 
of the metals, of pottery and of agriculture, and 
had no domestic animals. Traces of such 
early men are found in so many countries that 
it is often thought that all people at one time in 
their history dwelt in caves. Yet no such con¬ 
ditions ever existed in America, except where 
caves were used as places of refuge by hunted 
indians. 

Cav'endish, Henry (1731-1800), an English 
physicist and chemist. He devoted himself 
exclusively to science and greatly contributed 
to the progress of chemistry, having discovered, 
among other things, the peculiar properties of 
hydrogen and the composition of water. He 
aiso wrote on electricity and determined the mean 
density of the earth. 

Cavendish, Thomas (about 1555-1592), an 
English navigator of the reign of Elizabeth. 
Having collected three small vessels for the pur¬ 
pose of making a voyage against the Spanish 
colonies, he sailed from Plymouth in 1586, took 
and destroyed many vessels, ravaged the coasts 
of Chile, Peru and New Spain and returned by 
the Cape of Good Hope, having circumnavi¬ 
gated the globe in two years and fifty days, the 
shortest period in which it had been effected. In 
1591 he set sail on a similar expedition, during 
which he died. 

Caviar, kav'e anr, or Caviare, Jcah veer ', a 
food prepared from the roe of the sturgeon. 
Caviar is made by freeing the eggs from the 
tissue which holds them together, then washing 
them and rubbing them with salt, after which 
they are dried and packed in kegs. It is con¬ 
sidered a great delicacy, especially among the 
Russians, in whose country it is manufactured 
in large quantities. The abundance of sturgeon 
in the Great Lakes has given rise to the manu¬ 
facture of caviar in some parts of the United 
States. 

Cavite, lea ve'ta, a town of the Philippine 
Islands, capital of the province of Cavite, situated 
on Luzon Island, 8 mi. s. w. of Manila. 
The theater and cathedral are the most important 
public buildings. The manufacture of tobacco 
is the leading industry. It was an important 
naval station under Spanish rule, and it was 
near Cavite that Admiral Dewey first attacked 
the Spanish fleet, May 1, 1898. It is now the 
naval headquarters of the United States in the 
Philippines and has arsenals, repair shops and 
dry docks. Population in 1910, about 5,000. 


Cavour 


Cebu 


Cavour, ha voor ', Count Camillo Benso di 
(1810-1861), a distinguished Italian statesman. 
He was educated in the military academy at 
Turin, and after completing his studies he made 
a journey to England, where he remained for 
several years, making himself acquainted with the 
principles and working of the British constitution 
and forming friendships with some of the most 
distinguished men. From his earliest entry into 
political affairs his chief aim was to unite Italy 
under a central government, which should be 
independent of Austria. He became a member 
of the Sardinian Parliament in 1848, and two 
years later, minister of commerce and agriculture. 
In 1852 he became premier, and not long after¬ 
ward he took an active part in cementing an alli¬ 
ance with Great Britain and France, and making 
common cause with these powers against Russia 
during the Crimean War. When the war closed, 
Cavour was appointed a delegate to the Peace 
Congress, where he succeeded in winning for his 
state the recognition of the European powers. 
He next made preparations for war with Austria, 
obtained the aid of France, and in 1858, by his 
hostile attitude, forced Austria to open the strug¬ 
gle. The result was victory for Sardinia, and 
Cavour was able, with the aid of Garibaldi, to 
unite all Italy, except Rome and Venice, by the 
beginning of 1861. He lived to see the meeting of 
the first Italian Parliament, which decreed 
Victor Emmanuel king of Italy, but died before 
Rome and Venice were annexed to the king¬ 
dom. 

Ca'vy, the name given to several different 
animals related to the guinea pigs, all of which 
live in the tropical regions of South America. 
They are lively little fellows that live principally 
upon plants, eating in the night time and spend¬ 
ing their days underground in their burrows. 
See Guinea Pig. 

Cawnpore' or Cawnpur, kavm poor ', a city 
of India, on the right bank of the Ganges, 628 
mi. n. w. of Calcutta. The chie ‘ buildings are 
a theater, a high school, military and govern¬ 
ment offices and several churches. The indus¬ 
tries are the manufac ure of cotton goods, 
leather and other articles, and the city is one of 
the most important manufacturing centers of 
India. It is also an important commercial 
and military point, being one of the largest rail¬ 
way centers. During the Sepoy Rebellion in 
1857, this was the scene of the mutiny of the 
native troops, which resulted in the massacre 
of many men, women and children. The place 
was relieved by the British under General Have¬ 


lock, but not in time to prevent the slaughter of 
the prisoners. Population in 1911, 178,557. 

Cax'ton, William (1422-1491), the man who 
introduced the art of printing into Great Britain. 
He served an apprenticeship to Robert Large, 
a London mercer, on whose death Caxton went 
into business for himself at Bruges. He had 
translated the popular medieval romance. Collec¬ 
tion of the Histories of Troy, and in order to 
multiply copies he learned the newly discovered 
art of printing. This work was printed either 
at Cologne or Bruges about 1474 and is the 
earliest specimen of typography in the English 
language. Caxton translated twenty-one books, 
mainly romances, from the French, and one from 
the Dutch, helping materially to fix the literary 
language of the sixteenth century. Among his 
works were the Game of Chess and Dides and 
Notable Sayings of the Philosophers. He was 
buried in the Church of Saint Margaret’s, West¬ 
minster. 

Cayenne, lea en' or hi en’, the capital of the 
colony of French Guiana, a seaport on an island 
of the same name, at the mouth of the 
Cayenne River. It is a noted penal settle¬ 
ment. The harbor is large but shallow. The 
city was settled by the French in 1627. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 13,527. 

Cayuga, ha yoo'gah, (swamp dwellers), the 
smallest of the Five Nations, called the Youngest 
Brother, because they were the latest to join the 
confederacy. They proved strong enemies to 
the whites, but after the Revolution most of 
them settled in Canada, the remainder scattering 
among the Oneidas and Senecas. See Five 
Nations, The. 

Cayuga Lake, a beautiful lake, situated west 
of the center of the State of New York. It is 
38 miles long and from 1 to 3£ miles wide, and 
it discharges its waters into Lake Ontario, 
through the Seneca and Oswego rivers. The 
principal towns on its banks are Cayuga, Ithaca 
and Aurora. 

Cebu, se boo', or Zebu, one of the Philippine 
Islands, lying between Luzon and Mindanao. 
It is 130 miles long, 20 miles wide and has an 
area of 1742 square miles. Sugar, hemp, cotton 
and rice cultivation and the manufacture of 
abaca are the chief industries. The town of 
Cebu, the capital, on the eastern coast of the 
island, the oldest Spanish settlement in the 
Philippines, is a place of considerable trade 
and has a cathedral and several churches. The 
island was first occupied by the United States in 
February, 1899, and was given civil government 


Cedar Lake 


Cecil 

as a province in 1901. Population of the prov¬ 
ince in 1910, 592,247. 

Cecil, ses'il William, Lord Burleigh (1520- 
1598), an English statesman. He was secretary 
of state under Edward VI, and although as a 
Protestant he resigned his position on the acces¬ 
sion of Mary s he entirely escaped persecution, 
though he never denied his Protestant tendencies. 
When Elizabeth came to the throne she chose 
Burleigh as her secretary of state, and this office 
he held until his death. The glory of the 
reign is due to him, as the real director of the 
policy, more than to any other man. 

Cecilia, se sil’yah, Saint, the patron saint of 
music, - falsely regarded as the inventor of the 
organ. She is said to have suffered martyrdom 
230 A. D., although other dates are given. In 
the Roman Catholic Church, her festival 
(November 22) is celebrated with beautiful 
music. Her story forms one of Chaucer’s 
Canterbury Tales, and Dryden, in his Alexan¬ 
der’s Feast, and Pope, in his Ode on Saint Cecilia’s 
Day, have sung her praises. Raphael, Domeni- 
chino, Dolce and Mignard have represented her 
in celebrated paintings. 

Cecro'pia, a genus of beautiful South Ameri¬ 
can trees, of the breadfruit order. One of these, 
the trumpet-wood, is remarkable for its hollow 
stem and branches, which the indians make into 
drums and wind instruments. The light, porous 
wood is used by the indians for making fire, 
by rubbing it against a harder wood. The inner 
bark is fibrous and strong and is used for 
cordage. 

Cedar, se’dahr, the name of several species 
of evergreen trees belonging to the pine family. 
Cedars are distinguished by their horizontal, 
wide-spreading branches, their fine, compact 
leaves and their reddish wood, which is fragrant 
and very durable. The famous cedars of Leba¬ 
non, so frequently mentioned in the Bible, 
belong to the most widely known species. Of 
these trees comparatively few now remain, and 
they do not grow in any other part of Palestine. 
The most celebrated group is situated not far 
from the village of Tripoli, at an elevation of 
about 6000 feet above the sea. The circumfer¬ 
ence of the largest trees varies from about 18 
to 47 feet. The term cedar is also applied to 
the deodar, a somewhat similar tree, which is a 
native of India and often attains a height of 150 
feet. 

The white cedar or arbor vitae is common from 
Canada to North Carolina. It is distinguished 
by its flat, scale-like leaves and branches, extend¬ 


ing horizontally or slanting downward, and its 
fragrant odor, due to its balsam. The tree often 
attains a height of 80 to 90 feet, but seldom 
exceeds 2 feet in diameter. The timber is 
valuable for cooperage, fence posts and the 
manufacture of chests for storing furs and other 
articles which it is desired to protect from 
insects, since this wood is poisonous to them. 
The twigs are used in the manufacture of cedar 
oil. The red cedar is found in the swamps of 
Florida and in other localities in that vicinity. 
The wood is reddish or yellowish-red and is 
very durable, especially for uses where it comes 
in contact with water. Because of the value of 
its timber this tree has been nearly exterminated 
in some places. A variety of red cedar, known 
as the Bermuda cedar and found in the West 
Indies, is extensively used for making the cases 
of lead pencils. 

Cedar Creek, Battle of, the last battle of 
Sheridan’s campaign in the Shenandoah Valley, 
in 1864, fought on October 19 between two 
forces of about 30,000 men each. During the 
early part of the battle Sheridan was absent, 
having been called to Washington, and the 
Federals were commanded by General Wright. 
They were attacked at daybreak by the Confed¬ 
erates, who completely routed a large part of 
the Union force. With some difficulty Wright 
reformed his line, though suffering heavy loss. 
At this time General Sheridan, who had learned 
of the battle while at Winchester, twenty miles 
away, met the disheartened Federals, inspired 
them with new enthusiasm and led an attack 
which put the Confederates to flight with great 
loss. It was of Sheridan’s experience during 
this battle that Read wrote his famous poem, 
Sheridan’s Ride. 

Cedar Falls, Iowa, a city in Black Hawk co., 
on the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific, Chicago 
Great Western and Illinois Central railroads. 
The city is surrounded by rich farming land, and 
manufactures flour, house finishings, gates, sleds, 
brooms and hardware. Abundant and cheap 
water power has been developed here. A new 
high school library, a public library and the 
Iowa State Teachers’ College afford unusual 
educational facilities. The first settlement was 
made in 1847. Population in 1910, 5012. 

Cedar Lake, a lake in Canada, formed by an 
expansion of the Saskatchewan River just before 
it enters Lake Winnipeg. It is 30 miles long, 
25 miles wide in the widest place and has an 
area of 285 square miles. The shores are 
wooded with pine, tamarack and balsam. 


Cedar Mountain 

Cedar Mountain, Battle of, a battle of the 
Civil War, fought near Culpepper Court House, 
Va., Aug. 9, 1862, between a Union force of 8000 
under General Banks and a Confederate force of 
24,000 under “Stonewall” Jackson. Banks had 
come upon the rear guard of Jackson’s army 
and attacked it vigorously. Jackson rallied his 
men and drove back the Union force. The 
Confederates lost 1300, the Federals, 1800. 

Cedar Rapids, Iowa, a city in Linn co., 79 
mi. s. w. of Dubuque, on the Cedar River and 
the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific, Chicago & 
Northwestern, Chicago, Milwaukee & Saint Paul 
and other railroads, including an interurban to 
Iowa City. It is a beautiful city and has a 
valuable trade. The industries include packing 
houses, cereal mills, starch works, pump fac¬ 
tories, railroad shops, flour mills, foundries and 
machine shops. Coe College is located here. 
The important structures are the public library, 
the Masonic Temple, Masonic Library and 
Museum, Y. M. C. A., Consistory Building, the 
Federal Building and an opera bouse. It was 
settled in 1845. The city has the commission 
plan of government. Population in 1910, 32,811. 

Celebes, sel'e bes, one of the larger islands 
of the Indian Archipelago, between Borneo on 
the west and the Moluccas on the east. The area 
is 71,000 square miles. Gold is found in all 
the valleys of the north peninsula, which abounds, 
also, in sulphur and copper. Tin occurs at 
various points. Diamonds and other precious 
stones are found. The chief cultivated products 
are tropical fruits, spices, corn, rice, tobacco, 
indigo and sugar. The trade in tropang is very 
important. The inhabitants may be classed into 
two groups, the Mohammedan semi-civilized 
tribes and the pagans, who are more or less 
savage. The capital is Macassar, in the south¬ 
west of the island, and through this port most 
of the trade of the island passes. In 1660 
Macassar was taken by the Dutch, the southern 
portion of the island was put under Dutch rule 
and the Portuguese were expelled. The island 
was conquered by the British in 1811, but a 
few years later it was again given up to the 
Dutch, in whose possession it has remained 
ever since. Population, estimated at 2,000,000. 

Celery, sel'ur y, a plant of the parsley family, 
native of the temperate parts of Europe. In its 
natural state it is bitter, sharp and almost poison¬ 
ous, but in its cultivated form it is a 
wholesome vegetable. Celery is commonly 
blanched by heaping up the soil about the 
plants. In the United States it is extensively 


Cellini 

grown, especially in the black loam soils of 
swampy grounds. 

Celestine, sel'es tin, the name of five popes 
of Rome (422-1296). 

Celibacy, sel'i ba sy, the state of being celi¬ 
bate or unmarried; especially applied to the 
voluntary life without marriage followed by 
many religious devotees and by some orders of 
clergy, as those of the Roman Catholic Church. 
The ancient Egyptian priests, the priestesses of 
ancient Greece and Rome and the Buddhist 
priests of the East made celibacy a rule of life. 
Among the Christians the earliest aspirants to 
the spiritual perfection supposed to be attain¬ 
able through celibacy were not ecclesiastics, as 
such, but hermits and anchorites. 

Cell, sel, in biology, the unit of structure of 
plants and animals. It is a microscopic, semi¬ 
fluid portion of matter, surrounded by a cell 
wall, in which is contained a soft mass of living, 
jelly-like matter called protoplasm, and a central 
structure, or organ, consisting of a small round¬ 
ish body called the nucleus, generally more 
solid than the rest, sometimes having within it a 
still smaller body called the nucleolus. The 
simplest plants and animals have but one cell, 
while the more complex have masses of many 
cells. Cells are nearly spherical in outline, but 
if pressure is exerted upon them by the other 
cells, they may take on various modified forms, 
becoming regularly polygonal, spindle-shaped, 
cylindrical or star-shaped. The cell substance, 
or protoplasm, which surrounds the nucleus, 
is an albuminous substance possessing funda¬ 
mental vital properties. It is organized into 
various structures called the organs of the cell, 
each organ having one or more special functions. 
One of the most conspicuous organs is the 
nucleus, the most obvious function of which is 
the governing of the reproduction of the cells. 
It is generally spherical, but may vary greatly 
in form and shape. 

The cell multiplies by the division of the 
whole cell into two cells. This process begins 
at the nucleus. When the cell reaches a certain 
size, its nucleus divides along a definite line, 
and the two parts grow to the size of the first 
and repeat the process. See Protoplasm. 

Cellini, chel le'ne, Benvenuto (1500-1571), 
an Italian sculptor, engraver and goldsmith. 
As the result of a duel he was forced to leave 
Florence, and afterwards, having gone to Rome, 
he gained the patronage of Pope Clement VII. 
Cellini’s quick temper and quarrelsome disposi¬ 
tion led him into frequent brawls, and he stayed 


Celluloid 

in few places for any length of time. At the 
court of Francis I of France he modeled the 
Nymph of Fontainbleau, an excellent example 
of his work. He afterward returned to Florence, 
and under the patronage of Cosimo de’ Medici 
he made a Perseus with the Head of Medusa 
in bronze, which is still an ornament of one of 
the public squares, and a statue of Christ, in the 
chapel of the Pitti Palace, besides many excellent 
dies for coins and medals. Most of his works 
lack simplicity and abound in details. When 
Cellini was fifty-eight years old, he began to 
write an autobiography, in which the traits of 
his character appeared clearly in his vivid pic¬ 
tures of that period of the Renaissance. 

Celluloid, sel'u loid, an artificial substance 
extensively used as a substitute for ivory, bone, 
hard rubber and coral, having a close resem¬ 
blance to these substances in hardness, elas¬ 
ticity and texture. It is composed of cellulose, 
or vegetable fibrine, reduced by acids to a sub¬ 
stance resembling soluble cotton (See Gun¬ 
cotton); camphor is then added, and the com¬ 
pound is molded by heat and pressure to 
the desired shape. Celluloid is used chiefly 
for buttons, handles for knives, forks and 
umbrellas, billiard balls, backs of brushes, piano 
keys, napkin rings, opera-glass frames, pipe- 
stems, films for cameras and other small articles. 
It can be variously colored. 

Cellulose, sel'ulose, the substance which 
forms the chief part of vegetable cells and is the 
covering which protects the living protoplasm. 
Cellulose is not found in the tissues of animals, 
though large quantities of it are consumed by 
them. A portion is digested, but in itself it is not 
an important food product. Cellulose is manu¬ 
factured in large quantities and is used in making 
vegetable parchment. Combined with nitric 
acid, cellulose forms powerful explosives, among 
which is guncotton. As cellulose swells when 
wet, it is used for the packing of joints and to 
prevent leakage in water pipes. 

Celts, sells, the earliest Aryan settlers in 
Europe, according to the common theory. They 
appear to have been driven westward by suc¬ 
ceeding waves of Teutons, Slavonians and others. 
Herodotus mentions them as mixing with the 
Iberians, who dwelt round the river Ebro, in 
Spain. At the beginning of the historic period 
they were the predominant race in Britain, 
Ireland, France, Belgium, Switzerland, North 
Italy, Spain and elsewhere. The Romans called 
them Gauls. They appear to have reached the 
zenith of their power in the second and third 


Cements 

centuries B. c. Some tribes of them, over¬ 
running Greece, settled in a part of Asia Minor, 
to which the name of Galatia was given. Finally, 
they fell before the resistless power of Rome and 
either became absorbed with the conquering 
races or were confined to "the extreme northwest 
of Europe. At an early date the Celts divided 
into two great branches, speaking dialects widely 
differing from each other, but doubtless belong¬ 
ing to the same stock. One of these branches 
is the Gaelic, represented by the Highlanders of 
Scotland, the Celtic Irish and the Manx; the 
other is the Cymric, represented by the Welsh, 
the inhabitants of Cornwall and those of Brittany. 
The sun was the principal object of worship 
among the Celts. 

Celts, certain prehistoric weapons or other 
implements of stone or bronze which have been 
found over nearly the whole surface of the earth. 
Stone celts, such as hatchets, adzes and chisels, 
varying in size from one inch to two feet in length, 
have been found in vast numbers. The materials 
of which they are made are flint, chert, clay slate, 
porphyry, various kinds of greenstone and, in 
short, any very hard and durable stone. Bronze 
celts belong to a later period than stone ones and 
are not so numerous. Some stone celts, how¬ 
ever, have been found along with bronze celts, 
in such a manner as to show that the former were 
still used when the method of working bronze 
had been discovered. 

Cements, se merits', compounds used to stick 
together other substances. There are many 
varieties of cement, such as glue, mucilage, paste, 
mortar and building cements. Building cements 
are made of certain kinds of limestone containing 
clay and sand. A small quantity of oxide of 
lead is added to the mixture. Cements arc 
divided into two classes, hydraulic or water 
cements, which will harden under water, and 
those which will not harden under water. 

Portland cement is made by two processes, 
the wet and the dry. In the wet process the clay 
and limestone are mixed with a large quantity 
of water in a mechanical mixer. When it has 
been thoroughly mixed, it is emptied into large 
reservoirs and allowed to settle. In time the 
heavy material or raw cement settles to the bot¬ 
tom. The water is drawn off and the raw 
cement is left to dry in the air until it is a thick 
paste. It is then placed in the dry-room, where 
all the moisture is evaporated, when it is burned 
in a suitable kiln. The kiln is brought to a white 
heat, and the cement is kept in it until it is almost 
glass, or until it is nearly vitrified. It is taken 


Cemetery 

from the kiln in the form of clinkers, which are 
greenish in color. These clinkers are ground 
to a fine powder between crushing rolls and 
packed in bags or barrels ready for shipment. 
In the dry process the clay and limestone are 
first separately dried in a dry-kiln, until all the 
moisture is expelled. The clay and limestone 
are then mixed and crushed, and the powdered 
mixture is tempered with water to a stiff paste 
in a brick-making machine and molded into 
bricks. The bricks are then burned to the cement 
clinker in kilns and are finally ground into 
powder. A natural cement is made from lime¬ 
stone which has the proper ingredients, but it is 
not as good as the manufactured cement, because 
the proportions of silica, alumina and iron do not 
run evenly in the limestone. Cement increases 
in strength with age and a good cement will 
attain half of its ultimate strength and hardness 
within two months. See Stone, Artificial. 

Cemetery, sem'e ter y, (from a Greek word 
meaning sleeping place), a place of burial. The 
colonial custom in the United States was to use 
the churchyards for burial places, and in some 
of the older cities these yards are still seen around 
the churches, though burial in them has long 
since ceased. With the increase of population 
it became evident for sanitary reasons that burial 
places should be outside of the towns, and the 
modern cemetery was established. The oldest 
cemetery in the United States is Mount Auburn, 
near Boston, famous for its beautiful walks and 
drives and as the burial place of many eminent 
Americans. Laurel Hill in Philadelphia, Green¬ 
wood on Long Island, Lakeview at Cleveland, 
Ohio, containing the Garfield Memorial, and 
Graceland and Rose Hill in Chicago, are among 
the great cemeteries of the country, noted for 
their beauty. There are eighty-three national 
cemeteries in the United States. These contain 
the remains of soldiers who were killed or died 
fror* disease during the Civil War These 
cemeteries are under the supervision of the 
quartermaster general’s office of the war depart¬ 
ment and are maintained by appropriations made 
by Congress. The national cemeteries are 
marked by their simplicity and their beauty. 
The largest is that at Arlington Heights, near 
Washington, and contains over 20,000 graves. 

Some of the most noted cemeteries in the Old 
World are the P£re Lachaise in Paris, which was 
the first of modem cemeteries established in 
western Europe; Kensal Green, Highgate and 
Abner Park, London, and the West London 
Cemetery at Brompton. Burial places cannot 


Censer 

be located within towns in England. In south¬ 
ern Europe catacombs were formerly used and 
are still employed to a limited extent. See 
Catacombs; Burial. 

Cenci, chen'che, Beatrice (1577-1599), an 
Italian girl, the daughter of Francesco Cenci, 
a wealthy Roman nobleman. According to an 
old story, her father treated his family with 
such brutality that Beatrice, together with her 
stepmother and brothers, brought about his 
murder one night at his palace near Naples. 
Beatrice was imprisoned, with her accomplices, 
and after a trial was put to death. Shelley’s 
drama. The Cenci, is founded upon this story. 
It is now thought that the beautiful portrait in 
the Barberini Palace, Rome, known as Guido 
Reni’s Beatrice Cenci, is not of Beatrice, nor by 
Guido Reni. 

Cenis, se nee', Mont, a mountain belonging to 
the Graian Alps, between Savoy and Piedmont, 
having an altitude of 11,755 feet. It is famous 
for the winding road, 40 miles in length, con¬ 
structed by Napoleon I from France to Italy, 
and for an immense railway tunnel. See Cenis, 
Mont, Tunnel of. 

Cenis, Mont, moN se nee' or mont see'nis. 
Tunnel of, a railway tunnel through the Mont 
Cenis Pass in the Alps, connecting the Italian 
province of Turin with Savoy, France. It is 
eight miles long and has two lines of railway. 
The cross section is twenty-six feet four inches 
wide in the broadest part and twenty-four feet 
seven and one-half inches high. The expense 
of construction was about $15,000,000. Work 
was begun in 1857 and the tunnel was com¬ 
pleted in 1872. The railway enters the tunnel 
by means of special curved sections at each end. 
The construction of this tunnel led to the inven¬ 
tion of the power drill and the air compressor, 
both of which were first used in connection with 
this work. 

Cenozoic, se'no zo'ik, Era, the latest general 
division of geologic time, extending from the 
Mesozoic era to the present. It is usually divided 
into the Tertiary and Quaternary periods, but 
some geologists restrict it to the Tertiary, and 
add the Recent era. See Geology; Mesozoic 
Era; Tertiary Period; Quaternary Period. 

Censer, sen'sur, a vase or pan in which 
incense is burned; a vessel for burning and 
wafting incense. Among the ancient Jews the 
censer was used to offer perfumes in sacrifices, 
that for the tabernacle being of brass, that for 
the temple, of gold. Censers, called also 
thuribles, of various forms are still used in the 


Censors 

Roman Catholic Church at mass, vespers and 
other offices, as well as in some Anglican and 
other churches. In Shakespeare’s time the 
term was applied to a bottle perforated and 
ornamented at the top, used for sprinkling 
perfume, or to a pan for burning any odorif¬ 
erous substance. 

Censors, sen'sorz, two officers in ancient Rome, 
whose business it was to draw up a register of 
the citizens and the amount of their property, for 
the purpose of taxation; to keep watch over 
the morals of the citizens, for which purpose they 
had power to censure vice and immorality, and 
to superintend the finance administration and 
the keeping up of public buildings. The office 
was the highest in the State, next to the dictator¬ 
ship, and was invested with a kind of sacred 
character. The term is now applied to an officer 
empowered to examine books and, in some 
countries, articles for the newspapers, before 
publication. 

Census, sen'sus, with the Romans, a registered, 
itemized statement of a person’s property for 
taxation purposes. In modern times a census 
is an enumeration of the inhabitants of a coun¬ 
try, accompanied by any other information that 
may be deemed useful. In the United States, 
England, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Hol¬ 
land, Belgium and Portugal, a census is taken 
every ten years. 

Cent, sent (centime), the name of a small 
coin in various countries, so called because it is 
equal to a hundredth part of some other coin. 
In the United States and in Canada the cent 
is the hundredth part of a dollar. In France the 
centime is the hundredth part of a franc. Simi¬ 
lar coins are the centavo of Chile and the cen- 
tesimo of Italy and Peru. Cents or centimes, 
and their equivalents, are written simply as 
decimal hundredths of the unit of value. 

Centaur, sen'tavrr, in Greek mythology, a 
fabulous being represented as half man, half 
horse. The earliest notices of them, however, 
merely represent them as a race of wild, savage 
men, inhabiting the mountains and forests of 
Thessaly. 

Centennial Exposition, sen ten' ni al ex'po- 
zish'un, an exhibition of arts, manufactures and 
products, held at Fairmont Park, Philadelphia, 
in the summer of 1876, to commemorate the one 
hundredth anniversary of the achievement of 
independence by the United States. It was the 
first international exhibition held in America. 
Its site comprised an area of 236 acres, within 
which about 200 buildings were erected, the 


Center of Gravity 

largest of which, the main building, was nearly 
2000 feet long and 464 feet wide. Other impor¬ 
tant buildings were Machinery Hall, Agricul¬ 
tural Hall, Horticultural Hall and Memorial 
Hall. The last named was constructed of per¬ 
manent materials and is now used as a museum. 
Nearly fifty foreign governments were repre¬ 
sented in the exhibits, and nearly ten million 
people were admitted to the grounds, the largest 
number for a single day being present on Penn¬ 
sylvania Day (September 28), when 274,919 
persons entered the grounds. Special services 
were held on the opening day, May 10, and on 
July 4, in honor of the Declaration of Independ¬ 
ence. The exhibition was important in that it 
disclosed to Americans the superiority of some 
European products, and thus stimulated in¬ 
creased effort for improvement in American 
goods;and it also opened the eyes of Europeans to 
the fact that in the New World a manufacturing 
and commercial nation was developing which 
threatened European supremacy in those fields. 

Center of Grav'ity, that point of a body 
from which, if the body is suspended, it will 
balance. The center of gravity may be found 



by suspending a body so that it will move freely, 
first from one point, and then from another, 
and attaching a plumb line at the point of sus¬ 
pension. The point at which the paths made 
by the plumb line cross is the center of gravity. 
In the figure, ABODE represents an irregular 
body. The center of gravity is found by sus¬ 
pending the body from A and marking the path 
of the plumb line, which takes the direction AG, 
then by suspending it from B and marking the 
path taken by the plumb line, BF. K, the point 
of intersection, is the center of gravity. The 
center of gravity of a circular body, such as a 
ring, is outside the body. See Gravitation. 




Centerville 

Cen'terville, Iowa, the county-seat of 
Appanoose co., 90 mi. s. e. of Des Moines, on 
the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific, the Chicago, 
Burlington & Quincy, the Iowa Central and other 
railroads. It has deposits of coal and limestone, 
contains packing houses, lumber and flour m ills 
and other factories. There is a public library and 
a city park. The place was settled in 1847 and 
incorporated in 1848. Population in 1910, 6936. 

Centipede, sen'ti peed, an insect-like creature, 
which has many feet and a body consisting of 
numerous similar rings or segments, each of 
which bears a pair of legs. The common centi- 



CENTIPEDE 

pede, found in the United States, is quite harm¬ 
less, but some species of tropical countries inflict 
severe and often dangerous bites. Some of the 
latter species grow to a length of eighteen inches. 
They are savage animals and defend themselves 
energetically. 

Cen'tral America, that portion of North 
America lying between Mexico on the north 
and Columbia on the south, and containing the 
states of Guatemala, Honduras, Salvador, Nica¬ 
ragua, Costa Rica and Panama, and the colony of 
British Honduras. Each of these is described 
under its title. Central America covers an area 
of about 181,500 sq. mi. The surface is gener¬ 
ally mountainous, having volcanoes as high as 
13,000 feet in the north and 11,000 feet in the 
south, and many high plateaus. The more 
important rivers are the Usumacinta, Grijalva, 
Ulna, Escondido, Wanks and San Juan. There 
are two large lakes, Nicaragua and Managua. 
The climate is hot and moist along the coast, 
but it is dry in the high regions. In the regions 
along the Atlantic there are luxuriant forests, 
producing mahogany, logwood, palms and tree 
ferns. Agriculture is the chief pursuit, and the 
leading products are cocoa, indigo, coffee, India 
rubber, mahogany and fruits. 

The shores of Central America were first seen 
by Columbus in 1502. The inhabitants were 
divided into small tribes, who were in constant 
warfare with one another. In 1524 Pedro de 
Alvarado, a Spaniard, succeeded in gaining con¬ 
trol over most of Guatemala and Salvador. 
Between 1524 and 1525 Cortez invaded the 


Cephalopoda 

country and finally overcame the rest of the 
tribes. In the sixteenth century Central America 
and Chiapas formed the captain-generalcy of 
Guatemala until 1821, w T hen Guatemala pro¬ 
claimed its independence. Two years later the 
five divisions, corresponding to the five states, 
constituted themselves into the Republic of the 
United States of Central America, but in 1839 
the union was dissolved. In 1850, Honduras, 
Salvador and Nicaragua attempted to restore 
the republic, but were unsuccessful. Because of 
the frequent political revolutions, the progress 
of these countries has been much retarded. 
Through colonization, British Honduras, or 
Belize, was established in 1850. 

Central Falls, R. I., a city in Providence 
co., 4 mi. n. of Providence, on the Blackstone 
River and on the New York, New Haven & 
Hartford railroad. The river supplies good 
water power, and there are extensive manufac¬ 
tures of cotton, woolen and silk goods, hair¬ 
cloth and machinery. The place was settled in 
the eighteenth century, but remained a part of 
Lincoln until its incorporation in 1895. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 22,754. 

Centra'lia, III., a city in Marion co., 62 mi. 
e. of Saint Louis, Mo., on the Illinois Central, 
the Southern and other railroads. It is in a 
fruit-growing country and has a large trade, 
especially in apples and strawberries. Coal is 
mined, and there are railroad shops, flour mills, 
glass works and other factories. The city has 
a Carnegie library, a large city hall and several 
public parks. It owns the waterworks. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 9680. 

Centra'lia, Wash., is situated in Lewis co., 
about 5 mi. from Chehalis and on the Northern 
Pacific Railroad. The leading industries include 
sawmills, shingle mills and other wood-working 
plants. The city has a water system and a fire 
department. Population in 1910, 7311. 

Century Plant. See Agave. 

Cephalonia, chef ah lo’ne ah, or Kephalle'- 
nia, an island of Greece, the largest of the Ionian 
Islands. It is 30 miles long and has an area of 
348 square miles. Population in 1907, 71,235. 

Cephalopoda, sef a lop’o dah, the scientific 
name of the highest class of mollusks, given them 
because of the fact that their arms or limbs are 
arranged in a group about the mouth. Most of 
them have a head more or less distinct from the 
rest of the body, and have complicated organs 
of digestion. In some species the arms are very 
numerous, while in others there are only a few. 
See Nautilus; Octopus; Cuttlefish; Squid. 


Ceram 


Ceres 


Ceram or Zeram, se rahN ’, an island in the 
Moluccas, lying w. of New Guinea. It is 115 
miles long, 30 miles wide, and has an area of 
about 7000 square miles. The vegetation is 
luxuriant, the interior being covered with dense 
forests of sago palms and cocoa. The inhabitants 
of the coast are of Malay origin and are known 
as Alfurus. The island is under Dutch control. 
Population, probably less than 100,000. 

Ceramic, se„ram'ik , Art. See Pottery. 

Cerberus, sur'be rus, in classical mythology, 
the dog of Pluto, which guarded the entrance to 
Hades. Some accounts gave it a‘hundred, and 
some fifty, heads, but three was the popular 
number. The dog’s tail and mane were snakes. 

Cereal. See Grains. 

Cer'ebel'lum, The, that portion of the 
brain below the posterior lobes of the cerebrum 
occupying the lower back part of the cranium. 
The cerebellum weighs about one-eighth as 
much as the cerebrum, but it is proportionately 
larger in infants and the lower animals. The 
white matter of the cerebellum is located on the 
inside, the gray matter on the outside. The 
convolutions are very numerous and lie in nar¬ 
row, transverse folds, separated by numerous 
deep fissures, placed very closely together; they 
appear to possess very little of the distinctive 
character of the fissures and convolutions of the 
cerebral hemispheres. The surface of the fis¬ 
sures is composed entirely of gray matter, and 
running toward this from the interior of the 
cerebellum is the white substance, arranged in 
a branching manner and called, therefore, Arbor 
Vitae, or tree of life. The functions of the cere¬ 
bellum are to coordinate and harmonize those 
muscles used in walking and standing, running, 
jumping and other voluntary movements. If the 
cerebellum be removed from a bird’s brain, all 
power to combine the action of the muscles is 
lost. The bird’s movements might be com¬ 
pared to those of a drunken man. See Brain; 
Cerebrum. 

Cer'ebrum, The, the largest portion of the 
brain. It is divided into lateral and symmetrical 
hemispheres. The outer surface, composed 
entirely of gray matter, or cortex, is arranged into 
lobes and convolutions separated by fissures, as 
shown in the cut under Brain. The cortical 
layer is composed of alternate strata of gray 
and white matter, the entire layer being about 
one-sixth of an inch thick. The true interior 
of the cerebrum is composed of white matter. 
There are five great lobes, separated by fissures 
varying from half an inch to one inch in depth. 


The lobes are divided into many convolutions 
by secondary fissures running into those already 
mentioned. The importance of a study of the 
convolutions is becoming increasingly obvious, 
for experimental science has demonstrated that 
the gray matter found in each convolution pre¬ 
sides over some definite function or portion of 
the body; thus it is a fact not to be questioned 
that certain convolutions in the frontal lobes 
control the function of speech; certain others 
control the motions of the head and extremities 
on the opposite side of the body. If the cere¬ 
brum be removed from a pigeon or rabbit, 
while it can walk and move about it does so 
only when stimulated. At other times it remains 
motionless. The cerebrum may therefore be 
considered as the originator of voluntary move¬ 
ments. See Brain; Cerebellum; Nervous 
System; Reflex Action. 

Ceres, seer’eez, a Roman goddess, daughter 
of Saturn and Rhea, and mother of Proserpina 
or Persephone. She was the goddess of the 



CERES, OR DEMETER 

earth, in its capacity of bringing forth fruits, 
especially watching over the growth of grain 
and other plants. When her daughter was 
stolen and carried off to Hades, Ceres neglected 
the earth during her search for her daughter, 
and all vegetation perished. The Romans cele¬ 
brated in honor of Ceres the festival of the 
Cerealia, and the sacrifices made to her con- 












Ceres 


Cervera y Topete 


sisted of pigs and cows. Ceres was always rep¬ 
resented in full attire, her attribute being ears 
of corn and poppies. The Greek goddess who 
corresponded to the Roman Ceres was known 
as Demeter. 

Ceres, the first of the planetoids, discovered 
on New Year’s day, 1801, by Piazzi, at Palermo. 
See Planetoid. 

Cereus, se’re us, a large genus of the cactus 
family, about two hundred species in number, 
thirty of which 
are found in the 
United States. 

These are tall, 
tube-like plants, 
with spiny ribs 
and large, beau¬ 
tifully shaped 
flowers. The 
night-blooming 
cereus, with its 
large, white, fra¬ 
grant flowers, is 
the best known 
species. The old 
man cereus is so 
called from the 
long gray hairs 
which cover the 
top of the stem. 

But more re¬ 
markable is the 
giant cactus of 
Arizona, which, 
having grown to 
a height of fifty 
feet in a naked, 
leafless column, 
then crowns each 
column-'ike 
branch with a 
bunch of great 
flowers. 

Ce'rium, a 

metallic element 
that occurs in many minerals found in Sweden, 
and a mineral found in North Carolina. Cerium 
is of a grayish color, is ductile and malleable, 
and is from -five to six times as heavy as water. 

Cerro Gordo, ser'ro gor'do, Battle of, a 
battle in the Mexican War, fought April 17 and 
18, 1847, between a force of 12,000 Mexicans, 
under Santa Anna, and an American force of 
8500, under General Taylor. The pass of 
Cerro Gordo had been fortified by Santa Anna, 



GIANT CACTTTS 


with the exception of one bluff which overlooked 
his position. Taylor occupied this height and 
opened fire with heavy guns upon the Mexican 
fortifications, at the same time making a vigorous 
attack upon the rear of Santa Anna’s position. 
The Mexicans were soon compelled to flee. 

Certiorari, sur'she o ra’re. Writ of. See 
Writ 

Cervantes Saavedra, sur van'teez sah a va r - 
drah, Miguel de (1547-1616), the greatest of 
Spanish writers, the author of Don Quixote. He 
was bom at Alcala de Henares and removed 
thence to Madrid at the age of seven. He early 
commenced writing verses, and his pastoral 
Filena attracted the notice of Cardinal Acqua- 
viva, whom he accompanied to Italy as page. 
In 1570 he served under Colonna in the war 
against the Turks and African corsairs, and in 
the Battle of Lepanto he lost the use of his left 
hand. After this he joined the troops at Naples, 
in the service of the Spanish king, winning the 
highest reputation as a soldier. In 1575, while 
returning to his country, he was taken by pirates 
and sold in Algiers as a slave. For five years he 
remained in captivity, displaying great courage 
in the face of constant danger of torture; but at 
length his friends and relations ransomed him 
and he rejoined his old regiment. 

In 1583 he retired from service and recom¬ 
menced his literary work, publishing in 1584 
his pastoral Galatea. In the same year he 
married, and then for a long time he lived by 
writing for the stage, to which he contributed 
between twenty and thirty plays, only two of 
which have survived. From 1588 to 1599 he 
lived in retirement at Seville, where he held a 
small office. He did not appear again as an 
author till 1605, when he produced the first part 
of Don Quixote. This work had as its immedi¬ 
ate aim the satirical treatment of the sentimental 
novels of chivalry, then popular, but it contained 
such accurate pictures of human types and such 
a fund of delightful humor that it made its author 
famous at once. Between 1613 and his death 
were published his twelve Exemplary Tales, 
Journey to Parnassus and eight new dramas. 
The second part of Don Quixote was also com¬ 
pleted during these years. 

Cervera y Topete, ther va'rah e to pa'ta, Don 
Pascal de (1839-1909), a Spanish admiral, 
born in the province of Cadiz. He graduated 
from the San Fernando Naval Academy and 
soon after distinguished himself in the campaign 
against Morocco in 1859. During the Cuban 
rebellion in 1868 he had charge of the blockade 











































Cervin 

of the coast, but later became secretary of the 
navy in Spain. Upon the outbreak of the 
Spanish-American War, he commanded a 
squadron consisting of four cruisers and three 
torpedo boats, which was sent to American waters. 
It entered the harbor at Santiago de Cuba about 
May 19 and was there blockaded by American 
vessels under Admiral Sampson. On July 3, 
under orders, he made a reckless dash for free¬ 
dom, and in a running engagement all of his 
vessels were sunk or destroyed and he himself 
was taken prisoner. On his return to Spain 
in September of that year he was court-martialed, 
but was acquitted of blame for the defeat and 
was liberated July 7, 1899. 

Cervin, sur vaN', Mont. See Matterhorn. 

Cestus, ses'tus, a leathern thong or bandage, 
often covered with knots and loaded with lead 
and iron, anciently worn by Roman pugilists 
to increase the force of the blow. Cestus is also 
the name of a girdle which was worn by Aphro¬ 
dite or Venus and which gave the wearer the 
power of exciting love. 

Cetacea, se ta'she ah, an order of marine 
animals, surpassing in size all others in existence. 
They are true mammals, have warm blood and 
breathe by means of lungs, for which purpose 
they come to the surface of the water to take 
fresh supplies of air. The body is fish-like in 
form, but ends in a tail which is expanded into 
horizontal flukes. There are no hind limbs, 
and the fore limbs are broad paddles, or flippers, 
enclosed in a continuous sheath of thick skin. 
The fish-like appearance is further increased by 
a fin on the back, but this is a simple fold of skin 
and does not contain bony spines. The right 
whale and its allies have no teeth in the full- 
grown state 3 but, instead, have triangular plates 
of baleen or whalebone, which are developed on 
ridges across the palate. The nostrils open 
directly upward on the top of the head and are 
closed by valves of skin, which are under the 
control of the animal. When a cetacean comes 
to the surface to breathe, it blows the air out 
violently, and the vapor it contains, becoming 
condensed into a cloud, resembles a column of 
water and spray. As a protection against the 
cold, the animal is covered by a thick coat¬ 
ing of blubber underlying the skin. See 
Whale; Narwhal; Porpoise; dolphin; Sperm 
Whale. 

Cettinje,cAe< teen' ya, the capital city of Mon¬ 
tenegro, seventeen miles east of Cattaro, with 
which it is connected by a fine military road. 
It is the smallest capital city in Europe, being 


Ceylon 

but little more than a good-sized village, located 
in a narrow valley at an elevation of about 2,000 
feet, surrounded by precipitous mountains. The 
public buildings are few and insignificant, in¬ 
cluding the palace, an old monastery, several 
schools for secondary education and the court of 
justice. The city dates from the close of the 
fifteenth century, but its population now is only 
4,500. 

Cevennes, sa ven', a chain of mountains 
located in the southeast of France, extending 
from the Pyrenees in the southwest to the Vosges 
in the northeast, the C6te d’Or being some¬ 
times considered as a part of it, sometimes as a 
part of the Vosges system. The length of the 
chain, exclusive of the C6te d’Or, is about 330 
miles, the average height not more than 3000 
feet. The highest peak is M^zenc, 5753 feet. 
The Cevennes furnished shelter for the Wal- 
denses, Albigenses and Camisards in their days 
of persecution. 

Ceylon, se hn r , an island of the Indian Ocean 
and a crown colony of Great Britain, about 55 
mi. from the southern point of Hindustan, from 
which it is separated by Palk Strait. It is 267 
miles long; its greatest width is 137 miles, and 
its area is 25,333 square miles. The surface is 
very mountainous and there are many lofty 
peaks, the highest of which are Pedrotallagalla, 
8264 feet, and Adams Peak, 7420 feet. The 
soil is fertile and the vegetation is luxuriant, the 
products being cocoa palm, breadfruit, cinna¬ 
mon, ebony, bo-tree, cotton, rice, tobacco, pepper, 
tea, coffee and cinchona, the last three of which 
are the most important exports of the island. 
The climate is tropical, but in the high regions 
it is very pleasant and cool. The mineral 
resources of Ceylon are considerable, including 
precious stones—rubies and sapphires—gold, 
iron and plumbago. There are three harbors, 
Galle, Colombo and Trincomalee, the last being 
one of the finest in the world. The railway lines 
have a length of 297 miles and are for the most 
part operated by the government. The inhabitants 
are mostly Singhalese, who speak a modern 
Indian dialect, an Aryan language. They keep 
up the ancient customs, habits and costumes of 
their ancestors. There are also many Malabars 
or Tamils. The Singhalese are Buddhists, while 
the Tamils are Hindus. Altogether about 
seventy races are represented in Ceylon. 

Ceylon since 1831 has been governed by a 
British governor, assisted by an executive 
council of five members and a legislative council 
of seventeen members. There are nine prov* 


Chadboume 


Chain 


inces, each undef the control of a government 
agent. The capital is Colombo. 

In 543 b. c. the original inhabitants, theYakkas, 
were conquered by the Singhalese. In 1200 
A. D. the Malabars conquered the country, but 
later it was partly retaken by the Singhalese. 
The Portuguese came in 1505 and in 1517 began 
their settlements. These were reduced by the 
Dutch in the seventeenth century, and the Dutch 
were driven out by the British in 1795. Ceylon 
is one of the most prosperous of British colonies. 
Population in 1911, 3,592,397. 

Chadboume, chad'bum, Paul Ansel (1823- 
1883), an American educator, born at North 
Berwick, Maine, and educated at Williams 
College and Hartford Theological Seminary. 
After completing his education he occupied 
successively the positions of principal of the 
high school at Great Falls, professor of chemistry 
and natural history in Williams College and 
professor in Bowdoin College. In 1867 he 
became president of the University of Wisconsin, 
holding the position for three years. In 1872 
he was appointed editor in chief of The Wealth 
of the United States and was chosen president of 
Williams College in the same year. After 
occupying this position for nine years, he 
resigned and became president of the Massachu¬ 
setts Agricultural College. 

Chad'wick, George Whitfield (1854- ), 

an American musician. He received his early 
musical education in America, but later studied 
with the best European masters. He returned 
to America in 1880 to enter the New England 
Conservatory as instructor, and later became 
director. Among his important compositions 
is the oratorio Judith and the music for the 
Columbian Ode, sung at the opening of the 
World’s Fair in Chicago 

Chaff Cut'ter, an agricultural implement 
for chopping hay or straw to be used as food 
for animals. The most common pattern of 
chaff cutter consists of a series of straight knives, 
set lengthwise in a wooden or iron shaft, which 
is attached to a heavy wheel about three feet in 
diameter. When the shaft revolves, the edges 
of the knives almost touch the table over which 
the straw is fed into the machine. By thus 
pressing down upon the straw the knives cut it 
into short lengths. The economical advantage 
of the chaff cutter does not depend on its render¬ 
ing the chopped food more digestible, but on its 
permitting it to be more thoroughly mixed with 
the more nutritive and palatable food, and pre¬ 
venting the animal from rejecting any part of if 


Chaf'fee, Adna Romanza (1842-1914), an 
American soldier, born at Orwell, Ohio, and 
educated in the public schools. He entered the 
army as a private in 1861, and after the close 
of the war was brevetted captain in the regular 
army. He won distinction in the indian service 
and in the Spanish-American war; commanded 
the American forces in the Peking campaign of 
1900; became a major general in 1901, and was 
put in command of the army in the Philippines. 
In 1904 he was appointed chief of staff of the 
United States Army, and two years later retired, 
being succeeded by General John C. Bates. 

Chaf'finch, a beautiful European finch, very 
common in England, where its haunts are chiefly 
gardens and shrubberies, hedgerows and planta¬ 
tions. The male, which is six or seven inches 
in length, has a chestnut back, reddish-pink 
breast and throat and a yellowish-white bar 
around the wings. The chaffinch feeds on 
seeds, insects and their larvae. It has a strong 
voice that in the wild state is not pleasant, but it 
can be taught to sing very beautifully and almost 
to articulate words. 

Chagres, chah'gres, a river of Central America, 
whose waters made possible the Panama Canal. 
The river rises in the mountains of Panama and 
flows in a general westerly direction into Gatun 
Lake, an artificial body of water created by the 
construction of the great Gatun Dam. In the 
rainy season the river rises with extreme rapi¬ 
dity, sometimes over 30 feet in 24 hours. 

Chain, a line made of links of metal. The 
metal used is iron, steel, brass or bronze, or, if 
the chain is for ornamental purposes, gold or 
silver. Small iron chains are made by winding 
the wire, when cold, into a spiral, then cutting 
off each coil with shears. The separate coils 
form the links of the chain, which are then 
welded together. In making large chains the 
iron is cut into bars, each long enough for a link. 
These are then shaped and welded by hand. 
Some steel chains, however, are made by machine. 
The steel is rolled into bars especially for the 
purpose, and the machine cuts away the metal 
so as to leave the links, much as a boy would cut 
away the wood in making a wooden chain. 
Machine-made chains are lighter and stronger 
than those made by hand, and a small chain is 
proportionately stronger than a large one, 
because small wire has proportionately greater 
strength than large wire. Chains are used in 
some instances in place of ropes, for conveying 
power in machinery and for numerous other 
purposes. 


Chain 


Chalice 


Chain, in surveying, a unit of measure con¬ 
sisting of 100 links, each 7.92 inches in length, 
having a total length of 4 rods, or 66 feet. 100,- 
000 square links make 1 acre. It is often called 
Gunter's chain, from its inventor, Edmund 
Gunter. 

Chain Pump, a pump consisting of an endless 
chain equipped with a number of valves in the 
form of small cylinders and moving round two 
wheels, one above and one below. The chain 
in its ascent passes through a tube closely fitting 
the valves. By this means the water is raised 
and delivered through a. spout, at the side of the 
tube or over the top. Chain pumps are used 
for raising water from deep wells and do not 
depend upon the pressure of air for their action, 
as does the common pump. 

Chain Shot, two cannon balls connected by a 
chain, which, when discharged, revolve upon 
their shorter axis. Such shot are used at sea 
to cut down masts and rigging. 

Chaise, shaze, the name originally given to a 
two-wheeled, one-horse vehicle with a top. The 
body was hung on straps. The name was 
afterwards applied to light, open, four-wheeled 
carriages of various constructions. The original 
chaise has been immortalized by Oliver Wendell 
Holmes in his poem, The Wonderful One-Hoss 
Shay. 

Chalcedon, kal see'don, an ancient town of 
Bithynia in Asia Minor, on the Bosporus, oppo¬ 
site Byzantium. Chalcedon was founded by 
Grecian colonists about 685 B. c. It was the 
seat of the fourth general council of the Christian 
Church. This council, convoked by Emperor 
Marcianus in 451 A. D., was attended by over 
six hundred bishops, the legates of Pope Leo I 
and the commissioners of the emperor. It con¬ 
demned the Robber Council of Ephesus (See 
Ephesus, Council of) and adopted an orthodox 
confession of faith. 

Chalcedony, kal sed'o ny, a variety of quartz, 
cabled also white agate, resembling milk diluted 
with water, semi-transparent or translucent, and 
more or less clouded with circles and spots. 
When found in cavities of rocks it is usually 
uncrystallized. It sometimes occurs in veins 
in rocks and in rounded, grape-like masses. 
There are several varieties, such as the common 
chalcedony, agate, chrysoprase, sard, carnelian 
and sardonyx, each of wh>ch is described under 
its title. 

Chalcis, kal'sis, a Greek town, capital of 
Euboea, separated by the narrow strait of 
Euripus from the Boeotian coast, on the main¬ 


land of Greece. Chalcis early became one of 
the greatest of the Ionic cities, carrying on an 
extensive commerce and planting numerous 
colonies in Syria, Macedonia, Italy, Sicily and 
the islands of the Aegean Sea. It was subse¬ 
quently a place of importance under the Ro¬ 
mans. There is still a town on the site, consisting 
of an inner walled town and an outer suburb, 
and said to be one of the prettiest and most 
attractive of Greek provincial towns. A bridge, 
so constructed as to let vessels pass through, 
connects it with the mainland. Population, 
about 8000. 

Chaldea, kal de’ah, a district southeast of 
Babylonia, on the Persian Gulf. Little is known 
of its history, except that its inhabitants were 
a warlike people who preserved their independ*- 
ence at all times. At various periods in the 
early history of Babylonia, Chaldean, princes sat 
on the throne, but it was toward the end of the 
seventh centuiy B. c., after the Chaldean, Nabo- 
polassar, overthrew the Assyrian rule and 
founded the New Babylonian kingdom, that 
Chaldea became supreme in Mesopotamia. 
Nabopolassar’s son Nebuchadnezzar was the 
greatest of this dynasty, which closed 556 B. c. 
Hebrew and classical writers, not only of this 
period but of later times, use the names Baby¬ 
lonian and Chaldean synonymously. See Baby¬ 
lon; Babylonia. 

Chaldee, kaTde, Language, a name often 
given to the Aramean language, one of the 
principal varieties of the ancient Semitic. 
Chaldee literature is usually arranged in two 
divisions: the Biblical Chaldee, or those portions 
of the Old Testament which are written in 
Chaldee, namely, certain chapters in Daniel, 
Ezra and Jeremiah ; and the Chaldee of the 
Tar gums and other later Jewish writings. 
Chaldee was presumably the language of Abra¬ 
ham before his migration to Palestine. See 
Aramaic. 

Chaleurs, sha lur', Bay, an inlet of the Gulf 
of Saint Lawrence, which partially separates 
New Brunswick from the Province of Quebec. 
Its length from east to west is 185 miles and 
its greatest width is 20 miles. This inlet was 
discovered and named by Jacques Cartier in 
1535. The water is deep, and the bay affords 
good anchorage for sea-going vessels. The 
shores are sparsely settled. 

Chalice, chal'is, the name originally given to 
any drinking cup, but now used to designate 
expecially the vessels that hold the wine in the 
holy sacrament. The earliest chalices were 


Chalk 


Chamberlain 


made of wood cr horn; later ones were of glass 
and crystal, and in the Middle Ages gold, silver 
and othei precious metals were used. Many of 
them were adcrned with most elaborate designs 
in enamels and precious stones. The shapes 
have varied as much as the style of ornamen¬ 
tation. 

Chalk, cTimok, a variety of limestone formed 
almost wholly ci’ the shells of minute marine 
animals, known as foraminifera (See Fora- 
minifera). Chalk is usually white or gray, 
coarse-grained and so soft that it cannot be 
polished. Impurities, however, sometimes give 
it other colors. It is found in large quantities 
in various parts of the world. It forms the 
white cliffs that border the English channel and 
to whose color England owes its ancient name of 
Albion. In the United States large quantities 
are found in Arkansas, Iowa, Montana, Texas 
and some other states. The Texas belt is over 
250 miles in extent and is nowhere less than 600 
feet thick. Chalk is used in the manufacture 
of cement, for making lime for whitewash and 
for m a r kin g on blackboards; but when used 
for the last-named purpose it is generally ground 
and pressed into sticks called crayons. See 
Cretaceous System. 

Challenger Expedition. In 1872 the Brit¬ 
ish government sent the Challenger, a corvet of 
a little more than two thousand tons burden, 
on a long trip around the world, for the pur¬ 
pose of sounding the depths of the ocean, map¬ 
ping the basins and studying the life of the 
Atlantic, Southern and Pacific oceans. The 
Challenger spent nearly four years on this expe¬ 
dition and traveled nearly 70,000 nautical miles; 
it made investigations at 362 stations, making 
the deepest soundings in March, 1875, at 4575 
fathoms. See Fishes, Deep Sea. 

Chal'mers, Thomas (1780-1847), a Scotch 
theologian and reformer, born in Anstruther 
and educated at the University of Saint Andrews. 
He fitted himself to be a preacher, and on com¬ 
pleting his education he was ordained to the 
ministry, but for a number of years following, 
though pastor of a church, he gave most of his 
attention to the study of political economy and 
doctrinal theology. During this time he wrote 
the article on Christianity for the Edinburgh 
Encyclopedia. In 1815 he was established in 
the Tron church and parish, Glasgow. Chal¬ 
mers was an orator of no mean ability, and his 
preaching soon attracted wide attention. He 
became interested in the wretched condition of 
his parishioners, most of whom were mill hands, 


and from that time devoted much of his energy 
to the establishment of such reforms as would 
enable these people to better their social, moral 
and religious conditions. He is credited with 
establishing the first social settlement in the 
world, and although his enterprise was aban¬ 
doned after some years, his plan ha? since been 
adopted and followed in many large cities of 
England, the United States and other countries. 
After occupying his position in Glasgow for 
thirteen years, he was chosen professor of 
theology in the University of Edinburgh, and a 
few years later he became involved in the con¬ 
troversy concerning matters of administration, 
which resulted in the division of the Presby¬ 
terian Church. In 1843 Chalmers and about 
500 other clergymen left the old Church and 
established the Free Church. He was recog¬ 
nized as the leader of this movement, and the 
stable foundation upon which it was placed in 
the next few years was due very largely to his 
wisdom and efforts. 

Chalons-sur-Mame, shaloN'sur mahm', a 
city of France, capital of the Department of 
Marne, 90 mi. e. of Paris. Chalons is an 
important center of the champagne trade and 
has manufactures of woolen and cotton goods 
and shoes. In 451 Attila was defeated before 
the walls of Chalons by the Romans and their 
allies, the Visigoths, and from the tenth century 
it flourished as an independent state under 
count-bishops until it was united with the crown 
in 1360. A celebrated camp, established by 
Napoleon III about 18 miles from Chalons for 
the purpose of training the French troops, is 
still to some extent employed. Population in 
1911. 31,400. 

Chalybeate, ka liV eat. Waters, waters 
holding iron in solution, either as a carbonate 
or as a sulphate, with or without other salts. 
All waters containing iron are distinguished by 
their puckery, inky taste, and by the more or 
less deep color produced by an infusion of tea 
or of nutgalls. Chalybeate springs are found 
in various parts of Europe and the United 
States, and their waters are used medicinally. 
Among the most noted are those at Tunbridge 
Wells and Vicarsbridge, England, and Bailey’s 
Springs, Alabama, and Alum Springs, Virginia, 
in the United States. 

Chalybite, kal’i bite. See Siderite. 

Chamberlain, chame'bur lin, Joseph (1836- 
1914), an English statesman, born in London 
and educated at London University School. 
He became a member of a firm of screwmaker* 


Chamber of Commerce 


Chambord 


at Birmingham, but gave up active connection 
with the business in 1874. He early became 
prominent in Birmingham, both in connection 
with civic and political affairs, was chairman of 
the school board and thrice in succession was 
mayor of the city. In 1876 he entered Parlia¬ 
ment as a representative of Birmingham, and 
under Gladstone’s premiership he became 
president of the board of trade and a cabinet 
minister. In the Gladstone government in 1886 
he was president of the local government board; 
but his leader’s Irish policy caused him to 
resign, and from that time, as member for 
West Birmingham, he was one of the most pro¬ 
nounced members of the Liberal Unionist party. 
He was in America in 1887 as one of the British 
representatives appointed to negotiate a settle¬ 
ment of the fishery disputes between Canada 
and the United States, and in the Marquis of 
Salisbury’s cabinet he became colonial secretary. 
Chamberlain had much to do with the events 
which led up to the South African War, and he 
visited the Transvaal after the close of the 
struggle. The plan which he proposed in 1903 
of imposing a tariff on imports from all coun¬ 
tries except British colonies entailed a complete 
change in the financial policy of Great Britain, 
but it proved acceptable neither to Parliament, 
to the English people nor to the colonies. 

Chamber of Commerce. See Commerce, 
Chamber of. 

Chambers, chame'burz, Ephraim (1680- 
1740), a miscellaneous writer, the compiler of 
the popular Cyclopaedia, or a Universal Dic¬ 
tionary of Arts and Sciences. During his 
apprenticeship to a mathematical instrument- 
and globe-maker in London he formed the 
design of compiling this Cyclopaedia, and even 
wrote some of the articles for it behind his mas¬ 
ter’s counter. The first edition was published 
in 1728. Several subsequent editions appeared 
previous to his death in 1740, and it was the 
basis of the cyclopaedia of Dr. Abraham Rees. 

Chambers, Robert (1802-1871), an historical 
and miscellaneous writer, the younger of two 
brothers originally composing the publishing 
firm of W. & R. Chambers. He received his 
education at the Peebles parish school and in 
the high school of Edinburgh. When his family 
met with a reverse of fortune, he got together 
all the books belonging to his mother and him¬ 
self, and at sixteen years of age commenced 
business as a bookseller in Edinburgh. He 
edited Scottish Ballads and Songs and a Bio¬ 
graphical Dictionary of Eminent Scotsmen, and 


with his brother he commenced Chamberses 
Edinburgh Journal, which achieved an immense 
success. From this time the brothers united in 
the publishing business and issued a series of 
works for popular entertainment and instruc¬ 
tion. Robert Chambers’s great work is Ves¬ 
tiges of the Natural History of Creation, an 
exposition of the growth and history of the 
natural world. 

Chambers, William (1800-1883), a Scotch 
writer and publisher, brother of Robert Cham¬ 
bers (See Chambers, Robert). He was 
twice lord provost of Edinburgh, and latterly 
bore the expense of restoring the old Church of 
Saint Giles, Edinburgh. He also presented the 
town of Peebles with an institution embracing a 
library, reading room and museum. Besides 
the articles for the Edinburgh Journal and 
those in which he united with his brother, 
William Chambers wrote Things as They Are 
in America, Ailie Gilroy and other works. 

Chambersburg, chame'burz burg, Pa, the 
county-seat of Franklin co., about 50 mi. s. w. 
of Harrisburg, on the Conococheaque Creek 
and on the Cumberland Valley, the Western 
Maryland, the Philadelphia & Reading and 
other railroads. It has an academy, a fine 
courthouse and a number of handsome churches. 
There are railroad shops and manufactures of 
shoes, hosiery, flour, furniture, engines and 
other articles. The place was settled by Benja¬ 
min Chambers in 1730 and was first known 
as Falling Spring; it was incorporated in 1803. 
Population in 1910, 11,800. 

Chambly, shahN'ble, a town in Chambly co., 
Quebec, Canada, situated at the foot of rapids 
in the Richelieu, or Sorel, River, about 25 
mi. s. e. of Montreal. The place is of historical 
interest as the site of a British fort which was 
captured by the Americans under Major Brown 
during Montgomery’s invasion of Canada, in 
1775. The capture of this fort led to the sur¬ 
render of the British garrison in the fort at 
Saint Johns, 12 miles farther south. By this 
surrender a large quantity of provisions and 
military stores fell into the hands of the Ameri¬ 
cans, also the colors of the 7th British regulars. 
These were sent to the Continental Congress 
and constituted the first trophy of the kind 
received by them. Population in 1911, 1800. 

Chambord, shahN bor', a castle, park and 
village, near Blois, in the Department of Loir-et- 
Cher, in France. The splendid castle, in the 
Renaissance style, was mainly built by Francis I. 

In 1745 it was given by Louis XV to Marshal 


Chamt)ord 


Chamonix 


Saxe, who died there in 1750. Napoleon gave 
it to Berthier, and in 1821 a company of Legiti¬ 
mists bought it and gave it to the duke of Bor¬ 
deaux in the name of the people of France. 

Chambord, Henri Charles Ferdinand 
Marie Dieudonne, Comte de, and Due de 
Bordeaux (1820-1883), the last representative 
of the elder branch of the French Bourbon 
dynasty, called by his partisans Henry V of 
France. He was born after the assassination 
of his father, Prince Charles Ferdinand d’Artols, 
due de Berry. Charles X, after the revolutionary 
outbreak of 1830, abdicated in his favor; but 
the young count was compelled to leave the 
country with the royal title unrecognized by the 
nation. While abstaining from violent attempts 
to seize the crown, he let slip no opportunity of 
urging his claims, especially after the French 
defeat at Sedan; but his belief in divine right, 
his devotion to the see of Rome and his failure 
to recognize modern tendencies destroyed all 
chance of his succession. 

Chameleon, ka me'le un, a genus of lizards, 
native of parts of Asia, Africa and the south of 
Europe. The best-known species has a naked 
body six or seven inches long, and feet and tail all 
•uitable for grasping branches. The skin is 
cold to the touch and contains small grains which 
in the shade are of a bluish-gray color, but 
which in the light of the sun become a grayish- 
brown or tawny color. The chameleon possesses 
the curious power, however, of changing its 
color, either in accordance with its surroundings 
or with its temper, when disturbed. Its power 
of fasting and habit of inflating itself gave rise 
to the fable that it lived on air, but in reality it 
feeds upon insects, taking its prey by rapid 
movements of along, sticky tongue. In general 
habit chameleons are dull and sluggish. In the 
southern United States and the West Indies the 
chameleons, which there are often called scor¬ 
pions, are smaller than in Africa, and are usually 
a light emerald green above and white below. 
They are often kept as pets. 

Chaminade, shah me nahd ', Cecile Louise 
Stephanie (1861- ), a French composer 

and pianiste. At eight years of age she had 
composed sacred music of considerable merit, 
and after several years of study under eminent 
teachers she made a successful d£but in 1879. 
Thereafter she appeared frequently in concert, 
but devoted herself especially to composition, 
many of her works being excellent examples of the 
best modem music. Probably her best-known 
instrumental composition is the Scarf Dance, but 
37 


her fame chiefly rests upon her songs, whose 
quaint melodies and charming accompaniments 
have made them popular throughout the world. 
The most important are Berceuse, Rosantonde 
and The Silver Ring. 

Chamois, sham r my, a goat-like antelope, 
living in the high mountains of Europe and 
western Asia. It is a rather small animal, with 
a brownish coat that changes to faun color in 
summer and gray in the spring. Its head is of 
a pale yellow color, marked by a black band 
surrounding the eyes and extending from the nose 
to the ears. Its horns, 
which are about six or 
seven inches long, are 
round and almost smooth, 
and they grow straight 
upward until near the 
tip,' where they suddenly 
end in a sharp hook 
that is bent backward. 

The tail is black. Dur¬ 
ing the feeding time, 
which is in the morning, chamois 

one animal is always 

standing on guard in some prominent place, for 
the purpose of warning the rest of approaching 
danger. The great agility of the chamois, the 
roughness of the mountains which it inhabits, 
and its powers of smell, make its pursuit both 
difficult and dangerous. Though the flesh is 
highly prized as food, the chief value of a 
chamois lies in its skin, which is used to make 
the very soft;, flexible leather known as “shammy 
skin.” 

Chamomile or Camomile, kam'o mile, a well- 
known plant belonging to the natural order 
Compositae. It is perennial and has slender, 
trailing, hairy, branched stems. The flower is 
white, with a yellow center. Both leaves and 
flowers are bitter and aromatic. The fragrance 
is due to the presence of an oil, of a light blue 
color when first extracted. Both the leaves and 
the flowers are employed in fomentations and 
poultices, and also in the form of an infusion. 
It is cultivated in gardens in the United States 
and is also found wild, especially in the form of 
the common troublesome mayweed. 

Chamonix, shah mo ne or Chamouni, shah- 
moo ne', a valley in France, in the department of 
Haute-Savoie, in the Pennine Alps, 3000 feet 
above sea level. The mountains on the east side 
are always snow-clad, and from these proceed 
numerous glaciers, such as the Glacier des Bos- 
sons and the Mer de Glace. The village of 




Champagne 


ChancellorsviUe 


Chamouni is much frequented by tourists, and 
is one of the points from which they visit Mont 
Blanc. 

Champagne, sham pane', a French wine, 
white or red, which is made chiefly in the Depart¬ 
ment of Marne, in the former province Cham¬ 
pagne, and is generally characterized by its 
property of frothing, or effervescing, when 
poured from the bottle, though there are also 
still Champagne wines. The creaming or 
slightly sparkling Champagne wines are more 
highly valued and.fetch greater prices than the 
full-frothing wines, in which the small quantity 
of alcohol they contain escapes from the froth as it 
rises to the surface, carrying with it the aroma 
and leaving the liquor nearly tasteless. The 
property of creaming, or frothing, possessed by 
these wines is due to the fact that they are partly 
fermented in the bottle, carbonic acid being 
thereby produced. Wine of a similar kind can 
of course be made elsewhere, and some of the 
German champagnes are hardly to be distin¬ 
guished from the French. Much artificial or 
imitation champagne is sold, and an excellent 
wine of similar nature is made in California. See 
Wine. 

Champaign, sham pans', III., a city of 
Champaign co., 128 mi. s. by w. of Chicago, on 
the Illinois Central, Big Four and Wabash rail¬ 
roads. It is the twin town of Urbana. It is 
located in an agricultural and mineral region 
and has railroad shops and foundries. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 12,421. 

Champ de Mars, shoN de mahrs' (Field of 
Mars), an extensive piece of ground in Paris, 
used as a place of military exercise. This was 
the place where Louis XVI swore to defend the 
new constitution in 1790, and it was the site of 
the exhibitions of 1867, 1878 and 1889. 

Champlain, sham plans'. Lake, a lake lying 
between New York and Vermont, but having its 
northern end in Canada. It is 125 miles long 
and from one-half to 15 miles wide. It is 
connected by canal with the Hudson River and 
has for its outlet the Richelieu, or Sorel, River, 
flowing north to the Saint Lawrence. Numerous 
small streams flow into the lake, and it contains 
a number of islands. The scenery is beautiful 
and attracts many visitors. 

Champlain, Samuel (1567-1635), a French 
explorer, born at Bronage. His exploits in the 
maritime war against Spain in 1595 attracted 
the attention of Henry IV, who commissioned 
him in 1603 to found settlements in North 
America. After three voyages for that purpose, 


in the last of which he founded Quebec (1607), 
he was in 1620 appointed governor of Canada. 
During the following years he conducted affairs 
with ability, doing much to extend French 
influence and civilization throughout America. 
His alliance with the Algonquin against the 
Iroquois was a determining influence in Ameri¬ 
can history. 

Champollion, shahN po lyoN', Jean Fran¬ 
cois (1790-1832), a French scientist. He went 
to Paris, where, with the aid of the Rosetta Stone 
and the suggestions thrown out by Dr. Thomas 
Young, he discovered the key to the hiero¬ 
glyphics of the Egyptians. In 1826 Charles X 
appointed him to superintend the department of 
Egyptian antiquities in the Louvre, and he went 
as director of a scientific expedition to Egypt. 
On his return the chair of Egyptian archaeology 
was founded for him at the College of France. 

Champs Elysees, shahN'za le za', a famous 
promenade of Paris, extending from the Place de 
la Concorde to the Place de l’Etoile, about 1J 
miles. In 1616 it was laid out by Marie de’ Medi- 
cis. The avenue is lined with beautiful trees 
and buildings. See Paris, subhead Streets, 
Parks and Boulevards. 

Chancel; chan'sel, a term almost synonymous 
with choir and designating the end of the church 
opposite the entrance, properly containing the 
choir and the sanctuary, the latter term being used 
to denote the place where the altar or co mm union 
table was placed. It was occupied by the clergy 
and the singers and was divided from the rest 
of the church by a screen or rail, which in the 
English, medieval, Russian and Greek churches 
entirely shut it off from the spectators. In the 
Gothic churches the chancel corresponded to 
the apse of the ancient basilicas. See Apse; 
Basilica. 

Chan'cellorsville, Battle of, a famous 
battle of the Civil "War, fought May 1 to 4,1863, 
between a Federal army of 100,000, under 
General Joseph Hooker, and a Confederate 
force of 90,000, under General Lee. The latter 
were entrenched on the west side of the Rappa¬ 
hannock River. Hooker planned to attack this 
position on both flanks and dispatched Sedgwick 
to turn the enemy’s right wing, while he himself 
with another force crossed the river and prepared 
to attack the left end of the line. The movement 
was at first successful, and Hooker had occupied 
ChancellorsviUe with 45,000 troops before Lee 
discovered the movement. The latter immedi¬ 
ately began an attack, however, and on May 2 
“Stonewall” Jackson, with 20,000 Confederates, 


Chancery 


Chanute 


completely destroyed a Federal corps under 
General Howard. In this engagement “Stone¬ 
wall” Jackson was fired upon by mistake by 
his own troops and was mortally wounded. On 
the following day the Confederate assault was 
even more successful, the Federals being com¬ 
pletely demoralized and compelled to retreat. 

Chancery, chan'sur y. See Courts; Equity. 

Chand'ler, William Eaton (1835- ), an 

American statesman, born in Concord, N. H. 
He graduated at Harvard law school in 1855, 
and in 1862 he was elected to the state legislature, 
becoming speaker. From 1865 to 1869 he served 
as assistant secretary of the treasury, and from 
1882 to 1885 as secretary of the navy. In 1887 
he was elected to fill a vacancy in the United 
States Senate, and was reelected until 1901. In 
that year he was appointed president of the 
Spanish Treaty Claims Commission. 

Chandler, Zachariah (1813-1879), an Amer¬ 
ican satesman and merchant, born at Bedford, 
N. H. He removed to Detroit in 1833, became 
a prominent Whig and in 1851 was elected 
mayor of the city. He assisted in organizing 
the Republican party and in 1857 was elected 
United States senator, being reelected in 1863 
and 1869. In 1874 he was made secretary of 
the interior by Grant, which post he held until 
March 1, 1877. In 1876 he was chairman of 
the Republican national committee and was 
reelected to the Senate in February, 1879. 
There he gained notoriety by an immoderate 
attack upon Jefferson Davis. 

Chang- Chow', a walled city of China, in the 
province of Fu-kien, 24 m. w. by n. of Amoy, 
which is its port. It stands in a valley sur¬ 
rounded by hills and intersected by a river. 
The streets are broad, paved with granite in the 
business section and lined with good modern 
buildings. The most interesting building is a 
Buddhist temple, built in the eighth century. 
The important industries are the manufacture of 
silk goods, sugar and bricks. The city has an 
extensive trade in tea and sugar. Population, 
estimated from 800,000 to 1,000,000. 

Chan'nel Islands, a group of islands in the 
English Channel, off the west coast of Depart¬ 
ment La Manche, in France, consisting of 
Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney and Sark, with 
some dependent islets. Their combined area is 
75 square miles. They have a mild climate 
and a fertile soi> which yields early vegetables 
and fruits for the London market; and each 
large island has a breed of noted cattle used 
for dairy purposes. Granite from Jersey and 


Guernsey is exported for building purposes. 
These islands belong to Great Britain, and on 
account of their strategic importance they have 
been strongly fortified. They are the only 
remains of the Norman provinces once subject 
to England. Population in 1911, 96,900. 

Channing, charging, William Ellery (1780- 
1842), a famous American preacher and writer, 
born at Newport, Rhode Island. He studied 
at Harvard College, became a decided Unitarian 
and taught Unitarian doctrines with great zeal 
and success. His first appointment as a pastor 
was in 1803, when he obtained the charge of a 
congregation in Boston. He soon became known 
as one of the most popular preachers of America. 
His reputation was still further increased by the 
publication of writings, chiefly sermons and 
reviews on popular subjects. Coleridge said 
of him, “He has the love of wisdom and the 
wisdom of love.” 

Chantilly, shahN te ye*, a town in France, 
Department of the Oise, 25 mi. n. n. e. of Paris. 
It is celebrated for a variety of lace made here and 
in the neighborhood; for the splendid chateau, 
built by the great Conde, but destroyed by the 
mob during the Revolution, and also for another 
palace built by the due d’ Aumale after the 
estate came into his possession in 1850, which, 
along with the fine domain, was presented by 
the duke to the French Institute in 1887. It 
is also noted for the horse races held there. 
Population in 1911, about 5,000. 

Chan'trey, Sir Francis (1781-1841), a noted 
English sculptor, born near Sheffield, the son 
of a well-to-do carpenter. In 1802 he com¬ 
menced work for himself at Sheffield, by making 
portraits in crayons. After studying at the 
Royal Academy, he eventually settled in London, 
where he presented numerous busts at the 
exhibitions of the Royal Academy. Among his 
celebrated works are the Sleeping Children, in 
Lichfield cathedral; the bronze statue of Wil¬ 
liam Pitt, in Hanover Square, London; one cf 
George III, and one of Washington, in the 
state house, Boston. His full-length figures 
betray an insufficient acquaintance with anatomy, 
and several of his equestrian statues are still 
more defective. 

Chanute, chanoot*, Kans., a city in Neosho 
co., 125 mi. s.w. of Kansas City on the Atchison, 
Topeka & Santa Fe and the Missouri, Kansas 
& Texas railroads. It is in an oil and natural 
gas region and is growing very rapidly, having 
more than doubled in population in less than 
four years. Here are railroad shops and a 


Chapala 

number of other manufactures. The place was 
settled in 1872 and was incorporated in the 
next year. Population in 1900, 4208, and in 
1910, 9272. 

Chapala, chah pah'la, a picturesque lake of 
Mexico, situated in the states of Xalisco and 
Michoacan, 200 mi. n. w. of the City of Mexico. 
It has an area of 1400 square miles and is the 
largest lake in Mexico. 

Chapleau, sha plo', Sir Joseph Adolphe 
(1840-1898), a Canadian statesman, born in 
Quebec. He was chosen to the provincial 
legislature and in 1873 became solicitor general 
of the province. He rose rapidly, becoming 
successively provincial secretary, premier of 
Quebec, minister of agriculture and, finally, in 
1882, secretary of state for Canada. Later he 
was appointed lieutenant governor of Quebec. 
He was a strong conservative and was consid¬ 
ered the leading French-Canadian orator of the 
time. 

Chap'man, George (1557-1634), an English 
poet, the earliest and perhaps the best trans¬ 
lator of Homer. The Iliad was published in 
installments from 1598 to 1611; the Odyssey 
appeared in 1614-1615. These translations 
have been highly commended by such poets as 
Pope, Keats and Coleridge, and by Lamb, but 
they have also been criticised somewhat on the 
score of inaccuracy. Keats’s sonnet, On First 
Looking into Chapman's Homer, is well known. 

Chapul'tepec, Battle of, a battle of the 
Mexican War, fought September 12 to 14, 1847, 
between 7000 Americans, under General Scott, 
and a Mexican force of 25,000, under General 
Santa Anna. The Americans under Pillow 
made a vigorous attack upon the castle, which 
was captured after a brief but stubborn fight, 
together with a force of nearly 1000 Mexicans. 
General Worth a little later captured the main 
fortress of the city, but the battle raged in the 
streets for many hours, the Mexicans finally 
withdrawing. 

Charade, sha rads', a kind of riddle, the 
subject of which is a word composed of several 
' syllables, each of which can be taken as a 
separate word. Each syllable, considered as a 
separate word, is either described or dramat¬ 
ically represented, and finally the whole word is 
given a sort of enigmatic definition. The fol¬ 
lowing is an example: “Some one threw my first 
and second at me, and it hit my third. It did 
not hurt me, for it was only a branch of my 
whole.” Answer, Mistletoe. When dramatic 
representation is used to indicate the meaning 


Charente 

of the syllables and the whole word, it is called 
an acting charade. 

Char'coal, a variety of coal obtained by 
burning wood and bones with a limited supply 
of air. Lampblack and coke are also varieties 
of charcoal. Wood charcoal is prepared by 
piling billets of wood in a pyramid form and 
causing them to burn slowly under a covering 
of earth, or in a closed kiln. In consequence 
of the heat, part of the combustible substance is 
consumed, part is volatilized, together with a 
portion of water, and there remains behind the 
carbon of the wood, retaining the form of the 
tissue. Wood charcoal, well prepared, is of a 
deep black color, brittle and porous, tasteless 
and inodorous. It is infusible in any heat a 
furnace can raise; but by the intense heat of a 
powerful galvanic apparatus it is hardened and 
at length is volatilized, presenting a surface 
with a distinct appearance of having undergone 
fusion. Charcoal is insoluble in water and is 
not affected by it at low temperatures; hence, 
wooden stakes which are to be immersed in 
water are often charred to preserve them, and 
the ends of posts stuck in the ground are also 
thus treated. Owing to its peculiarly porous 
texture, charcoal possesses the property of 
absorbing a large quantity of air or other gases 
at common temperatures and of yielding the 
greater part of them when heated. Charcoal 
likewise absorbs the odoriferous and coloring 
principles of most animal and vegetable sub¬ 
stances, and hence it is a valuable deodorizer 
and disinfectant. It is used as fuel in various 
arts, where a strong heat is required without 
smoke, and in various metallurgic operations, 
especially in the manufacture of blister steel 
(See Steel). It is used in the manufacture of 
gunpowder. In the form of ivory black and 
lampblack, it is the basis of black paint; and 
mixed with fat oils and resinous matter, to give 
a due consistency, it forms printing ink. See 
Boneblack; Lampblack. 

Charcot, shahr ko', Jean Martin (1825- 
1893), a French physician, celebrated for his 
work upon diseases of the nervous system. He 
embodied the results of his discoveries in many 
important publications on nervous diseases and 
their treatment, and established the use of 
hypnotic suggestion in the treatment of hysteria 
and other nervous diseases. See Hypnotism. 

Charente, sha rahNt', a river in western 
France, rising in the Department of Haute- 
Vienne and, after a course of more than 200 
miles, falling into the Bay of Biscay, about 8 


Charing Cross 

miles below Rochefort, opposite the isle of 
Oleron. 

Charing, chaining, Cross, a district of Lon¬ 
don, so named from a cross which stood, until 
1647, at the village of Charing, in memory of 
Eleanor, wife of Edward I. It is now a trian¬ 
gular piece of roadway at Trafalgar Square 
and is occupied by an equestrian statue of 
Charles I. 

Char'iot, an ancient two-wheeled .vehicle 
used in war or in processions of state. The 
common form of the ancient chariot was that 
of a vehicle on low wheels, open behind and at 
the top, the sides and front being about four 
feet in height. Chariots were used by the 
Egyptians, Assyrians, Greeks and Romans. 
They were strongly and often elegantly built, 
but were not well suited to speed. Among the 
ancient nations chariots were of great impor¬ 
tance in war. There are a number of sculptures 
which give a clear idea of the Assyrian chariots. 
These resemble the Egyptian in all essential 
features, containing almost invariably three 
men—the warrior, the shield-bearer and the 
charioteer. A peculiarity of both is the quiver 
or quivers full of arrows, attached to the side. 
From the front of the chariot a singular orna¬ 
mental appendage stretches forward. War 
chariots had sometimes scythe-like weapons 
attached to each extremity of the axle, as among 
the ancient Persians and Britons. Among the 
Greeks and Romans chariot races were common. 

Charity, Sisters of (also known as Sisters 
of Mercy), the name given to a number of 
orders of women in the Roman Catholic Church. 
The first organization was established in France 
by Saint Vincent de Paul in 1629. The order 
was approved by the pope, and it spread rapidly. 
The members are forbidden to marry, and they 
devote their lives to the care of the sick and the 
destitute and to the protection of homeless chil¬ 
dren and the aged. The order has spread 
wherever the Catholic Church is found, and is 
one of the strongest, most widely known and 
generally appreciated organizations within that 
Church. Because of their self-sacrificing lives 
and their systematic devotion to assisting the 
needy, these orders have been spared perse¬ 
cution many times during religious conflicts, 
and they have been saved by opposing forces 
when cities in which they were established were 
besieged and nearly destroyed. There are a 
number of orders in America which are 
popularly known as Sisters of Charity. One 
of these was founded in Maryland in 1809, 


Charlemagne 

under a distinct rule, and has a number of 
houses in the United States. 

Charlemagne, shahfle mane, or Charles 
the Great (742-814), king of the Franks and 
first of the Holy Roman emperors, the son of 
Pippin the Short and the grandson of Charles 
Martel. With his brother Carloman he suc¬ 
ceeded his father, and on the death of Carloman 
the free vote of the Franks made Charlemagne 
sole king. His reign of forty-six years was filled 
with wars and conquests, as during that time he 
undertook fifty-two campaigns, the chief of 
which were against the Lombards, the Saracens 
and the Saxons. When Desiderius, king of the 
Lombards, sought to obtain the succession for 
the children of Carloman, Charlemagne marched 
against him, seized all his possessions and placed 
on his own head the famous “Iron Crown of 
Lombardy” (774). Before leaving Italy he 
visited Rome and confirmed the donation made 
by his father to the pope, of certain portions of 
Lombardy. This was the beginning of the 
papal claims to temporal supremacy. In 777 
Charlemagne made an expedition against the 
Saracens in Spain. He was victorious, but on 
the return march across the Pyrenees, the rear 
of his army was attacked by the Gascons and 
Basques, wild mountaineers of that region, and 
cut to pieces in the famous Pass of Roncesvalles. 

Charlemagne’s most frequent and important 
campaigns were against the Saxons, one of the 
few pagan German tribes at this time. He 
was determined to establish Christianity among 
them at any cost, but for more than thirty years 
they resisted him. During this struggle, after 
one of the innumerable revolts, Charlemagne 
had forty-five hundred Saxon prisoners put to 
death at one time. The Saxons at last yielded, 
and most of the leaders were baptized. 

In the year 800 Charlemagne was called to 
Rome by Pope Leo III to aid him against a 
hostile faction. The king speedily punished 
the pope’s enemies, and before leaving Rome 
was rewarded for his services. During the fes¬ 
tivities in the Cathedral of Saint Peter on Christ¬ 
mas Day, Pope Leo approached the kneeling 
king, placed on his head a crown of gold and 
proclaimed him emperor of the Romans, the 
consecrated successor of Caesar Augustus and 
Constantine. 

Charlemagne is famed as a statesman and a 
patron of learning. Under his rule commerce 
was protected, and robbers who* preyed upon 
traveling merchants were severely dealt with; 
agriculture was encouraged and improvements 


Charleroi 


Charles 


were taught to the farmers, the emperor’s own 
estates being a praiseworthy model. Charle¬ 
magne formed at his court a school for the 
nobles and their sons, and he himself learned to 
read Latin and even Greek, although he could 
not write legibly. He was married four times, 
and left one son, who became Louis I, surnamed 
The Pious. Charlemagne’s empire, at his 
death, extended from the Baltic to the Mediter¬ 
ranean, from the Atlantic Ocean to the Danube, 
thus including modern France, Germany, Hol¬ 
land, Belgium, Switzerland, Hungary, a little 
of Spain and most of Italy. His capital was at 
Aix-la-Chapelle. After his death it was harassed 
by the Northmen and by internal dissension, 
until finally, by the Treaty of Verdun in 843, 
it was divided among his three grandsons, 
Charles, Lothair and Louis, the divisions made 
laying the foundations, subject to some terri¬ 
torial changes, of the modern nations, France, 
Italy and Germany, respectively. 

Charleroi, shakr le roi Pa., a borough in 
Washington co., 40 mi. s. of Pittsburg, on the 
Monongahela River and on the Pennsylvania - 
railroad. It has extensive glass works and 
shovel factories. The place was settled in 1890 
and was incorporated in the next year. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 9615. 

Charles, the name of many European mon- 
archs. Among them may be mentioned kings 
of France, Charles I, the Bald (823-877), 
Charles II, the Fat (839-888), Charles III, the 
Simple (879-929), Charles IV, the Fair (1294- 
1328), Charles V, the Wise (1337-1380) (See 
also Charles VI; Charles VII; Charles 
VIII; Charles IX; Charles X; of France); 
Holy Roman emperors, Charles IV (1316-1378) 
and Charles VII (1697-1745) (See also Charles 
V; Charles VI; Holy Roman emperors); 
Charles II, the Bad (1332-1387), king of 
Navarre; kings of Spain, Charles II (1661- 
1700), Charles III (1716-1788), and Charles IV 
(1748-1819); kings of Sweden, Charles IX 
(1550-1611), Charles X, Gustavus (1622-1660), 
Charles XI (1655-1697), Charles XIII (1748- 
1818) and Charles V (1826-1872) (See also 
Charles XII; Charles XIV John; kings of 
Sweden); and kings of England (See Charles I; 
Charles II; of England). See also Charle¬ 
magne. 

Charles I (1600-1649), king of Great Britain 
and Ireland, son of James I. He married 
Henrietta Maria, daughter of Henry IV of 
France, and in 1625 succeeded to the throne. 
After dissolving three Parliaments, because they 


would not grant him money unconditionally, he 
concluded to reign alone. This he did for eleven 
years, using the arbitrary courts of High Com¬ 
mission and Star Chamber as a kind of cover 
for pure absolutism, and raising money by 
unconstitutional or doubtful means. His 
attempts to introduce an Anglican liturgy into 
Scotland produced violent tumults, and gave 
origin to the famous Covenant in 1638, to oppose 
the king’s design. An English army was sent 
north, but was defeated by the army of the 
Covenanters, and in 1640, to secure funds to 
put down the Scottish insurrection, Charles was 
compelled to summon Parliament. The body 
which assembled at that time became the famous 
Long Parliament. Charles agreed no better 
with this assembly than he had with the earlier 
Parliaments, and matters soon came to open 
rupture. The king had on his side the great 
bulk of the gentry, while nearly all the Puritans 
and the inhabitants of the great trading towns 
sided with the Parliament. The first action, 
the Battle of Edgehill, gave the king a slight 
advantage; but nothing very decisive happened 
till the Battle of Marston Moor, in 1644, when 
Cromwell routed the royalists. The loss of the 
Battle of Naseby, the year following, completed 
the ruin of the king’s cause. Charles at length 
gave himself up to the Scottish army at Newark, 
in 1646, and by them he was handed over to the 
English Parliament. His death was at length 
demanded by the army, he was brought to trial, 
condemned and beheaded, meeting his fate w r ith 
great dignity and composure. 

Charles II (1630-1685), king of Great 
Britain and Ireland, son of Charles I and 
Henrietta Maria of France. After his father’s 
defeat in the Civil War Charles left England 
for France, and on his father’s death he took 
the title of king of England. In 1651 he 
accepted an invitation from the Scots, who had 
proclaimed him their king, and passing over to 
Scotland, was crowned at Scone. Cromwell's 
approach made him take refuge among the 
English royalists, who, having gathered an 
army, encountered Cromwell at Worcester and 
were totally defeated. Charles escaped to 
France. On the death of Cromwell, the Resto¬ 
ration, effected without a struggle by General 
Monk, set Charles on the throne, and his entry 
into the capital (May 29, 1660) was greeted 
with universal acclamations. His Parliament 
soon allowed to him all the prerogatives w r hich 
an earlier Parliament had fought to prevent 
Charles I from assuming, and he resorted to 


Charles 


Charles 


various illegal measures for obtaining money to 
support his extravagant court. Charles and the 
court by which he was surrounded displayed 
the most disgraceful licentiousness. 

Charles VI (1368-1422), king of France, son 
of Charles V, whom he succeeded in 1380. His 
four uncles, who ruled during his minority, 
were in constant conflict, and the result was 
that when Charles took the power in his own 
hands he found the country in a most disturbed 
condition. For several years he ruled wisely, 
but he became insane in 1392, and his great 
vassals at once recommenced their conflicts. 
Henry V of England, taking advantage of the 
disturbed condition of France, invaded the 
country and won several important victories, 
by means of which he compelled Charles VI 
to acknowledge him as his successor on the 
throne of France. 

Charles VII (1403-1461), king of France, 
son of Charles VI, whom he succeeded in 1422. 
The crown of France at his accession was claimed 
by the English for their king, Henry VI, in 
accordance with a treaty wrung from Charles VI, 
and the English had possessed themselves of 
the greater part of France. Charles seemed 
utterly incapable of asserting his rights, and it 
was not until the appearance of Joan of Arc 
in the French army that things began to look 
favorable for the French. In 1429 Charles 
was crowned king, and gradually the English 
were driven from France. Charles was a weak 
ruler, but the country was fairly prosperous 
during his reign. 

Charles VIII (1470-1498), king of France, 
son of Louis XI, whom he succeeded in 1493. 
When Charles assumed the rule, he found 
France in a prosperous condition, owing to the 
wise regency of his sister, and Charles himself 
proved a good king. His reign is memorable 
chiefly because during it was begun the inter¬ 
ference of France in Italy, which played so 
large a part in the history of both countries 
during the centuries which followed. Charles 
won some initial successes in Italy, but was at 
length forced to withdraw from the country. 

Charles IX (1550-1574), king of France, 
son of Henry II. He came to the throne on the 
death of his brother, Francis II, in 1560. Even 
after he was declared of age, his mother, Catha¬ 
rine de’ Medici, who had been regent during 
his minority, held the chief power, and his rule 
was from the beginning much disturbed by the 
conflict between the Catholics and Protestants. 
These conflicts terminated in the massacre of 


Saint Bartholomew’s Day (1572), to which 
Charles, through the influence of his mother, 
had been obliged to give his consent. His 
remorse over this massacre was extreme. 

Charles X (1759-1836), king of France, 
grandson of Louis XV. When the Revolution 
broke out in 1789, he left France and remained 
in exile until the restoration of the Bourbons. 
During the reign of his brother, Louis XVIII, 
he systematically opposed all liberal measures, 
and after his own accession to the crown in 1824 
he adopted the most reactionary policy. Public 
dissatisfaction was so great that in July, 1830, 
Charles was forced to abdicate. This he did 
in favor of his grandson, the duke of Bordeaux, 
but Louis Philippe had already been chosen 
king, and Charles was forced to flee from France. 

Charles V (1500-1558), Holy Roman em¬ 
peror, and, as Charles I, king of Spain, the 
grandson of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain 
and of the Emperor Maximilian. He became 
possessed, on the death of his father, archduke 
of Austria, in 1506, of the Netherlands; became 
king of Spain on the death of Ferdinand in 1516, 
and three years later, when Maximilian died, 
was chosen as emperor over Francis I of France 
and Henry VIII of England. A contest with 
France immediately ensued, in which Charles 
was completely successful; he captured Francis at 
Pavia and forced from him a humiliating treaty. 
In 1527 Rome was captured by the imperial 
army, and the pope was taken prisoner, but 
Charles pretended to have been ignorant of the 
plans for this move. 

Had Charles been able, at the beginning of 
his reign, to have turned his attention to religious 
matters in Germany, he might have prevented 
the growth of Protestantism. When, however, 
he did take up the question, he found that the 
Protestants were so strong that he was obliged 
to grant them concessions. A war with the 
Turks, a conflict with pirates and a struggle 
with France took his attention until 1544, when 
he again turned his attention to religious mat¬ 
ters. Open war with the Protestants ensued, 
in which Charles was at first successful, but 
later defeats obliged him in 1552 to grant 
religious freedom to German Protestants. In 
1555 he abdicated, giving Spain with the Nether¬ 
lands to his son Philip, while his brother Ferdi¬ 
nand succeeded him as emperor. 

Charles VI (1685-1740), Holy Roman em¬ 
peror. When Charles II of Spain died childless, 
Charles claimed the throne as a rival to Philip 
of Anjou, who had been chosen by Charles II 


Charles 


Charleston 


as his successor. The result was the War of 
the Spanish Succession, in which Charles had the 
aid of Great Britain and Holland. On the 
death of his brother, however, he became 
emperor, and England and Holland refused 
to aid him further in his fight for the Spanish 
throne. A war with the Turks and a war with 
Spain, in which he engaged, both terminated 
successfully. The latter years of this reign were 
spent largely in an attempt to secure the con¬ 
sent of the European powers to a pragmatic 
sanction settling the succession on his daughter, 
Maria Theresa. 

Charles XII (1682-1718), king of Sweden. 
On the death of his father, Charles XI, in 1697, 
he was declared of age by the estates. To his 
jealous neighbors this seemed a favorable time 
to humble the pride of Sweden, and Frederick IV 
of Denmark, Augustus of Poland and Peter the 
Great of Russia concluded an alliance which 
resulted in war against Sweden. With the aid 
of an English and Dutch squadron the Danes 
were soon made to sign peace, but Augustus 
and the czar were still in the field. Charles 
won several victories which, considering his 
youth and inferior forces, were remarkable, 
but at length he was completely defeated at 
Pultowa (1709). He fled with a small guard 
and found refuge and an honorable reception 
at Bender, in the Turkish territory. Here he 
managed to persuade the Porte to declare war 
against Russia; but peace was soon procured, 
the interests of Charles were neglected, 
and he was forced by the Turkish government 
to leave. Arriving in his own country in 1714, 
he set about the measures necessary to defend 
his kingdom against the Danes and Prussians, 
and the fortunes of Sweden were beginning to 
assume a favorable aspect when he was slain 
by a cannon ball as he was besieging Frederiks- 
hald. 

Charles XIV John (1764-1844), king of 
Sweden and Norway, originally Jean Baptiste 
Jules Bernadotte, a French general, the son of 
a lawyer of Pau. He enlisted at seventeen, 
received successive promotions and became in 
1794 general of division. He distinguished 
himself greatly in the campaign in Germany and 
on the Rhine. In 1799 he became for a short 
time minister of war, and on the establishment 
of the Empire he was raised to the dignity of 
marshal of France, with the title of prince of 
Pontecorvo. On the death of the heir apparent 
to the Swedish crown the prince of Pontecorvo 
was chosen as crown prince, went to Sweden, 


abjured Catholicism and took the title of Prince 
Charles John. In the maintenance of the inter¬ 
ests of Sweden a serious rupture occurred 
between him and Bonaparte, followed by his 
accession in 1812 to the coalition of sovereigns 
against Napoleon. At the Battle of Leipzig 
he contributed effectually to the victory of the 
allies. At the close of the war strenuous attempts 
were made by the emperor of Austria and other 
sovereigns to restore the family of Gustavus IV 
to the throne; but Bernadotte, retaining his 
position as crown prince, became king of Sweden 
on the death of Charles XIII in 1818, under the 
title of Charles XIV. During his reign agri¬ 
culture and commerce made great advances. 

Charles I (1887- ), emperor of Austria, 

also known as Charles IV, king of Hungary. 
He succeeded his great-uncle Francis Joseph 
November 21, 1916. Before his ascension to 
the throne he was Archduke Karl Franz Joseph, 
and at the breaking out of the War of the 
Nations he was the nominal head of the Austrian 
army until Germany assumed command. 

Charles Edward, the young pretender. See 
Stuart, Charles Edward. 

Charles Martel' (about 688-741), ruler of 
the Franks, a son of Pippin Heristal. The king 
still held the appearance of power, but the real 
authority was in the hands of Charles. He 
rendered his rule famous by the great victory 
which he gained at Tours, in 732, over the 
Saracens, whom he thus prevented from ad¬ 
vancing their power in Europe. It was this 
victory which won for him the name of Martel, 
signifying hammer. 

Charles River, a river in Massachusetts, 
wliich flows into Boston harbor, dividing Boston 
from Charlestown. The chief towns on its banks 
are Waltham,Watertown,Cambridge and Boston. 

Charles the Bold, (1433-1477), duke of 
Burgundy, the last of the great French vassals 
who succeeded in opposing the power of the 
king. He was the greatest lord in the kingdom, 
ruling, besides Burgundy, Flanders and a large 
part of the Netherlands, and for years he suc¬ 
cessfully defied the authority of Louis XI, with f 
whom he was constantly at war. 

Charleston, chahrlz'ton, III., the county- 
seat of Coles co., 48 mi. w. of Terre Haute, on 
the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & Saint 
Louis and the Toledo, Saint Louis & Western 
railroads. The city is in a farming region and 
has manufactures of flour, woolen goods, stoves 
and other articles. The Eastern Illinois normal 
school is located here. Charleston was settled 


Charleston 

in 1830 and was incorporated in 1855. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 5884. 

Charleston, S. C., the county-seat of Charles¬ 
ton co., on a peninsula formed by the Ashley 
and Cooper rivers, 7 mi. from the ocean, 130 mi. 
s. e. of Columbia, on the Atlantic Coast Line and 
the Southern railroads. It is the largest city in 
the state and is of considerable historic and 
scenic interest. The educational institutions 
include the Charleston College, South Caro¬ 
lina Medical College, the South Carolina and the 
Porter Military academies and Avery Normal 
Institute. There are more than seventy churches, 
almost one-half of which are for colored people, 
and many charitable institutions. 

In the early days of the nineteenth century. 
Charleston was the chief cotton port in the 



United States, but the Civil War ruined most 
of the trade. The exports are chiefly cotton, 
naval stores and manufactured goods, while the 
imports are jute, tropical fruits and sulphur. 
There are various manufacturing establish¬ 
ments, including cotton factories, rice mills, 
sash and blind factories, foundries, breweries, 
flour mills and other works. The government 
navy yard established here cost between twelve 
and fifteen million dollars. In 1670 an English 
colony made a settlement on the west bank of 
the Ashley River, three miles from the present 
site, and called it Charles Town, in honor of 
Charles II of England. This was removed to 
the present location ten years later; the city 
was incorporated in 1783 and was the capital of 
the state until 1790. Charleston was the first 
Southern town to join the revolutionary move¬ 
ment, and in 1776 the South Carolina convention 
here adopted the first independent state con¬ 
stitution. During the Revolutionary War the 
city was several times attacked by the British. 


Charlottenburg 

It was here also that the Civil War was begun 
by the Confederate bombardment of Fort 
Sumter, April 12 and 13, 1861 (See Fort 
Sumter). During the war it withstood 
numerous attacks from the sea and was held by 
the Confederates until General Sherman took 
possession, February 18, 1865. On August 31, 
1886, one of the severest earthquakes in the 
history of the United States shook the city, 
destroying more than $8,000,000 worth of 
property, rendering seven-eighths of the houses 
unfit for habitation and killing many people. 
Population in 1910, 58,833, of whom about 
one-half are of negro descent. 

Charleston, W. Va., the capital of the state 
and the county-seat of Kanawha co., 130 mi. 
s. w. of Wheeling, at the confluence of the 
Kanawha and Elk rivers, and on the Chesapeake 
& Ohio, the Ohio Central and other railroads. 
The principal buildings are the capitol, the 
customhouse, the courthouse, an opera house 
and a hospital. There are regular lines of steam¬ 
boats on the river, and considerable shipments 
of coal, salt and lumber are made. There is a 
large supply of natural gas in the vicinity. The 
industrial establishments are shipyards, rail¬ 
road shops and manufactures of iron, engines, 
furniture, brick, lumber, woolens and other 
articles. Charleston grew up around a fort 
which was built in 1786. It was incorporated 
as a town in 1794 and as a city in 1870. It 
has been the capital of the state since 1870, 
except during the decade from 1875 to 1885. 
Population in 1910, 22,996. 

Charlotte, shah/lot, N. C., the county-seat 
of Mecklenburg co., 125 m. s. w. of Raleigh, on 
Sugar Creek and on the Seaboard Air Line and 
two branches of the Southern railroad. The 
city is in the coal-mining region, and it contains 
extensive manufactures of cotton, iron, mill 
supplies, clothing and other articles. The place 
was settled about 1750 and was made the 
county-seat in 1774. During the Revolution the 
town was occupied by Lord Cornwallis and was 
later the headquarters of General Gates. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 34,014. 

Charlottenburg, shahr lot'ten boorg, a town 
of Prussia, on the Spree, about 3 mi. from Berlin, 
of which it is a residential suburb. It was named 
from the castle erected for Queen Charlotte by 
Frederick I, in 1699. This building is one of 
historical interest, and in the garden is the royal 
tomb in which are the remains of Frederick 
William III, Queen Louisa, Emperor William I 
and Empress Augusta The famous royal 




Charlottesville 


Charter Oak 


porcelain factory, established in 1761, is located 
here. The suburb is an important educational 
center and contains among other institutions a 
technical academy, a royal institute of glass 
painting, an artillery and engineering school 
and a gymnasium. The industries include the 
manufacture of machines, glass, pottery, paper, 
leather and chemicals. Population in 1910, 
305,181. 

Charlottesville, shahr'lots vil, Va., the 
county-seat of Albemarle co., 96 mi. s. w. of 
Washington, on the Chesapeake & Ohio and 
the Southern railroads. The University of 
Virginia, Albemarle College and Rawlings Female 
Institute are located here, and Monticellc, 
the old home of Thomas Jefferson, is three miles 
east of the city. The place contains woolen, 
flour and planing mills. It has electric lights 
and street railways. Population in 1910, 
6765. 

Charlottetown, shah/lot town, the capital 
of Prince Edward’s Island, situated on Hills¬ 
borough Bay on the southern coast and on an 
excellent harbor. The important buildings are 
the government buildings, Dominion buildings, 
courthouse, athenaeum, city hall and Y. M. C. A. 
building. The public institutions include several 
hospitals, an asylum for the insane, a normal 
school, Prince of Wales College, Saint Dunstan’s 
College and a Methodist college, besides a 
number of churches. The leading industries 
include an iron froundry, railroad shops, carriage 
and wagon factories and woolen mills. The 
fisheries are also important. A considerable 
trade is carried on and steamer connection with 
the principal ports of Canada is maintained. A 
railway also extends east and west, connecting 
the principal points on the islands. Char¬ 
lottetown was settled by the French about 1750 
and w r as named Port La Joie. Population in 
1911 , 11,203. 

Charon, lca'ron, in Greek mythology, the 
son of Erebus and Night. It was his office to 
ferry the dead in his boat over the rivers of the 
infernal regions. He was represented as an 
old man of gloomy aspect, with matted beard 
and tattered garments. 

Chart, a hydrographical or marine map of 
some part of the earth’s surface, with the coasts, 
islands, rocks, banks, channels or entrances into 
harbors, rivers and bays, the points of compass, 
soundings, or depth of water, all carefully marked 
out to regulate the courses of ships in their 
voyages. Charts are usually more accurate than 
maps. A plane chart is one in which the meridians 


are supposed parallel to one another, the parallels 
of latitude at equal distances, and of course the 
degrees of latitude and longitude everywhere 
equal to one another. A great number of excellent 
charts are produced and sold at very low prices 
by the United States Coast Survey and the 
Hydrographic Office of the navy, the former 
confining its work to the coast of the United 
States (See Coast and Geodetic Survey, 
United States) . Similar charts are made by the 
Hydrographic Office of the British Admiralty. 

Char'ter, a written instrument, given as 
evidence of a grant, contract or other important 
transaction between man and man. Charters 
are granted by sovereigns to convey certain 
rights and privileges to their subjects, such as 
the Great Charter , granted by King John, 
and those granted by various sovereigns to 
boroughs and municipal bodies, to universities 
and colleges, or to colonies and foreign posses¬ 
sions. Somewhat similar to these are charters 
granted by the state to banks and other companies 
or associations. 

Charterhouse, a famous hospital and school 
in London. It was first a Carthusian mon¬ 
astery, founded in 1371. It came into the hands 
of Sir Thomas Sutton, who in 1611 converted 
it into an almshouse and a free school and richly 
endowed it. The almshouse offers an asylum 
to poor men, and the pensioners must be over 
fifty years of age, bachelors and members of the 
Church of England. The grammar school was 
originally limited to a membership of forty, but 
it has grown until at present it is among the first 
public schools in England. Among the famous 
men who were educated here are Addison. 
Steele, John Wesley, Grote and Thackeray. 

Charter Oak, a tree that formerly stood in 
Hartford, Conn., associated by tradition with an 
interesting episode in Connecticut history. In 
1687 Sir Edmond Andros, wdio had been ap¬ 
pointed governor general of New England, went 
to Hartford and demanded the delivery of the 
charter. The colonists appeared to submit, but 
at the time when the ceremony was to be carried 
out the lights in the council chamber were 
extinguished and the document was carried to 
a hiding place in the hollow of a tree. It 
remained there for two years, until the deposition 
of Andros. Early reports of this episode referred 
to the tree as an elm, and some declared that the 
instrument was hidden in the home of a prominent 
colonist; but about 1789 the belief became 
general that this oak had concealed the famous 
charter, and the tree was held in the greatest 


Chartism 

reverence until it was blown down in August, 
1856. 

Chart'ism, a name given to a movement in 
the interests of radical reform, which was at its 
height in England between 1838 and 1848. The 
Reform Bill of 1832, while it had mended matters 
somewhat, had still not silenced the discontent 
among the laboring classes, and by 1838 matters 
had come to such a point that a committee of 
six members of Parliament and six workingmen 
drew up a formal demand, known as the People’s 
Charter. The reforms demanded were six in 
number: (1) universal suffrage; (2) equal 
electoral districts; (3) vote by ballot; (4) annual 
Parliaments; (5) no property qualification for 
members of Parliament; (6) salaries for mem¬ 
bers of Parliament. Despite the fact that the 
agitation for these measures in some places 
grew violent, that monster petitions were pre¬ 
sented to Parliament and meetings held through¬ 
out the country for years, nothing definite was 
accomplished, and after 1848 the movement 
gradually died out, as reforms beneficial to 
workingmen were introduced. 

Chartres, shahr'tr’, a city of France, capital 
of the Department Eure-et-Loir, 49 mi. s. w. 
of Paris. The cathedral, one of the most 
magnificent in Europe, is rendered conspicuous 
by its two lofty spires. Chartres has manufactures 
of woolen hosiery, hats, earthenware and leather 
and is an important grain market. It is one of the 
most ancient cities of France. After its reunion 
with the crown, it was made a duchy by Francis I. 
Henry IV of England was crowned here in 1594. 
Population in 1911, 23,200. 

Charybdis, ka rib'dis, an eddy or whirlpool 
in the Straits of Messina, celebrated in ancient 
times, and regarded as especially dangerous to 
navigators, because in endeavoring to escape it 
they ran the risk of being wrecked upon Scylla, 
a rock opposite to it. 

Chase, Salmon Portland (1808-1873), an 
American statesman and jurist, born in New 
Hampshire. He graduated at Dartmouth Col¬ 
lege, taught school for a time, but having adopted 
the law as his profession, settled at Cincinnati 
and acquired a large practice there. He early 
showed himself an opponent of slavery and was 
active in the founding of the Free-Soil party. 
From 1849 to 1855 he was United States senator 
and vigorously opposed the extension of slavery 
into the new territories, being the leading oppo¬ 
nent of the Kansas-Nebraska Bill. In 1855 he 
was elected governor of Ohio and he was reelected 
in 1857. In 1860 he was an unsuccessful can- 


Chateaubriand 

didate for the presidency and became secretary 
of the treasury in Lincoln’s cabinet. In this 
post he was signally successful in providing 
funds for carrying on the Civil War, but he 
showed some opposition to Lincoln’s war policy 
and resigned in 1864. In the same year he was 
appointed chief justice of the Supreme Court, 
and in that capacity presided over the impeach¬ 
ment trial of President Johnson, winning high 
praise for his dignity and fairness. 

Chat, a popular name of a number of different 
small, lively birds of the warbler family. They 
move about incessantly and rapidly in the 
pursuit of the insects on which they live. In the 
United States the so-called yellow-breasted chat is 
a larger bird, olive-green above and white below, 
with a yellow breast. Its song is a mixture of 
various songs, usually uttered only during the 
mating season, when the males carry on the 
most extraordinary performances in the air. 

Chateaubriand, sha to'bre ahN', Francois 
Rene Auguste, Vicomte de (1768-1848), a 
celebrated French author and politician. At 
the outbreak of the Revolution in France he set 
out for America, with the original intention of 
accompanying an expedition in the search for 
the northwest passage to India. He went no 
farther than America, however, and the impres¬ 
sions he received of the country had a strong 
effect on some of his later writings. After taking 
part, on his return to France, in the attempts 
of the royalist emigrants to restore the old 
monarchy in France, he was obliged to flee to 
England. While there he published his Essay 
on Revolutions, which was not well received. At 
this time the death of his mother and the accounts 
of her last moments helped to effect a certain 
change in the religious opinions of Chateau¬ 
briand, and from a not very profound skeptic he 
became a not very profound believer. In 1800 
he returned to France, in the following year 
published his romance of Atala, the scene of 
which is laid in America, and the year after, his 
celebrated work, The Genius of Christianity. 
Style, power of description and eloquence are 
the merits of the book, rather than depth of 
thought; but it carried the author’s reputation 
far and wide and contributed much to the 
religious reaction of the time. 

For a short time Chateaubriand served in 
diplomatic positions under Napoleon, but later 
he turned against him and wrote Bonaparte and 
the Bourbons, which had a large part in the 
Bourbon restoration. After the restoration he 
held various diplomatic positions, but in his 


Chatham 


Chattanooga 


later years he took no part in public life, spending 
his time in literary pursuits. Among the works 
of this later period the most important is his 
autobiography. 

Chatham, chatfam, a town, naval arsenal and 
seaport in County Kent, England, on the Med¬ 
way, about 30 mi. e. s. e. of London. The 
importance of Chatham is due to the naval and 
military establishments at Brompton, in its 
immediate vicinity. The royal dockyard was 
founded by Queen Elizabeth previous to the 
sailing of the Armada. It has been greatly 
enlarged in recent years and is now about two 
miles in length, with capacious docks, in which 
the heaviest war ships can be equipped and sent 
directly to sea. Building slips, saw mills, metal 
mills, repair shops and all the requisites of a 
great naval station are here on the largest scale 
and in the finest order. The military estab¬ 
lishments include extensive barracks, arsenal 
and park of artillery, hospital, storehouses and 
magazines. Population in 1911, 41,000. 

Chatham, Ontario, a city of Canada, situated 
on the Thames River, 45 mi. n. e. of Detroit, 
Mich., on the Grand Trunk, Canadian Pacific 
and other railways. The leading industries 
include the manufacture of iron goods, wagons, 
soap, tobacco and woolens. The town is in the 
midst of a rich agricultural region, and it has an 
extensive trade in grain. It is the county seat 
of Kent County. Population in 1911, 10,770. 

Chatham, Earl of. See Pitt, William. 

Chattahoo'chee, a river rising in the Appa¬ 
lachian Mountains in Georgia, and forming for 
a considerable distance the boundary between 
Georgia and Alabama. In its lower course, 
after the junction of the Flint River, it is named 
the Appalachicola, and it is navigable to Colum¬ 
bus, Georgia, for steamboats. The length of 
this river is 500 miles. 

Chattanoo'ga, Tenn., the county-seat of 
Hamilton County., 150 mi. s. e. of Nashville, 
and about equally distant from Birmingham, 
Knoxville and Atlanta. The Tennessee River, 
the Southern, the Queen & Crescent, the Central 
of Georgia, the Nashville, Chattanooga & St. 
Louis and other railroads give it an outlet in all 
directions. Several large dams generate about 
150,000 horsepower and make electric power 
very cheap. There are extensive manufactures 
of iron, steel, flour, cotton goods, lumber and 
wood products (especially furniture), brick and 
tile, paints, agriculture implements, patent 
medicines and other articles. The city melts 
more pig iron than any other city in the South, 


and its total annual output of manufactures 
exceed $60,000,000. The University of Chatta¬ 
nooga, the Chattanooga College of Law and 
several good preparatory schools are located here. 
Among the important buildings are the $1,000,- 
000 railroad terminal, the federal building, 
the county courthouse, completed in 1913 at 
a cost of $500,000, the municipal building, 
the Erlanger Hospital, the Carnegie Library, 
several theaters, the Hotel Patten and large 
business and office buildings. Chattanooga was 
settled in 1836, and was first called “The 
Landing,” later changed to Ross’ Landing in 
honor of John Ross, a Cherokee chief. In 1839 
it was incorporated under the name of Chatta¬ 
nooga. During the Civil War the city was a 
strategic point of great importance and several 
important battles were fought here, the most 
important being the Battle of Chickamauga, 
the site of which is now occupied by the Chicka- 
mauga-Chattanooga National Park. In 1911 
Chattanooga adopted the commission form of 
government. Population in 1910, 44,604. 

Chattanooga, Battles of, three simultaneous 
battles in the Civil War, which together con¬ 
stitute one of the most important engagements 



BATTLES OF CHATTANOOGA 


in the struggle. They occurred near Chatta¬ 
nooga, Tenn., Nov. 23-25, 1863. The Federal 
army of 60,000 was under the supreme command 
of General Grant and faced a Confederate army 




Chattel 

of about 40,000, under General Braxton Bragg. 
The latter had defeated Rosecrans at Chicka- 
mauga and had taken up a position before 
Chattanooga, extending from Lookout Moun¬ 
tain along Missionary Ridge for a distance of 
about twelve miles. To Sherman, Grant 
assigned the task of attacking the extreme 
right of the Confederate line and advancing 
along Missionary Ridge toward the center of 
their position. General Thomas was to attack 
the enemy in the center and attempt to dis¬ 
lodge them. General Hooker was to attack the 
left of their position and drive them from Look¬ 
out Mountain. Sherman was at first successful, 
but was stopped by a strongly fortified gap in 
the mountain ridge. Thomas gained slight 
successes during the first day’s battle, while 
Hooker, in the famous “ Battle above the Clouds,” 
completely routed the enemy. On the following 
morning Thomas’s troops, ordered to make a 
general assault on the enemy’s works at the 
foot of Missionary Ridge, not only accomplished 
this after a stubborn contest, but pressed forward 
without orders, under the leadership of regi- 
.mental officers, climbed the hill in the face of 
almost irresistible fire and drove the Con¬ 
federates in confusion from the summit, ending 
the battle. 

Chat'tel, a term in law nearly synonymous 
with 'personal property (See Personal Prop¬ 
erty). Technically, it includes that part of 
personal property which can be physically 
delivered and possessed. This excludes so- 
called choses in action, which consist of merely 
legal rights to possess, as the right to recover the 
value of goods bought but not yet delivered. 
Chattels may be real or personal. A chattel 
real is any interest m land less than a freehold, 
for instance, a leasehold. All other chattels are 
chattels' personal. 

Chattel Mortgage. See Mortgage. 
Chat'terton, Thomas (1752-1770), a boy 
poet, one of the greatest prodigies in the history 
of English literature. He pretended to have 
gained possession of several old manuscripts, 
and the forgeries which he produced deceived 
some of the most eminent men of the day, among 
them Horace Walpole. These so-called “Row- 
ley Poems,” some of which possess rare beauty 
of imagination, are his chief claim to fame. 
The most remarkable are The Tragedy of 
Godwin , The Tournament, The Parliament of 
Sprites and The Tragedy of Aella. Chatterton’s 
poems were favorites of Coleridge, Keats, Ros¬ 
setti and William Morris. 


Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle 

Chaucer, chaw'sur, Geoffrey (1340?-1400), 
one of the greatest of English poets, known as 
the “Father of English Poetry.” Little is known 
of Chaucer’s boyhood or of his education. It is 
certain, however, that during the English invasion 
of France in 1359 and 1360 he was imprisoned, 
was finally ransomed by the king and was made 
a squire in the king’s service. Various missions 
on the continent were entrusted to him, in 1374 
he was made comptroller of customs for London 
and in 1386 he became a member of Parliament. 
He was, especially during the latter part of his 
life, very poor, and his poverty was relieved bj 
Henry IV only a year before Chaucer’s death. 
His connection with court matters and with 
business matters and his lasting place in literature 
show that he must have been a man of the great¬ 
est versatility; 

In the early part of his literary career Chaucer 
contented himself with translations from the 
French. He then came under the influence of 
Italian literature, and this influence shows 
plainly in such productions as Troylus and 
Cryseyde, The Legende of Good Women and The 
Parlement of Foules. In his third and greatest 
period he was thoroughly English in his theme 
and in his treatment of it. His masterpiece. 
The Canterbury Tales, was, indeed, in its form 
modeled somewhat after Boccaccio’s Decameron, 
in that it comprised the tales of a number of 
persons. Chaucer’s scene, however, is English, 
his personages are pilgrims who are journeying 
from the Tabard Inn to the tomb of Thomas 
a Becket, and the poem gives a marvelous picture 
of the life of the day in England. The pilgrims, 
who come from every rank of English society, 
are drawn with a masterly hand, so that even 
to-day we feel their individuality. 'The tales 
which were related on the journey were never 
completed, but those that have come down to 
us show that Chaucer was entitled to a rank 
among English poets below Shakespeare and 
Milton only. 

Chaudiere, sho dyaiP, a river of Canada, 
province of Quebec, which rises on the borders 
of Maine, near the sources of the Kennebec, 
and flows into the Saint Lawrence about 6 
miles above Quebec. It is 120 miles long. 
The banks are steep and rocky. Three miles 
above the river’s junction with the Saint Law¬ 
rence are Chaudifere Falls, about 120 feet high. 
Chauffeur, sho'fer. See Automobile. 
Chautau'qua Literary and Scientific 
Circle, an organization for the promotion of 
systematic home reading, founded at Chau- 


Cheboygan 


Checkers 


tauqua, N. Y., in 1878. This organization 
was the outgrowth of the Chautauqua Assembly, 
founded in 1874 by Reverend (later Bishop) 
John H. Vincent and Lewis Miller. The 
arrangement provides courses of reading in 
literature, history, various branches of science, 
art, economics and sociology. Most of the 
books are prepared by eminent scholars and 
are especially adapted to the work. Each 
course covers four years, and one completing 
the work is granted a certificate, but the circle 
does not confer degrees. The work is of a 
very general character, but it is planned to give 
the reader a college view of the subjects. Local 
circles are organized, and these meet at frequent 
intervals and have regular programs, which 
provide for the discussion of the work. Mem¬ 
bers write papers or contribute to the interest 
of the circle in other ways. The Chaidauquan, 
which is the official organ of the circle, 
contains supplementary matter which is de¬ 
signed to assist the members in their studies. 
During the first twenty years following its estab¬ 
lishment, 10,000 circles were organized, with 
over 250,000 members. Of these about 40,000 
completed the course. 

The Chautauqua system, which is the center 
of this movement, includes the school of English 
language and literature, the school of modern 
languages, the school of classical languages, the 
school of mathematics and science, the school of 
social sciences, the school of pedagogy, the 
school of religious teaching, the school of music, 
the school of fine arts, the school of expression, 
the school of physical education, the school of 
domestic science and the school of practical 
arts. The object of the movement was to pro¬ 
vide means whereby those engaged in various 
occupations could, by home study and the 
expenditure of a short time during the summer, 
acquire a working knowledge of the various 
branches of learning. The school holds a sum¬ 
mer session at Chautauqua, N. Y., each year. 
At this opportunities are given for study under 
instructors who are specialists in the various 
branches, or for the pursuit of the subjects in 
a more popular way by attending courses of 
lectures. Arrangement can also be made 
whereby students can pursue the work through 
the year by correspondence. 

Cheboygan, she boi'gan, Mich., the county- 
seat of Cheboygan co., 165 mi. n. w. of Bay 
City, on Lake Huron, at the outlet of the Che¬ 
boygan River, and on the Detroit & Mackinac 
and the Michigan Central railroads. The city 


has a good harbor and ships large quantities of 
lumber and agricultural produce. It contains 
extensive flour and lumber mills, shipyards and 
fisheries. The waterworks are owned by the 
city. It was settled in 1849 and was incor¬ 
porated in 1877. Population in 1910, 6859. 

Check, an order to a bank to pay a certain 
sum to a certain person, or to bearer, on presen¬ 
tation of the order. If the check is payable to 
the bearer, it is tra.isferable without endorse¬ 
ment and is payable to any one who presents it; 
if payable to order, to be transferred, it must be 
endorsed, that is, the person in whose favor it is 
drawn must write his name on the back of it. 
Checks are a very important species of mercan¬ 
tile currency wherever there is a well-organized 
system of banking. The regular use of them 
for all payments, except of small amount, makes 
the transfer of funds through banks a mere 
matter of bookkeeping and tends greatly to 
economize the use of the precious metals as a 
currency. Paid checks are returned at intervals 
to the drawer, and thus serve as receipts in the 
transactions which they represent. 

Check'ers, a very old game played with 
checkers or “men” on a board of sixty-four 



black and white squares. It was played in 
Europe in the sixteenth century, and in 1668 
a treatise on the game was published in Paris 
by Mallet. The Greeks and Romans had a 
similar game, and the Egyptians are represented 
on monuments as engaged in some such amuse¬ 
ment. The figure represents the board, num¬ 
bered in the usual method for registering games. 
Two players, each having a set of twelve men— 
one set white, the other black (or round and 
square, or distinguished in any other way)— 
sit opposite each other, having their men arranged 





















Cheese 

on squares 1 to 12 and 21 to 32, respectively. 
The men can be placed either on the black or 
white squares, but all must be placed on 
one color only. Whichever color is used, how¬ 
ever, the single corners 4 and 29 must be at the 
players’ left hand. The object of the game is to 
clear off the opponent’s men altogether from the 
board, or so to shut them up that they cannot 
be moved. Generally the black men play first, 
and as the men are changed each game, the 
first move becomes alternate. Each player 
alternately moves one man at a time diagonally 
forward, always keeping on the same colored 
squares. When an enemy’s man stands in the 
way, no move can be made unless there be a 
vacant square immediately beyond, into which 
the man can be lifted, in which case the man 
leaped over is “taken,” and removed from the 
board; and so on, till the game is lost and won, 
or drawn. When a man on either side has suc¬ 
ceeded in making his way to the opposite side 
of the board, he becomes crowned. This is 
done by putting another man on the top of 
him, and he can then move in any diagonal 
direction, but always only one square at a time, 
except in the taking of the opponent’s men. 

Cheese, cheez, an important dairy product, 
composed principally of the casein in milk. 
Cheese is made by curdling the milk with acid, 
sour milk or rennet, separating the whey from 
the curd, then grinding and salting the curd, 
packing it in molds and placing it under pres¬ 
sure to remove the remaining w T hey and water. 
In the United States nearly all cheese is made 
in factories. These sometimes use the milk from 
three hundred or more cows. Rennet is used for 
curdling, and the most of the cheese made is of 
the Cheddar variety. Cheese can be made from 
new milk, skim milk or milk from which only a 
portion of the cream has been removed. New 
York and Wisconsin are the leading cheese- 
producmg states. In other countries the milk 
of goats and sheep is used to some extent for 
making cheese. More than one hundred fifty 
varieties of cheese are made in America and 
Europe. A good quality of cheese is nutritious 
and forms a desirable article of food. The 
quality is improved by ripening, that is, by 
keeping the cheese for several months in a cool 
place. See Dairying; Milk. 

Cheese Fly, a small black insect which sinks 
its eggs deep in the cracks of cheese, ham and 
beef. The maggot, which is known as the 
cheese-hopper , has two horny, claw-shaped man¬ 
dibles with which it digs into the cheese and 


Chemistry 

moves about, as it has no legs. By bringing 
the two ends of its body together and separa ting 
them by a jerk, it can throw itself twenty or 
thirty times its own length. 

Chehalis, Wash., the county-seat and largest 
city of Lewis co., is situated on the Chehalis and 
Newaukum rivers, 94 mi. s. of Seattle, and on 
the Northern Pacific, the Union Pacific and 
Great Northern railroads. The chief manu¬ 
factures are lumber and lumber products in¬ 
cluding sash, doors, shingles and furniture. 
Other important manufactories are brick and 
tile works, a condensed milk factory, machine 
shops, granite works, cement works and cream¬ 
eries. Population in 1910, 4507. 

Chelsea, chel'se, a suburb of London, Eng¬ 
land, on the north bank of the Thames. It 
contains a royal military hospital, begun by 
James I as a theological college, but converted 
by Charles II into an asylum, for the 
reception of sick, maimed and superannuated 
soldiers; the Sloane Botanic Gardens; Saint 
Luke’s church of the fourteenth century, and 
the Royal Asylum for Soldiers’ Children. 
Chelsea was the home of Sir Thomas More, 
Walpole, Swift, Leigh Hunt, Carlyle and George 
Eliot. Population in 1911, 66,400. 

Chelsea, Mass., a city of Suffolk co., sep¬ 
arated from East Boston by Mystic River, on 
the Boston & Maine railroad. The principal 
industries are foundry and machine shop 
products, curried leather, cotton goods, tobacco, 
rubber, linseed oil, woolens and paper box 
manufactures. Chelsea contains a United States 
marine hospital, a powder magazine and a 
naval hospital. Population in 1910, 32,452. 

Cheltenham, chel't’n am, a fashionable 
watering place in England, in the County of 
Gloucester, within the shelter of the Cotswold 
Hills. It grew rapidly into a place of fashion¬ 
able resort after the discovery, in 1716, of 
its saline, sulphuric and chalybeate springs, to 
which, in 1788, George III paid a visit. It 
contains no factories and is an educational 
center. Population in 1911, 48,900. 

Chemistry, kem'istry, the science which 
treats of the different kinds of matter in the 
universe, their properties, laws of combination 
and relations to one another. 

History. As a science it is of modern origin, 
but at a very early date it existed as alchemy, 
the great object of which was the discovery of 
the philosopher’s stone (See Alchemy). Al¬ 
though much time was wasted in this vain pur¬ 
suit, some important discoveries were made, 


Chemistry 


Chemistry 


and many substances were prepared that were 
later of great use to chemists. Paracelsus did 
a great deal for modern pharmacy and medi¬ 
cine in the preparation of drugs. During the 
seventeenth century alchemy lost its hold on 
students, and new theories that paved the way 
for modern thoughts and beliefs were proposed 
by such men as Boyle, Becher, Stahl and others. 
Their ideas, though many of them wholly wrong, 
set men to thinking in the right direction. 
Black, Priestley, Scheele and Rutherford did 
important work in the study of gases and made 
valuable discoveries and separations. Lavoi¬ 
sier, in the latter part of the eighteenth century, 
was the first to use the balance and to determine 
substances quantitatively. He was followed by 
Sir Humphry Davy, Berzelius, Dumas and 
many modern chemists, all of whom perfected 
the science as known to-day. 

It was during the time of Lavoisier that the 
names element and compound were correctly 
applied to many substances (See Elements). 
An element is a substance which cannot be 
separated into two or more different substances. 
A compound is a substance composed of two or 
more elements. The force which holds together 
the elements in the form of compounds is called 
chemical affinity. It also acts to break up 
compounds under certain conditions to form 
new compounds (See Atomic Theory). 

Laws of Combination. (1) Chemical com¬ 
bination takes place between molecules (See 
Molecule) when they are very close together, 
as, for example, when in solution in the same 
liquid, or when melted together. (2) Chemical 
combination always effects a change in all 
oodies. There are changes of state, tempera¬ 
ture, color, volume, taste and smell. (3) Chem¬ 
ical combination takes place with different 
degrees of force in different bodies. (4) Chem¬ 
ical combination is much affected by such forces 
at heat, light, electricity and mechanical force, 
which may either hasten or retard chemical 
combination. (5) All substances, elementary 
and compound, combine together in fixed and 
definite proportions by weight. (6) When 
bodies combine in more than one proportion, 
their other qombining proportions are simple 
multiples of the lowest. Thus, 28 parts of 
nitrogen combine with 16 parts of oxygen to 
form nitrous oxide, while 28 parts of the former 
and 32 of the oxygen produce nitric oxide, and 
an additional 16 of oxygen form nitrogen 
trioxide. (7) Gases combine in fixed and 
definite proportions by volume as well as by 


weight. (8) The combining proportions of 
compounds are the sum of the combining pro¬ 
portions of their constituent elements. 

Nomenclature. The names that have been 
given to the different elements sometimes owe 
their origin to mythology, or to some property 
they possess. No one system has been used. 
In modern times it is the custom to give metals 
a name ending in um, as radium, potassium. 
In choosing names for compounds, the aim 
has been to express the composition as far 
as possible. Thus: Sodium chloride, a com¬ 
pound of sodium and chlorine. If more than 
one atom of chlorine, for example, is present in 
a compound, it is called a bichloride or tri¬ 
chloride, depending on the number of chlorine 
atoms. To denote a combination of an element 
with oxygen, the name oxide is used, as calcium 
oxide. In general, when there are two oxides 
of an element, the name of the element ends in 
ous when there is less oxygen; and ic when there 
is more oxygen. Thus, ferrous oxide and ferric 
oxide are used to express the oxides of iron 
having, respectively, less and more oxygen. 
This termination in ous and ic also applies to 
other compounds of elements, such as salts 
and acids. A salt derived from an ous acid 
has a name ending in ite; one from an ic acid, a 
name in ate ; thus, a salt from sulphurous 
acid is called a sulphite ; from sulphuric acid, a 
sulphate. 

Symbols. Each element in chemistry has a 
symbol to represent it. Usually it is the initial 
letter of the element, as O for oxygen and H 
for hydrogen. When two or more elements 
begin with the same letter, that letter with 
another prominent letter is used; thus, Cl 
for chlorine, and Pt for platinum. In some 
cases the old Latin name gives the symbol, as, 
Au for gold ( aurum ) and Fe for iron ( ferrum ). 
In writing a compound, the symbols are placed 
together; thus, NaCl for sodium (natrium) 
chloride. Each symbol so written indicates 
only one atom of that element. Where there 
are more than one atom present in a compound, 
the fact is expressed by a figure placed at the 
right of the symbol and below the line; thus, 
H 2 0, is the formula for water, which consists of 
two atoms of hydrogen and one atom of oxygen. 
To express a chemical reaction, the formulas 
or symbols are written in the form of an equa¬ 
tion; thus NaCl + AgN0 3 = AgCl + 
NaNOg, meaning that sodium chloride and 
silver nitrate react and form silver chloride and 
sodium nitrate. The formulas on the left mean 


Chemnitz 


Cherbuliez 


the substances that take part in the reaction; 
those on the right, the ones that result from the 
reaction. 

Branches of Chemistry. The science of 
chemistry is divided into various branches, the 
most general and important of which are these: 

Organic, that division which treats of the 
carbon compounds. In early times it was 
thought that every organic compound had a vital 
principle, as it was called; that is, that it was 
formed by, or existed in, living plants and ani¬ 
mals only. But when Wohler in 1828 produced 
an organic compound, called urea, from its 
elements, this idea began to lose its hold on 
chemists, and when later other organic com¬ 
pounds were produced artificially, the theory 
of vital principle was wholly given up. Since 
all organic compounds contain carbon, the term 
organic chemistry is now defined as the chemistry 
of the carbon compounds. 

Inorganic Chemistry, that division which 
treats of those compounds that are not united 
with carbon. The dividing line, however, is 
not very sharp; for example, carbon dioxide 
is usually regarded as an inorganic substance, 
and yet it is a carbon compound. 

Some other special divisions of chemistry are: 

Agricultural Chemistry, which deals with the 
problems of the farm and farm products. 

Electro-Chemistry, which treats of the use of 
electricity in chemical problems. 

Industrial Chemistry, which is the application 
of chemical ideas to manufacturing products. 

Physical Chemistry, which is that part of the 
science dealing with physics in its relation to 
chemistry. 

Thermo-Chemistry, which deals with heat 
changes taking place in chemical reactions. 

Chemnitz, kem’nits, the principal manu- 
facturffig town in the kingdom of Saxony, on 
the Chemnitz River, 38 mi. s. w. of Dresden. The 
principal manufactures are white and printed 
calicoes, ginghams, handkerchiefs, woolen and 
half-woolen goods. There are also extensive 
cotton-spinning mills, and mills for the spinning 
of combed wool and floss silk, dye works, print 
works, bleach works and chemical works. The 
manufacture of machinery also has now become 
important. Population in 1910, 287,807. 

Chenab, che nahb', a river in Hindustan, one 
of the five rivers of the Punjab. It rises in the 
Himalayan ranges of Kashmir and, entering the 
Punjab near Sialkot, flows in a southwesterly 
direction till it unites with the Jehlam. Its length 

is about 800 miles. 

38 


Chenille, she neeV, a sort of ornamental 
fabric, of cord-like form, made by weaving or 
twisting together warp threads with a transverse 
filling, or weft, the loose ends of which project 
all round in the form of a pile. Chenille carpets 
have a weft of chenille, the loose threads of which 
produce a fine velvety pile. 

Cheops, he'ops, the name given by Herodotus 
to the Egyptian despot whom the Egyptians 
themselves called Khufu. He lived at his 
capital, Memphis, about 2500 B. c. According 
to Herodotus he employed 100,000 men con¬ 
stantly for twenty years in building the Great 
Pyramid. See Pyramids. 

Cher, shair, a river of Central France, a 
tributary of the Loire, which it enters near 
Tours. Its length is about 200 miles. 

Cherbourg, sher boor ', a city and fortified 
seaport of France, at the mouth of the Divette 
River, on the English Channel, 82 mi. w. by n. 
of Havre. Among the chief buildings are the 
Church of Sainte Trinity and that of Saint 
Clement, the Hotel de Ville, the Marine Library, 
a museum and a theater. The importance of 
Cherbourg is due to its immense defensive and 
naval works. These engineering works are the 
most gigantic of their kind in ancient or modern 
times. The commercial and naval ports are 
separate. The commercial port consists of a 
harbor and a basin about 1300 feet long and 
1400 feet wide and is connected with the sea 
by a channel about 2000 feet long and 164 feet 
wide, lined with granite docks with parapets. 
The military port, which can accommodate 
40 vessels of war, has three basins, is entirely 
cut out of solid rock and has a length of about 
930 yards and a breadth of 437 yards. Cher¬ 
bourg is also celebrated for its great breakwater, 
or digue, stretching across the harbor, which is 
protected on three sides by land, but is open to 
the sea on the north. This was commenced in 
the reign of Louis XVI and was completed under 
Napoleon III. It is 2J miles from the harbor. 
At the meeting of the two branches of the break¬ 
water is a central fort or battery measuring 509 
feet. The town is also defended by a number of 
other batteries on the sea, besides two important 
forts on the land. Population in 1911, 43,731. 

Cherbuliez, sher bull lya', Charles Victor 
(1829-1899), a French author. He first won 
notice as an art critic, but he is chiefly known for 
his novels, among which the best are Ladislas 
Bolski, Miss Rovel, Meta Holdenis and Samuel 
Brohl & Co. In 1881 he was elected a member 
of the French Academy. 


Cherokee 

Cher'okee. This, the largest and most 
important of the indian tribes east of the Missis¬ 
sippi, was of Iroquoian descent, but separated 
into two great groups. The Upper Cherokee 
lived in log huts along the headwaters of the 
Tennessee and Cumberland rivers, where they 
cultivated com, beans and pumpkins in abun¬ 
dance. The Lower Cherokee were wanderers 
and existed principally by hunting. Through¬ 
out the Revolution they sided with the British, 
but after the establishment of the government 
they acknowledged the sovereignty of the United 
States. The Cherokee proved a teachable race, 
intermarried freely with Scotch refugees and 
became Christianized and educated. In 1837 
they organized the Cherokee nation. George 
Guess, or Sequoyah, invented an alphabet from 
which many books were printed in their lan¬ 
guage. One of the inexcusable cruelties of 
history was the treatment the Cherokee received 
from Georgia, who wanted their lands and who, 
by the aid of the United States troops, drove the 
indians out of the state. After a terrible march, 
the Cherokee finally settled in the Indian Terri¬ 
tory, where, under their famous chief, John 
Ross, they again set up their government at 
Talequah. The Civil War again brought them 
in conflict with both the Confederate and Union 
armies, and it was only with the greatest diffi¬ 
culty that they preserved their independence. 
In 1900 there were in the Cherokee nation about 
25,000 indians, 9000 negroes and 67,000 whites. 
These indians are refined and are in appearance 
scarcely distinguishable from the whites, among 
whom they now are classed as citizens of the 
United States. See Five Civilized Tribes. 

Cher'ry, a common plum-like, small fruit, 
of which there are a great many varieties. The 
tree belongs to the same tribe as the plum and 
prune; in its native state it is ornamental, and 
several varieties are cultivated in shrubberies. 
The wood of the tree is fine-grained and beautiful 
and serves a valuable purpose in the manufacture 
of fine furniture, as it will not warp and takes a 
fine polish. The bird cherry, black cherry and 
chokecherry all grow wild in the United States, 
but the cultivated cherries have been derived 
from European species. In the United States, 
Kansas led in the production of cherries in 1900, 
but Pennsylvania, Indiana and Michigan were 
not far behind. Cherries find a ready market 
in all large cities. 

Cherry Lau'rel, the common name of an 
evergreen shrub, a native of Asia Minor, but 
now naturalized in America and common in 


Chesapeake 

shrubberies. It is commonly called laurel, but 
it must not be confounded with the sweet bay or 
other true species of laurel. The leaves yield 
an oil nearly identical with that from bitter 
almonds, but less dangerous to use. 

Cherry Valley Massacre, a massacre per¬ 
petrated in the village of Cherry Valley in central 
New York, by 700 British, Tories and indians, 
December 10, 1778. The attack was made at 
night and without warning, and about fifty 
inhabitants were murdered, including women 
and children. This episode and that of the 
Wyoming Valley Massacre led to the expedition 
of General Sullivan through New York in the 
following year. See Revolutionary War. 

Chersonesus, kur so ne'sus, a name applied 
by the ancient Greeks to several peninsulas; as, 
the Cimbrian Chersonesus, now Jutland; the 
Tauric Chersonesus, the peninsula formed by the 
Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, the modem 
Crimea; the Thracian Chersonesus, northwest 
of the Hellespont. 

Cherubini, ka roo be'ne, Maria Luigi Carlo 
Zenobio Salvatore (1760-1842), an Italian 
musician, born at Florence. He received his 
early musical instruction from his parents, but 
at nine began to study under eminent masters 
and soon showed a genius for composition. 
Before he was sixteen he had produced a credit¬ 
able Mass and Credo in D and a Te Deum which 
is still often produced. His first opera appeared 
in 1780, but did not achieve special success. His 
fame first became general in 1805, when he went 
to Vienna to compose an opera for the New 
Imperial Opera House; that production, Faniska, 
won him many friends, notably Haydn and 
Beethoven. After 1809 he wrote almost exclu¬ 
sively sacred music. He made several visits to 
London, being appointed at one time composer 
to the king and at another superintendent of the 
king’s ch&pel. In 1821 he became director of 
the Paris Conservatory, and during his adminis¬ 
tration of more than twenty years he brought it 
to a high standard of excellence. His work is 
notable for its dignity and artistic instrumentation. 
His masterpiece is the opera, Les deux Journees. 

Chesapeake, The, a vessel famous in the 
history of the American navy. She was built 
early in the nineteenth century and in 1807, 
under the command of Commodore James 
Barron, started across the Atlantic on a training 
cruise. She was overtaken and halted by the 
Leopard, a British frigate, whose purpose was to 
demand the return of British deserters who were 
alleged to be among the Chesapeake's crew. 


Chesapeake and Ohio Canal 

Barron refused to accede to this demand, and 
his vessel was attacked. After a brief but 
vigorous action the Chesapeake was forced to 
surrender, and four sailors were taken aboard the 
British vessel. The American government im¬ 
mediately demanded reparation from England, 
but none was forthcoming. This incident, 
which was known as the “ Chesapeake affair,” 
was one of the chief events which led to the War 
of 1812. 

During the War of 1812, on June 1,1813, the 
Chesapeake, commanded by Captain James 
Lawrence, fought a battle with the British 
vessel Shannon in Massachusetts Bay. Again 
the Chesapeake was forced to surrender, her 
captain being mortally wounded. During his 
last hours he encouraged his men with the cry, 
“Don’t give up the ship,” which has since been 
the motto of the American navy. The Chesa¬ 
peake was taken to Halifax and afterwards was 
made into a British man-of-war, but was demol¬ 
ished in 1820. 

Ches'apeake and Ohi'o Canal, a canal 
extending from Georgetown, D. C., to Cumber¬ 
land, West Virginia. It is 184.5 miles long, 
sixty feet wide and six feet deep, and it has 
seventy-four locks, with a total lift of 609 
feet. It was completed in 1850. This canal 
follows the course of the Potomac River and is 
chiefly used in the transportation of coal. 

Chesapeake Bay, an arm of the Atlantic, 
entering the states of Virginia and Maryland 
and dividing the latter into two parts. Its length 
is 200 miles; its width is from 10 to 40 miles, 
and its depth is from 20 to 60 feet. The entrance 
between Cape Charles and Cape Henry is 12 miles 
wide. The coasts are irregular, and some of 
the largest inlets are estuaries of large rivers, 
such as the York, James, Potomac and Susque¬ 
hanna. The bay is navigable its entire length 
for the largest steamers, and Norfolk and Balti¬ 
more are important ports for both inland and 
foreign trade. The bay is noted for its extensive 
oyster beds, and oyster farming is one of the 
leading industries of the locality. 

Chess, a well-known game, of great antiquity 
and of Eastern origin, having probably arisen 
in India and thence spread through Persia and 
Arabia to Europe. The name itself, as well as 
many of the terms used in the game, are clearly 
of Eastern origin. The game is played by two 
persons on a hoard, which consists of sixty-four 
squares, arranged in eight rows of eight squares 
each, alternately black and white. Each player 
has sixteen men, eight of which, known as 


Chess 

pawns, are of the lowest grade; the other eight, 
called pieces, are of various grades. They are, 
on each side, king and queen, two bishops, two 
knights and two rooks, or castles. The board 
must be placed so that each player shall have 
a white square at his right hand. The men are 
then set upon the two rows of squares next the 
players, the pieces on the first, the pawns on 
the second, row, leaving between the two sides four 
unoccupied rows. The king and queen occupy 
the central squares facing the corresponding 
pieces on the opposite side. The queen always 
occupies her own color, white queen on white 
square, black on black. The two bishops 
occupy the squares next the king and queen; 
the two knights the squares next the bishops; 
the castles, or rooks, the last, or corner, squares. 
The pawns fill the squares of the second, or front, 
row (See accompanying diagram). The men 


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CHESS BOARD 
Men in opening position. 


standing on the king’s or queen’s side of the 
board are named respectively king’s and queen’s 
men. Thus king’s bishop or knight is the 
bishop or knight on the side of the king. The 
pawns are named from the pieces in front of 
which they stand; king’s pawn, king’s knight’s 
pawn, queen’s castle’s pawn, etc. The names 
of the men are contracted as follows: King, 
K.; King’s Bishop, K. B.; King’s Knight, 
K. Kt.; King’s Castle, K. C. or K. R.; Queen, 
Q.; Queen’s Bishop, Q. B.; Queen’s Knight, 
Q. Kt.; Queen’s Castle, Q. C. or Q. R. The 
pawns are contracted: K. P., Q. P., K. B. P., 
Q. Kt. P., etc. The board is divided, inversely 
from the position of each player, into eight 
rows and eight files. Counting from White’s 
right hand to his left, or from Black’s left to his 
right, each file is named from the piece which 






















Chess 


Chest 


occupies its first square, and counting inversely 
from the position of each player to that of the 
other, the rows are numbered from 1 to 8. At 
White’s right-hand corner we have thus K. R. 
square; immediately above this K. R. 2; and 
so on to K. R. 8, which completes the file; the 
second file begins with K. Kt. square on the first 
row, and ends with K. Kt. 8 on the eighth. 
White’s K. R. 8 and K. Kt. 8 are thus Black’s 
K. R. square and K. Kt. square, and the moves 
of each player are described throughout from 
his own position, in inverse order to the moves 
of his opponent. 

In chess a man captures by occupying the 
position of the captured man, which is removed 
from the board. The ordinary move of the 
'pawn is straight forward in the same file; a P. 
never moves backward. The first time a pawn 
is moved it may be played forward one square 
or two; afterward only one square at a time. 
But in capturing an adverse piece the pawn 
moves diagonally to occupy the position of the 
captured man. When a pawn reaches the 
eighth row it can no longer remain a pawn, 
but must at once be exchanged for a piece. 
The player may choose any piece except the 
king, but the queen, the most valuable piece, 
is generally the piece chosen. This is called 
queening a pawn, and the player may thus have 
several queens on the board. The rook, or 
castle, moves in any direction and for any dis¬ 
tance that is open, along either the particular 
row or the file on which it happens to stand. 
It can, of course, capture any obstructing man 
and occupy its place. The bishop’s moves, like 
the castle’s, are unlimited in range and are 
either backward or forward, but their direction 
is diagonal, and any bishop must always occupy 
squares of the same color. The queen combines 
the moves of the castle and the bishop. She 
is the most powerful piece on the board and 
can move in any direction or to any dis¬ 
tance in a straight line. The king is at once 
the weakest and most valuable piece on the 
board. In point of direction he is as free as 
the queen, but for distance he is limited to the 
adjacent squares. Standing on any central 
square, he commands the eight squares around 
him, and no more. Besides his ordinary move 
the king has another by special privilege, in 
which the castle participates. Once in the game, 
if the squares between king and castle are clear, 
if neither king nor castle has moved, if the king 
is not attacked by any hostile man and if no 
hostile man commands the square over which 


the king has to pass, the king may move two 
squares towards either king’s castle or queen’s 
castle, and the castle at the same time may move 
to the square over which the king has passed. 
This is called castling. The knight, unlike the 
other pieces, never moves in a straight line. 
His move is limited to two squares at a time, 
one forward or backward, and one diagonally, 
and he can leap over any man occupying a 
square intermediate to that to which he intends 
to go. The knight, like the king, when on a 
central square commands eight squares, but 
they are at two squares’ distance, and all in an 
oblique direction. All captures in chess are 
optional. 

The definite aim in chess is the reduction to 
surrender of the opposing king. The king in 
chess is supposed to be inviolable; that is, he 
cannot be taken, he can only be in such a posi¬ 
tion that if it were any other piece it would be 
taken. Notice of every direct attack upon him 
must be given by the adversary saying “check” 
and when the king is attacked all other plans 
must be abandoned and all other men sacri¬ 
ficed, if necessary, to remove him from danger, 
cover the attack or capture the assailant. It is 
also a fundamental rule of the game that the 
king cannot be moved into check. When the 
king can no longer be defended on being checked 
by the adversary, either by moving him out of 
danger, or by interposing or by capture, the 
game is lost, and the adversary announces this 
by saying “checkmate.” When, by inadvertence 
or want of skill, the player having the superior 
force blocks up his opponent’s king so that 
he cannot move without going into check, and 
no other man can be moved without exposing 
him, the player, reduced to this extremity, can¬ 
not play at all. In such a case, the one player 
being unable to play and the other being out of 
turn, the king is stalemated and the game is 
considered drawn, that is, concluded without 
advantage to either player. The laws of the 
game must be sought in some special manual, 
such as Staunton’s Chess Praxis ; more modern 
works of value are Staunton’s Chess: Theory 
and Practice and Gossip’s Chess Player’s 
Manual. 

Chest or Tho'rax, the cavity of. the human 
body which lies between the neck and the 
abdomen. It is bounded by the ribs, sternum 
and diaphragm and that portion of the spinal 
column to which the ribs are attached. It is 
conical in shape, with the apex upward, and 
contains the heart, lungs, great arteries, veins 


Chester 


and nerves, the trachea, bronchi, oesophagus 
and thoracic duct. The organs of the chest are 
subject to many diseases, some of which are 
frequently fatal. Those diseases most to be 
dreaded are diseases of the heart, and asthma, 
consumption, bronchitis and pneumonia. 

Ches'ter, a city and river port of England, 
capital of Cheshire, on the right bank of the 
Dee, 16 mi. s. e. of Liverpool. It is one of the 
oldest cities of England and still has many 
traces of early periods. There are around the 
city ancient walls of sandstone, which surround 
it for a circuit of 2 miles, forming beautiful 
promenades. The streets, which were hewn 
out of rock by the Romans at a depth of from 
4 to 10 feet, are a very interesting feature of 
the town; they are called rows. Among the 
chief buildings are the Chester Cathedral, a 
beautiful Norman Gothic structure, several 
other churches and a portion of a castle founded 
by William the Conqueror. The River Dee is 
here crossed by three bridges, the most note¬ 
worthy of which is Grosvenor Bridge, a splendid 
stone structure 200 feet in length. The chief 
manufactures are lead, chemical works and iron 
products, and there is also a shipbuilding yard. 
The principal trade, however, is in cheese, for 
which Chester is especially celebrated. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 39,038. 

Chester, Pa., a city in Delaware co., 14 mi. 
s. w. of Philadelphia, on the Delaware River 
and on the Pennsylvania, the Baltimore & Ohio 
and the Philadelphia & Reading railroads. It 
is one of the oldest towns in Pennsylvania, hav¬ 
ing been settled by the Swedes as early as 1644. 
It was called Upland until, in 1682, William 
Penn gave it its present name. The first Penn¬ 
sylvania assembly met here in 1632, and during 
the Revolution the city was held alternately by 
the British and American troops. The Pennsyl¬ 
vania Military College and the Crozer Theolog¬ 
ical Seminary are located here. The manufac¬ 
tures include cotton and woolen goods, dye 
stuffs and iron, steel and lumber products. 
Population in 1910, 38,537. 

Ches'terfield, a town of Derbyshire, Eng¬ 
land, 12 mi. s. of Sheffield. The principal 
manufactures are ginghams, lace and earthen¬ 
ware, but a majority of the working classes 
are employed in connection with the collieries, 
iron mines and blast furnaces of the vicinity. 
The town received its first charter during the reign 
of King John. Population in 1911, 37,400. 

Chesterfield, Philip Dormer Stanhope, 
Earl of (1694-1773), an English statesman and 


Cheyenne 


author. He succeeded his father in the title 
in 1726, sat in the House of Lords and acquired 
some distinction as a speaker. In 1728 he was 
ambassador to Holland, in 1744 lord lieutenant 
of Ireland, a position which he occupied with 
great credit, and in 1746, secretary of state. 
Two years later, however, he retired from pub¬ 
lic affairs. His letters to his son, written to 
form the manners of the young man, combine 
wit and good sense with knowledge of society. 

Chestnut, ches'nut, a genus of plants, allied 
to the beech. The common, or Spanish, chestnut 



CHESTNUT BUBS AND LEAVES 


is a stately tree, 
with large, 
handsome, dark 
green leaves. 
The fruit con¬ 
sists of two or 
more seeds, en¬ 
veloped in a 
prickly husk. 
Probably a na¬ 
tive of Asia Mi¬ 
nor, it has long 
been naturalized 
in Europe and 
was perhaps in¬ 
troduced into 
Britain by the Romans. The tree grows freely 
in the United States and may reach the age of 
many centuries. Chestnuts form a stable 
article of food among the peasants of Spain and 
Italy. The timber of the tree was formerly 
more in use than it is now. It is inferior to that 
of the oak, though very similar to it in appear¬ 
ance, especially when old. Two American 
species of chestnuts have edible fruits. One is 
often regarded as identical with the European 
tree. The name of cape chestnut is given to a 
beautiful tree of the rue family, a native of 
the Cape of Good Hope. See Horse-chestnut. 

Cheyenne, ski en' or she en f (red), a brave 
and manly tribe of plains indians of Algonquian 
stock. Originally they were agriculturists, 
living in settled villages, but when they obtained 
horses they became expert riders and gave up 
their settled habitations. It would seem that 
so intelligent and powerful a race might have 
been civilized, if decently treated, but they 
became the fiercest enemies of the whites, and 
the terrible cost of subduing them can never be 
estimated. Now about 1200 are living peacefully 
on a reservation in Arizona, while about 2000 
more are living among the whites in Okla¬ 


homa. 


I 


Cheyenne 

Cheyenne, Wyo., the capital of the state 
and the county-seat of Laramie co., about 100 
mi. n. of Denver, Colo., on the Union Pacific, the 
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, and the Colorado 
& Southern railroads. It is located on a plateau 
more than 6000 feet above the sea. The city has 
several noteworthy buildings, among which are 
the state capitol, the Federal building and a Car¬ 
negie library. The State Soldiers* Home is located 
here, and Fort Russell, a United States military 
post, is about three miles distant. There is an 
important trade in cattle and sheep and in sup¬ 
plies for a large Rocky Mountain region. 
Cheyenne was settled in 1867 and was made 
the capital in 1869. Population in 1910, 11,320. 

Chiaroscuro, kyah ro skoo'ro , the art of dis¬ 
tributing light and shade correctly in a picture, 
or the combined effect of light, shade and reflec¬ 
tion. Unless light and shade are properly 
brought out in a picture, the volume cannot be 
shown and the picture is hard and unreal. The 
painter not only must know where the lights 
and shadows should be placed, but he must 
understand perspective and know the force of 
colors, in order to produce real effects. Painters 
still fail in producing the right effect, and before 
the time of Raphael this was due to the lack of 
knowledge of chiaroscuro. Rembrandt was a 
master of the art and handled light and shade 
in such a manner as to give his objects wonder¬ 
ful realism. 

Chica, che'kah, a kind of beer made from 
maize, in general use in Chile, Peru and 
elsewhere in the mountainous regions of South 
America. See Brewing. 

Chicago, she kaw’go. III., county-seat of 
Cook co., and the second largest city in the 
United States, situated at the head of Lake 
Michigan, 2417 mi. from the Pacific coast, 911 
mi. from New York, 811 mi. from Washington 
and 915 mi. from New Orleans, and on more than 
thirty lines of railway. The city is built on a 
level plain, about 20 feet above the lake, and 
extends north and south along the lake front for 
25^ miles. Its greatest width is about 10§ miles, 
and its area a little over 193 square miles. The 
Chicago River, which is formed by north and 
south branches, enters the lake nearly midway 
between the northern and southern extremities 
of the city. The river and its branches divide 
the city into three well-recognized districts, 
legally known as the South Side, the West Side 
and the North Side. The South Side includes 
that portion of the city south and east of the 
river; the North Side, that portion north of the 


Chicago 

river and east of the north branch, while the 
West Side includes all west of the rivers. The 
most important business section is in the northern 
portion of the South Side, extending from the 
river to Twelfth Street. Within this area are 
crowded many of the large buildings, most of 
the great railway stations and the most important 
wholesale and retail stores. Along the river on 
the West Side are numerous freight depots, 
warehouses and manufactories, while immedi¬ 
ately west of these are smaller retail stores and 
manufacturing establishments, and beyond these, 
residences. The southern portion of the North 
Side contains some manufactories and ware¬ 
houses, but the greater portion of this division 
is used for residences. 

Streets and Transportation. The streets 
of the city are regularly laid out; and they run 
usually north. and south and east and west. 
Some of them, such as Western Avenue and 
Halsted Street, extend nearly the entire length 
of the city. In general the streets are broad, and 
the building line has been strictly observed 
through their entire length. A uniform system 
of numbering throughout the city enables one to 
find any point without difficulty. Madison, 
extending east and west, and State Street, extend¬ 
ing north and south, are taken as the base lines 
and divide the streets crossing them into north 
and south and east and west. North and south 
streets are numbered from Madison, and east 
and west streets are numbered from State 
street. There are 800 numbers to the mile, so 
the number tells the location and the distance 
from the base line. All sections of the city 
are connected with the business center by 
modern electric lines, and the North, West and 
South sides have elevated roads. In all, the sur¬ 
face lines of the city have over 1265 miles of 
single track, and the elevated lines exceed 106 
miles. The surface lines connect with the North 
and West sides through three tunnels under the 
river and by numerous bridges. The elevated 
lines form a loop which encircles the center 
of the business district and around which all 
elevated trains pass. The average number 
of people carried upon all lines daily is over 
1,360,000. 

Sewage Disposal and Water Supply. The 
city is provided with an excellent sewage system, 
which, through the completion of the Chicago 
Drainage Canal, finds an outlet through the 
Illinois River into the Mississippi (See Drain¬ 
age Canal, Chicago). The water supply 
comes from Lake Michigan and is obtained 


Chicago 


Chicago 


through a number of tunnels, which have been 
extended under the lake bottom from two to 
four miles from the shore, where the intakes, or 
cribs, are located. These tunnels, have been 



Parks and Boulevards. The park system 
of Chicago includes over 4600 acres and is under 
the control of four boards of commissioners, the 
members of two of them being appointed by the 
governor of Illinois. The most im¬ 
portant park on the South Side is 
Jackson Park, the former site of the 
World’s Columbian Exposition, which 
has an area of 542 acres. This ex¬ 
tends along the lake front and is 
the largest park in the city. It con¬ 
tains the Field Columbian Museum, 
numerous canals, lagoons and drive¬ 
ways. North and west of Jackson 
Park is Washington Park, noted for 
its beautiful landscape gardening 
and floral displays during the sum¬ 
mer. Other parks connected with 
the south park system are Grant, 
consisting partly of made land, 
Douglas, Garfield, Humboldt, Mc¬ 
Kinley and Marquette. On the 
North Side, extending along the 
lake shore for over a mile, is Lin¬ 
coln Park, the oldest and most 
famous park in the city. Lin¬ 
coln Park is noted for its very 
complete zoological collection, its 
conservatory of tropical plants, its 
floral gardens and its statues and 
monuments. Among the most noted 
of the latter are the Lincoln Monu¬ 
ment, containing the statue of Lin¬ 
coln, by Saint Gaudens; the Grant 
Equestrian Statue; the statues of 
La Salle, Linnaeus, Shakespeare, 
Benjamin Franklin and Hans Chris¬ 
tian Andersen. The park also con¬ 
tains a bust of Beethoven and 
statues of Garibaldi and Goethe. 
On the west border of the park, in 
front of Center Street, is located the 
Academy of Sciences, which con¬ 
tains a valuable museum of natural 
history. Other monuments in the 
city are the equestrian statue of 
General Logan in Grant Park; the 


1. Rose Hill Cemetery. 2, Graceland Cemetery. 3, Mount Olive 
Cemetery. 4, Humboldt Boulevard 5 .LincolniPark. 6Humboldt - 0 J... 

ffiivi'd? e ?orj.ffin B B 0 o l Sevmd. li. Gram Par" ' 12 G.rlield Bou- Douglas Monument and Mausoleum 
.iS^^^S^SS3^SSa. “•S°reS^"vard. 5 V« in Monument Square; the Conted- 
ington Park. 19, Jackson Park. 20, Oakwoods Cemetery. 21, Mid- era t e Monument in Oakwoods Cem- 
way Plaisance. 


six 


constructed at distances of from four to 
miles from one another, as the needs of the city 
required. The water is pumped from the lake 
and forced through mains to all parts of the city. 


etery; the Humboldt Monument in 
Humboldt Park, and the Police Monument in 
Union Park, in memory of the victims of the 
anarchist riot in 1886. 

The entire park system of Chicago is con- 




























































































































































































































Chicago 


Chicago 


nected by boulevards. The most important of 
these are Michigan, Drexel, Garfield, Jackson, 
Washington and Sheridan Road, which extends 
nearly 24 miles, to Fort Sheridan. In all, the 
city has over 70 miles of boulevards. Most of 
these are lined with beautiful residences, and 
some of them, like Drexel and Garfield, contain 
central plots decorated with shade trees and flow¬ 
ers. The boulevard system of Chicago is consid¬ 
ered the most extensive and complete in America. 

Public Buildings. Foremost among the 
public buildings is the City Hall and Cook 
County building, combined in one structure and 
occupying the square bounded by Randolph, 
Clark, Washington and La Salle streets. It is 
of granite and ornamented on each side by a 
row of magnificent Corinthian columns. About 
the main entrance are figures in bas relief illus¬ 
trating state and national history. The building 
cost $7,000,000 and is one of the finest public 
edifices in America. It contains the administra¬ 
tive offices of the county and city. Next in 
importance is the Federal building, occupying 
the square bounded by Adams, Dearborn, Jack- 
son and Clark streets. This is a granite structure 
surmounted by an immense dome, and com¬ 
pleted at an expense of $5,000,000. It contains 
the postoffice, custom house offices, a branch of 
the United States Treasury and other govern¬ 
mental offices. Other prominent buildings in 
the business district are the Masonic Temple, 
the Monadnock, the Michigan Boulevard, the 
Conway, the Monroe, the Insurance Exchange, 
the First National Bank, the Corn Exchange 
Bank, the Continental and Commercial Bank, 
the Illinois Trust Bank, the Railway Exchange, 
the McCormick, the People’s Gas, the whole-* 
sale and retail stores of Marshall Field & 
Company, the University Club and the Audi¬ 
torium, a massive granite structure contain¬ 
ing a large hotel, a theater with a seating 
capacity of about 4000 and many offices. A 
central tower rises to the height of 225 feet, 
and from it an excellent view can be obtained. 

The leading hotels in the business district are 
the Congress, the Blackstone, the Auditorium, 
the La Salle, the Sherman, the Palmer House, 
the Great Northern and the Grand Pacific. The 
Metropole and the Chicago Beach Hotel on the 
south side and the Virginia on the north side 
are family hotels having a national reputation. 
The leading theaters are the Auditorium, the 
Blackstone, the Studebaker, the Illinois, the 
Colonial, Powers, the Garrick, the Majestic, the 
Lyric and the Grand Opera House. To the 


list of amusement halls should be added the 
Chicago Orchestra building, which was erected 
especially for use by that organization, and the 
Coliseum, an immense structure used for exhi¬ 
bitions and political conventions. 

Among the important churches are the Cathe¬ 
dral of the Holy Name, the Second Presbyterian, 
the Cathedral of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, the 
Church of Christ, the Church of the Redeemer, 
the First Unitarian and Saint James Methodist. 

Libraries. Chicago has three large libraries 
and a number of smaller ones. The Public 
Library, on Michigan Avenue, is housed in one 
of the finest and most complete library buildings 
in the country. The interior is finished in Sienna 
and Carrara marble and glass mosaic and is 
remarkable for the beauty of its design. At the 
north end of the building is Grand Army Hall, 
finished in verde antique and containing in stone 
mosaic the badges of all the different army corps. 
The library contains nearly 400,000 volumes and 
besides the station at the central building, it 
maintains stations at the small parks and in 
various other localities in all parts of the city. 
These stations make the Public Library easily 
accessible to all. The Newberry Library 
occupies a magnificent granite building at 
Clark Street and Walton Place on the north 
side. It was established by the will of Walter 
S. Newberry, who bequeathed over $2,000,000 
for the purpose. It contains about 200,000 
volumes and is especially valuable for its works 
on history, literature and philosophy. The 
John Crerar Library has temporary quarters on 
Wabash Avenue, but will soon occupy its own 
building. It contains over 275,000 volumes and 
specializes in the natural sciences, industries, 
medical research and the social and economic 
sciences. These are reference libraries and 
books cannot be taken from them. This and 
the Newberry are reference libraries and are 
free to all who wish to consult them, but books 
cannot be taken away. The Chicago Historical 
Society has a valuable library of history. There 
is also a good library in the Lewis Institute. 
Besides these there are a number of law and 
medical libraries maintained by private organ¬ 
izations, which are open to members. The Uni¬ 
versity of Chicago maintains a library of about 
400,000 volumes, which is primarily for the use 
of the students and faculty of the University, 
but may be consulted by the public on payment 
of a small fee. 

Education. Chicago maintains an elaborate 
and complete system of public schools, ranging 


Chicago 

from the kindergarten to the Chicago Normal 
School. There are sixteen high schools and 250 
elementary schools. There are over 6000 teach¬ 
ers and the annual enrollment approximates 300,- 
000. Among the higher institutions of learning are 
the University of Chicago, located on the Midway 
Plaisance, near Jackson Park; Northwestern 
University, which has its law, dental and medical 
schools within the city limits; Armour Institute; 
Lewis Institute; Saint Ignatius College, and 
Y. M. C. A. Institute. Among the special insti¬ 
tutions worthy of note are the Chicago Musical 
College and the Art Institute. The latter occupies 
a magnificent building at the foot of Adams 
Street and contains an extended collection of 
paintings, statuary and antiquities, an art 
library, a lecture hall and a large number of 
classrooms. This institution enrolls from 1200 
to 1500 students each year. 

Institutions. The city contains hundreds 
of churches; a large number of hospitals, the 
most noted among which are the Cook County 
Hospital, Saint Luke’s, Mercy, the Presbyterian, 
the Alexian Brothers’ and Wesley. The best 
known of the social settlements is Hull House, 
situated in the center of the Ghetto district on the 
West Side and famous throughout the world for 
its original methods and its success. Other 
settlements which have also obtained a wide 
reputation are Chicago Commons, Chicago 
University Settlement and Northwestern Uni¬ 
versity Settlement. The United Charities 
and the Bureau of Hebrew Charities main¬ 
tain a corps of trained inspectors and workers, 
who give their entire time to the needs of the 
poor and the unfortunate and see that charity is 
properly and worthily bestowed. These are 
among the most important organizations in the 
city. 

Commerce and Industry. Chicago is the 
industrial and commercial center of the West 
and the greatest railroad center and live stock 
market in the world. It is also one of the greatest 
inland ports. Railroad lines whose mileage 
includes nearly one-third of that of the United 
States and one-twentieth of the railway mileage 
of the world terminate in the city. The passen¬ 
ger service is accommodated in six large and 
well-appointed stations, four of which are within 
the down-town district. All railway lines main¬ 
tain extensive freight depots in various parts of 
the city, and by means of a belt line all railroads 
are so connected as to form a complete transfer 
system. An electric freight transfer railroad 
service is now in operation through about 


Chicago 

sixty miles of tunnels beneath the city. The 
Chicago River and its branches contain miles 
of docks, on many of which are large grain 
elevators. The lake traffic consists of com, 
wheat, lumber and coal. Lines of freight and 
passenger steamers connect with all important 
lake ports, and through the canals and the Saint 
Lawrence River the city has direct communi¬ 
cation with the Atlantic Ocean. 

The location of Chicago as a distributing cen¬ 
ter and its proximity to the immense coal fields 
of Illinois have made it an important manufac¬ 
turing center. The city has over 20,000 manu¬ 
facturing establishments, which employ nearly 
300,000 workmen. The largest of these indus¬ 
tries is meat-packing and slaughtering, the loca¬ 
tion of which is in the stockyards district, be¬ 
tween Thirty-ninth and Forty-third streets, on 
the South Side. Here are found the largest 
meat-packing houses in the world (See Meat¬ 
packing). Next to the meat-packing industry 
in importance are the manufacture of foundry 
and machine shop products, iron and steel, 
clothing, agricultural implements and printing 
and publishing. The manufacture of agricul¬ 
tural implements centers in the immense estab¬ 
lishments of the International Harvester Com¬ 
pany, the McCormick Harvester Works and 
the Deering Harvester Work's. The wholesale 
trade is very extensive. The largest wholesale 
establishments are on Fifth Avenue, Franklin 
and Market streets. The city is also noted for 
its immense retail stores. That of Marshall 
Field & Company, occupying the entire block 
bounded by Randolph, State and Washington 
streets and Wabash Avenue, has a floor sur¬ 
face of over 30 acres and is the largest retail 
store in the world. Other large retail stores 
worthy of mention are the Fair; Carson, Pirie, 
Scott & Company’s; Mandel Brothers’, and that 
of Siegel, Cooper & Company. In extent and 
value of its commerce, Chicago ranks second 
only to New York. 

History. The site of Chicago was first 
visited by white men, Marquette and Joliet, in 
1673. The first settler came in 1679. Fort 
Dearborn was built in 1804, but was evacuated 
on the occasion of the indian massacre in 1812. 
The city was organized in 1835, with a popula¬ 
tion of 3265. The Illinois and Michigan canal, 
begun in 1836, was finished in 1848. The first 
railroad, the Chicago & Galena, now a division 
of the Chicago & Northwestern, was completed 
in 1848. In 1871 occurred the great fire, which 
practically destroyed the business district. This 


Chicago 


Chickasaw 


was rapidly rebuilt on the present scale of mag¬ 
nificence. The principal events since the fire 
have been the anarchist riot in 1886. the World’s 
Columbian Exposition in 1893 and the great 
railway strike in 1894. The Chicago Drainage 
Canal, begun in 1892, was opened in 1900 No 
other city in the world has increased in popu¬ 
lation and wealth as rapidly as Chicago. 

Population. The population in 1900 was 
1,698,575. In 1910 it was 2,185,283. Consult 
Winchell’s A Civic Manual of Chicago and Cook 
County, and Kirkland’s History of Chicago. 

Chicago, University of, a university located 
at Chicago, Ill., the outgrowth of a school 
of collegiate degree founded in 1857. The origi¬ 
nal university suspended in 1886 for want of 
funds, and the present institution is the result 
of efforts begun by the American Baptist Edu¬ 
cational Society a short time after. The present 
university was chartered in 1890 and embraces 
five departments: (1) schools and colleges; 
(2) libraries, laboratories and museums; (3) 
university extension; (4) the university press; 
(5) the university affiliated schools. 

In the arrangement of its terms the university 
of Chicago is different from other American 
universities. Instead of the traditional school 
year of nine months, the work of the year is 
divided into four quarters of twelve weeks each, 
and each quarter is divided into two terms of 
six weeks. The work is arranged by terms, and 
students may be absent any term or any quarter 
without loss of school time, since on their return 
they can enter classes taking up work where it 
was dropped when their vacation began. The 
schools and colleges are organized into junior 
and senior departments. The junior colleges 
contain courses of study corresponding to those 
of freshmen and sophomore years in most col¬ 
leges; the senior colleges correspond to the work 
in the junior and senior years, and in them the 
courses of study are almost entirely elective. 
Graduate work is provided in all departments, 
and for this the university is especially well 
fitted. The university extension division car¬ 
ries on extension work by means of lecture 
courses connected with study classes, and by 
correspondence work, through which a part 
of nearly every course in the university may be 
taken. It also assists this work by sending 
traveling libraries to centers where lecture 
courses are maintained. The growth and 
equipment of the university are largely due to 
the bequests of Mr. John D. Rockefeller, who 
since its foundation has bequeathed to the insti¬ 


tution over ten million dollars. The University 
Press publishes the Joumal of Political Economy, 
the American Journal of Sociology, the Biblical 
World, the American Journal of Theology, the 
Astro-Physical Journal, the Journal of Geology, 
the School Review, the Elementary Teacher, the 
University Record and a number of other scien¬ 
tific periodicals. The library numbers about 
475,000 volumes, and the yearly enrollment ol 
the university, including men and women, is 
over 5000. 

Chick' adee. See Titmouse. 

Chickahom'iny, a river of Virginia, that rises 
about 20 miles northwest of Richmond and 
flows southwesterly till it joins the James. The 
stream is not large, but it is noted for the numer¬ 
ous battles that occurred on or near its banks 
during McClellan’s and Grant’s campaigns 
against Richmond in the Civil War. The most 
important of these engagements were Mechanics- 
ville, Williamsburg, Seven Pines, Gaines’s Mill 
and the Battles of Cold Harbor. See Penin¬ 
sula Campaign; Cold Harbor, Battles of. 

Chickamau'ga, Battle of, an important and 
bloody battle of the Civil War, fought September 
19 and 20, 1863, between a Federal force of 
55,000 under General Rosecrans and a Confed¬ 
erate army of 70,000 under General Braxton 
Bragg. Rosecrans approached Chattanooga, and 
Bragg, fearing that he would be besieged, 
retreated southward until he received reenforce¬ 
ments. The retreat was halted at Chicka- 
mauga, and Bragg prepared for battle, Rosecrans 
taking up a defensive position along Chicka- 
mauga Creek. On September 19 General Polk 
crossed the river and struck the Federal left 
wing under Thomas, but the latter repulsed the 
assault, inflicting a terrible loss. On the follow¬ 
ing day the same position was again attacked 
without effect, but a misunderstanding of orders 
caused a breach in another part of the Federal 
line, and a concentrated attack by the Confed¬ 
erates caused all but Thomas’s division to flee 
from the field. Thomas continued to grapple 
with his opponent, until he was summarily 
ordered to retreat. It was during this battle 
that he earned his sobriquet of the “Rock of 
Chickamauga.” 

Chick'asaw, a once powerful tribe ofindians 
living in northern Mississippi and Tennessee. 
In 1540 DeSoto reached one of their villages 
and, attempting to compel service from them, 
was attacked. The Chickasaw were always 
hostile to the French, but formed a friendship 
with the English. Their relations with the 


Chickasha 


Children 


United States were usually friendly, and in 1834 
they gave up their lands, receiving nearly four 
million dollars in payment. With this they 
bought land from the Choctaw, in the extreme 
western part of the Indian Territory, where they 
finally were recognized as the Chickasaw nation, 
under their own government. They were slave¬ 
holders and naturally sided with the South, but 
they submitted to the freeing of their slaves 
after the war. In 1900 their nation contained 
about 6000 indians, 9000 negroes and more than 
120,000 whites. See Five Civilized Tribes. 

Chickasha, Okla., the county-seat of Grady 
co., is situated 39 mi. s. w. of Oklahoma City, 
in the fertile valley of the Washita River, on the 
main lines of the Frisco and Chicago, Rock 
Island & Pacific railroads and branches. Chic¬ 
kasha is in the heart of the richest farm lands 
of Oklahoma, on which com, cotton, wheat, 
oats, alfalfa and other staple crops are raised, 
the most important of these being corn and 
cotton. Chickasha has paved streets, electric 
lights, mills, a cotton compress and beautiful 
buildings. It is one of the largest shipping 
points for cattle and hogs in the state. The 
state industrial school for girls is located here. 
Population in 1910, 10,320. 

Chicken-Pox, the medical name of which is 
varicella, is a disease of childhood, characterized 
by an eruption of smooth blisters, about the size 
of a split pea, transparent or slightly yellow in 
color, which appear in successive crops on differ¬ 
ent parts of the body. Though highly infectious, 
it is rarely dangerous or followed by bad effects. 

Chic'opee, Mass., a city in Hampden co., 
3 mi. n. of Springfield, on the Connecticut River 
and on the Boston & Maine and several electric 
railroads. The river affords water power for 
various manufactures, including firearms, cotton 
and knit goods, bicycles, machinery, agricul¬ 
tural implements and other articles. Chicopee 
was settled about 1675 and was incorporated 
as a town in 1848. It includes the villages of 
Chicopee Falls, Fairview and Willimansett and 
became a city in 1890. Population in 1910, 
25,401. 

Chic'ory or Suc'cory, a plant, native of 
Europe and Asia, but long since naturalized in 
the United States. It has a fleshy root, spread¬ 
ing branches, coarse leaves and bright blue 
flowers. The leaves are sometimes blanched, 
to be used as salad. But the most important 
part of the plant is its long, fleshy and milky 
root, which, when dried, roasted and ground, is 
now extensively used for adulterating coffee. 


Its presence may easily be detected by putting 
a spoonful of the mixture into a glass of clear, 
cold water, when the coffee will float on the 
surface and the chicory will separate and discolor 
the water as it subsides. 

Chihuahua, che wah'wah, a city of Mexico, 
capital of the state of the same name, is situated 
on the Mexican Central railway, 750 mi. n. of 
Mexico and 225 mi. s. of El Paso, Texas. It 
is generally well built and is supplied with water 
by a notable aqueduct. The industries include 
iron foundries, machine shops, the manufacture 
of cotton and woolen goods, carpets, beer and 
other articles. The city is in the midst of a 
rich mining section and has a large trade, being 
the leading commercial center in this part of 
Mexico. Chihuahua was founded in 1539. 
Population in 1910, 39,061. 

Chil'blain, a small, oval or round patch of 
red and loose skin, appearing on the foot or 
sometimes on the face, as a result of inflam¬ 
mation, caused by exposure to cold or frost. 
The inflammation is accompanied by stinging, 
itching and burning sensations and some sore¬ 
ness. It is probable that tight shoes and moist 
socks tend to induce the frostbite. Chilblains 
are not different from freezing, except in degree. 
See Frostbite. 

Child, Lydia Maria Francis (1802-1880), 
an American author, bom in Medford, Mass. 
She taught for one year in a seminary in her 
native town and kept a private school in Water- 
town from 1824 till 1828, when she was married 
to David Lee Child. She early became inter¬ 
ested in the antislavery movement and published 
An Appeal to that Class of Americans Called 
Africans, which was the first antislavery work 
printed in America in book form. In 1841 she 
removed to New York, where she was editor 
of the National Antislavery Standard. She 
contributed largely to aid the Union soldiers 
during the Civil War, and afterward she helped 
the freedmen and gave lavishly for the support 
of schools for the negroes. Perhaps her best 
work was the tale, Philothea. 

Chil'dren, Societies for, societies organ¬ 
ized for the purpose of caring for children who 
are dependent, or whose parents are unable to 
care for them. The most important of these 
organizations are the Society for the Prevention 
of Cruelty to Children and the Humane Asso¬ 
ciation. The first organization was established 
in New York in 1875, and similar organizations 
were soon started in other large cities of the 
country. The purpose is to shield children 


Children’s Bureau 


Child Study 


from immoral influences, to save them from 
inhuman treatment and neglect and, especially, 
to prevent their being sentenced by courts in 
large cities to confinement with professional 
criminals. The work of the Humane Association 
is given largely to finding homes for dependent 
children and for those whose parents are unable 
to care for them. These associations also 
maintain homes for crippled, blind and other 
defective children. 

Children’s Bureau, a part of the United 
States department of the interior. The bu¬ 
reau was established in 1912, for the purpose 
of investigating and reporting upon all matters 
pertaining to the welfare of children. Its 
work thus includes such problems as infant 
mortality, the birth rate, juvenile courts, 
employment and any state legislation affecting 
children. It is not intended to relieve the 
states of responsibility for these problems, but 
to aid them in obtaining satisfactory solutions. 
Miss Julia Lathrop, for many years associated 
with Miss Jane Addams at Hull House, was 
appointed the first director of this bureau. 

Childs, George William (1829-1894), an 
American publisher and philanthropist. He 
was born in Baltimore, served for a time in the 
navy and later entered private business. He 
was long identified with the Philadelphia 
Ledger, one of the first cheap newspapers, was 
a heavy contributor to charities, erected many 
monuments to celebrities and educated more 
than 800 boys and girls. In 1890 he published 
his Recollections. 

Child Study, an educational movement for 
the scientific study of children. Child study is 
closely related to the biological sciences (See 
Biology) and is the direct outgrowth of physi¬ 
ology and psychology (See Psychology). 
Experimental and physiological psychology 
revealed the close connection of mind and body 
and showed that mental progress depended upon 
physical development. This led to more sys¬ 
tematic study of the physical development of 
the child. The child’s mental powers have 
also been carefully studied, and child psychology 
has become a branch of general psychology. 
Under the influence and direction of eminent 
German psychologists and teachers, child study 
first began to attract attention, and it is in 
Germany that this line of educational work has 
been brought to the highest stage of develop¬ 
ment. Child study is also systematically pur¬ 
sued in Great Britain and other countries. 

The movement became established in the 


United States in 1880, and by the close of the 
century it was thoroughly incorporated into 
the educational systems of the various states. 
Departments of education in universities pro¬ 
vide for training teachers and specialists in this 
line of research. Many state normal schools 
make provision for child study in their courses, 
and some of the largest cities employ specialists 
who devote their entire time to instructing 
teachers and to the study of children. The 
National Education Association and nearly 
all state teachers’ associations now have de¬ 
partments of child study, which hold special 
sessions in connection with the annual meet¬ 
ings of these associations. Women’s clubs 
are also engaged in some phases of the work. 

In its most advanced stages, child study has 
become specialized and exacting. Its successful 
prosecution requires delicate apparatus and 
trained experts. Much of the work is along 
lines of original research and has for its purpose 
the discovery of facts and principles which will 
form a foundation for the care and training of 
children. This phase of the work can be carried 
on only in institutions especially prepared for it, 
such as schools of education connected with, 
universities and the best equipped normal 
schools. The rate of growth of children is deter¬ 
mined by measurement at different periods and 
for different months in the year. The growth of 
different organs, the relation of age to develop¬ 
ment in the sexes, the determination of the con¬ 
dition of the heart, blood vessels and nervous 
system at different periods, and the changes, 
physical and mental, which take place during 
the period of adolescence, are carefully noted. 

There is, however, a more general line of child 
study and one in which both teachers and parents 
can participate. This does not require special 
apparatus nor technical training, though the 
latter is of great assistance. This line of study 
is confined to the careful observation of the 
child. Its purposes are to determine the develop¬ 
ment of the senses, to discover the child’s 
interests, his strength and his endurance and to 
understand his physical and mental conditions. 
Careful observation leads almost every teacher 
to discover among her pupils those who are 
defective in sight or hearing. Because of such 
defects children often appear dull. If seated 
where they can have the best advantages for 
seeing or hearing, these pupils will ordinarily 
do the required work as well as the others in the 
class. 

Children’s dispositions, likes and dislikes, 


Child Training 

ability to apply themselves and other tend¬ 
encies can best be studied in the home, and 
in ascertaining these facts the mother can 
cooperate with the teacher. The period of 
adolescence is often the most critical period in 
the child’s life. It begins at about fourteen and 
continues until about twenty-four in males and 
twenty-two in females, the changes being more 
marked in the first two or three years of the 
period and varying in the degree of manifestation 
in different individuals. During this period 
both the boy and the girl need sympathy and 
encouragement. Because of failure to under¬ 
stand the child’s condition at this time, both 
parents and teachers often err in their manage¬ 
ment. 

The results of the study of the child’s mental 
development are seen in the radical changes 
which have taken place in the courses of study. 
Subjects which appeal to the child’s interests 
at different periods of his development have 
taken the place of those which were dogmatic 
and abstract. Occupations for the hands, in the 
form of kindergarten plays, busy work and 
manual training, are now found in all well- 
systematized schools and assist in securing the 
development of all the child’s powers. Methods 
of discipline have also been greatly modified for 
the better. Children are now led to control 
themselves, and cases of cruel and severe pun¬ 
ishment seldom occur. 

See Kindergarten; Manual Training; 
Pedagogics; PsychologYc Consult Taylor’s 
The Study of the Child ; Baldwin’s Merited 
Development, and Preyer’s Mental Development 
in the Child. 

Child Training. Someone has said that 
the discovery of the child is one of the most 
significant events of the modern age. It can 
just as truly be said that child training is one 
of the most urgent of modern duties, for child 
training is preparation for life’s career and for 
citizenship. To every thoughtful parent there 
is ever present the problem of so guiding the 
child that he will develop a character which 
will make for success and happiness. The fol¬ 
lowing paragraphs will present to the parents 
some of the more important principles of child 
training; if these are carefully followed good 
results may be expected. 

One of the first principles that presents itself 
is that each child is a distinct individual whose 
training gives rise to special problems, demands 
special methods and is entitled to individual 
thought and care. Nevertheless, there are cer- 


Child Training 

tain basic principles that may serve as a guide 
for all parents. 

The Parents’ Attitude. It has aptly been 
said that the child is a wonderfully adaptable 
being, adjusting himself to all kinds of condi¬ 
tions, city and country, rich and poor, but that 
there is one thing he cannot be—namely, a 
grown-up. It follows that to make a success 
of parenthood one must deal with the child and 
his problems with sympathetic understanding. 
To put oneself in the child’s place, to think and 
feel as he does, to get his point of view—this i3 
difficult indeed, but it is indispensable, if the 
child is to be guided wisely. This principle 
cannot be disregarded in successful child training. 

Self-Respect. Undoubtedly the reason for 
many bad results is the failure of parents to 
recognize the child’s inherent sense of self- 
respect. Mothers and fathers who needlessly 
rebuke and punish children in the presence of 
guests, who ridicule childish efforts, who call 
attention to physical defects and otherwise 
wound the sensibilities of their boys and girls 
are pursuing a wrong course. Such tactics 
arouse antagonism and resentment, destroy the 
feeling of confidence that should abide in the 
child’s heart, and nullify to a large extent many 
well-meant efforts at discipline. The normal 
child has a sense of justice and a feeling of pride. 
He wants what we call the “square deal.” Un¬ 
less parents respect this spirit they may sow seeds 
of deception, disobedience and sullenness in 
childish natures. 

A helpful writer on the subject of child train¬ 
ing—S. M. Gruenberg—says in this connection: 

“The heart knoweth its own bitterness,” but seems 
to be unaware that others have troubles of their own. 
This is especially true in our dealing with children. 
We take it for granted that what is childish is trivial, 
and what is trivial is not serious. But the troubles of a 
child are just as serious to the child as the worries of a 
statesman are to the statesman. Parents can afford to 
make great sacrifices for the sake of retaining the confi¬ 
dence and companionship of their children. One of the 
essential means to this end is the patient effort to under¬ 
stand the effect of seeming trifles upon the feelings of 
the child. * * * And we must consider, finally, how 

much of the callousness and indifference we find among 
men and women is the direct result of the constant bruis¬ 
ing that their feelings suffered during childhood. 

Self-Expression. The old saying, “Children 
should be seen and not heard,” presupposes that 
children are a nuisance at best, and need to be 
constantly suppressed. Such a theory ignores 
the right of the child to express himself as a 
thinking, growing, spontaneous creature, and it 
overlooks the wonderful possibilities of character 


Child Training 


Child Training 


development that lie in the proper directing of 
child activity. To the little child, each day is 
a new era of discovery, and in his mind new 
ideas, aspirations and opinions are constantly 
taking form. It is as natural for him to give 
expression to the life within him a3 for the 
plant to put forth buds; repression of this 
wholesome instinct will hamper the growth of 
the mind and prove a bar to the development of 
such positive traits as force, initiative and self- 
reliance. 

Then, too, parents have an important duty 
to perform in connection with their children’s 
attempts at verbal expression. "Language,” 
says one authority, "is the tool by which we 
gain and garner information. If you blunt the 
tool before you begin to use it, how are you ever 
to get knowledge in any proper or real sense?” 
Language training should begin with the first 
efforts of the baby to talk. It should include 
the cultivation of correct habits of speech and 
the striking out of everything that is false. 
This means teaching the little ones to speak 
plainly and to pronounce correctly, to express 
their thoughts clearly, to call things by their 
right names, and to use good grammar. 

To laugh at and encourage the funny mistakes 
little children are prone to make in their efforts 
at self-expression is nothing less than an example 
of waste. Sometime these inaccuracies and errors 
will have to be eliminated; then why permit 
them to take root? Children who enter school 
with careless habits of speech, who have never 
been trained to express themselves with reason¬ 
able clearness and accuracy, are just as truly 
under a handicap as the girl or boy with poor 
eyesight or with adenoids. Early language 
habits doubtless affect the whole after life. 
Many persons of mature age are hampered 
socially and in business life by their inability 
to give clear expression to their ideas. They 
cannot coordinate the thought and the spoken 
word. This is the result of their failure to 
receive language training during the impression¬ 
able years of childhood. Sometimes years of 
school training cannot suffice to overcome the 
effects of early neglect. 

Every mother should take advantage of the 
period when her child begins to tell stories. 
Sometimes these are creations of the child’s own 
fancy, but more often they are a repetition, in 
childish language, of the fairy stories and nursery 
tales told to children the world over. As the 
little one tells and retells these stories the mother 
may guide the lips to frame the pleasing phrase 


and the well-expressed sentence, and in this way 
instill good language precepts into the child’s 
mind. This also affords opportunity for the 
correction of mispronounced words, slips in 
grammar, and the like. Indeed, the story¬ 
telling hour may be utilized most effectively for 
training in self-expression. Wise mothers will 
also make the attempts of the child to talk the 
basis of lessons in manners. At the table, for 
instance, the two-year-old may be taught to say 
"please,” "thank you,” "excuse me,” etc. Many 
other opportunities for lessons in politeness will 
present' themselves and should be utilized. 

Initiative. The instinct to do something of 
its own volition is manifested early in the life 
of the child. The efforts of the baby to put on 
its own shoe and its attempts to undress and 
dress its doll are typical examples of this instinct, 
which, by the way, is the inspiration of much of 
the mischief that keeps he average mother con¬ 
stantly alert. Because initiative is a quality 
that has an important bearing on the develop¬ 
ment of character, it should be rightly directed 
and encouraged. Constant repression is unwise, 
and the effect on the child of hearing, "Don’t 
do that,” all day long is as pernicious as the 
effect of no regulation at all. The happy mean 
is to recognize the instinct as something which 
will be translated into energy and progress in 
later years, and to direct it into the right 
channels. 

Uncontrolled initiative leads to destructive¬ 
ness and waste. If the small boy persists in 
taking his toys apart in the hope of being able 
to put them together again, he should be supplied 
with tools or other apparatus by which he can 
exercise his fondness for construction. Children 
can be made happy and be kept out of mischief 
by means of scrap books, scissors and paste, 
beads for stringing, and the like. In fact, many 
of the activities of the kindergarten can profit¬ 
ably be adapted to home needs. 

In some cases initiative is killed because the 
child is too carefully watched. Children who 
have everything done for them and are never 
permitted to wait on themselves or to act inde¬ 
pendently cannot develop the natural impulse 
to "start something.” Many failures in after 
life are simply the result of too much coddling 
in childhood. 

Imagination. It is evident that by the time 
children are two years old the picture-forming 
activity of the mind is fully awakened. From 
this time until they enter school, children live 
in a world of make-believe. To them a bundle 


Child Training 


Child Training 


of rags is a baby to be lovingly cherished and 
protected; a stick is a fiery steed; a line of books 
on the floor, a train of cars; a corner in the 
nursery, a den of wild beasts. Children do not 
even require actual objects for the exercise of 
the imagination. Nearly every child, at some 
time in this period, creates a fanciful companion 
with whom he plays and talks. The story is 
told of a boy of two and one-half years who 
broke into wild sobs when one of his elders 
entered the nursery. On being questioned, he 
said that his baby sister had been stepped upon. 
Baby sister, to be sure, existed only in his 
imagination, but she was none the less real 
to him. 

What is the significance of this picture-form¬ 
ing activity in child training? All educators 
agree that it has very positive value. The 
imaginative faculty is creative. It has given 
the world its useful inventions, its noblest works 
of art, its literary masterpieces. It sharpens the 
powers of observation, strengthens memory, and 
is an aid in the acquisition of knowledge. Fur¬ 
thermore, it is largely responsible for the sym¬ 
pathy that manifests itself in generous donations 
to charity; sympathy depends upon one’s ability 
to visualize the sorrows of others. The child 
who grows up with his imaginative pow r ers active 
is better qualified to win success and happiness 
than the child of dull imagination. 

Parents should therefore welcome the make- 
believe instincts of their children, and encourage 
rather than repress them. At the same time it 
is not wise to permit the imaginative powers to 
run riot. Psychologists tell us that there is 
nothing more detrimental to character develop¬ 
ment than arousing the moral feelings without 
getting a corresponding translation of good 
impulses into action. The same principle holds 
true in the field of the imagination. The child 
who loves to dream rather than to do must be 
carefully guided, so that he will not become one 
of those unfortunate beings who have never 
learned to crystallize dreams into achievement. 

There is another phase of this subject that is 
a serious problem to many mothers. So long as 
children invest the objects about them with life 
and live in a world of their own making, they 
will naturally make statements which are not 
true. But the stories that are born of an active 
imagination should not, in the case of little 
children at least, be called lies nor be treated as 
such. It is doubtful whether children ever lie 
consciously before the age of four or five. Their 
moral perceptions along that particular line are 


not yet awakened. A time does come, however, 
when the child must be taught the distinction 
between truth and falsehood. 

Mrs. Gruenberg, quoted above, gives some 
helpful advice on this point when she says: 

If scolding or preaching could make a child merely 
stop telling such stories, there would be no gain: if they 
stopped a child thinking such stories, there would be a 
decided loss. Gradually the child may come to recog¬ 
nize the difference between the make-believe and the 
reality, and he may be helped. When at a certain age 
you think your child ought to distinguish more clearly 
between his imagination and cold facts, it would be all 
right to explain to him that, although there is no harm 
in his enjoying his make-believe, still he must not tell 
his fancies as if they were real, but must tell them as 
make-believe stories. That will achieve the desired 
result without making him feel hurt at your lack of 
understanding in treating him like an ordinary liar. 

Questions. After his third birthday the aver¬ 
age child begins to find life one big question 
mark, and as a result his elders are subjected to 
a ceaseless flow of requests beginning with how, 
what and why. Curiosity is a valuable trait, 
because it is an avenue to knowledge, and 
parents should therefore treat the questions of 
their boys and girls seriously. To give satis¬ 
factory answers is often a tax on one’s time, 
patience and ingenuity, but no mother or father 
can afford to check the childish effort to learn. 
It is not true, however, that all kinds of ques¬ 
tions have the same value. There are children 
who, simply for the sake of talking, will follow 
each answer with another “Why?” and show 
clearly that they have no real interest in their 
questions. Parents can usually detect purpose¬ 
less and mechanical questioning, and they should 
discourage it. 

The pictures in their story books and peculi¬ 
arities of their various toys frequently stimulate 
the curiosity of children. The small boy wants 
to know why the wheels go round in his auto¬ 
matic engine, or why his toy lamb has a woolly 
coat. The little girl brings her picture book to 
mother and asks why the elephant has such a 
funny nose. Questions of this nature should be 
answered carefully. It sometimes happens that 
the parents discover their own lack of knowledge 
when they try to explain commonplace facts to 
their children. In such cases a conscientious 
effort should be made to obtain the desired 
information. It is also an excellent plan to 
suggest to the child how he may find his own 
answers. By relating what he has already 
learned to the information he seeks the child 
takes a definite step forward in mental develop¬ 
ment. 


Child Training 

Training the Will. The distinction be¬ 
tween a strong character and a weak one is 
that in the one case the will power has properly 
developed and in the other it has not. It follows 
that the mother should lay the foundation for 
her child’s success and happiness by systematic 
training of the will. Such training, to be effec¬ 
tive, must begin in the nursery. To be sure, 
the newlyborn child does not will to do any¬ 
thing, but its first impulsive movements con¬ 
stitute the basis for the exercise of the higher 
power. The baby cries when it is hungry and 
is quieted by being fed. It instinctively feels 
the need of exercise, and moves its arms and 
legs. In time the effects of these acts are 
associated with the acts themselves; move¬ 
ments which at first are impulsive become 
deliberate, and finally the child purposely acts 
to satisfy its desires. 

During the first two or three years the little 
ones are too limited in knowledge and experi¬ 
ence to be guided by reason. In this period 
the parents’ will must dominate that of the 
child. There must be a higher authority to 
see that the child eats and sleeps regularly, that 
it does not play with the scissors, or experiment 
with matches, and so on. That is, the baby 
cannot have any will of its own in questions 
concerning its health and safety. Now, many 
parents fail at this stage in child training be¬ 
cause they do not carry out the idea of control 
to its logical conclusion. Childish demands that 
do not entail actual injury are yielded to because 
it is too much trouble to refuse, and the baby 
never really learns the lesson of obedience. The 
period of infancy is exactly the time to impress 
the idea of submission to authority, and firmness 
at this time means a saving of strength and 
effort later. 

Occasionally one hears a mother say, “My 
child has such a strong will that I would ruin 
his character if I tried to break it.” The 
problem of the stubborn child is indeed perplex¬ 
ing, but wilful persistence in having one’s way 
is a sign of weakness, not of strength. Even in 
nursery days the child can learn the vital lesson 
that individual desires must yield to what is 
best for the good of all. If the children do not 
learn this they will have a sorry time when they 
have to meet life’s problems in later years. And 
the two-year-old who lies on the floor and shrieks 
when his demands are not granted, or who flies 
into a rage when thwarted, is demonstrating an 
uncontrolled will, not a strong one. Babies 
learn very quickly whether or not they can get 


Child Training 

their way by having “tantrums,” and exhibitions 
of screaming and passion usually tell a story of 
parental laxity. 

There is another side to this problem that the 
parents should not ignore. In imposing their 
will on the child they should see that they are 
themselves reasonable and considerate. It 
sometimes happens that the elders are the ones 
who are obstinate and wilful, rather than the 
children. The impatient father who insists that 
his two-year-old boy stop his play so that he 
can read his paper, the parents who suppress 
innocent childish activities because they inter¬ 
fere with the comfort of the elders—such guar¬ 
dians of children are placing submission to 
authority on a thoroughly selfish basis. They 
are failing to see that all training should have 
for its aim the good of the child, not the con¬ 
venience of the parent. 

As the children pass from the period of in¬ 
fancy, constructive training of the will becomes 
very important. Because the will expresses 
itself through action, it can be trained most 
admirably through the performance of tasks 
that demand of children concentration and per¬ 
severance. Even very little children can be 
trained to pick up and put away their toys, to 
fetch things for mother, and to perform simple 
duties about the house. What is essential is 
that the child be trained to carry through to 
completion certain definite tasks to which he 
sets himself. Moreover, in early childhood the 
boys and girls should acquire habits of punc¬ 
tuality, neatness, politeness, etc. As every 
mother knows, even the week-old baby easily 
forms habits of regularity in respect to feeding 
and sleeping simply through repetition. So the 
older child, required to do a certain thing, not 
once, but many times, acquires regular habits, 
such as washing its teeth, putting away its play¬ 
things, or saying “please” when asking a service. 

The problem of obedience, too, assumes 
another character when the children pass be¬ 
yond the age of infancy. It is hardly fair to 
the eager little petitioner of four or five to say, 
“No, you can’t do that,” and give no other 
reason than “Because I say so.” Mothers who 
talk matters over with their children, and when 
possible tell them why certain things are for¬ 
bidden, can always count on their loyalty. 
After all, parents should not expect blind, 
unreasoning submission from reasoning boys 
and girls. The child who yields to his mother 
because he knows that she has justice on her 
side and who gives up his own desires because 


Child Training 

he feels that it is the right thing to do, is exer¬ 
cising will power in the best sense of the term. 

Discipline and Punishment. There can be 
no hard and fast rules for the discipline and 
punishment of children, because every child is 
a distinct individual. All mothers know how 
children vary in the degree with which they 
respond to suggestion, and how one boy’s 
behavior may demand twice the thought and 
care that his brother’s does. But every parent, 


Child Training 

natural and habitual thing in the child’s life has 
already solved the problem of discipline. 

There are three theories as to the function 
of punishment: that its purpose is to make the 
offender suffer, 1 that it should have a deterrent 
effect and prevent a repetition of the act; and 
that it should bring about moral reformation. 
An ideal form of punishment would possibly 
accomplish all of these aims, but certainly the 
basic idea in punishment should be to make the 


CHILD TRAINING CHART 


PERIOD OF INFANCY—THE FIRST THREE YEARS 


Year Character 

Development 

Intellectual 

Development 

Sense 

Development 

Play and 
Exercise 

Rest Period 

Submission. 

1. Control of desires. 

Learning to under¬ 
stand spoken words. 

Awakening of the five 
special senses. 

Use of arm muscles 
in playing with toys. 
Creeping. 

Sleeping from 22 
hours to 16 hours a 
day. 

Quick responsiveness 
to commands. Great- 
2. er self-control. 

Talking. 

Special development 
of tactile sense. 

Walking. 

Playing with more 
elaborate toys. 

Using spoon, cup and 
plate. 

Sleeping 12 hours at 
night. 

Daily nap. 

Showing initiative. 
Developingunselfish- 
3. ness and gentleness. 

Reciting nursery 
rhymes. 

Use of picture books. 

Activity of all the 
senses. 

Distinguishing tastes 
and colors. 

Using pencil. 
Stringing beads. 

Plays involving the 
imagination. 

Great physical 
activity. 

Sleeping 12 hours at 
night. 

Daily nap. 


EARLY CHILDHOOD—FROM THREE TO SIX YEARS OF AGE 


4. 

Kindness to animals. 
Good manners. 
Patience. 

Overcoming peevish¬ 
ness. 

Hearing stories told. 
Use of alphabet 
blocks. 

Learning to count. 

Distinguishing smells 

Simple games. 
Taking walks. 
Picking up toys. 
Helping to dress and 
undress. 

Sleeping 11 hours at 
night. 

Daily nap. 

5. 

Generosity. 
Orderliness. 
Intelligent obedience. 

Hearing stories read. 
Printing letters. 
Learning names of 
months. 

Continued develop¬ 
ment of all the senses. 

Helping with simple 
household tasks. 
Sewing. 

Using simple tools. 

Sleeping 11 hours at 
night. 

Daily nap. 

6. 

Truthfulness. 

Sense of honor. 
Self-reliance. 

Memory develop¬ 
ment. 

Learning to combine 
small numbers. 
Spelling short words. 

Continued develop¬ 
ment of all the senses. 

Dressing. 

Making scrap books. 
Clay modeling. 
Driving hoop. 
Tricycle or veloci¬ 
pede. 

Sleeping 11 hours at 
night. 

Nap as needed. 


no matter what may be the temperament and 
disposition of his boys and girls, should bear in 
mind that persistent effort to establish good 
habits and wholesome ideals has a greater posi¬ 
tive value than correction and punishment. 
Undoubtedly a large proportion of the punish¬ 
ment meted out to children is nothing more nor 
less than an admission of failure on the part of 
the persons training them. What has been said 
in the discussion on constructive training of the 
will could very properly be repeated here, for 

the parent who has made good conduct the 
39 


children better, not to make them suffer. This 
latter idea is uppermost in the mind of the 
parent who violates the cardinal rule of never 
punish in anger. Take a typical case: 

A small boy has been told that he must keep 
out of the pantry. He forgets this admonition, 
and goes in when mother is busy elsewhere. 
She hears a crash and runs into the pantry to 
find that he has upset a pan of milk on the 
floor. To her this means a good deal of incon¬ 
venience, for she must send out for more milk 
and must clean up the floor. So she loses her 








































Child Training 


Child Training 


temper, and proceeds to give the boy a “sound 
spanking” then and there. On the part of the 
mother we have a case of uncontrolled nerves, 
temper and a desire to “get even” with the 
child. On the child’s part we have fright, 
resentment and possibly the desire to “get 
even” with his mother. 

Now, the child had misbehaved in disobeying 
his mother, and it would have been unwise for 
her to overlook this fact. What was at fault 
was her method of discipline. She did not stop 
to consider anything except that the boy was a 
trouble and she was angry. Had she made it 
plain to him why he was to keep out of the pan¬ 
try? Prohibitions of this sort do not always 
make clear impression on the mind of a little 
child. Was there some special reason why he 
forgot her wishes in the matter? Perhaps some 
pet belonging of his had been carried into the 
pantry and he instinctively went after it. Would 
she have accomplished more if she had talked 
to him kindly about his naughtiness, pointing out 
the trouble he caused her on a busy day, and 
telling him he must go without his favorite cus¬ 
tard at lunch because he had spilled the milk 
and there was no time to get any more? 

The point in this illustration is that no attempt 
was made to be just and reasonable—as we say 
in law, to judge the case on its merits—and when 
parents fail to take into consideration the cir¬ 
cumstances of an act, when they neglect to con¬ 
sider the motives and temptations of the little 
wrong-doer, when they condemn hastily and in 
anger, punishment fails at reformation, which 
is the thing it ought to accomplish. “Punish¬ 
ment,” writes one observer, “is a medicine—a 
corrective -—and when we administer it we must 
do so in the spirit of the physician. Like phy¬ 
sicians worthy of their trust, we must study the 
ailment and its causes, and above all, we must 
study the patient. The same remedy will not 
do for all constitutions.” 

Children are too often punished merely be¬ 
cause their childish ways are an irritation to 
some nervous or selfish elder. While rude and 
boisterous manners should not be tolerated, a 
certain amount of noise is inevitable if there 
are children in the home. Noise is usually an 
expression of health and good spirits, not a 
sign of perversity. It is not just to an active 
child, for example, to punish it for playing some¬ 
what noisily on a rainy afternoon, because some 
older person in thfe house happens to be irritable. 
On the other hand, it is good discipline to ask 
children to remain quiet for an hour or so until 


baby has finished her nap, or because mother 
has a headache. Here is an opportunity to 
inculcate the idea of consideration and thought¬ 
fulness. 

The question of corporal punishment is often¬ 
times a perplexing one to the conscientious 
parent. Authorities are divided into two dis¬ 
tinct schools on this point—those who believe 
in sparing the rod and spoiling the child, and 
those who believe in spoiling the rod and spar¬ 
ing the child. Professor Berle, in his The 
School in the Home, says: 

‘‘If there is anything in this wide world that does not 
teach the wisdom of corporal punishment 1 do not know 
what it is. What 1 know of the world and human life 
teaches me that nature administers the sharpest kind 
of corporal punishment for every violation of her laws. 
Why not administer the knowledge of these natural 
forces before the time when the realization of their 
awful penalties and inexorable character involves not 
only fearful pain, but often the ruin of life and happi¬ 
ness? You can teach this sort of thing to a small child 
as readily as you can anything else.” 

On the other hand, there are those who say 
that corporal punishment is not only unneces¬ 
sary, but brutalizing; that violence does not 
bring out the best in a child’s nature, and the 
same results may be obtained through more 
refined modes of punishment. 

This is a question that must be settled by the 
individual parent in accordance with the charac¬ 
ter and problems of his own child. There are 
children so sensitive that a stern rebuke alone 
is a severe punishment and will bring immediate 
results, and there are others who, as harassed 
parents testify, seem to be afraid of nothing but 
the whip. Undoubtedly, whipping is abso¬ 
lutely harmful in some cases, and has proved 
beneficial in others. As is true of any other 
form of punishment, the infliction of pain de¬ 
pends upon the child, the nature of the offense, 
and the circumstances under which it was com¬ 
mitted, and no hard and fast rule can be given 
except that a child should never be whipped in 
anger, nor needlessly and carelessly. 

In conclusion, it should be remembered that 
the aim of discipline is to strengthen the will of 
the child to love the good and avoid the evil. 
The test of the efficacy of any punishment is the 
addition it makes to the moral forces in the 
child’s character. If the methods pursued 
prove an aid in the formation of good habits, if 
they teach the wisdom of right conduct and the 
beauty of noble ideals, then the parents may 
justly feel that they have found the happy 
medium in the matter of discipline and punish¬ 
ment. 


Chile 


Chile 


The Child’s Health. This is a feature of 
child training that cannot be disregarded, for no 
child can develop normally unless he has a 
foundation of physical well-being. Defects of 
sight and hearing, child diseases and other 
abnormalities need, of course, the attention of a 
skilled physician. Here will be discussed some 
of the important rules for keeping children well 
who are in normal health. An abundance of 
fresh air is essential for the well-being of all 
children. The windows of the sleeping room 
should be opened at night and the nursery be 
kept well ventilated. Exercise in the open air 
should be carried on daily, except when the 
weather prevents. Children should be taught 
to breathe properly. A few exercises each day 
in deep breathing will prove very helpful. The 
food should be simple and nutritious and such 
laxative foods as oatmeal, bran bread, fruits and 
vegetables be included in the diet. Do not give 
growing children rich pastries, stimulants or too 
many sweets. Both the teeth and the digestion 
suffer from excessive eating of candy. Only 
confectionery made of pure ingredients should 
ever be tolerated. Teach the child to use the 
tooth brush. This instruction should begin as 
soon as possible after the first teeth have come 
through. Bodily cleanliness and simple, com¬ 
fortable clothing are always desirable. See that 
the children are properly protected in cold or 
rainy weather, but do not burden them with 
elaborate clothing that interferes with their 
activity. Help the children acquire healthy 
bodies by keeping the home atmosphere sweet 
and clean. Do not talk ill health or permit 
morbid ideas to get a foothold. 

Chile, che'la, or Chili, che'le, a country of 
South America, extending along the Pacific 
coast from latitude 18° south nearly to Cape 
Horn. It is bounded on the n. by Peru; on 
the n. e. and e. by Bolivia and Argentine Repub¬ 
lic. It is 2700 mi. long, and its extreme width 
is 250 mi. The republic is divided into 23 
provinces and 1 territory and has an area of 
about 307,620 sq. mi., equal to the combined 
areas of Texas and Maine. 

Surface and Drainage. The southern 
portion is mountainous and is covered with 
heavy forests, and it is notable for a large num¬ 
ber of coast islands and for deep fiords which 
enter the continental plain. The Andes form 
the easthern boundary—an unbroken wall, 
averaging 6000 feet in height in the south and 
15,000 feet in height in the north. Among the 
loftiest summits, the greater number of which 


are extinct volcanoes, are Tupungato, 23,000 
feet; Cerro del Mercedario, 22,000 feet; Anto- 
falla, 20,900 feet, and Aconcagua, whose base is 
partly in Chile, with a summit of 23,080 feet, in 
Argentine Republic. The Chilean Andes are 
more heavily clad in snow than any other part of 
the range, and there are many glaciers, especially 
in the south. North of latitude 33° there is no 
rainfall for years at a time, and there are large 
deserts, among them being Atacama and Tara- 
paca. The region in the central part of Chile 
is well watered and fertile and is adapted to 
grazing and the cultivation of grain. The rivers 
of Chile are directed westward across the 
country. There are none of great size, the 
largest and the longest, the Bio Bio, having a 
length of 200 miles. 

Mineral Resources. Chile is one of the 
chief mineral-producing countries of South 
America. The most important mineral product 
is nitrate of soda, which occurs in large beds in 
the northern deserts. The deposits yield an 
annual product of about 1,300,000 tons and 
give employment to over 24,000 men. Gold 
is obtained chiefly from the river sands, but the 
yield is not very great, being less than the silver 
product. Copper ores, next to the nitrates, are 
the most important mineral resources of the 
country. Cobalt and nickel are also mined, and 
zinc, iron, mercury and alabaster are found in 
small quantities. 

Climate. The climate of Chile is exceedingly 
varied. In the north the climate is sub-tropical; 
that of the central valley is healthful and pleas¬ 
ant; in the southern portion the climate is 
exceedingly wet, some regions being too wet for 
the growth of cereals. 

Agriculture. The agricultural activities of 
Chile are mostly restricted to the great central 
valley. It is estimated that about one-half of 
the population is engaged in agricultural pur¬ 
suits, but an obstacle to the development of the 
farming resources of the country is the rapid 
development of nitrate mining, which gives 
employment to so many of the inhabitants. The 
most important crops are wheat, maize and 
barley. Next to cereals, the most important 
agricultural industry is grape raising. Indus¬ 
trial plants, such as flax, hemp and tobacco, are 
also cultivated to some extent. Live stock and 
alfalfa are exported from the north; potatoes, 
flax, barley, honey, fruit and wheat from the 
central part, and timber, potatoes and apples 
from the southern portion. The principal 
timber tree is a tree called the cedar, and other 


Chile 


Chillon 


important trees are the Araucanian pine, the 
beech, the evergreen and the quillaya, the bark 
of which is of considerable commercial import¬ 
ance. Cattle-raising has recently made rapid 
progress. Sheep and goats are very numerous 
and thrive especially in the central region. 

Manufactures. The manufactures are not 
very extensive. They include the smelting of 
ores, the production of glass, leather, soap and 
sugar. Agriculture and stock-raising are the 
chief pursuits. 

Transportation. There are two lines of 
British and German steamers which sail for 
Europe through the Strait of Magellan every 
two weeks, besides a weekly steamer to Panama 
and many coasting steamers. In regard to 
transportation, Chile stands in the front rank 
among the South American countries. The 
first railway line was opened in 1852, but the 
construction of railroads on a large scale was not 
begun until 1888. In 1900 the total length of 
railways in operation was about 2880 miles, of 
which 1353 miles were operated by the State. 
Many new railway lines are being projected. 
The most important of those recently com¬ 
pleted is the one connecting Valparaiso with 
Buenos Ayres in Argentina. The shipping of 
the Chilean ports exceeds that of any other 
country in South America. 

Inhabitants. The representatives of the 
aboriginal people of Chile are of the race com¬ 
monly known as the Araucanian, distinguished 
by its endurance, valor and courage. The 
educated classes consist almost entirely of the 
descendants of the Spanish conquerors, and 
these have preserved the language, religion and 
social customs of Spain. Many of the inhabit¬ 
ants represent a mixture of European, indian 
and negro blood. 

Education. Public instruction, though pro¬ 
vided by the State, is yet in an unsatisfactory 
condition. Secondary instruction is also offered. 
The state university at Santiago gives courses in 
law and political science, medicine, pharmacy 
and fine arts, and there are, besides these, schools 
of agriculture, mining and other technical 
institutions, normal schools and military and 
naval academies. 

Government and Religion. The executive 
power is vested in a president, who is elected for 
five years by electors chosen by popular vote. 
He is aided by a cabinet of six ministers, who are 
in charge of the seven departments of govern¬ 
ment, and also by a council of state of eleven 
members, five of whom are nominated by him 


and six by congress. The legislature consists 
of a Senate and a Chamber of Deputies, the 
former elected for six years and the latter for 
three. The Roman Catholic Church is sus¬ 
tained at public cost, but other churches are 
tolerated. The priests possess an immense 
influence over the people, who look to them for 
aid in politics as well as in religion. 

Cities. The chief cities of Chile are Santiago, 
the capital, Valparaiso, Concepcion, Talca, 
Iquique, Valdivia, Copiapo and Coquimbo, each 
of which is described under its title. 

History. In 1541 the conquest of northern 
Chile from the Incas of Peru was begun by 
Valdivia, who was successful in 1550. The 
Araucanians in southern Chile kept up the 
struggle for two hundred years and were never 
wholly subdued. In 1810 Chile revolted against 
Spain and was successful, with the aid of General 
San Martin, in gaining independence, which 
was proclaimed in 1818 and formally recognized 
by a treaty with Spain in 1844. In 1865 Chile 
and Peru were engaged in war with Spain, which 
latsed four years. In the war with Peru and 
Bolivia fourteen years later, Chile was successful 
and added to her territory the territories of Anta- 
fagasta and Tarapaca. There have been a few 
revolutions since, but none of lasting character; 
Chile has followed its development peacefully, 
and a democratic spirit prevails. Population 
in 1910, 3,329,030. 

Chil licoth'e, Ohio, the county-seat of Ross 
co., 50 mi. s. of Columbus, on the Ohio & Erie 
canal, the Scioto River and on the Baltimore & 
Ohio, the Southwestern, the Norfolk & Western 
and the Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton rail¬ 
roads. The city was settled in 1796 and was 
the capital of Ohio from 1800 to 1810. The 
valley is a rich agricultural district and has 
extensive coal mines. The industrial estab¬ 
lishments are railroad shops and manufactures 
of wagons, engines, tools and shoes. Population 
in 1910, 14,508. 

Chillicothe, Mo., county-seat of Livingston 
co., 75 mi. e. of Kansas City, on the Hannibal & 
Saint Joseph, the Chicago, Milwaukee & Saint' 
Paul and the Wabash railroads. The principal 
industries include railroad roundhouses and 
machine shops, a furniture factory, a foundry, 
flouring mills and cigar factories. The sur¬ 
rounding country is agricultural. The town 
was first settled in 1835 and became a city in 
1845. Population in 1910, 6265. 

Chillon, shil'lon or she yoN\ a castle and 
fortress in Switzerland, situated at the east end 


Chills and Fever 


China 


of Lake Geneva, on an isolated rock, standing 
out from the edge of the lake. It was once an 
important stronghold of the counts of Savoy, 
and the prison house of Francis Bonnivard, 
prior of Saint Victor, Geneva, from 1530 to 
1536. It has acquired interest from Byron’s 
poem, The Prisoner of Chilian. 

Chills and Fever. See Malaria. 

Chimaera, Id me'ra, in classical mythology, a 
fire-breathing monster, with the head of a lion, 
the body of a goat and the tail of a dragon. 
He was killed by Bellerophon. See Beller- 
ophon. 

Chimbora'zo, a mountain of Ecuador, in 
the province of Quito, about 120 mi. from the 
coast. Though not the loftiest summit of the 
Andes, it rises to the height of 20,703 feet above 
the level of the sea and is covered with per¬ 
petual snow 2600 feet from the summit and 
upward. In 1880 it was ascended to the top 
for the first time by Whymper. 

Chimes, a species of music, mechanically 
produced by the strokes of hammers against a 
series of bells, tuned to a given musical scale. 
The hammers are lifted by levers, acted upon 
by pins, or pegs, projecting from a cylinder, 
which is made to revolve by clock-work and is 
so connected with the striking part of the clock 
mechanism that it is set in motion by it at cer¬ 
tain intervals of time, usually every hour, or 
every quarter of an hour. 

Chim'ney, an erection, generally of stone or 
brick, containing a passage, or flue, by which 
the smoke of a fire or furnace escapes to the 
open air. The longer the chimney, the more 
perfect is its draught. The principle involved 
in the action of a chimney is that a column of 
heated air is lighter than a column of cool air 
of equal height. In the mixture of the warm 
and cool air, the result is that the weight of the 
latter forces the warm air upwards, and thus an 
upward movement of air is produced. Chim¬ 
neys are not of great importance in warm cli¬ 
mates, but in cooler regions the proper building 
and care of them require special attention. 
Previous to the twelfth century house chimneys 
were not in use, and they did not become general 
in England and Europe until the seventeenth 
century. 

Chimney Swift. See Swift. 

Chimpan'zee, the native Guinea name of a 
large, man-like African ape, of the same genus 
as the gorilla. When full-grown it is sometimes 
about five feet high, but it is not so large and 
powerful as the gorilla Its body is covered 



with coarse black hair, which is very long on 
the head and shoulders. The chimpanzee walks 

bent over, with 
its knuckles 
resting on the 
ground, though 
it is able to 
go e r e c t. It 
feeds on fruits, 
often robbing 
the gardens of 
the natives, and 
constructs a sort 
of nest among 
the branches of 
the trees. It is 
common in menageries, where it shows much 
intelligence and docility*. The chimpanzee i3 
indeed the most intelligent of the apes. See Ape. 

China, the largest nation of Asia and third 
largest in the world, situated between 18° and 
54° north latitude, and 74° and 135° east longi¬ 
tude. Its greatest extent from east to west is 
3000 miles, from north to south 2400 miles, and 
its area is estimated at 4,277,000 sq. mi. It 
is bounded on the n. by Siberia; on the e. by 
Siberia, Korea, the Yellow Sea, East China Sea 
and South China Sea; on the s. by Indo-China 
and India; on the w. by Russian Turkestan. 
Its general shape is that of a triangle, with the 


CHIMPANZEB 


longest side on the northwest. The coast line is 
regular, but it contains at the north the indenta¬ 
tion forming the Gulf of Pe-che-le, and at the 
south the Gulf of Tonkin. Between these points 
there are numerous good harbors and roadsteads. 
For descriptions of the divisions of China see 
East Turkestan, Manchuria, Mongolia, 
Tibet. 

Surface and Drainage. The nation is 
bounded by lofty mountain ranges, including 
the Himalayas on the south and the ranges of 
the Plateau of Pamir on the west. China prop¬ 
er is divided into three regions; the great 
central plain, extending west from Pekin to the 
Hoang-Ho River and southward to the Yang- 
tse-kiang; the western highland, from the Hoang- 
Ho westward to the border; and the south¬ 
eastern region, which consists of lowlands and 
hill country. The western region is generally 
high and mountainous, with numerous deep 
valleys through which flow mountain streams 
tributary to the Hoang-Ho and Yang-tse-kiang. 
In the southeastern portion there is no very 
high land, though the country is decidedly hilly, 
so that it is well drained along the valleys of the 


China 


China 


Hoang-Ho and Yang-tse in the great plain. 
In the southeast are the most fertile regions, 
and it is in these that the population is the most 
dense and that agriculture is brought to the 
highest degree of perfection found in the country. 

The most important rivers are the Hoang-Ho, 
flowing in an irregular course from northeast, 
east, south and then northeast, and watering the 
northeastern portion of China; the Yang-tse- 
kiang, which has a general northeasterly course 
and flows across the southern part of the country, 
and the Pi-Ho, which drains the region around 
Peking. Each of these rivers is navigable, 
and all are important waterways. The Hoang- 
Ho has changed its lower course many times in 
the last few centuries, and on such occasions 
it has caused much destruction to life and prop¬ 
erty. The valleys of all these rivers are densely 
populated. Lakes are few and small, the 
largest being Tung-ting-hu, which is about 60 
miles long and located near the center of China. 
In the northern part of the country the surface 
is covered with a deposit of brownish-yellow 
earth of remarkable fertility. 

Climate. The greater part of China belongs 
to the temperate zone, but it has what is called 
an excessive climate. At Peking in summer 
the heat ranges from 90° to 100° in the shade, 
while the winter is so cold that the rivers are 
usually frozen from December to March. At 
Shanghai the maximum temperature reaches 
100°, and the minimum falls at least to 20° 
below freezing point. In the south the climate 
is of a tropical character, the summer heat rising 
to 120°. Here the southwest and northeast 
monsoons blow with great regularity and divide 
the year between them. Among the greatest 
scourges of the country are the dreadful gales 
known as typhoons (See Typhoon). They 
never fail to commit great devastation, though 
happily they always give such timely notice of 
their approach that preparations can be made. 
The Hoang-Ho and Yang-tse-kiang basins have 
a rather equable temperature, due to the soft, 
moist winds of the Pacific. 

Mineral Resources, China is well supplied 
with minerals, the most important of these being 
coal and iron and inexhaustible beds of kaolin, 
or porcelain clay. The largest coal field known 
in the world exists in the highlands in the prov¬ 
ince of Shan-si, where extensive beds of anthra¬ 
cite occur. West of this province is an extended 
deposit of bituminous coal, and other fields are 
found west of the Hoang-Ho River, while smaller 
fields, but equally important because of their 


location, are found west of Peking. Coal fields 
also cocur along the Siang and Lei rivers and 
at various places in the valley of the Yang-tse. 
Iron ore is found in the vicinity of the coal 
regions in Shan-si, as are also limestone and 
potter’s clay. In the province of Yun-nan, in 
the extreme southwestern part of China, are 
found deposits of copper, silver, lead and gold. 
Salt occurs in the valley of the Hoang-Ho, near 
the great bend where the river turns eastward, 
and also in the southwest part of Yun-nan. 
Lack of transportation facilities and the absence 
of suitable tools and machinery prevent any of 
these deposits from being extensively worked. 

Vegetation and Animal Life. See Asia, 
subheads Vegetation and Animal Life. 

Agriculture. With the exception of ex¬ 
tremely mountainous regions, all of China is 
covered with a fertile soil, which will admit 
of successful cultivation as far as 7000 and 
8000 feet above the sea. Agriculture is the 
most important industry and the one most 
highly venerated. Under the empire, once a year 
the emperor, in the presence of the highest court 
officials and royal family, turned a furrow and 
sowed some seed in the honor of agricul¬ 
ture. Land is divided into small holdings, the 
largest farms never exceeding a few acres in 
extent. While the most primitive methods and 
implements are used, the exceeding care and 
patience of the Chinese in fertilizing and tilling 
the soil assure good crops, and a failure is sel¬ 
dom known. The land along the hills and on 
the upper levels is often irrigated by water 
from the streams. Since these hills are graded 
into terraces, the entire country, in many of 
the river valleys, has the appearance of a vast 
garden. The water is raised from the river by 
wheels containing buckets. These are operated 
by animal power or by men. The first wheel 
raises the water to the first level, a second takes 
it from this to the next, and so on until it has 
been transferred to the highest point in the dis¬ 
trict to be irrigated. From this point it is dis¬ 
tributed through small channels, so that each 
section of land receives its share. Rice is the 
principal food of the people and is by far the 
most important crop. Most of this is grown 
in the middle and southeastern sections of the 
country. In the latter, two mature crops are 
obtained each year, and a third crop is usually 
grown, which is plowed under green for manure. 
In the northern and northwestern sections, a 
variety known as dry-soil rice is cultivated lii\ 
ordinary grains. In ttu« rejrion. also, wheat, 


China 


China 


corn and other cereals are abundant. The 
raising of vegetables is also an important indus¬ 
try. Next to rice, from a commercial point of 
view, the most important crops are tea and the 
mulberry, which is the food for the silkworm 
(See Silk; Tea). Ginseng, tobacco, sugar 
cane, indigo and numerous plants valuable for 
their roots are also raised, and the poppy is 
grown to such an extent that the importation 
of opium is now comparatively small. In the 
southern part of the country cotton is also 
grown to some extent. 

Manufactures. The Chinese have made 
considerable progress in manufacture, though 
they have never taken kindly to the introduction 
of the tools and machinery of the nations of 
Europe or America. Nearly all of their 
processes are carried on by manual labor, and 
in their various manufactures the Chinese dis¬ 
play the greatest skill. The most important 
industry is the manufacture of silk, finer grades 
of which are produced in China than in any 
other country of the world. The embroidery of 
silk is also carried on with remarkable pro¬ 
ficiency, showing a high degree of mechanical 
skill and the finest artistic taste. Silk is the 
most common fabric for clothing of the wealthy 
classes and is prescribed for the raiment of all 
public officials of high rank. The poorest 
people also manage to deck themselves in coarser 
varieties—if not as a common article of apparel, 
at least on festive occasions. Cotton goods are 
manufactured to a considerable extent, though 
a large quantity of these are now imported 
from Europe and the United States. The 
manufacture of a fabric known as grass cloth 
is also important. This has an appearance of 
linen and is valuable in the manufacture of 
clothing. Another important industry is the 
manufacture of chinaware, in which for centu¬ 
ries the Chinese excelled all other nations, but 
their productions are now surpassed by certain 
European countries. Lacquer ware is also made 
in large quantities. The metal work most de¬ 
serving of notice consists in the manufacture of 
small articles, such as gongs, mirrors and statuettes 
in copper and bronze, and in the production of 
various kinds of carved and filigree work in gold 
and silver. The Chinese are also noted for their 
skill in making small articles from ivory, wood, 
shell and mother-of-pearl, such as card cases, 
seals, combs and chessmen. Many of these ob¬ 
jects are remarkable for their beautiful carvings. 

Transportation and Commerce. The in¬ 
land trade of China is very extensive, so large 


that its amount cannot readily be estimated. 
The rivers and canals swarm with boats, junks 
and barges of all sizes. Roads in the interior 
are entirely lacking or are so poor that they will not 
admit of the passage of wagons. For this reason 
water communication is all-important, and the 
great rivers, such as the Hoang-Ho and the 
Yang-tse-kiang, furnish the chief outlet to the 
sea. The Yang-tse is navigable for large 
steamers for more than 1100 miles and for 
smaller boats for a considerable distance 
beyond this. The Grand Canal copnecting 
Hankow with Tientsin, 700 miles long, has 
been in use since the eleventh century and is 
still an important waterway. Considering the 
extent of the country, railroads are few, there 
being in all only about 3000 miles in operation. 
These are under the management of foreign 
corporations and were constructed by foreign 
capital. The important lines are the one 
extending to Port Arthur from the main line of 
the Trans-Siberian railway; a line from Peking 
along the shore of the Gulf of Pe-che-le to con¬ 
nect with the Port Arthur line; also another, 
under British control, extending from Peking 
to Tientsin. A German corporation has been 
granted the right to build a line from Peking 
east and southeast to the Bay of Kiao-chau, 
which, when completed, will furnish an impor¬ 
tant outlet for a large tract of fertile and densely 
populated country. An American concession 
has been obtained for the construction of a line 
from Hankow to Canton and neighboring ports. 
This line will be about 1000 miles in length. 
The development of railway enterprises is 
greatly hindered by the religious belief of the 
people, nearly all of whom are ancestor wor¬ 
shipers. Without disturbing burial places it is 
impossible to construct railway lines, and since 
the Chinese consider the remains of their ances¬ 
tors sacred, they do not readily consent to their 
removal. 

The foreign commerce of the country amounts 
to about $550,000,000 a year. Of this over 
$300,000,000 is in imports. Cotton goods are 
the chief imports, silks the chief exports. The 
foreign commerce is carried on through what are 
known as treaty ports, cities specially opened 
by government decree to foreign trade. There 
are forty-two such cities, some of them being 
on the great rivers, several hundred miles inland. 

Spheres of Influence. The leading nations 
in foreign trade are India, Great Britain, the 
United States, Germany and France. Because 
of the tendency of the Chinese to retain all the 


China 


China 


customs of their ancestors, customs which are so 
far removed from modern business methods as to 
greatly impede commercial transactions, the 
leading European nations have secured special 
privileges extending over certain territories. 
These are known as spheres of influence. Pre¬ 
vious to the Russo-Japanese War Manchuria and 
Port Arthur were practically under Russian con¬ 
trol. Hong Kong and the neighboring cities on 
the coast are under British influence. Until the 
War of the Nations the region around Kiao- 
chau was under German influence (see Kiao- 
chatj). These spheres of influence are not con¬ 
trolled by foreign governments, but within them 
each government is granted special concessions, 
which give its citizens advantages over those of 
other foreign nations in the same territory. 

Inhabitants. The Chinese belong to the 
Mongolian race, but they do not represent the 
harsher features of this race, as found in the 
genuine Tartars. They are of low stature, have 
small hands and feet, a dark complexion, wide 
forehead, straight black hair and eyes and eye¬ 
brows obliquely turned upward at the outer 
extremities. The queue is the most striking 
thing in their appearance. They are inferior to 
Europeans and Americans in bodily strength, 
but are superior to most other Asiatics in their 
physical endurance. They have many excellent 
moral qualities, are strongly attached to their 
homes, hold age in respect, are unusually indus¬ 
trious and toil continually for the support of 
their families. In the interior, w T here they have 
not been corrupted by contact with foreign 
nations, they exhibit remarkable simplicity of 
manners. However, the Chinese are not free 
from vices. They are noted for treachery and 
for their untruthfulness in dealing with strangers. 
They are exceedingly polite in their intercourse 
with one another, but this politeness often lacks 
sincerity. Gambling is a universal vice among 
them, and many are addicted to opium smoking 
and to drunkenness. 

Their food consists largely of rice, fresh pork, 
fish, fowls and vegetables. Beef and mutton 
are seldom used. Tea is the universal beverage 
and is drunk in large quantities. 

With rare exceptions, the men and women of 
the household are kept strictly separate. Mar¬ 
riage is universal and is provided for at an early 
age, and the negotiations are conducted by 
parties who devote themselves to match-making. 
The marriage ceremony is characterized with 
gay processions and other festivities. While 
polygamy is not sanctioned by law, it is often 


practiced. Women are considered far inferior 
to men and have practically no social or educa¬ 
tional advantages. Among the poor, baby girls 
are sometimes killed soon after birth. 

The houses are usually of one story and built 
of bricks, earth or thatch, with brick tiling for 
a roof and wood for the interior. The interior 
contains a series of rooms which are separated 
and lighted by intervening courts and commu¬ 
nicate with one another by side passages. In 
the best houses there are chambers set apart 
for the worship of ancestors, and in these relig¬ 
ious ceremonies are regularly performed. The 
languages of different parts of the empire are 
kindred, but include many dialects. 

Government. From the beginning of history 
until our own time China was an empire, more 
or less absolute according as the ruling sovereign 
was strong or weak. The crown was nominally 
hereditary through the eldest son, but it was 
not unusual for the emperor to designate as his 
heir a younger favorite son or some other near 
relative of marked ability. The emperor was 
honored and worshiped as the “Son of Heaven,” 
and in matters of legislation and administration 
his authority was supreme, except that his 
actions must conform in a general way to cer¬ 
tain principles laid down in the sacred books of 
Confucius. As a matter of fact, however, the 
government was a bureaucracy; the governing 
class was composed of Manchus. While the 
officials were compelled in theory to obey the 
emperor without hesitation, in practice they 
were allowed considerable freedom, and thiev¬ 
ing, extortion and oppression were characteristic 
of the administration. 

After various attempts to reform the govern¬ 
ment proved of little avail, a republic was 
established in 1912 and the Manchu3 driven 
from power. But the republic was short-lived, 
for in 1915 the monarchy was restored, and 
Yuan Shi Kai, who had been president, now 
became emperor. This change was made with 
the approval of the leading men of China, but 
not without threats of further revolution. As 
in the days of Manchu rule, the emperor has 
supreme power, and it is probable that an 
emperor of such ability as Yuan Shi Kai will 
be able to keep his throne even under circum¬ 
stances which drove out the Manchus. 

Religion. The principal religious beliefs are 
Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism. Con¬ 
fucianism and Taoism were developed within 
the country, but Buddhism was introduced 
from India. Christian missionaries are not 


China 


China 


encouraged, but are usually tolerated, although 
occasionally some of them are murdered by 
anti-foreign fanatics. There are possibly a mil¬ 
lion followers of the Roman Catholic faith, and 
various Protestant denominations have each a 
few thousand converts. Under the old empire 
Confucianism was practically a state religion, 
and the emperor, as the Son of Heaven, publicly 
practiced the sacred rites of the worship of 
Heaven. Yuan Shi Kai in 1914 restored this 
official worship, but he explained that he was 
not establishing a state religion and that the 
religious liberty of the individual would not be 
disturbed. He said that the restoration of the 
worship of Heaven was merely a public recogni¬ 
tion “of the moral principles which did in the 
past and should in the future strongly contribute 
to the stability and honor of the state.” 

Education. For centuries the Chinese have 
been known for their education. Among the 
men illiteracy is almost unknown, and all classes 
have the highest respect for literature. Primary 
instruction is provided throughout the empire 
and is open to all classes. The primary schools 
are supplemented by higher institutions, which 
culminate in the great university. Recently 
measures have been taken to place the colleges 
and the university on a footing very closely 
resembling that of the best universities of 
Europe and America. The study of sciences 
and of the history of foreign nations has been 
attempted. Competitive examinations in litera¬ 
ture, philosophy and religion are conducted 
throughout the country at stated periods, and 
it is through these that the best government 
positions are obtained. 

Army and Navy' See Army, subhead 
China; Navy, subhead China. 

Cities. China contains a large number of great 
cities, but most of these are merely aggregations 
of people, and only a few are of political or 
commercial importance. Among these are 
Peking, the capital; Hankow, Tientsin, Canton, 
Shanghai, Nanking, Fu-chow and Hong Kong, 
each of which is described under its title. 

Language and Literature. The Chinese 
language is the most important and most widely 
spread of the so-called monosyllabic languages 
of eastern Asia, in which each word is uttered 
by a single movement of the organs of speech. 
There is no alphabet, and each word is repre¬ 
sented by a single symbol or character. The 
same word may stand for a number of different 
ideas, and its exact meaning must be decided 
l?y its position in the sentence. There are also 


certain words which are attached to other words 
to show grammatical relations. As there are 
only about five hundred simple syllabic sounds 
in the Chinese language to do duty for a vastly 
larger number of ideas, a system of tones is 
employed. Some sounds may be pronounced 
in as many as eight different tones, each of 
which has a different meaning; and it is this 
system of tones which makes the language so 
difficult for a Westerner to learn. The written 
characters in the Chinese language were proba¬ 
bly originally hieroglyphics, or rude copies of 
the objects designed to be expressed by them; 
but the hieroglyphic features have almost 
entirely disappeared, and many of the symbols 
are formed of what seems to be an arbitrary 
combination of lines. Most of the written 
characters are formed by a combination of the 
old ideographic element with a phonetic element. 
In writing or printing, characters are arranged 
in vertical columns, to be read from top to 
bottom. 

The Chinese are a distinctly literary people, 
and their literature is unquestionably the most 
important of Asia. It dates back perhaps to 
the twentieth century B. c., but the first impor¬ 
tant volume of which we have knowledge was 
written in the twelfth century B. c This was 
one of the “Five Classics,” or King, which 
formed the oldest and one of the most important 
parts of Chinese literature. The “Four Books,” 
written by Confucius and his disciples, are next 
in value to the earlier “Five Classics.” Among 
the most important works which have been pro¬ 
duced in China are the historical and geograph¬ 
ical works, and writings on the sciences and 
on philosophy are also numerous. There are, 
too, voluminous collections of poetry and 
numerous dramas and novels which have never 
been made known to Europe. 

History. The early history of China, which, 
according to some authors, reaches back for 
hundreds of thousands of years, is enveloped in 
mystery; and not until the twenty-seventh 
century before the Christian era was there a 
ruler of whom we have any record. Even of 
this ruler little is known beyond the fact that he 
built roads and organized the empire into admin¬ 
istrative departments. With the reign of Yao 
in 2356 B. c., Confucius begins his record, and 
although his statements cannot be taken for 
authentic historical information, his accounts 
of Yao and his successors, Shun and Yu, give 
a general idea of the epoch. These kings 
greatly extended the empire and ruled so well 


China 


China 


and so justly that they have been regarded as 
the model for all rulers since their time. Their 
successors lacked their virtues, however, and by 
1766 B. c. a new dynasty had arisen, known as 
the Shang dynasty. The most of the rulers of 
this line, which reigned until 1154 B. c., were 
unfitted for ruling, and the country prospered 
little under them. Better times came to the 
empire with the accession of the Chow dynasty 
in 1122 b. c. It is certain that under this 
dynasty internal improvements took place in the 
country; the people changed generally from 
their former nomadic life to a settled agricul¬ 
tural existence, and civilization reached a com¬ 
paratively high point for that early date. It 
was diming this dynasty, about 551 B. c., that 
the great Confucius was born. Internal feuds 
disturbed the empire, and by 255 B. c. the Chow 
dynasty was overthrown by the Tsin or Chin 
dynasty, from which China takes its name. 

One of the rulers of this line, wishing to have 
his own reign go down in history as the beginning 
of the empire, destroyed all the literature which 
dealt with previous ages and had over four 
hundred learned men buried alive that they 
might not produce new records. He was 
defeated in his project, however, by the fact 
that the books of Confucius were discovered 
later. It was during the Tsin dynasty that the 
great Chinese Wall was erected to keep out the 
Tartars (See Great Wall of China). From 
the days of the Tsins a number of dynasties 
have ruled China, some of which brought the 
country to a very high point. Under the Tang 
rulers learning was especially cultivated. In 
924 A. D. printing was invented, and the practice 
of binding the feet of the women was introduced 
at about the same time. 

In the thirteenth century the Mongols overran 
China and established the Mongol dynasty. 
Kublai Khan, the most famous of the Mongol 
rulers, brought China to a point of splendor 
which it had never attained before. During 
his reign Marco Polo, the Venetian traveler, 
visited China and brought back accounts of the 
high state of civilization which it had attained. 
Under the reign of the Ming dynasty, which 
ruled from 1368 to 1644, the Portuguese visited 
China and settled at Macao. Under the last 
half of this line internal affairs in China became 
greatly disturbed. Rebel bands throughout the 
empire menaced the throne itself, and finally, 
to put down these rebels, the Manchus were 
invited into the country. They did indeed put 
down the rebel armies, but when their object 


was accomplished and the Chinese wished them 
to retire, they refused to do so. They took 
possession of Peking and proclaimed a Manchu 
prince emperor, thus founding the last royal 
dynasty of China. Opposition to the new 
rulers gradually died out, and the conquerors, 
who were of course greatly inferior in numbers 
to the conquered, were gradually merged with 
the original inhabitants of the country. Almost 
the only custom which the Manchus forced upon 
the Chinese was the wearing of the cue, or pigtail. 
The most famous of the Manchu emperors was 
Kang-hi, who reigned from 1662 to 1722. He 
was no less remarkable as a scholar than as a 
general, as is proved by the dictionary of the 
Chinese language which was published under 
his superintendence. Tibet was deeded to the 
emperor during his rule, and the country was 
exceedingly prosperous. The one great disaster 
was the earthquake at Peking, in which, it is 
said, 400,000 people were killed. 

From its earliest days China has show T n an 
unconquerable aversion to intercourse with 
other countries. As long, however, as English 
trade relations were conducted through the 
East India Company, matters were generally 
satisfactory, because the Chinese, unable to 
understand the political standing of the com¬ 
pany, treated with them as with a company of 
merchants with whom no diplomatic relations 
were necessary. When in 1834 the monopoly 
of Chinese trade was taken from the East India 
Company and the British merchants were 
represented in China by a commissioner ap¬ 
pointed by the British government, misunder¬ 
standings at once arose. The opium trade was 
the chief cause of disagreement. All traffic in 
opium had been decreed illegal by the Chinese 
government, but the decrees had never been 
strictly enforced. When, however, in 1837, the 
Chinese government did determine to enforce 
its edicts, the British government, to whom the 
opium trade was worth millions of dollars 
annually, refused to act with China. As a result, 
w 7 ar broke out in 1840. The struggle was most 
disastrous for China, and in the treaty of peace 
which was signed in September, 1842, the 
English were given permission to trade freely 
at Shanghai, Ning-Po, Fu-Chow, Canton and 
Amoy and received Hong Kong, besides an 
indemnity of $21,000,000. No mention was 
made of the opium question. Two years later 
the United States and France each succeeded in 
making a trade treaty with China, similar to the 
one w'hich Great Britain had made. 


China 


China 


In 1856, as China refused redress for certain 
grievances of Great Britain, war again broke 
out between the two countries. France joined 
England, and the struggle was not terminated 
until 1860, when the allied armies took Peking. 
This war, which, added to internal troubles, 
had seemed an unmixed calamity, proved to 
have its compensations, for the foreign powers 
after the treaty with China showed themselves 
ready to help her in putting down a severe 
rebellion which had arisen in the empire. Hung- 
siu-tseuen, a schoolmaster who through reading 
Christian tracts had grasped some idea of the 
Christian religion and had convinced himself 
that he was a Heaven-sent ruler, headed a 
rebellion which in the three years after 1850 
reached great dimensions. The rebels had 
seized Nanking, which they had made their 
capital, and Hung-siu-tseuen had had himself 
proclaimed the founder of a new dynasty, to 
be called the Peace dynasty. A small army, 
under the leadership, first, of an American, 
Ward, and later, under the leadership of Charles 
George Gordon, finally succeeded in putting 
down the rebellion, which is generally known as 
the Tai-ping Rebellion (See Gordon, Charles 
George) . The ten years that followed witnessed 
a general revival of the strength of the empire. 
In 1894 China became involved in a war with 
Japan (See Japan, subhead History). Diffi¬ 
culties in Korea, over which China claimed 
suzerainty, led to the interference of the two 
powers, and their inability to agree as to the 
future government in Korea at last brought on 
open war. China was completely defeated in 
the struggle and was forced, in 1895, into a 
treaty which ceded 'to Japan the island of 
Formosa and the peninsula of Liao-tung, on 
which was situated Port Arthur, China’s strongest 
fort. China also promised the payment of an 
indemnity of about $150,000,000. The Euro¬ 
pean powers, especially Russia, were by no 
means willing to have the Liao-tung peninsula 
given up to Japan. Russia herself had been 
for years very anxious to gain possession of an 
ice-free port for her Siberian territory, and Port 
Arthur seemed to offer the most favorable out¬ 
let. In conjunction with France and Germany, 
therefore, she brought such pressure to bear 
upon Japan that she gave back, to China all of 
the ceded territory except the island of Formosa. 
Russia, as the price of her interference, obtained 
special privileges, among them a lease of the 
harbor of Port Arthur. 

For a time after the close of the struggle with 


Japan, it seemed as if the reform party in China 
might gain the upper hand and bring China into 
a closer relationship with other nations. The 
great influence of the empress dowager, how¬ 
ever, finally made reactionary measures prevail, 
and anti-foreign demonstrations broke out in 
many parts of the country. By decree of the 
emperor, practically all power was placed in 
the hands of the empress dowager, and it was 
generally felt that she was encouraging, tacitly, 
at any rate, the outbreaks in various parts of 
the empire. In Shan-tung the organization 
popularly known as the Boxers became active. 
The origin of this movement is obscure. Its 
name is derived from a translation of the Chinese 
name, “The fist of righteous harmony,” and it 
appears to have been originally a secret associ¬ 
ation of men chiefly from the lower classes. It 
is not known whether the empress and her 
advisers deliberately turned the revolutionary 
movement into channels where it would work 
against the foreigners, rather than against the 
imperial government, or whether they carelessly 
allowed it to grow until it was beyond their con¬ 
trol; at any rate, even when the Boxers carried 
about banners on which were inscribed, “Exter¬ 
minate the foreigners and save the dynasty,” 
the representatives of the powers at Peking were 
able to secure no measures against them. 

Matters went from bad to worse. In May, 
1900, a number of Christian villages were 
destroyed, and many native converts were mas¬ 
sacred in the neighborhood of the capital. In 
June, the chancellor of the Japanese legation 
was murdered, and later in the same month the 
German ambassador, Baron von Ketteler, was 
assassinated. The foreign representatives, with 
their ncnseholds and guards, collected in the 
British legation, which they fortified, and here 
they were besieged by the Chinese troops. Not 
until the fourteenth of August did the allied 
forces of Japan, Russia, England, America and 
France reach Peking and relieve the legations. 
They were just in time, for the situation of the 
besieged had grown desperate. Peking was 
taken by the allies, the imperial court escaped 
into the interior and the army marched through 
the sacred Forbidden City. After some months 
of negotiation with Li Hung Chang and Prince 
Ching, the terms of peace agreed upon were 
submitted to the imperial government. The 
treaty provided for an indemnity to be paid to 
all states, societies and individuals who had 
suffered in the rising; forbade the importation 
or manufacture of arms or ammunition; threat- 


China 

ened with death any members of anti-foreign 
societies, and provided for the fortification of 
the legation district and the occupation by the 
foreign powers of certain strategic points be¬ 
tween the capital and the coast. In February, 
1901, these terms were accepted. 

The political unrest next showed itself in a 
demand for constitutional reform, and on Sep¬ 
tember 20, 1907, an imperial edict announced a 
plan for a national assembly. While this and 
other promised reforms only added strength 
to the demands for complete representative 
government, the more extreme reformers had 
been preaching revolution against the Manchu 
dynasty. In October, 1911, rioting broke out 
in Wuchang, on the Yangtse River opposite 
Hankow, in connection with a great railroad 
strike. Imperial troops were sent to enforce 
order, but their presence furnished an excuse 
for a general uprising against the Manchus. 
Yuan Shi Kai, who had been appointed prime 
minister in an attempt to save the dynasty, 
tried to compromise with the revolutionists, but 
failed. The imperial family and most of the 
high Manchus left Peking on December 28, and 
on February 12, 1912, the Manchu dynasty 
resigned all rights to the throne. 

The conviction that the Manchu dynasty 
must come to an end was driven home to the 
court by the organization of a provisional repub¬ 
lican government, under the presidency of Dr. 
Sun Yat Sen, an educated and widely-traveled 
patroit, who had urged revolution against the 
the Manchus as early as 1896. An agreement 
was reached between the republicans and the 
imperialists by which Yuan Shi Kai should 
succeed Sun Yat Sen as provisional president. 
This change was made in March, 191?, and the 
republic was regularly established. 

As president, Yuan Shi Kai naturally wanted 
the constitution of the republic to provide a 
highly centralized government, with great 
power in the hands of the president, but it was 
not until he had quarreled with the new national 
assembly and had dissolved it that he had his 
way. Under this constitution he became, on 
October 10, 1913, the first regularly elected 
president of the republic. His position was 
no easy one. He had already, in the July 
previous, suppressed a serious revolution in the 
southern provinces, he had great difficulty in 
meeting the expenses of government, and he 
was forced to make great concessions to foreign 
powers in order to borrow money abroad. At 
the same time Russia in Mongolia and Great 


Chinch Bug 

Britain in Tibet were demanding recognition of 
their interests, and except for a shadowy form 
of suzerainty northern or Outer Mongolia and 
western or Outer Tibet were lost to China. 
The War of the Nations, in spite of Chinese 
proclamations of neutrality, involved the viola¬ 
tion of Chinese territory (see Kiaochau). 

Throughout these troubles it became increas¬ 
ingly clear that China was a republic only in 
name, and that Yuan Shi Kai was practically 
an absolute ruler. Rumors of a return to 
monarchy were frequent, but early in November, 
1915, it was officially announced that no immed¬ 
iate change in the government was contemplated 
in that year. Yet before the year was out, 
China first made the presidency hereditary in 
the family of Yuan Shi Kai, and finally, throw¬ 
ing off all pretence, put Yuan on the emperor’s 
throne. Population, about 400,000,000. 

Chinch Bug, the worst insect pest known 
to the wheat raiser. It is widely distributed, 
appears every year and in favorable seasons 
multiplies to such an enormous extent that it 
attacks all grains and most of the forage 
plants. Rarely is there any serious injury 
done during years when an abundance of 
rain falls, and often a period of wet weather 
quickly exterminates the insects for that 
year. The chinch bug is small and blackish and 
belongs to the same class with the squash bug. 
Each female lays many eggs, each of which is 
cylindrical and squarely cut off at one end. 
The newly hatched insect looks much like the 
mature bug and is pale reddish in color, with a 
yellow band across the abdomen. The insects 
begin feeding at once, climbing the stem of the 
plants and keeping together in great masses, 
moving on when¬ 
ever the food is ex¬ 
hausted. Two broods 
are raised in a year, 
and the number of 
insects appearing 
some seasons is be¬ 
yond computation. 

They move some¬ 
times a quarter of 
a mile or more at a 
time, crawling over 
the ground and feast¬ 
ing on whatever (Adult, much enlarged) 
comes in their way. It is thought that 
$20,000,000 would not cover the annual 
damage of these bugs. Their spread can 
be prevented by making a barrier of tar 



Chinchilla 


Chios 


around a field, or by digging holes, into which 
the insects fall and are destroyed, or, still 



CHINCH BUO 


a, b, eggs; c, newly hatched larva; d, tarsus; e, larva 
after the first shedding of its skin; /, the same, after 
the second molting; g, the pupa; h, enlarged leg of the 
perfect bug; j, tatsus of the same, still more enlarged; 
i, beak. 

better, by burning waste grass and refuse near 
the fields in the fall, as here the bugs hide 
during the winter. 

Chinchil'la, a South American animal 
very closely allied to the rabbits, which they 
resemble in the general shape of the body and 
in the fact that their hind legs are longer than 
their fore legs. One species, about fifteen 
inches long, is covered with a beautiful pearly- 



CHINCHILLA 


gray fur, which is of great value. The chin¬ 
chilla lives in colonies in the mountains of 
most parts of South America, makes numer¬ 
ous and very deep burrows and feeds on roots 
and tough vegetable growths. It is of a 
gentle, sportive nature. 

Chinese Exclusion, the policy adopted 
by the United States government, about 1880, 
because of the vast immigration of Chinese 
laborers into the Western states, to the 
alleged detriment of American laborers in 
that region. An act to restrict this immigra¬ 
tion was passed in 1879, but was vetoed by 
President Hayes, because it violated a treaty 
with China, signed in 1868. In 1880 a treaty 
was made, giving the government of the 
United States the right to regulate, limit or 
suspend Chinese immigration, but withhold¬ 
ing the right absolutely to prohibit it. An act 


of 1882 suspended immigration for ten years 
and forbade the naturalization of Chinese. 
As amended in 1888 it practically made Chi¬ 
nese exclusion permanent. In 1892 the Geary 
Law was passed, continuing exclusion for 
another ten years and compelling the China¬ 
men already in the United States to secure 
certificates of residence. This was reaffirmed 
and enlarged in 1902. The total number of 
Chinese in the United States in 1910 was 
71,531, as compared with 89,863 in 1900. 

Chin-Kiang-Fu, cheen kyahng foo', a city 
and port of China, situated on the right bank 
of the Yang-tse-kiang, near the junction with 
the Imperial Canal. It has many advan¬ 
tages for trade, which in 1904 amounted to 
$22,500,000. The city was taken by the 
British in 1842 and suffered severely during 
the Tai-ping rebellion in 1853. Population in 
1910, estimated at 180,000. 

Chinook', the name of a warm, dry wind, 
which blows over the Rocky Mountains in 
Montana and Wyoming and some of the Cana¬ 
dian provinces. It is supposed to have taken 
its name from the Chinook Indians, as the 
early settlers of this region thought that it 
came from the territory occupied by them. 
The Chinook is caused by the descent of the 
current along the mountain slopes. As the 
air descends it becomes warmed by compres¬ 
sion, and a descent of 5000 feet will raise the 
temperature about 30 °. Previous to its 
passing over the mountains the air has been 
robbed of its moisture, so that in its begin¬ 
ning the Chinook is a dry wind and as its 
temperature is raised its capacity for moisture 
is increased; consequently, it melts the snow 
and clears the sky. The Chinook occurs dur¬ 
ing the winter and early in the spring and 
makes it possible for stock to graze in these 
regions during the entire winter. The hot 
winds of Kansas and Nebraska probably 
originate from a similar cause, and the wind 
in the Alps, known as the Foehn, is similar 
to the American Chinook. 

Chinook, the name of a tribe of indians now 
extinct, but once strong and important in 
their home near the mouth of the Oregon. 
There they built large canoes and fished in 
the sea. Many words of their language are 
still in use in the Chinook jargon, & medley of 
English, French and indian words that is the 
language of the traders among tribes farther 
north. 

Chios. See Scio. 





Chipmunk 

Chip'munk, the popular name in America 
for several small squirrels, but especially for 
the small striped ground squirrel, about six 
inches long, and in color reddish-brown, with 
black and white stripes along its back. It is 
a cheery, friendly little creature, so very 
curious that it will approach very close to a 
person and sometimes will even fearlessly 
explore the clothing. Its shrill notes of alarm 
often attract attention, when it would remain 
wholly unseen if it kept quiet. Its food con¬ 
sists of nuts and grains, which it stores up 
for winter use. 

Chip'pewa. See Ojibwa. 

Chippewa Falls, Wis., the county-seat of 
Chippewa co., about 100 mi. e. of Saint Paul, 
Minn., on the Chippewa River, and on the 
Wisconsin Central, the Chicago & North¬ 
western, the Chicago, Milwaukee & Saint 
Paul and other railroads. The city has good 
water power and contains manufactures of 
lumber, wooden ware, flour, foundry products, 
shoes and other articles. The state home for 
feeble-minded and the county insane asylum 
are located here, and the city has a public 
library and a fine court-house. The place was 
settled in 1838 and was chartered as a city 
in 1870. Population in 1910, 8893. 

Chiromancy, Ici'ro man'sy. See Palmistry. 

Chiron, ki'ron, the most famous of the 
Centaurs, a race fabled as half men, half 
horses. He lived at the foot of Mount Pelion, 
in Thessaly, and was celebrated through all 
Greece for his wisdom and for his skill in 
medicine and music. 

Chiroptera, ki rop'te ra, an order of mam¬ 
mals which have more or less the power of 
flight. The fingers of the fore limbs are 
greatly elongated and carry, between these 
and the hind limbs and tail, a thin membrane 
which forms the wings. The bones are slender 
and filled with a light marrow, and this les¬ 
sens the animal’s weight. The ears are often 
large in proportion to the size of the animal, 
whose sense of hearing is remarkably acute. 
See Bat; Vampire Bat. 

Chitons, ki'tonz, a large family of mollusks 
whose shells consist of many successive portions 
often in contact with, and overlapping, one 
another, but never truly joining. The shell 
in the typical chiton is composed of eight 
pieces, and the animal adheres to rocks or 
stones after the fashion of the limpet. * 

Chivalry, shiv'al ry, a term which indicates 
strictly the organization of knighthood as it 


Chloral 

existed in the Middle Ages, and in a general 
sense the spirit and aims which distinguished 
the knights of those times. The education of a 
knight in the days of chivalry was as follows: 
When he was seven years of age he was sent to 
the court of some baron or noble knight, where 
he acquired skill in the use of arms, in riding and 
in attending on the ladies. When his age and 
experience in the use of arms had qualified him 
for war, he became an esquire or squire and 
accompanied his lord in battle. The third and 
highest rank of chivalry was that of knight¬ 
hood, which was not conferred before the 
twenty-first year, except in the case of dis¬ 
tinguished birth or great achievements The 
person to be knighted prepared himself by 
confessing, fasting and keeping vigil all night 
over his arms; religious rites were performed, 
and then, after promising to be faithful, to 
protect ladies and orphans, never to lie nor 
utter slander, to live in harmony with his 
equals and to protect the Church, he received 
the accolade, a slight blow on the neck with 
the flat of the sword from the person who 
dubbed him a knight. This was often done on 
the eve of battle, to stimulate the new knight 
to deeds of valor, or after the combat, to 
reward signal bravery. Though chivalry had 
its defects, chief among which, perhaps, was a 
tendency to certain affectations and exag¬ 
gerations of sentiment, yet it tempered in a 
very beneficial manner the rudeness of feudal 
society. As a system of*, education for the 
nobles, it taught them the best ideals, social 
and moral, which the times could understand. 

Chloral, klo’ral, a colorless, oily liquid, 
commonly prescribed in the form of its hy¬ 
drate. It is the poisonous principle in ‘‘knock¬ 
out drops.” The hydrate of chloral, as now pre¬ 
pared, is a white, crystalline substance, which 
in contact with alkalies, separates into chloro¬ 
form and formic acid. Chloral kills by para¬ 
lyzing the action of the heart. It is a hypnotic, 
as well as an anesthetic, and it is frequently 
substituted for morphia. It has been success¬ 
fully used in delirium tremens, Saint Vitus’s 
dance, poisoning by strychnia, lockjaw and 
some cases of asthma and whooping cough. It 
should be taken with great caution and under 
medical advice, as an extra dose may produce 
serious symptoms, and even death. In the 
treatment of poisoning by chloral, the person 
should be kept awake, his body warmed by 
friction or otherwise, and artificial respira¬ 
tion resorted to, if necessary. 


Chlorate 

CHLORATE, klo'rate, a salt formed by the 
combination of chloric acid with a base. Chlo¬ 
rates are decomposed by red heat, nearly 
all of them being converted into metallic chlor¬ 
ides with the evolution of pure oxygen. 

They burn so quickly with easily-burning sub¬ 
stances that an explosion is produced by slight 
causes. The chlorates of sodium and potassium 
are used in medicine. The latter, in doses of from 
five to twenty grains, is largely used in scarlet fever 
and inflamed throat. It is also used in the manu¬ 
facture of matches, fireworks and percussion caps. 

Chlorine, klcfrin or klo'reen, an elementary 
gaseous substance, discovered by Scheele in 
1774. It was afterward proved by Davy to be 
a simple body, and from its peculiar yellowish- 
green color the name chlorine was given to it. 
It is always found in nature in a state of com¬ 
bination. United with sodium it occurs very 
largely as the chloride of sodium, or common 
salt, from which it is liberated by the action of 
sulphuric acid and manganese dioxide. Chlorine 
is a very heavy gas, being about two and a half 
times as heavy as ordinary air; it has a peculiar 
smell, and when inhaled irritates the nostrils 
most violently, and also the windpipe and lungs. 
It is not combustible, though it supports the 
combustion of many bodies. In combination 
with other elements it forms chlorides, which have 
most important parts in many manufacturing 
processes, as well as chlorates and chlorites. 
Chlorine may be liquefied by cold and pressure, 
and then it becomes a transparent, greenish- 
yellow, limpid liquid. Chlorine is a very power¬ 
ful bleaching agent. Hence, in the manufacture 
of bleaching powder, it is used in immense 
quantities. It is a valuable disinfectant where 
it can be conveniently applied, as in the form 
of chloride of lime. 

Chlorite Schist, kb'rite shist, a mineral of 
a grass-green color, opaque, usually friable or 
easily pulverized, composed of little spangles, 
scales, prisms or shining small grains, and con¬ 
sisting of silica, alumina, magnesia and pro¬ 
toxide of iron. It is closely allied in Character to 
mica and talc. See Mica; Talc. 

Chloroform, klo'ro form, a volatile, colorless 
liquid of an agreeable, fragrant, sweetish, apple 
taste and smell. It was discovered by Sou- 
beiran and Liebig in 1831. It is prepared by 
cautiously distilling a mixture of alcohol, water 
and chloride of lime, or bleaching powder. Its 
use as an anesthetic was introduced in 1847 by 
Professor James Y. Simpson, of Edinburgh. 
For this purpose its vapor is inhaled. The 


Choate 

inhalation of chloroform first produces slight 
intoxication; then, frequently, slight muscular 
contractions, unruliness and dreaming; then 
loss of voluntary motion and consciousness, the 
patient appearing as if sound asleep, and at last, 
if too much be given, death by coma and syncope. 
When skillfully administered in proper cases, it 
is considered one of the safest of anesthetics; but 
in its use certain precautions must be observed, 
as its application has frequently proved fatal. 
Chloroform is a powerful solvent, dissolving 
resins, wax, iodine, strychnine and other sub¬ 
stances. 

Chlorophyll, kWro fit, the green coloring 
matter of plants, which plays the most important 
part in plant life, as it breaks up the carbonic 
acid gas taken in by the leaves, into two elements, 
returning the oxygen to the air and converting 
the carbon, with the water obtained from the 
roots, into starch. Starch can be formed by 
leaves only in the presence of light. Hence, 
leaves which are deprived of light, bleach oi 
turn white. 

Choate, chote, Joseph Hodges (1832- ), 

an American lawyer and diplomat, bom at 



Salem, Mass. He was educated at Harvard 
University and Law School, and settled in New 
York, where he gained the highest distinction 
as a lawyer, especially in the prosecution of the 
Tweed Ring and in the Income Tax Cases 
before the Supreme Court. He represented the 



Choate 


Cholera 


United States in the Bering Sea controversy, and 
in 1899 he was nominated by President McKinley 
as ambassador to Great Britain. He served with 
rare ability until 1905, when he returned to his 
practice in New York. 

Choate, Rufus (1799-1859), an American 
jurist and orator, born at Ipswich, Mass. In 
1830 he was elected to Congress, being reelected 
in 1832. In 1841 he succeeded Daniel Webster 
in the United States Senate, serving until 1845. 
He was probably the most scholarly of American 
public men and was among the greatest forensic 
orators America has produced. In his long 
career of thirty-six years as a lawyer, he lost but 
few cases, owing to his exceptional power as an 
advocate before juries. 

Choc'olate, a paste composed of the kernels 
of the cacao tree, ground and combined with 
sugar and vanilla, cinnamon or other flavoring 
substance; also, a drink made by dissolving 
chocolate in boiling water or milk. Chocolate 
was used in Mexico long before the arrival of 
the Spaniards, and it is now largely used in 
South America, Spain, Italy and Germany, but 
in England cocoa, which is a preparation from 
the same fruit, is much more common. The 
cocoa bean, from which chocolate is made, is 
the seed of a mushy pod, which is the fruit of 
the cacao, or cocoa, tree. This tree is found 
in Central America, Mexico, South America, 
the W est and East Indies, Brazil and Caracas. 
The cocoa bean is about the size of a pecan 
nut. The kernel of the bean is called the nib, 
and from the nibs chocolate and cocoa are made. 
The beans are roasted for the purpose of making 
the shells brittle, so they will come off easily. 
When cooled, the beans are run through a 
machine, which removes the shells and leaves 
the nibs free and clean. The nibs are then 
ground to a thick paste. The ground chocolate 
is placed in kettles for more complete stirring; 
then, after having been transferred to tins, it is 
taken to the cooling room to harden into cakes, 
which are afterwards wrapped for shipment. 

Choc'taw, the most advanced and one of the 
largest of the indian tribes, living in the southern 
United States, east of the Mississippi. De Soto 
met them in 1540 and fought a bloody and 
destructive battle. When the French came, 
the Choctaw immediately formed a friendship 
with them. Under the United States they met 
with the fate of other tribes, and in 1837 they 
were removed to the Indian Territory, where 
they established their independent government, 
built churches, erected school buildings and 


under a well-established system of laws lived 
happily till their friendship with the South in 
the Rebellion lost for them a large portion of 
their lands. In 1900, in the Choctaw nation 
there were about 10,000 indians, the same num¬ 
ber of negroes and 8000 whites. See Five 
Civilized Tribes. 

Choiseul-Amboise, shwah zul'ahN bwahz 
Etienne Francois, Due de (1719-1785), a 
French statesman. After distinguishing him¬ 
self in the War of Austrian Succession, he 
returned to Paris, where the favor of Madame 
de Pompadour furnished the means of gratifying 
his ambition. He served as ambassador at 
Rome and later at Vienna, and then became in 
reality prime minister of France. While hold¬ 
ing this position he was one of the commission 
to negotiate the treaty which closed the French 
and Indian War, and at the time he prophesied 
the rebellion of the American colonies within 
twenty-five years. His fall was brought about 
in 1770 by a court intrigue, supported by Madame 
du Barry, the new favorite of the king. He was 
banished to his estates, but his advice in political 
matters was frequently taken by Louis XVI. 

Choke Damp or After Damp, the name given 
to the gas found in coal mines after an explosion 
of fire damp. See Carbonic Acid Gas. 

Cholera, kol'e rah, Asiatic, a contagious 
and very fatal disease, cases of which are almost 
always present in certain warmer parts of Asia. 
From these localities the disease has from time 
to time spread into other parts of the world, 
and caused epidemics accompanied by terrible 
loss of life. The disease first appeared in 
Europe in 1829, and in 1831 spread to America. 
Sometimes the patient is suddenly stricken down 
and dies within a few hours. In the more ordi¬ 
nary form, the disease commences with vomiting 
and purging, which increase in violence for 
from twelve to thirty-six hours, soon after which 
the patient dies in fever, or recovers. It has 
been learned that the contagious element is 
carried off in the excrement of cholera patients 
and is communicated to other persons through 
water or food. Doctor Koch maintains that 
the cause of the disease is a bacillus, which 
enters the small intestines and multiplies there 
with extraordinary rapidity. From being shaped 
like a minute, curved rod, it has been called the 
comma bacillus. The cholera is a filth disease, 
and the only successful means of arresting an 
epidemic is the establishment of the most rigid 
sanitary regulations. Not only should the 
patient be promptly isolated, but all excrement 


Cholula 


Christ 


should be destroyed and every article used 
about the patient should be carefully disinfected 
by steam or, in the case of vessels, by being 
washed in a five per cent solution of carbolic 
acid, followed by washing in boiling water. 
All who have to do with a cholera patient should 
be extremely careful to cleanse their faces, 
hands and clothes, and should not go out among 
other people without the most rigid disinfection. 
In the United Stases, no ship from a cholera- 
infected port is permitted to land its passengers 
until after a five days’ quarantine, and if cholera 
has been on board, the ship is held until at least 
a week has elapsed without a case of the 
disease. 

Cholera Morbus is a disease which usually 
occurs during the summer and is characterized 
by copious vomiting and purging, with violent 
griping and cramps of the abdomen and lower 
extremities, accompanied by great weakness. 
It is usually caused by overloading the stomach, 
by excessive drinking of ice water or by eating 
indigestible or impure food. 

Cholera Infantum is a name sometimes given 
to a severe and dangerous diarrhea to which 
infants are subject in hot climates, or in the 
hot season in temperate regions. 

Cholula, cho loo'lah, a town of Mexico, 
situated 60 mi. s. e. of Mexico. It was formerly 
a large city, the sea tof the religion of the Aztecs, 
or ancient Mexicans. Cortez found there more 
than 400 temples and 20,000 houses. One of 
the temples, built in the form of a pyramid, 
still remains, each side of its base measuring 
1440 feet, and its height over 164 feet. On 
the top is a chapel of Spanish origin. Popula¬ 
tion, 10,000. 

Chopin, sho paN', Frederic Francois 
(1809-1849), a celebrated pianist and musical 
composer, of French extraction, born at War¬ 
saw, Poland. He went to Paris in 1831, on 
account of the political troubles in Poland, and 
remained there almost till his death. As pianist 
he attracted the attention of critics before he 
was twenty years old, and at the same age he 
had composed several mazurkas and nocturnes, 
which still stand among the best extant, he 
himself never excelling and rarely equaling his 
early powers. All of his works display a rare 
gift of poetic fancy and beauteous melody, and 
they abound in passages of the greatest difficulty, 
but are never harsh or strained. 

Chopsticks, the Chinese substitute for knife, 
fork and spoon at meals. They consist of two 
smooth sticks of bamboo, wood or ivory, which 

40 


are used for conveying meat to the mouth. The 
Chinese use them with great dexterity. 

Choragic, koraj'ik, Monument, of Lysic - 
rates, the beautiful monument erected in 334 
B. c. in Athens, and still standing. It was 
built in honor of the choragus, or music director, 
Lysicrates, who had received a prize for exhibit¬ 
ing the best musical peformance. For a long 
time it was called the Lantern of Demosthenes, 
because of the story that Demosthenes had 
lived in it. It is also said that it was used by 
Lord Byron as a study. 

Chord, kord, in music, the simultaneous 
sounding of different tones. The common 
chord consists of a fundamental note and the 
third and fifth notes in the scale beginning 
with the fundamental note. When the interval 
between the fundamental note and its third is 
two full tones, the combination is a major 
chord’, when the interval is a tone and a half, 
the combination is termed a minor chord ; when 
the intervals between the bass note and its third, 
and between the third and the fifth, are each a 
tone and a half, the chord is called diminished 
The tonic chord is made up of the key note and 
its third and fifth; the dominant chord consists 
of the dominant, or fifth, of the scale, accom¬ 
panied by its third and fifth; the subdominant 
chord consists of the subdominant, or fourth, of 
the scale, and its third and fifth. 

Chorea, ko re'ah See Saint Vitus’s Dance. 

Chorus, ko'rus, originally an ancient Greek 
term for a troop of singers and dancers, intended 
to heighten the pomp and solemnity of festivals. 
During the most flourishing period of ancient 
tragedy (500-400 b. c.), the Greek chorus was 
a troop of males and females, who, during the 
whole representation, never quitted the stage, 
in the intervals of the action chanting songs. 
In the beginning it consisted of a great number 
of persons, sometimes as many as fifty; but the 
number was afterward limited to fifteen. 

In music the chorus is that part of a composite 
vocal performance which is executed by the 
whole body of singers, in distinction to the 
solo airs and passages for selected voices. The 
singers who join in the chorus are also called 
the chorus. The term is also applied to the 
verses of a song in which singers join the soloist, 
or the union of a company with a singer in repeat¬ 
ing certain couplets or verses at certain periods 
in a song, these verses being also called choruses. 

Christ (meaning an anointed one), a title of 
Jesus of Nazareth, now used almost as a name 
or as part of his name. 


Christchurch 

Christ'church, a town of New Zealand, 
capital of the province of Canterbury and the 
see of the primate of New Zealand, situated on 
the Avon River, 7 mi. from the sea. It contains 
a number of handsome buildings, among which 
are the provincial government offices, the 
cathedral. Saint Michael’s church, the supreme 
court and the town library. There are high 
class educational institutions, a fine park and a 
botanic garden. Population in 1911, 53,116. 

Chris'tian IX (1818-1906), king of Denmark, 
succeeded to the throne in 1863. His family 
connections among the reigning houses of Europe 
were remarkable. His eldest daughter, Alex¬ 
andra, was the wife of Edward VII of England; 
his second daughter, Dagmar, the mother of 
Czar Nicholas II of Russia; his second son, 
George I, king of Greece. 

Christian X (1870- ), king of Denmark, 

son of Frederick VIII and grandson of Christian 
IX. He succeeded to the throne on May 14,1912, 
on the death of his father. He was not without 
experience in the affairs of the kingdom, for he 
had frequently been left in charge during his 
father’s absence. His first speech, promising to 
guard the happiness and liberty of his people, 
won him popularity. 

Christian Endeavor, The United Society 
of, an interdenominational religious organiza¬ 
tion of young people of the Protestant churches. 
The first society was organized by Rev. Francis 
Clark, D.D., at Portland, Maine, in 1881, and 
numbered about fifty members. The principles 
upon which the society is founded are: “Per¬ 
sonal faith in Jesus Christ; loyalty to the indi¬ 
vidual church and to the denominational organi¬ 
zation and loyalty to the universal church of 
Christ in every land.” The society has an 
interdenominational board of over 100 trustees, 
whose powers are simply advisory and who 
act as a bureau of information; it is in no sense 
a body of control. Every local society is 
entirely under the control of its own church and 
denomination. The society had in July, 1912, 
79,077 societies, with a membership of 3,953,850, 
chiefly in the United States, Canada and Great 
Britain, and in Australia, China, Japan, India 
and other missionary lands. 

Christian Era, the great era now almost 
universally employed in Christian countries for 
the computation of time, supposed to begin 
with the birth of Christ. The custom of reck¬ 
oning time from the birth of Christ was intro¬ 
duced in the sixth century by a monk named 
Dionysius; but it is believed that in his compu- 


Christianity 

tations he made a mistake of about four years, 
so that, according to the best authorities, Christ 
was born about four years before the beginning of 
our era. The practice of computing time from 
Christ’s birth did not became general until the 
fifteenth century. 

Christiania or Kristiania, krees te ah'ne a, 
a city and port, the capital of Norway, at the 
head of the long, narrow inlet called Christiania 
Fjord, about 60 mi. from the open sea, or 
Skagerrak. The houses are mostly of brick 
and stone, generally plain buildings, devoid of 
architectural pretension. Among the important 
public buildings are the royal palace, the house 
of representatives, or Storthing (parliament), 
the governor’s palace, a citadel, the great 
arsenal of the kingdom, a university, the Trinity 
church and the cathedral. Attached to the 
university, the only one in Norway, opened in 
1813, is a museum containing a fine collection 
of antiquities. The city is quite important com¬ 
mercially and Is the principal seaport of Norway. 
The manufactures consist of woolen cloth, iron¬ 
ware, tobacco, paper, leather, soap, spirits and 
glass, and there are extensive breweries. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 241,834. 

Christian'ity, the religion instituted by Jesus 
Christ. It teaches that there is no salvation 
without Christ’s atonement, without faith in 
God and a belief in the gospels. Though the 
great moral principles which it reveals and 
teaches and the main doctrines of the gospel 
have been preserved without interruption, the 
genius of the different nations and ages has 
materially colored its character. The first com¬ 
munity of the followers of Jesus was formed at 
Jerusalem soon after the death of their Master. 
Another was formed at Antioch in Syria about 
65 A. D., where the followers of Jesus were first 
called Christians. The travels of the apostles 
spread Christianity through the provinces of 
the Roman Empire, Palestine, Syria, Asia Minor, 
Greece, the islands of the Mediterranean, Italy 
and the northern coast of Africa, as early as the 
first century. At the end of the third century almost 
one-half of the inhabitants of the Roman Empire, 
and of several neighboring countries, professed 
this belief, and in the twentieth century it is still 
spreading through missionary work. Many 
heretical branches sprang from the main trunk. 
From the Gnostics, who date from the days of 
the apostles, to the Nestorians of the fifth century, 
the number of sects was large, and some of them 
exist to the present day. The most important 
events in the subsequent history of Christianity 


Christians 


Christmas 


are the separation of the Eastern and Western 
churches early in the eighth century, and the 
Western reformation, which may be said to have 
commenced with the sectaries of the thirteenth 
century and ended with the establishment of 
Protestantism in the sixteenth. The number 
of Christians now in the world is computed at 
477,000,000. Of these about 230,000,000 are 
Roman Catholics, 98,000,000 belong to the 
Greek Church and 149,000,000 are Protestants. 

Christians or Disciples of Christ, a relig¬ 
ious body which took form in the United States 
from the activities of Thomas and Alexander 
Campbell in Western Pennsylvania, Western 
Virginia and Ohio. The leaders were formerly 
Presbyterians, but, accepting immersion, they 
were later associated for a time with the Baptist 
Church. Closely allied to this movement at one 
time was that of the Christian Connection, under 
the leadership of Rev. B. W. Stone of Kentucky. 
Later on separations occurred which led to the 
development of the Christian Church, or the 
Disciples of Christ, under the leadership of the 
Campbells and their associates, notably Walter 
Scott and B. W. Stone. Their chief articles of 
faith are the New Testament as the only creed, 
the unity of the Church of Christ, baptism as 
the immersion of believers, and weekly celebra¬ 
tion of the Lord’s Supper. The Disciples have 
more than 13,000 churches, 8000 ministers and 
1,533,000 members. 

Christian Scientists (The Church of Christ, 
Scientist), a Christian sect originated in 1866 by 
Mary Baker Eddy, whose book, Science and 
Health with Key to the Scriptures, containing a 
complete statement of the teachings and practice 
of Christian Science, is the text-book of the de¬ 
nomination. Christian Science is based upon the 
proposition that God is all in all, the only self- 
existent, infinite Being or Life, and that man in 
the image and likeness of God is spiritual and 
not material. This system of religious teaching 
differs from all others in its declaration that evil 
and matter are unreal and illusive, since God who 
is infinite Good and is Spirit, or Mind, cannot 
create, or be manifested in, anything unlike Him¬ 
self. The truthfulness of this concept, it is de¬ 
clared, can be and is proved by actual demon¬ 
stration of healing and regeneration through 
Christ as the universal spiritual ideal. Christ 
Jesus is regarded by Christian Scientists as the 
individual ideal of Truth. 

The denomination has over 1,400 church or¬ 
ganizations in the world. Large and beautiful 
church edifices have been erected and dedicated 


in Boston, New York, Chicago, Detroit, Los 
Angeles, London, England, and in many other 
cities. The Christian Science Church was 
founded by Mrs. Eddy in 1879 “to commemorate 
the word and works of our Master, which should 
reinstate primitive Christianity and its lost ele¬ 
ment of healing.” In 1892 the church was re¬ 
organized as The First Church of Christ, Scien¬ 
tist, in Boston, Massachusetts, known as The 
Mother Church. All Christian Science churches 
are branches of The Mother Church. Lesson- 
sermons compiled from the Bible and Science and 
Health with Key to the Scriptures are read at the 
Sunday services in these chinches. 

All Christian Science churches maintain free 
public reading rooms where those seeking infor¬ 
mation on the subject of Christian Science have 
access to the Bible, Science and Health, Mrs. 
Eddy’s other works, and the periodical literature 
of the denomination. Over five thousand auth¬ 
orized Christian Science practitioners are regu¬ 
larly devoting their time to the practice of 
Christian Science Mind healing. See Eddy, 
Mary Baker. 

Christina, kre stee'nah (1626-1689), queen 
of Sweden, daughter of Gustavus Adolphus. 
After the death of Gustavus, the States-General 
appointed guardians to the queen Christina, but 
in 1644 she took upon herself the government. 
A talent for business and great firmness of 
purpose distinguished her first steps, but she 
was so eccentric that she accomplished little of 
importance. Her patronage of learned men, 
artists and the like was lavish to the point of 
extravagance. In 1650 she caused herself to be 
crowned with great pomp, and with the title of 
king, but in 1654 she abdicated in favor of her 
cousin Charles Gustavus. 

Christmas, kris'mas, the festival of the Chris¬ 
tian church, observed annually on December 
25, in memory of the birth of Christ, and cele¬ 
brated by a particular church service. The 
time when the festival was first observed is not 
known with certainty; but it is spoken of in 
the beginning of the third century by Clement 
of Alexandria, and in the latter part of the fourth 
century Chrysostom speaks of it as of great 
antiquity. As to the day on which it was cele¬ 
brated, there was long considerable diversity, 
but by the time of Chrysostom the Western 
church had fixed on December 25, though no 
certain knowledge of the day of Christ’s birth 
existed; and the Eastern church, which had 
favored January 6, gradually adopted the same 
date. The existence of heathen festivals cele- 


Christmas Rose 

brated on or about this day doubtless accounted 
in large measure for its selection; and Brumalia, a 
Roman festival held at the winter solstice, when 
the sun is, as it were, born anew, has often been 
mentioned as having a strong bearing on the 
question. In the Catholic, Greek, Anglican 
and Lutheran churches, there is a special 
religious service for Christinas day; and, con¬ 
trary to the general rule, a Catholic priest can 
celebrate three masses on this day. Most other 
churches hold no special service, but almost 
everywhere throughout Christendom it is kept 
as a holiday and occasion of social enjoy¬ 
ment. 

Christmas Rose, the black hellebore, so 
called from its flower, which resembles a large 
white rose. Its foliage is dark and evergreen, 
and the plant blossoms during the winter months. 

Christy, Howard Chandler (1873- ), an 

American illustrator, born in Morgan co., Ohio. 
In 1893 he went to New York, and soon after¬ 
ward his work began to appear in magazines. 
Particularly popular were his drawings of men 
and women in high life. During the Spanish- 
American War he went to Cuba, and furnished 
articles and illustrations for Scribner's Magazine, 
Harper’s Magazine and Collier’s Weekly. He il¬ 
lustrated many works of fiction, and each year 
for several years produced pictures in color for a 
gift-book edition of some one of Riley’s poems. 

Chromatic, kro mal’ik, in music, a term 
applied to notes and peculiarities not belonging 
to the diatonic scale. Thus, a chromatic chord 
is a chord which contains a note or notes foreign 
to the diatonic scale; chromatic harmony, har¬ 
mony consisting of chromatic chords. The 
chromatic scale is a scale made up of thirteen 
successive semitones, that is, the eight diatonic 
tones and the five inserted intermediate tones. 
See Music. 

Chrome, krome, Yel'low, a chromate of lead, 
a beautiful pigment, much used in the arts, 
varying in shade from deep orange to a pale 
canary yellow. 

Chromite, kro’mite, or Chro'mic Iron Ore, 

a compound of iron, chromium and magnesia 
of black or brownish-black color. Chromite 
is the most important source of chromium, and 
it is also extensively used in the manufacture of 
paints. In the United States it occurs in abun¬ 
dance in the Appalachian and the Rocky Moun¬ 
tain regions, and in Europe it is found in Norway, 
the Shetland Islands, Bohemia and France. 

Chromium, a metal which forms very hard 
Steel-gray masses. It never occurs free, but 


Chronograph 

may be obtained by reducing the oxide. In 
its highest degree of oxidation it forms a com¬ 
pound of a ruby-red color. In the pure state 
it has no practical applications. It takes its 
name from the various and beautiful colors 
which its oxide and acid communicate to minerals 
into whose composition they enter. It is the 
coloring matter of the emerald and beryl. 
Chromium is employed to give a fine, deep green 
to the enamel of porcelain and to glass. The 
oxide of chromium is of a bright grass-green or 
pale yellow color. This element was originally 
discovered in 1797 by Vanquelin, in the native 
chromate of lead of Siberia. See Chrome 
Yellow. 

Chronicles, kron’e klz. Books of, (acts of 
the days), two books of the Old Testament, 
which formed only one book in the Hebrew 
canon, in which it is placed last. Its division 
into two parts is the work of the Seventy, who 
gave it the title Paraleipomena, meaning things 
omitted. The name Chronicles was given to 
it by Jerome. The book is one of the latest 
compositions of the Old Testament and is sup¬ 
posed to have been written by the same hand 
as Ezra and Nehemiah. According to its con¬ 
tents the book forms three great parts: 1, 
genealogical tables; 2, the history of the reigns 
of David and Solomon; 3, the history of the 
kingdom of Judah from the separation under 
Rehoboam to the Babylonian captivity, with 
a notice in the last two verses of the permission 
granted by Cyrus to the exiles to return home 
and rebuild their temple. The Chronicles pre¬ 
sent many points of contact with the earlier 
scriptures, historical and prophetical, especially 
with the books of Samuel and of Kings. 

Chron'ogram, a device by which a date is 
given in numeral letters by selecting certain 
letters of an inscription and printing them larger 
than the others, as in the motto of a medal struck 
by Gustavus Adolphus in 1632: ChrlstVs DVX; 
ergo trlYMphYs; where the values of C and the 
other capitals regarded as Roman numerals gives 
the required figure when added together. 

Chron'ograph, an instrument for measuring 
and recording minute portions of time. While 
there are several patterns of chronograph, they 
all operate on the same principle, and the most 
common pattern is that of a watch, which has 
in addition to the ordinary hands two second 
hands, called by some the second hand and two 
halves, and placed one above the other. The 
outer end of the lower hand has a small cup, 
which is filled with a blackfluid. and has a 


Chronology 

minute hole at the bottom, while the corre¬ 
sponding end of the upper hand is bent 
down so as just to reach the hole. One of the 
most common uses of this instrument is in timing 
races. At the starting of the race the observer 
presses a spring, whereupon the bent end of 
the upper hand passes through the hole in the 
cup and makes a black mark on the dial, 
instantly rebounding. As each horse passes 
the winning post, the spring is pressed and a 
dot is made. Thus the time occupied by each 
horse is noted. A chronograph of this pattern 
will register to one-tenth of a second. Much 
more delicate instruments, however, are used in 
astronomical observatories, for measuring the 
time when a heavenly body, such as a star, 
reaches a given position. Instruments of this 
sort will'register to the thousandth of a second, 
when operated by electricity. 

Chronol'ogy, the science which treats of 
time and has for its object the arrangement and 
exhibition of historical events in order of time, 
and the ascertaining of the intervals between 
them. Its basis is necessarily the method of 
measuring or computing time by regular divi¬ 
sions or periods, according to the revolutions 
of the earth or moon. The motions of these 
bodies produce the natural division of time into 
years, months and days. As there can be no 
exact computation of time or placing of events 
without a fixed point from which to start, dates 
are fixed from an arbitrary point, or epoch, 
which forms the beginning of an era. Thus, 
the epoch almost universally in use to-day, as 
the point from which all events are dated, is 
the birth of Christ. The letters B. C. and 
A. D. (Anno Domini, in the year of our Lord) 
are used to designate respectively dates before 
and after the birth of Christ. Among the 
Greeks time was reckoned by Olympiads, the 
four-year intervals between successive games, 
and the beginning of their era was approximately 
776 B. c. The Romans calculated from the 
time of the founding of Rome, 753 B. c., and 
the Mohammedans from the flight of Moham¬ 
med (See Hegira). 

Chronom'eter, any instrument that meas¬ 
ures time, as a clock, watch or dial; but, specif¬ 
ically, the term applied to those time-keepers 
which are used for determining the longitude 
at sea, or for any other purpose where accurate 
measurement of time is required, with great 
portability in the instrument. Marine chro¬ 
nometers generally beat half seconds, and are 
hung in gimbals in boxes six or eight inches 


Chrysolite 

square. The pocket chronometer does not 
differ in appearance from a watch, except that 
it is somewhat larger. See Watch. 

Chrysalis, kris'a lis, an intermediate form 
which butterflies, moths and many other insects • 
assume, after they cease to be larvae and before 
they reach their winged, or perfect, state. 
While in the chrysalis state, the animal is resting * 
in apparent insensibility, entirely without food, 
though it continues to breathe. The chrysalis 
in most cases is protected from observation by 
its color, which closely resembles the object to 
which it is attached. In some cases the larva 
weaves around itself a cocoon, in which the 
change to the pupa stage takes place. 

Chrysanthemum, a large genus of plants, 
resembling the asters. Some are herbs, and 
others are shrubs. They bear large heads of 
flowers on the ends of the stems or branches. 
Two species are common weeds in Great Britain: 
the ox-eye daisy, a meadow plant with white 
ray flowers, and the com marigold, a weed 
with golden-yellow ray flowers. The former 
has been introduced and become common in 
the United States. The gorgeous chrysanthe¬ 
mums of the gardens are varieties of Chinese 
and Japanese plants. These are extensively 
cultivated in the hothouses of most countries 
and are remarkable for the great variety of 
form and the brilliancy of color which they 
show during the period of their autumn bloom¬ 
ing. The chrysanthemum is the national flower 
of Japan, and the open variety with sixteen ray 
flowers is the imperial emblem. 

Chrys'ober'yl, a variety of beryl that occurs 
in six-sided crystals which are sometimes com¬ 
pressed. It contains considerable alumina, has 
a glassy luster and is of various shades of green. 
Occasional specimens appear red when held 
between the eye and the light. One variety 
forms the gem called cat’s-eye, and other varie¬ 
ties suitable for gems are occasionally found, 
but most specimens are of inferior quality. It 
is known as oriental topaz and oriental chryso¬ 
lite, and is found in Ceylon, the Ural Mountains 
and Brazil. In the United States, chrysoberyl 
occurs at Haddam, Connecticut, and at Stow, 
Norway and various other localities in Maine. 

Chrys'olite, a mineral composed of silica, 
magnesium and iron. Its prevailing color is 
some shade of green. It is harder than glass, 
but is less hard than quartz; it is often trans¬ 
parent, sometimes only translucent. Very fine 
specimens are found in Egypt and Brazil, and 
it occurs in large quantities in Macon co., 


Chrysoprase 

North Carolina, but it is of little value as a 
jeweler’s stone. 

Chrysoprase, kris'o prctze, a stone found in 
small quantities in Germany and some parts of 
* America, formerly much prized as a gem. It 
is apple-green in color, but under the influence 
of heat it loses its brilliance and is therefore 
not much used. It is mentioned in the Bible, 
and was probably known to the ancients. 

Chrys'ostom, John, Saint (about 345-407), 
“the golden-mouthed” (so named from the gran¬ 
deur of his eloquence), a celebrated Greek 
father of the Church. He studied eloquence with 
Libanius, the most famous orator of his time, 
and soon excelled his master. After having 
studied philosophy with Andragathius, he 
devoted himself to the Holy Scriptures and 
determined to quit the world and consecrate his 
life to God in the deserts of Syria. After six 
years spent in retirement, studying and meditat¬ 
ing, he was forced by illness to return to Antioch. 
He was ordained deacon and presbyter, and in 
398 he went to Constantinople. Here the faith¬ 
ful discharge of his duties in lessening expenses 
and trying to reform the clergy led to his banish¬ 
ment to the Armenian highlands. Because of 
sympathy shown him, the emperor banished 
him to Pityus, on the northeast shore of the 
Black Sea. Chrysostom died on the journey. 

Chub, a European river fish, of the carp 
family. The body is oblong, nearly round, 



CHUB 


and the head is broad. The head and back are 
green, the sides are silvery and the belly is white. 
This fish frequents deep holes in rivers shaded 
by trees, but in warm weather floats near the 
surface and furnishes sport for anglers. It is 
of little account as food and rarely attains the 
weight of five pounds. Allied American species 
receive the same name. See Dace. 

Chuquisaca, choo'ke sah'ka. See Sucre. 

Church, a word which in its widest sense 
denotes the whole community of Christians 
and was thus used by the New Testament 
writers. In a more restricted meaning, it 


Churchill 

denotes a particular section of the Christian com¬ 
munity, differing in doctrinal matters from the 
remainder, as the Roman Catholic Church, the 
Protestant Church, or the leading church of a 
nation, as the English, Scotch or French Church. 
In yet another sense, it signifies an edifice 
appropriated to Christian worship. After the 
conversion of Constantine, the basilicas or public 
halls and courts of judicature and some of the 
heathen temples were consecrated as Christian 
churches. When churches came to be specially 
built for Christian worship, the forms were 
various, but later the form with the cross aisle 
or transept became common. Early British 
churches were built of wood, the first stone 
churches erected being that of Whithorn, Gallo¬ 
way (sixth century), and that of York (seventh 
century). A smaller kind is usually designated 
a chapel. Churches are classed as cathedral, 
when containing a bishop’s throne; collegiate, 
when served by a dean and chapter; conven¬ 
tual or minster, when connected with a convent 
or monastery; abbey or priory, when under an 
abbot or prior, and parochial, when the charge 
of a secular priest. 

Church, Frederick Edwin (1826-1900), 
an American artist born in Hartford, Conn. 
He went to New York and in 1849 was elected 
a member of the National Academy. In 1853- 
1857 he traveled in South America. Later he 
went on an expedition to the coast of Labrador 
and on his return painted his great picture. 
Icebergs. He traveled through the West Indies, 
Europe and Palestine in 1866. His best work 
was the Great Fall at Niagara', other works are 
Damascus, Jerusalem and The Parthenon. 
Church’s pictures are mostly pictorial, and they 
abound in details, to a fault, but they show 
care and skill. 

Church'ill, Randolph Henry Spencer, 
Lord (1849-1895), an English statesman, edu¬ 
cated at Eton and at Oxford. He entered 
Parliament in 1874, and within ten years had 
risen to the position of a recognized leader of 
the Conservative party. In 1885 he was made 
secretary for India in Lord Salisbury’s govern¬ 
ment, and the next year became chancellor of 
the exchequer. In 1886, after the defeat of the 
Gladstone Irish bill, which he opposed, Churchill 
became leader of the House of Commons. 

Churchill, Winston (1871- ), an Ameri¬ 

can novelist, born in Saint Louis and educated 
at the United States Naval Academy at Annap¬ 
olis. He was for a time editor of the Army 
and Navy Journal, and in 1895 he became 


Churchill 


Cialdini 


managing editor of the Cosmopolitan Magazine. 
He has contributed short stories to leading 
magazines, and first gained wide popularity 
through his historical novels, Richard Carvel , 



✓ 

WINSTON CHURCHILL 


The Crisis and The Crossing. In Mr. Crewe's 
Career and in Coniston he portrayed contem¬ 
porary political life in New England. A later 
novel. The Inside of the Cup, deals with the re¬ 
lation of religion to social problems. 

Churchill, Winston Leonard Spencer 
(1874- ), an English statesman. He entered 

the army in 1895 and served in India, and then 
in Egypt. He took part in the Battle of 
Khartum, where he won a medal for gallant 
conduct. After serving during the Boer War as 
correspondent for the London Morning Post, he 
was elected to the House of Commons in 1900. 
He was then appointed Under Secretary of State 
for the Colonies, holding office two years. From 
1908 to 1910 he was President of the Board of 
Trade; from 1910 to 1912, Home Secretary, and 
in 1912 he was appointed First Lord of the Ad¬ 
miralty in the Asquith ministry, being one of the 
youngest men who ever held this office. He has 
written The River War, London to Ladysmith via 
Pretoria, My African Journey and a biography 
of his father. Lord Randolph Churchill. 

Churchill River, a river of Manitoba, Cana¬ 
da, which rises in La Crosse Lake, forms or 


passes throilgh various lakes or lake-like ex¬ 
pansions, the largest being Big or Indian Lake, 
and enters Hudson Bay after a northeasterly 
course of about 900 miles. It is called also 
Missinippi, or English River. 

Churn, a vessel used for preparing butter 
from cream or milk. The oldest and simplest 
pattern consisted of a vessel shaped like the lower 
part of a cone and having a circular hole in the 
center of the cover. The cream was agitated 
by the use of one or more small pieces of board 
containing a number of perforations and 
attached to a vertical handle, which extended 
through the opening'in the cover. By working 
this handle up and down the motion was given 
to the cream or milk. Churns of a later pat¬ 
tern are now in general use and these secure 
the desired result by rotary motion. In cream¬ 
eries large churns operated by power are in use. 
See Butter; Creamery. 

Churubusco, choo'roo boos'ko, Battle of, a 
battle of the Mexican War, fought near the city 
of Mexico, August 20, 1847, between 18,000 
Americans under General Taylor and 25,000 
Mexicans under Santa Anna. The fighting 
was severe throughout one day, the Americans 
being at one time threatened with defeat, but a 
determined rally and counter-attack won an 
advantageous position, from which, by a con¬ 
centrated fire, the Americans compelled the 
surrender of the fortress. The Mexicans 
retreated to the City of Mexico. 

Chyle, Idle, an opaque, milky fluid, found in 
the small intestines during digestion. It is 
formed by the action of the intestinal juices, 
bile and pancreatic juice, on chyme. These 
juices, being alkaline in character, neutralize 
the acidity of the gastric juice. Chyle contains 
the nutritive portion of the food, which is 
absorbed by the villi of the intestines and car¬ 
ried by the lacteals to the thoracic duct. See 
Digestion; Lacteals; Nutrition; Stomach; 
Thoracic Duct. 

Cialdini, chal de'ne, Enrico, Duke of Gaeta 
(1811-1892), an Italian soldier and politician. 
He was forced, on account of his share in the 
insurrection of 1831, to leave Italy, but he fought 
in the Austro-Italian War of 1849 and in the 
Crimea. For his defeat of the papal troops 
and his capture of Gaeta, he received the title 
of duke of Gaeta. He became general of the 
army and viceroy of Naples, was made senator 
and fought against the Austrians in the Seven 
Weeks’ War. In 1876 he became ambassador 
at Paris. 









Cibber 


Cicero 


Cibber, sib’bur, Colley (1671-1757), an 
English dramatic writer and actor. His first 
dramatic effort. Love's Last Shift, appeared in 
1695, and it was followed by Woman’s Wit, the 
Careless Husband and the Non-juror. A court 
pension and his appointment as poet laureate 
drew upon him the rancor of the wits and poets 
of the day, including Pope, who ridiculed him 
in his new Dundad. Cibber himself realized 
that the verses he wrote as laureate were worth¬ 
less. 

Cicada, si ka'da, a large insect, sometimes 
known as the harvest fly. It is one of the 
noisiest of insects, and in late summer it is heard 
in the trees making its peculiar rattling notes on 
the three drum-like mem¬ 
branes which are attached to 
the sides of its body and are 
operated by the wings. The 
females lay their eggs in the 
twigs of trees or shrubs, from 
which the young drop to the 
ground soon after they are 
hatched. The long life they 
live underground is not well 
understood, but finally the 
pupa crawls out upon the 
trunk of a tree or a spear 
of grass, its skin splits open 
along the back, and the full-grown insect emerges. 
At first the wings are merely watery sacs, but in 
a very short time they expand to their full size. 
The most remarkable of the cicadas is the so- 
called seventeen-year locust, whose larvae spend 
from thirteen to seventeen years under ground. 
Sometimes these are numerous enough to do 
great damage to vegetation. 

Cicely, sis'e ly, a popular name applied to 
several plants of the parsley family. Sweet 
cicely, or sweet chervil, is a plant common in 
Great Britain and other parts of Europe. It 
was formerly used in medicine, and in some parts 
of Europe it is used as an ingredient in soups. A 
species of sweet cicely is found in American 
woods from Canada to Virginia. 

Cicero, sis'e ro, Marcus Tullius (106-43 
b. c.), the greatest Roman orator. His family 
was of equestrian rank. His father was a friend 
of some of the chief public men, and Cicero 
received the best education available. At the 
age of twenty-five he came forward as a pleader, 
and he soon won a most favorable reputation. 
In 79 b. c. he visited Greece and profited by the 
instruction of the masters of oratory. Here he 
formed that close friendship with Atticus of 


which his letters furnished such interesting 
evidence. He also made a tour in Asia Minor 
and remained some time at Rhodes, where he 
visited the most distinguished orators and took 
part in their exercises. On his return to Rome his 
eloquence proved the value of his Grecian 
instruction, and he became one of the most 
distinguished orators in the forum. In 76 he was 
appointed quaestor of Sicily, and he behaved with 
such justice that the Sicilians gratefully remem¬ 
bered him and requested that he conduct their 
suit against their governor, Verres. He appeared 
against this powerful robber, and although only 
two of the seven Verrine orations were delivered, 
Verres went into voluntary exile. After this 
suit Cicero was elected aedile in 70, praetor in 
67 and consul in 63. It was then that he suc¬ 
ceeded in defeating the conspiracy of Catiline, 
after whose fall he received greater honors than 
had ever before been bestowed upon a Roman 
citizen. He was hailed as the savior of the 
State and the father of his country, and thanks¬ 
givings in his name were voted to the gods. 
But Cicero’s fortune had now reached the cul¬ 
minating point. The conspirators who had 
been executed had not been sentenced according 
to law, and Cicero, as chief magistrate, was 
responsible for the irregularity. Publius Clodius, 
the tribune of the people, raised such a storm 
against him that he was obliged to go into exile. 
On the fall of the Clodian faction he^was recalled 
to Rome, but he never succeeded in regaining 
the influence he had once possessed. 

In 52 B. c. he became proconsul of Cilicia, 
a province which he administered with eminent 
success. As soon as his term of office had 
expired he returned to Rome, which was threat¬ 
ened with serious disturbances, owing to the 
rupture between Caesar and Pompey. He 
espoused the cause of Pompey, but after the 
Battle of Pharsalia he made his peace with Caesar, 
with whom he continued to all appearance 
friendly and by whom he was kindly treated. 
After the assassination of Caesar he hoped to 
regain his political influence. He allied him¬ 
self with Octavianus and composed those admira¬ 
ble orations against Antony which are known 
as Philippics (after the speeches of Demosthenes 
against Philip of Macedon). Octavianus pro¬ 
fessed to entertain the most friendly feeling to¬ 
ward him, but when he had possessed himself 
of the consulate and formed an alliance with 
Antony and Lepidus, Cicero was proscribed. 

In endeavoring to escape from Tusculum, where 
he was living when the news of the proscription 




Cid 


Cinchona 


arrived, he was overtaken and murdered by a 
party of soldiers. 

Cicero’s eloquence has always remained a 
model. After the revival of learning he was the 
most admired of the ancient writers, and the 
purity and elegance of his style will always place 
his works in the first rank of Roman classics. 

Cid, sid, The, an epithet applied to Ruy or 
Rodrigo Diaz, count of Bivar (1026 ?-l 099), the 
national hero of Spain. He distinguished him¬ 
self by his exploits in the reigns of Ferdinand, 
Sancho and Alphonso VI of Leon and Castile. 
His life appears to have been entirely spent in 
fierce warfare with the Moors, then masters of 
a great part of Spain. His sword, banner and 
drinking cup are supposed still to be in existence 
and are greatly reverenced by the Spanish people. 
Numerous romances in which history was 
mingled with the wildest fables were written 
about him during the sixteenth and seventeenth 
centuries, and he is the hero of a famous tragedy 
(Le Cid) by Corneille. 

Cider, si’dur, a fermented liquor made from 
the juice of apples. The apples are ground and 
crushed until they are reduced to a pulp; the 
juice is allowed to run into casks, where it is 
freely exposed to the air until fermentation takes 
place, when a clear liquor of a pale brown or 
amber color is the result. Unfermented cider 
is extensively used as a beverage and is also 
boiled to the consistency of sirup and used in 
cooking. See Apple; Vinegar. 

Cienfuegos, the'ain jwa'gose, a seaport of 
Cuba, on the south coast of the island, 130 mi. 
s. e. of Havana, with which it is connected by 
railway. It has a safe and capacious harbor on 
the Bay of Jagua. It is among the finest towns 
of Cuba and exports sugar, wax and timber to 
the value of over $5,000,000 annually. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 70,416. 

Cigar, sig gahr', a small roll of manufactured 
tobacco leaves, intended to be smoked. It is 
lighted at one end and the smoke is drawn through 
it. The choicest cigars are those made in and 
imported from Havana. Good cigars are made 
in the United States and elsewhere. Medicated 
cigars, or cigars made of some substance having 
remedial properties, are often used for certain 
complaints, as stramonium cigars for asthma. 
Cheroots are preculiarly shaped cigars, much 
thicker at one end than the other, and are largely 
imported from Manila. (See Tobacco). 

Cilia, sil'e o, small, generally microscopic, 
hair-like projections found on the inner surface 
o! some organs. These cilia have a constant 


rapid motion, which produces a continuous 
current always in the same direction on the same 
surface. They are found in the nasal passages, 
except where the olfactory nerve is distributed, 
on the upper surface of the soft palate, in the 
Eustachian tube and the tympanum, in the 
larynx, except over the vocal cords, and in every 
tiny division of the bronchi. See Bronchi; 
Lungs. 

Cilicia, sil lish'i ah, in ancient geography, a 
province of the southeastern part of Asia Minor, 
west of Syria. The chief city was Tarsus. The 
country was repeatedly invaded by Assyrian 
kings, but it was ruled over by native princes 
until conquered by Persia. Afterward, it was 
successively under Macedonian, Syrian and 
Roman dominion. The Cilicians of the coast 
were famous pirates who were much dreaded by 
other seafaring men. 

Cimabue, che'mah boo'a, Giovanni (1240- 
1302), an Italian painter, bom at Florence, the 
son of noble parents. Two Greek artists, who 
were invited to Florence to paint a chapel in the 
Church of Santa Maria Novella, were his first 
masters. Cimabue was the first of the artists of 
the Middle Ages to return to the classical ideals; 
he used the works of the ancient Greeks for 
models. His work, of which little now remains, 
may be considered the link between ancient and 
modern schools of painting. He is said to have 
discovered the talent of Giotto and to have 
instructed that artist. His drawing was very 
accurate, and the arrangement and natural 
expression of his figures was excellent, but the 
coloring was deficient. Cimabue’s best paintings 
are in the Church of Santa Maria Novella at 
Florence and in Assisi. See Madonna. 

Cimbri, sim’bre, a tribe of ancient Europe, 
the origin of which is involved in obscurity. It 
is supposed that they were Celts and that Cimbri 
is the same as Cymri. See Cymri. 

Oimon, si'mon, (?-449 b. c.), an ancient 
Athenian general and statesman, the son of 
Miltiades. He fought against the Persians in 
the Battle of Salamis (480 b. c.), and he shared 
with Aristides the chief command of the fleet 
sent to Asia to deliver the Greek colonies from 
the Persian yoke. The greater part of his life 
was spent in the conflict with Persia. 

Cinchona, sin ko’na, an important genus of 
plants belonging to the madder family. They 
are trees, shrubs or herbaceous plants, with 
simple opposite leaves and flowers arranged in 
panicles or corymbs. The fruit is dry or succulent. 
The plants are found almost exclusively in the 


Cincinnati 


Cincinnati 


tropics, and many of the species are of great 
medicinal importance. The bark is taken off 
in strips, longitudinally; it is in time renewed by 



CINCHONA 


natural growth. Cinchona plants have been 
taken from Peru, their native home, and they 
are now cultivated in large plantations in Ceylon, 
India, Java and other tropical countries. See 
Quinine; Peruvian Bark. 

Cincinnati, sin'sin naht’y, Omo, the county- 
seat of Hamilton county, the second city in 
population in Ohio and the thirteenth in the 
United States, is situated on the north bank of 
the Ohio River, opposite the Licking, 263 mi. s.w. 
of Cleveland, 270 mi. s. e. of Chicago, 764 mi. 
from New York, on the Baltimore & Ohio, the 
Big Four the Pennsylvania, the Louisville & 
Nashville, the Queen & Crescent and other 
railroads, and on the Miami Canal. The city 
extends along the river for about 10 miles and 
northward from the river banks from 2 to 5 miles, 
the northern boundary being an almost unbroken 
east and west line. The river makes two promi¬ 
nent bends along the city front. Mill Creek, 
flowing into the Ohio from the north, divides 
the city into two unequal parts, the larger portion 
being on the east. Cincinnati is built upon a 
series of hills and slopes which rise from the 
river and are surrounded by a semicircle of 
bluffs, from whose summits a magnificent view 
of the city and its surrounding suburbs can be 
obtained. The surface of the city is quite 
irregular. The streets are well laid out and in 


the main they cross one another at right angles; 
those running generally east and west in the 
lower part of the city are parallel with the river, 
but on the upper slopes they conform to absolute 
directions. The lower part of the city along the 
river banks is devoted to wholesale trade, freight 
warehouses and factories. On the middle slope 
are found the retail stores and most of the public 
buildings and business blocks. The highest 
slope is devoted to beautiful residences and 
numerous parks. Surrounding the city proper 
are a number of suburbs noted for their beauty 
and attractive residences. Among the most 
prominent of those in Ohio are Clifton, Avon¬ 
dale, College Hill and Walnut Hills, while across 
the river, in Kentucky, are Covington, New¬ 
port, Milldale, Bellevue and other less important 
villages. The river is crossed by five bridges. 
The truss bridge of the Cincinnati Southern 
Railway cost over $3,348,000 and has one of the 
longest spans in the world; another is the wire 
suspension bridge extending to Covington, Ky., 
which was designed by John A. Roebling, the 
constructor of the Brooklyn Bridge, and was 
erected at a cost of $1,800,000. All of the 
bridges are over a half mile long, and some of 
them, including their approaches, exceed a 
mile in extent. The city with its immediate 
suburbs in the two states contains a population 
of about 500,000. 

Cincinnati has a complete school system, from 
the kindergarten training school to the university, 
under municipal government. Since 1905 there 
have been built a dozen new schools, costing 
from $150,000 to $225,000 each, and two new 
high schools costing $750,000 each. The co-oper¬ 
ative courses, part time courses, vocational and 
industrial classes give splendid opportunity for 
modern education. Besides the University of 
Cincinnati, with its observatory on Mount 
Lookout (See Cincinnati, University of), 
there are the Ohio Mechanics’ Institute, Wes¬ 
leyan Female College, Saint Joseph’s and Saint 
Xavier’s Jesuit colleges, Lane Theological Semi¬ 
nary, and the museum and art school in Eden 
Park. There is an excellent public library, occu¬ 
pying a building specially erected for it, besides 
law, historical and other libraries under the con¬ 
trol of various organizations. There are numer¬ 
ous benevolent institutions maintained either by 
the city or by other organizations. Few cities 
can boast of better organized systems of charity. 

Among the public buildings, the government 
building, containing the postoffice and custom¬ 
house and occupying the square bounded by 


Cincinnati 


Cincinnati 


Main, Walnut, Fifth and Patterson streets is the 
most important structure. The county court¬ 
house and the new city courthouse, the chamber 
of commerce, the Masonic Temple, Springer 
Music Hall, the arcade and public library are all 
structures worthy of mention for their size and 
the beauty of their architecture. The city con- 
tians many fine business blocks and a large 
number of churches. Among the latter, most 
worthy of note is Saint Peter’s Cathedral, in 
Plum Street, between Seventh and Eighth, which 
is one of the best representatives of Grecian 
architecture in the city and has for the altar- 
piece Murillo’s Saint Peter Delivered, one of the 
finest works of art in the country. Saint Xavier’s 
church is a fine specimen of Gothic architecture. 
Saint Paul’s Methodist, the First Presbyterian, 
the Baptist, the First Congregational, the 
Unitarian and the Hebrew Synagogue are also 
worthy of mention. The finest public work 
of art in the city is the Tyler-Davidson Fountain, 
in Fountain Square. This is of bronze and was 
cast in the royal foundry of Munich at a cost of 
•1200,000. The city also has an equestrian 
statue of President William Henry Harrison 
and statues of Garfield and Lincoln, and in 
Spring Grove Cemetery is a magnificent bronze 
statue erected in memory of the soldiers who 
fell in the Civil War. 

Cincinnati contains a number of beautiful 
parks. The largest of these is Eden Park on 
Mount Adams, near the river. This contains 
the largest reservoir from which the city is 
supplied with water; it also has the art museum. 
Burnet Woods, in the northern part of the city, 
and the Zoological Garden, which has a very 
complete collection of wild animals, are other 
noteworthy parks. During the years 1909-1911 
the city added to its park area over a thousand 
acres,nine municipal playgrounds,fully equipped, 
and fourteen playgrounds connected with the 
schools. The city and surrounding suburbs have 
many beautiful drives, many of which are noted 
for their shade trees and for the beautiful resi¬ 
dences which they surround. 

Cincinnati is an important commercial and 
railway center, being so located as to make it a 
convenient point of trans-shipment between the 
North and the South and to some extent between 
the East and the West. Regular lines of 
steamers ply between the city and New Orleans 
and intervening river ports, and numerous lines 
of railway radiate from it both to the Southern 
and Northern states. Because of this it has an 
extensive wholesale trade. It is also an impor¬ 


tant manufacturing center, maintaining over 
8000 manufacturing establishments. Among 
the most important of the industries are slaugh¬ 
tering and pork packing, in which the city is 
second only to Chicago; manufactures of soap, 
distilled and malt liquors, furniture, carriages 
and wagons, boots and shoes, men’s clothing, 
leather goods, brick, tile, cotton goods and 
various kinds of machinery and woodenware. 
The Rookwood Pottery Works are also located 
here and have attained a wide reputation for the 
excellence and beauty of their wares. 

The site of the city of Cincinnati was first 
visited by George Rogers Clark in 1780; the 
first settlement was made in 1788, and the 
following year Fort Washington was built. In 
1790 Hamilton County was organized, and 
Cincinnati became the county-seat. At this time 
it was given its present name by General Saint 
Clair, in honor of the Society of Cincinnati (See 
Cincinnati, Society of). In 1802 it was 
incorporated as a town, and in 1819 it was 
organized into a city. The city continued to 
increase in importance and population until the 
Civil War. Because of its intimate relation to 
the business interests of the South, the city as 
a whole was opposed to the anti-slavery move¬ 
ment, but at the breaking out of the war it stood 
firmly by the Federal government. In 1862 
it was for a time under martial law. The city 
has suffered from frequent floods, which have 
caused much damage in the portion of the town 
next the river. In 1884 it was greatly disturbed 
by a riot, caused largely by the lax administra¬ 
tion of justice. Population in 1910, 364,463. 

Consult Ailes’s Cincinnati in Historic Towns 
of the Western States. 

Cincinnati, Society of the, a patriotic 
society organized by officers in the Continental 
army, while at Fishkill, on the Hudson River, 
May 13, 1783. Membership in the society was 
accorded to all Continental officers who had 
served three years or who had been honorably 
discharged, and also to the eldest male descend¬ 
ants of such officers. The society had thirteen 
branches, one in each of the original thitreen 
commonwealths, and its first meeting was held 
at Philadelphia in May, 1784. George Washing¬ 
ton was the first president of the society. Owing 
to serious opposition to the purposes and methods 
of the organization, which were believed by 
many persons to be subversive of the principles 
of democracy upon which the new republic was 
organized, the Society of the Cincinnati soon 
declined in influence, and for many years after 


Cincinnati 


Circassia 


about 1830 it was practically dormant. In 
1893, however, a revival began, and by 1902 all 
the old state societies were active. 

Cincinnati, University of, an institution 
of higher learning at Cincinnati, Ohio, founded 
on bequests made by Charles McMicken in 
1858, and by grants made subsequently by the 
city. The university was open for instruction 
in 1873. At present it comprises the following 
departments: the Academic, Graduate, Law 
and Medical departments; the Summer School 
and the College of Engineering. The Clinical 
and Pathological School of the Cincinnati 
Hospital and the Ohio College of Dental Surgery 
are affiliated with the university. The faculty 
numbers 200 and the student body over 1300. 
The productive funds of the university amount 
to $3,500,000, and the library contains 70,000 
volumes. 

Cincinnatus, sin'sin a'tus, Lucius Quin- 
tius, a wealthy patrician of the early days of 
the Roman Republic. He violently opposed, 
during his consulship, the passage of the law 
for the equalization at law of patricians and 
plebeians. When, in 458 B. c., Minucius, the 
consul, was surrounded by the Aequians, the 
messengers of the Senate found Cincinnatus at 
work on his farm when they came to summon 
him to the dictatorship. He rescued the army 
from its peril, marched to Rome laden with spoil 
and then returned quietly to his farm. At 
the age of eighty he was again appointed dictator, 
to oppose the ambitious designs of Spurius 
Maelius. 

Cineraria, sin'e ra're ah, a genus of plants 
consisting of herbs or small shrubs, with small¬ 
sized heads of flowers. They are chiefly found 
in South Africa. The name is derived from the 
lower leaves, which are of ashy appearance. 
A number of species are cultivated for garden 
purposes, and from these an almost endless 
variety of blossoms of many different colors have 
been evolved. Purple, red, and purple and 
white are the prevailing colors of these popular 
aster-like flowers. 

Cinna, se'na, LuciUs Cornelius, an eminent 
Roman, an adherent of Marius. Obtaining the 
consulship in 87 b. c., after the expulsion of 
Marius from Rome, he impeached. Sulla and 
endeavored to secure the recall of Marius. 
Driven from the city, he joined Marius and soon 
gained possession of Rome. The friends of 
Sulla were massacred, and Cinna and Marius 
made themselves consuls, 86 b. c. After the 
death of Marius the army refused to follow 


Cinna against Sulla and put him to death in 
84 b. c. 

Cinnabar, sin'na hahr, red sulphide of mer¬ 
cury, the principal ore from which that metal is 
obtained, occurring abundantly in Spain, Cali¬ 
fornia, China and other countries (See Mercury). 
It is of a cochineal red color, and it is used as 
a paint under the name vermilion . 

Cinnamon, sin'na mon, the bark of the under 
branches of a species of laurel, which is chiefly 
found in Ceylon, but grows also in Malabar and 
other parts of 
the East In¬ 
dies. The tree 
attains the 
height of 20 
or 30 feet, has 
oval leaves, 
pale yellow 
flowers and 
acorn - shaped 
fruit. The 

C eylonese 
bark their 

trees in April 
and Novem¬ 
ber. The bark 
curls up into 
rolls or quills 
in the process 
of drying and 
the smaller 
quills are in- 1 
troduced into 
the larger 
ones. These 
are then as¬ 
sorted accord¬ 
ing to quality 
by tasters and 
are made up into bundles. An oil of cinnamon is 
prepared in Ceylon, but the oil of cassia is 
generally substituted for it; indeed, the cassia 
bark is often substituted for cinnamon, to which 
it has some resemblance, although in its qualities 
it is much weaker. The leaves, the fruit and the 
ropt of the cinnamon plant all yield oil of con¬ 
siderable value; that from the fruit, being highly 
fragrant and of thick consistence, was formerly 
made into candles for the sole use of the king of 
Ceylon. 

Circassia, sir kash'e ah, or Tcherkessia, 

a mountainous region in the southeast of Euro¬ 
pean Russia, in the northwestern Caucasus, 
bounded on the w. by the Black Sea, on the n. 



CINNAMON 








































































> 


* 




























I 

































































* 























































■ 





































































! \ms\ 






External View of the Heart 


1. Aorta 

2. Pulmonary artery 

3. Descending vena cava 

4. Right auricle 

5. Reft auricle 


6 . 

7. 

8. 
9. 


Right ventricle 
Left ventricle 
Left coronary artery 
Left coronary vein 


Veins and 


Arteries 


1. 

2 . 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6 . 

7. 

8. 

9. 

10 . 

11 . 

12 . 

13. 

14. 

15. 

16 . 

17. 

18. 

19. 

20 . 
21 . 
22 . 

23. 

24. 

25. 

26. 

27. 

28. 

29. 

30. 


Basilic vein 
Superficial 
radial vein 
Median cephalic vein 
Median basilic vein 
Anterior superficial 
ulnar vein 

Superficial median vein 
Right internal jugular vein 
Left internal jugular vein 
Right innominate vein 
Left subclavian vein 
Vena cava superior vein 
Right subclavian vein 
Ascending vena cava vein 
Common femoral vein 
External carotid artery 
Common carotid artery 
Coronary artery 
Left subclavian artery 
Arch of aorta 
Brachial artery 
Deep palmar arch 
Palmar digital artery 
Collateral branches of 
palmar digital artery 
Aorta 

Right common iliac artery 
Left common iliac artery 
Femoral artery 
Pulmonary vein 
Left pulmonary 
vein 

Right pulmonary 
vein 


Scheme of the Circulation 


10 . 

u. 

12 . 

13. 

14. 

15. 

16. 
17. 


Pulmonary artery 
Ascending vena 
cava 

Descending vena 
cava 

Pulmonary vein 
Portal vein 
Carotid artery 
Lacteals 
Thoracic duct 


1. Heart 

2. Lung 

3. Head and upper 
extremities 

4. Spleen 

5. Intestine 

6. Kidneys 

7. Lower extremities 

8. Liver and portal vein 

9. Aorta 


Plate used by permission of the 


Caxton Company, Chicago. 


CIRCULATION OF THE BLOOD 











Circassians 


Circulation 


by the Kuban River, on the s. by Mingrelia and 
on the e. by the country of the Lesghians. The 
mountains, of which the culminating heights 
are those of Mount Elbruz, are intersected 
everywhere with steep ravines and are clothed 
with thick forests; the territory is principally 
drained by the Kuban and its tributaries. In 
1829 the country was formally annexed by 
Russia. A heroic resistance was made by the 
Circassians under their leader, Schamyl, and 
it was only after a struggle of thirty-five years 
that Russian rule was established. On being 
reduced to submission, numbers of the inhab¬ 
itants emigrated to the Turkish provinces. In 
the north and east, however, tribes of the Cir¬ 
cassian stock remain. 

Circassians, the name applied to the people 
who inhabit the region of the Caucasus, and 
particularly to the Adighe, or Tcherkesses. 
Other tribes are the Abkhasians on the Black 
Sea, and the Kabardians, living around the 
valleys of the Kuban and Terek. The Cir¬ 
cassians are dark-skinned, and both the men 
and women are noted for their great physical 
beauty, the women often being sold into the 
Turkish and Persian harems. The men are 
active, sturdy and courageous and showed their 
spirit of independence during the Russian con¬ 
quest, which was completed in 1864, when more 
than three hundred thousand Circassians left 
for various parts of Turkish provinces, after a 
brave struggle for liberty. Those who remain 
in the original home number about 150,000. 
The religion of the higher classes is Moham¬ 
medanism, but the lower classes have adopted 
a religion which is a combination of Christianity 
and Mohammedanism. 

Circe, sur'se, a fabled sorceress of Greek 
mythology, who lived in the island of Aeaea, 
represented by Homer as having converted the 
companions of Ulysses into swine, after having 
caused them to partake of an enchanted bever¬ 
age. Ulysses, under the guidance of Mercury, 
resisted her enchantments and compelled her 
to restore his companions. 

Circle, sur'k’l, a plane figure contained by 
one line, called the circumference, which is so 
drawn that all its points are equally distant 
from a certain point within, called the center. 
The diameter of the circle is a line drawn through 
the center and terminating at the circumference. 
The radius is one-half the diameter. A great 
circle is one on a sphere, whose center coincides 
with that of the sphere. All other circles on a 
sphere are small circles. The famous problem 


of “squaring the circle,” which is to find the 
area of a circle having given only the radius, 
is impossible of solution, since it requires that 
the exact ratio between the radius and the cir¬ 
cumference be found; but this ratio is an inde¬ 
terminate number, approximately equal to 
3.1415926535. To find the approximate area 
of a circle, multiply the square of the radius 
by this number, which is known as pi (it). 
For the purpose of measuring angles, the circle 
is divided into 360 degrees, each degree into 60 
minutes and each minute into 60 seconds, an 
angle being measured by the number of degrees 
on the circumference of a circle included 
between its sides, when its vertex is at the 
center. The circle is one of the conic sections 
(See Conic Sections), and it is a curve of the 
second order (See Curve). 

Circleville, Ohio, the county-seat of Picka¬ 
way co., 30 mi. s. of Columbus, on the Scioto 
River, the Ohio & Erie Canal and on the 
Cincinnati & Muskingum Valley and the Nor¬ 
folk & Western railroads. The city was settled 
in 1806 and takes its name from its location on 
the site of a circular earthwork, built by some 
prehistoric people. It contains packing houses, 
flour mills and manufactures of straw board, 
furniture, farm implements and other articles. 
Population in 1910, 6744. 

Cir'cuit Courts. See Courts. 

Cir cula'tion, the flowing of blood through 
the blood vessels. Although Galen, who had 
observed the opposite directions of the blood 
in the arteries and veins, may be said to have 
been upon the very point of discovering the 
circulation, William Harvey in * 1628 pointed 
out the connections between the heart, arteries 
and veins, the reverse directions taken by the 
blood in the different vessels, the arrangements 
of valves in the heart and veins so that the 
blood could flow only in one direction, and* the 
necessity of the return of a large proportion of 
blood to the heart to maintain the supply. In 
1661 Malpighi with a microscope examined the 
circulation in the web of a frog’s foot and 
showed that the blood passed from arteries to 
veins by capillaries. Arterial blood leaves the 
left ventricle of the heart, flowing through the 
aorta and its branches, which carry it to all 
parts of the body except the lungs. It passes 
through the capillaries, giving up oxygen and 
taking carbonic acid, then through the veins, 
returning to the heart through two large veins 
that pour their contents into the right auricle 
of the heart. This auricle contracts, forcing the 


Circus 


Cistercians 


blood into the right ventricle, which in turn 
forces it into arteries, that carry it to the lungs, 
where it gives up carbonic acid and receives 
oxygen. Four pulmonary veins carry the 
blood from the lungs to the left auricle, which 
forces it into the left ventricle, whence we com¬ 
menced to trace it. The circulation from the 
right side of the heart through the lungs to the 
left side of the heart is called the pulmonary 
circulation, and that from the left side of the 
heart through the body to the right side, the 
systemic circulation. A portion of the blood 
in the intestines is carried through the portal 
vein to the liver, where, after passing through 
a fine network of capillaries, it is carried through 
the hepatic veins to one of the large veins of 
the systemic circulation. This is called the 
portal circulation. Any part of the blood will 
make the circuit of the system in about twenty- 
three seconds, and the whole amount of the 
blood passes through the heart in about thirty- 
seven and one-half seconds. The weight of 
the blood is about one-twelfth the weight of the 
body in an adult. The forces that propel the 
blood are the contraction of the heart; the con¬ 
traction of the muscles, which produces pressure 
on the veins; the act of breathing; the action 
of the valves in the heart and arteries. See 
Aorta; Arteries; Capillaries; Heart; Veins. 

Cir'cus, among the Romans, a nearly oblong 
building without a roof, in which public chariot 
races, exhibitions of pugilism and wrestling 
and other games took place. It was rectan- 
uglar, except that one short side formed a half¬ 
circle; on both sides and on the semicircular 
end were the' seats of the spectators, in tiers 
sloping backwards. On the outside the 
circus was surrounded with colonnades, galleries, 
shops and public places. There were eight or 
ten circuses at Rome, of which the largest was 
the Circus Maximus, 1875 feet long and 625 
feet wide, capable, according to Pliny, of con¬ 
taining 260,000, and according to Aurelius 
Victor, 385,000, spectators. At present, how¬ 
ever, but few vestiges of it remain, and the 
Circus of Caracalla is in the best preservation. 
The games celebrated in these structures w r ere 
known collectively by the name of circensian 
games, or games of the circus, which under the 
emperors attained great importance and mag¬ 
nificence. The principal games of the circus 
were the Roman, or Great, Games, which were 
celebrated from September 4 to 14, in honor of 
the great gods. The festival was opened by a 
splendid procession, or pompa, in which the 


magistrates. Senate, priests, augurs, vesta! 
virgins and athletea took part, carrying with 
them the images of the great gods, the Sibylline 
Books and sometimes the spoils of war. On 
reaching the circus the procession went round 
once in a circle, the sacrifices were performed, 
the spectators took their places and the games 
commenced. These were: 1, Races with 
horses and chariots, in which men of the high¬ 
est rank engaged. 2, Gymnastic contests. 
3, The Trojan games, prize contests on horse¬ 
back, revived by Julius Caesar. 4, Combats 
with wild beasts, in which beasts fought with 
beasts or with men, criminals or volunteers, 
an exhibition which was especially attractive 
to the Romans. Under the Empire this kind 
of show was transferred to the amphitheater. 
5, Representations of naval engagements, for 
which purpose the circus could be laid under 
water. The expense of these games was often 
immense. Pompey, in his second consulship, 
brought forward 500 lions at one combat of 
wild beasts, which, with eighteen elephants, 
were slain in five days. These shows w r ere free 
to the people, and their love for them appears 
from the cry with which they addressed their 
rulers: “Bread and the games.” 

The modem circus is a place where animals 
are trained to perform antics, and where exhi¬ 
bitions of acrobats and various pageantries, 
including a large amount of buffoonery, are 
presented for the amusement of the spec¬ 
tators. This form of amusement has become 
especially popular in the United States, w T here 
it has attained immense proportions (See 
Barnum, Phineas Taylor). 

Cisalpine, sis al’pin , Republic, a state 
founded by Bonaparte in 1797 in northern 
Italy. It included Lombardy, Mantua, Verona, 
Cremona, Brescia, Bergamo, Rovigo, the Duchy 
of Modena, Massa, Carrara, Bologna, Ferrara 
and the Romagna, and it had in all an area of 
over 16,000 square miles and a population of 
3,500,000. Austria recognized the Republic in 
the Treaty of Campo Formio, but the new state 
was dissolved in 1799 by the victories of the 
Austrians and Russians. It was regained by 
Napoleon Bonaparte in 1800, took the name 
of the “Italian Republic” in 1802 and elected 
Bonaparte as president. Three years later it 
became the “Kingdom of Italy,” with Napoleon 
as king, and it continued as such until 1814. 

Cistercians, an order of monks, a branch 
of the Benedictines founded by Robert, 
abbott of Molseme, in 1098. The habit 


Cistern 


City 


was white with a black scapular. The rules of 
the order were very strict, and for the first cen¬ 
tury of its existence it included only a few 
members. Early in the thirteenth century it 
was joined by Saint Bernard and thirty followers, 
and from that time on it grew rapidly. By the 
middle of the fourteenth century there were 700 
abbeys located in France, Ireland, Spain, Por¬ 
tugal, Norway, Sweden and Germany. In 
recent times the order has declined, and there 
are now only a few abbeys. At the time of 
their greatest prosperity the Cistercians were 
much interested in literature and art and col¬ 
lected many manuscripts for their libraries. 
Their churches were distinguished by their 
simplicity and had no paintings or sculpture; 
but it is to them that the beginning of Gothic 
architecture may be traced (See Architecture, 
subhead Gothic Architecture). The nuns of 
Saint Royal, the Feuillants, or barefooted 
monks, and the Trappists are branches of the 
Cistercians. 

Cistern, sis'tum, a large tank, either above 
or below ground, for holding water. Cisterns 
may be made of wooden staves held together 
by hoops of iron, galvanized iron or other sheet- 
metal; they are also frequently made by lining 
the walls of an excavation in the ground with 
brick on cement Cisterns are used for storing 
water in localities where the inhabitants have 
to depend upon rain water for domestic purposes, 
and oftentimes by railroads for supplying their 
locomotives. When cistern water is used for 
drinking purposes, it is necessary to filter it. 
See Filter. 

Cities of Refuge, six out of the forty-eight 
cities given to the tribe of Levi in the division 
of Canaan, set apart by the law of Moses as 
places of refuge for the manslayer or accidental 
homicide. Their names were Kedesh, Shechem 
and Hebron, on the west side of Jordan; and 
Bezer, Ramoth-Gilead and Golan, on the east. 
No part of Palestine was far from a City of 
Refuge. The manslayer fled to the nearest 
one, where he was given a fair trial and if not 
guilty of willful murder could remain in the city 
till the death of the high priest, when he was 
at liberty to go to his home. 

Cit'izen, a member of an organized political 
society. Originally, a citizen was any one 
entitled to share in the management of a city- 
state, but gradually the limits of citizenship 
have been extended until now, in modern re¬ 
publics, almost every resident is a citizen. 
In the monarchies of Europe the term is used to 


denote a resident of a municipality, the citizen’s 
relations to the state being expressed by the 
word subject. In the United States a citizen is 
one who owes allegiance and support to the 
government and is entitled to its protection; it 
includes women, children, criminals, persons of 
all races, except alien residents and indians 
living still under.tribal authority. Citizens are 
of two classes, natural-bom, that is, persons 
born within the jurisdiction of the United States, 
and naturalized, that is, persons who have taken 
certain legal steps to renounce a former alle¬ 
giance and adopt a new one (See Naturali¬ 
zation). In the United States, practically, a 
citizen of a state is a citizen of the United States, 
and vice versa, but an exception exists in the 
case of the residents of the territories, who are 
citizens of the United States, but not of any 
particular state. The Civil War decided, as 
far as war could decide, that in case of resist¬ 
ance of a state to the nation, the citizen owes 
allegiance first to the latter. Citizenship does 
not imply the right to vote, for the latter may 
be withheld or granted to classes or individuals 
at the will of the state. 

Citric, sit'rik, Acid, the acid of lemons, 
limes and some other fruits. It is generally 
prepared from lemon juice, and when pure it 
is white, inodorous and extremely sharp in its 
taste. In combination with metals it forms 
crystalline salts, known as citrates. The acid 
is used to prevent the formation of colors not 
wanted in calico printing, and it is also used as a 
substitute for lemon juice in making beverages. 

Cit'ron, a large, sour fruit, much like a lemon, 
but scarcely edible, unless preserved in sugnr. 
The citron tree has been a favorite in Europe 
since the days of the ancient Greeks, because of 
its handsome fruit and blossom. In the United 
States the name citron is also given to a small, 
hard watermelon that is Used for pickles and 
preserves. 

Cit'rus, an important genus of plants that 
includes the orange, citron, lemon, lime, grape¬ 
fruit and other fruit trees and shrubs, all of 
which are described in this work under their 
common names. The citrus plants have rather 
long, pointed leaves or leaflets, united by a 
distinct joint to the leaf-like stalk; their stamens 
are united by their filaments into several irregu¬ 
lar bundles, and they have pulpy fruits with 
spongy rinds. 

Cit'y, in a general sense, a large town, usually 
holding a leading position in the community in 
which it is situated. In Europe, especially 


Ciudad Bolivar 


Civil Service 


England, the term is sometimes applied to a 
town which is or has been the see of a bishop. 
This use of the name, however, has now been 
generally superseded by the wider one given 
above. The name, derived from a Greek root, 
originally signified more nearly state than city , 
but from the fact that the ancient states were 
largely coincident in territory and character 
with communities agreeing almost perfectly with 
the modern conception of the city, the modern 
meaning of the word has arisen. Examples of 
the ancient city existed even in comparatively 
modern times in the so-called city-states of Italy, 
and they still exist in a modified form in the free 
cities of Germany and in some of the cantons 
of Switzerland, which practically consist of 
single cities and their outlying districts. In the 
United States the term is technically applied to 
a town having certain powers granted by a 
special act of incorporation and usually having 
a mayor as its executive head. 

One of the peculiar developments of modern 
times is the centralization of population in cities. 
Consequently there have arisen certain striking 
characteristics of city life. The city has become 
the center of culture and commerce, but at the 
same time it is the center of poverty and degra¬ 
dation. It is therefore the breeding place of 
class antagonism, of criminal influence and of 
disease. Side by side with these developments 
have arisen problems which constitute some of 
the most important social, economic and polit¬ 
ical questions of the time. See Municipal 
Government. 

Ciudad Bolivar, se oo dahd' bo le'vahr , a city 
of Venezuela and capital of the province of 
Bolivar, situated on the Orinoco River about 
240 mi. from the sea. The site is low, being 
only 185 feet above sea level. The city contains 
a number of large, handsome buildings, includ¬ 
ing the cathedral, a theater, market and 
college. The chief export is coffee, but rub¬ 
ber, sugar, asphalt, cattle and hides are 
also exported. The town ranks among the 
four largest ports of Venezuela. Previous to 
1819 it was known as Angostura. Population, 
11,700. 

Ciudad Real, the oo dahd'ra ahl' (royal city), 
a town of Spain, capital of the province of the 
same name, on a low plain near the Guadiana, 
100 mi. s. of Madrid. The principal edifice is 
the Church of Santa Maria, a magnificent 
Gothic structure. The manufactures consist of 
woolens, linen, olive oil, flour and leather. 
Population in 1911, about 16,000. 


Civet, siv'et, or Civet Cat, an animal resem¬ 
bling both the weasel and the fox, found in 
North Africa and in Asia from Arabia to Mala¬ 
bar and Java. It is from two or three feet long 
and ten inches high, is of a grayish color, tinged 
with yellow and marked by dusky spots in rows. 
Civets prey upon birds and small animals and 
feed by night. At one time they were much 
hunted because of the perfume obtained from 
them. 

Civ'il Law, among the Romans, the term 
nearly corresponding to what in modern times 
is implied by the phrase positive law , that is, 
the rules established by any government. They 
distinguished it from natural law (jus naturale), 
or the law followed by all living beings, and 
from laws of mankind established by the agree¬ 
ment of all governments (jus gentium). It 
included both the private law (jus privatum ), 
which relates to the various legal relations of the 
citizens, and the public law (jus publicum) t 
the rules respecting the limits, rights and obli¬ 
gations of the governments. The final digest 
of Roman law was made in the sixth century 
A. D., under the emperor Justinian. As the 
Roman code exerted the greatest influence on 
modern Europe, the expression civil law is used 
to embrace all the rules relating to the private 
rights of citizens; for example, in Germany, 
Das gemeiru deutsche Privatrecht; in France, 
the Code Napoleon. In this sense it is chiefly 
opposed to criminal law , particularly in refer¬ 
ence to the administration of justice, which is 
to be divided into civil justice and criminal 
justice. See Procedure. 

Civil Service and Civil Service Reform. 
Under the head civil service are classed all officers 
who do not belong to the military or naval serv¬ 
ice, but are engaged in the administration of 
the civil affairs of a state, such as the collection 
of revenue, performance of executive duties of 
the government and representation of the 
country abroad. The administration of such 
affairs calls always for attentive, unbiased, 
business-like action, and often for expert knowl¬ 
edge and skill. Its success depends upon its 
being done with regard only for the public 
interests. With the development of party organi¬ 
zations and interests in the United States, how¬ 
ever, there early grew up a feeling of loyalty 
to party, which soon trammeled public officials 
in the execution of their duties, by influencing 
them to consult party and personal friendships 
in the appointments at their command. This 
feeling led to the frank admission, during Jack- 


Civil Service 


Civil Service 


son’s term of the principle that “to the victors 
belong the spoils” of office. From that time, 
the evil of party appointments and office-seeking 
pew steadily in its proportions, until by 1870 
it had undermined the efficiency of government 
administration. 

In 1840 Horace Greeley wrote from Washing¬ 
ton: “We have nothing new here in politics, 
but large and numerous swarms of office-hunt¬ 
ing locusts sweeping into Washington daily; 
all the rotten land speculators, broken bank 
directors, swindling cashiers, etc., are in full 
cry for office, office; and even so humble a man 
as I am is run down by letters, letters.” 

General Grant, in 1872, undertook to sup¬ 
press the evil, and, with the consent of Congress, 
he appointed a commission to make rules and 
regulations for admission to and continuance 
in the civil sendee. The rules reported, how¬ 
ever, by this commission were never carried out 
to any considerable extent, on account of the 
political pressure which was brought to bear 
on the members of Congress. President Hayes 
undertook to carry out Grant’s plan, and a 
reform was instituted in several of the large 
postoffices of the country. In January, 1883, 
Congress authorized the president to appoint, 
with the advice and consent of the Senate, 
three civil service commissioners, whose duty 
was to aid the president in preparing suitable 
rules providing for open, competitive exami¬ 
nations for testing the fitness of applicants for 
the public service, such examinations to be 
practical in their character, and, so far as 
might be, to relate to those matters which 
would fairly test the relative capacity and fitness 
of the persons examined, to discharge the 
duties of the service. This commission is still 
in existence. All the offices, places and employ¬ 
ments are arranged in certain classes to be filled 
by selection, according to grade, from among 
those ranked highest as the result of competitive 
examination. Appointments to the public serv¬ 
ice in the departments at Washington are to 
be apportioned upon the basis of population 
to the several states. The law provides that 
all persons in the public service shall be exempted 
from any obligation to contribute to any political 
fund or to render any political service. It for¬ 
bids any person in the public service using his 
official authority to coerce the political action 
of any other person or body. Power is given 
to the Civil Service Commission to make regu¬ 
lations for, and to have control of, all examina¬ 
tions, subject to the rules made by the presi- 

41 


dent. Provision is made for holding examina¬ 
tions at convenient places in every state and 
territory of the Union. The commission may 
punish by fine and imprisonment all in the 
public service who willfully defeat, obstruct or 
deceive any person in respect to his right of 
examination, or who shall corruptly or falsely 
mark, grade, estimate or report upon the proper 
standing of any person examined, or who shall 
furnish to any person any special or secret 
information for the purpose of either improving 
or injuring the prospects of any person so exam¬ 
ined for being appointed, employed or promoted. 
It further provides that no person in the habit 
of using intoxicating liquors is to be appointed 
to, or retained in, offices to which the act applies. 
Besides the qualifications which an applicant 
must disclose in his examination, certain other 
rules have been laid down to govern the appoint¬ 
ment of subordinate officers. Among them are 
the following: 

Applicants for examination must be citizens 
of the United States of the proper age. No 
discrimination is made on account of sex, color 
or political or religious opinions. The limita¬ 
tions of age vary with the different sendees; 
but the age limitations do not apply to any 
person honorably discharged from the military 
or naval service of the United States by reason 
°f disability resulting from wounds or sickness 
incurred in the line of duty. 

Blanks of application for offices in the depart¬ 
ments in the Railway Mail, Indian School or 
Government Printing Office service should be 
requested directly of the Civil Service Commis¬ 
sion at Washington. The blank for the Cus¬ 
toms, Postal or Internal Revenue service must 
be requested in writing by the persons desiring 
examination of the Customs, Postal or Internal 
Revenue Board of Examiners, at the office 
where service is sought. 

The service classified under the act, and that to 
which it and the rules apply, embraces employes 
in all grades from janitors to assistants in gov¬ 
ernment departments; clerks of all special com¬ 
missions, such as the Interstate Commerce Com¬ 
mission, or the Fish Commission; all such 
branches of special service as lighthouse and 
life-saving; engineers; draughtsmen; firemen; 
in fact, practically all civil officers who are not 
appointed subject to the approval of the Senate. 
The offices under the classified service number, 
all told, over 400,000, including the unclassified 
employes of the Isthmian Canal Commission. 

The applicants are examined as to their 


Civil Service 


Civil War in America 


relative capacity and fitness. The ordinary 
clerical examinations are used only for clerk¬ 
ships requiring no particular information or 
skill. They are limited to the following sub¬ 
jects: First, orthography: penmanship and 
copying; second, arithmetic: fundamental rules, 
fractions and percentage; third, interest and 
discount, elements of bookkeeping, and accounts; 
fourth, elements of the English language, letter 
writing and the proper construction of sentences. 
For places in which a lower degree of education 
suffices, as for compositors and other trade 
employees, the Commission omits the third, 
and parts of the fourth, subject. The examina¬ 
tions relate as nearly as possible to the duties 
to be performed, and wherever practicable 
include experience and practical tests. No one 
is certified for appointment whose standing in 
the examination is less than 70 per cent of com¬ 
plete proficiency, except that applicants claiming 
military or naval preference need obtain but 65 
per cent. The law also prescribes competitive 
examinations to test the fitness of persons in 
the service for promotion therein. The Com¬ 
mission gives a certificate to the person examined, 
stating whether he passed or failed to pass. 

Civil Service in Cities. Civil service in 
the large cities is now, "to a considerable extent, 
under laws similar to those described above. 
The most marked effect of these laws in the 
cities has been to relieve the mayors and heads 
of departments from much of the pressure of 
applicants for office, thus leaving them more 
free to attend to their important public duties. 
It has also relieved city employes from the 
unfair burden of political assessment. No officer 
or employe can solicit or receive pay, or be in 
any manner concerned in soliciting, receiving 
or paying any assessment, subscription or con¬ 
tribution for any party or political purpose 
whatever. Applications for admission to exami¬ 
nation are made on blanks in a definite form 
and manner, and they are supported by such 
certificates of persons acquainted with the appli¬ 
cant as may be prescribed. Blanks for such 
applications are furnished by the local civil 
service commission. 

All competitors who attain a general average 
of 70 per cent or over in examination are eligible 
for appointment, and their names are enrolled 
in the order of general average upon proper 
registers. The names remain upon the register 
of eligibles for two years from date of enrollment. 
Any person whose name is on the register 
of eligibles may accept temporary appoint¬ 


ment without losing his position on the register 
of eligibles. All promotion in the civil service, 
unless otherwise provided, is from grade to 
grade, and it is made upon voluntary, open, 
competitive examinations. Comprehensive civil 
service laws applying to both state and city gov¬ 
ernments have been enacted in several states. 
Wisconsin has a law applying to the entire state 
service. 

The civil service method of appointment does 
not always result in placing the most competent 
in office, but it does result, when conscien¬ 
tiously administered, in the exclusion of the 
absolutely unfit, and it has effected a vast improve¬ 
ment in the public service of the United States, 
and has freed the national government from 
many of the ills of party patronage. In fact, its 
failings probably result more from the still 
powerful influence of party organizations and 
the consequent partial enforcement of the law, 
than from weakness in the principle or details 
of the civil service reform laws as they stand. 

Civil War in America, the great struggle 
from 1861 to 1865 between the Southern and the 
Northern states of the Union. (For a some¬ 
what detailed discussion of the causes of the 
conflict, see articles on the United States of 
America, subhead History; Nullification; 
States’ Rights; Confederate States of 
America; Slavery. For the political events 
contemporary with the war, see articles upon 
the chief civil leaders and, also, Confederate 
States of America; United States of 
America, subhead History). The fundamental 
cause of the war was the growth of the institu¬ 
tion of slavery in the South, after it had long 
been practically abolished in the North. This 
led to important differences of economic and 
political opinion and,.especially, to the emphasis 
in the South of the principle of states’ rights. 
The natural outgrowth of such a belief was the 
doctrine of secession, and this was ultimately 
adopted. Between December 20, 1860, and 
February 1, 1861, the seven states of South 
Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, 
Louisiana and Texas passed ordinances of 
secession. On February 4, the government of 
the Confederate States of America was organized, 
and by July four other states, Virginia, North 
Carolina, Tennessee and Arkansas, had joined 
this new union. 

In spite of numerous attempts at compromise, 
the war was meantime opened by the seizure 
on the part of Southern states of United States 
forts and arsenals, a step which had been made 


Civil War in America 


Civil War in America 


easy by the Southern sympathies of members 
ff Buchanan’s cabinet. The first gun was fired 
at Fort Sumter, in the harbor of Charleston, S. C. 
(See Fort Sumter), on April 12, 1861, and the 
fort sin-rendered on the same day. Immediately 
after this event (April 15), President Lincoln 
called for 75,000 volunteers and declared the 
coast of the Southern states to be under blockade. 
The Confederacy also issued a call for volunteers 
and retaliated for the blockade by issuing letters 
of marque and reprisal. 

The border states of Missouri, Kentucky, 
Maryland and Delaware were of immense 
importance to both parties, and steps were 
immediately taken to secure control of them. 
They at first remained neutral, 
but they later joined the Union 
cause. 

The first real military move¬ 
ments of the war occurred in 
the western part of Virginia, 
each government desiring to 
hold this territory as a buffer 
against the operations of the 
other. The Confederates were 
soon driven from the region 
by General McClellan. The 
next important event was the 
first Battle of Bull Run, which 
resulted from an attempt on 
the part of General Irving Mc¬ 
Dowell to begin a campaign 
for the capture of Virginia. It 
resulted in a disastrous Federal 
defeat. Thereafter, General 
McClellan was called from 
West Virginia to take charge of 
the Federal troops, but he oc¬ 
cupied the remainder of the 
year in increasing, drilling and equipping his 
force. A Federal force under Benjamin F. 
Butler suffered an important defeat at Big 
Bethel, and another force was almost com¬ 
pletely destroyed at Ball’s Bluff. Meantime, 
the State of Missouri was being saved to the 
Union by the activity of General Lyon, and in 
spite of a severe defeat at Wilson’s Creek, in 
which Lyon was killed, the Federals under 
General Curtis drove the Confederates from 
the territory. 

The year 1862 opened with rather gloomy 
prospects for the Union. The military situation 
improved in the spring, however, and at Mill 
Spring a decisive victory for the Federals under 
Thomas practically cleared Kentucky of Con¬ 


federate soldiers. In February a Union force 
under General Grant, with the aid of a river 
fleet under Commodore Foote, captured Forts 
Henry and Donelson, with about 15,000 prisoners 
and vast amounts of ammunition, artillery and 
supplies. In April occurred the Battle of Shiloh, 
in which, after a terrible struggle, the Federals 
under Grant were victorious, and the able Con¬ 
federate general, A. S. Johnston, was killed 
A few days after the Battle of Shiloh the Federals 
occupied Corinth, an important strategic posi¬ 
tion. Late in the same month a large Union 
force under General Butler, ably assisted by 
Admiral Farragut with a fleet, reduced the forts 
guarding New Orleans and took possession of 


the city. About the same time. General Polk 
and Commodore Foote were capturing the 
important Confederate position on Island No. 10. 
It was during the month of March of this year, 
also, that the famous battle between the Monitor 
and the Merrimac (renamed the Virginia ) 
occurred in Hampton Roads. 

In the early spring of 1862, General McClellan, 
with the Army of the Potomac, undertook the 
first general land campaign of the war, in an 
effort to fight his way to Richmond and capture 
the city, which had been made the Confederate 
capital. After a campaign lasting for more than 
four months, of which the last month witnessed 
almost continuous fighting, the Federals were 
compelled to abandon the project, leaving Lee, 










Civil War in America 


Civil War in America 


the great Confederate chieftain, in practical 
control of the state of Virginia. Another cam¬ 
paign to the same end was immediately under¬ 
taken by General Pope; but on August 30, at 
the old battlefield of Bull Run, the Confederates 
won another hard-earned but complete triumph. 
After the second Battle of Bull Run, Lee deter¬ 
mined upon a bold invasion of the North, in 
order to gain the border state of Maryland and 
to win a victory in the enemy’s country, in the 
hope of making that victory the basis of terms 
of peace. He advanced into Maryland without 
serious opposition, but was overtaken at South 
Mountain, September 14, where a determined 
battle raged for a few hours. 

On the following day another 
fierce conflict was fought near 
Sharpsburg on Antietam Creek, 
and as a result Lee was com¬ 
pelled to retreat into Virginia 
and abandon his projected 
invasion. However, the Union 
army, besides its losses in 
battle, lost 12,000 men who 
had been captured by “Stone- 
wad” Jackson at Harper’s 
Ferry. 

After Antietam, McClellan, 
on account of his dilatory tac¬ 
tics, was superseded as com¬ 
mander of the Army of the 
Potomac by General Burn¬ 
side. The army fought but 
one battle under its new com¬ 
mander. This was at Fred¬ 
ericksburg, where the Federals 
attacked a strong Confederate 
position and suffered terrible 
slaughter without gaining any 
advantage. Meanwhile, in 
the west the Confederates had made deter¬ 
mined efforts to regain Kentucky and Tennessee. 
General Bragg, with about 45,000 men, had 
marched into the state, occupying important 
positions, but was defeated at Perryville by 
General Buell and compelled to retreat, while 
Rosecrans had repulsed a determined attack 
by Van Dorn at Corinth. Rosecrans succeeded 
Buell as commander of the Army of the Cumber¬ 
land, and on the last day of the year he met 
Bragg’s army, which had returned to Tennessee, 
at Murfreesboro. After a terrific three days’ 
battle the Confederates retreated. 

The year 1863 witnessed the crucial campaigns 
of the struggle, the turning point of the war. In the 


east, Burnside was succeeded by Joseph Hooker. 
At Chancellorsville Lee inflicted on Hooker a 
terrible defeat, and the victories at Chancellors¬ 
ville and Fredericksburg encouraged Lee to 
make another invasion of the Northern states. 
The two armies therefore advanced northward 
on opposite sides of the Blue Ridge, each hasten¬ 
ing to be the first to cross the Potomac. Just 
before the crucial point of this campaign, Hooker 
was relieved and Meade was placed in command 
of the Federal army. He immediately crossed 
the Potomac and harassed Lee until he was 
forced to give battle. This was at Gettysburg 
on July 1 to 4, where, after one of the most 


important combats of modern times, the Con¬ 
federate advance was checked. This Federal 
victory was almost duplicated on exactly the 
same day at Vicksburg in the southwest, where 
U. S. Grant had been conducting a long siege 
and bombardment. The Confederate General 
Pemberton surrendered on July 4. In the same 
month, Port Hudson surrendered to General 
Banks, and within a few weeeks the Mississippi 
River was freed from Confederate control. The 
year of 1863 witnessed important events in the 
states of Kentucky and Tennessee. First was 
the Battle of Chickamauga, in which the Federal 
Army of the Cumberland under Rosecrans wav 
almost completely destroyed by the Confederates 


flStLoi 


7 


7 


I^L L I N O I 


IDI ANA 


Louisville 


M IS 


l R I 


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Nev 


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HSoLlson-^yT^ ry* 

0-y WtslASHVILLE J-' f . 

Murfreesboro* Knoxville 

,N N E S S F Er /< Cy'' 


Wf .Corintk* VA=C HcJ" 

• •l/uka V°° sf'k V 

Holly Springs k v j/f ' /*'. 

< \/f M I ss I SS I P P I i \ 

'Jr ‘ ALABAMA '.GEORGIA^ 

14 X 

j -Confederate Line, January,1862. 

-Confederate Line, October, 1862 a 


MILITARY OPERATIONS IN THE WEST IN 1862 






Civil War in America 


Civil War in America 


under Bragg. Soon afterwards, Grant became 
head of the Department of the Mississippi, which 
included all the western armies, and in Novem¬ 
ber he directed the great Battles of Chattanooga, 
including the celebrated “Battle above the 
Clouds” and the gallant storming of Missionary 
Ridge, by which the Confederates were com¬ 
pletely routed. 

In the following spring, Ulysses S. Grant, who 
had displayed remarkable ability in the west, 
was made commander in chief of all the armies 
of the Union and took personal charge of the 
Army of the Potomac in Virginia. Under his 
direction an army of 100,000 men under General 
Sherman was to advance from Chattanooga to 
Atlanta and, if possible, crush the army of 
General Joseph E. Johnston, 
while the Army of the Poto¬ 
mac was to proceed toward 
Richmond and capture or 
destroy the famous Army of 
Northern Virginia under Lee. 

The advance was begun May 
4. The first battle in the east 
was on May 5, in the so-called 
Wilderness, just south of the 
Rapidan River. Neither side 
gained a decisive victory. 

Grant continued his move¬ 
ment by ordering a march 
around Lee’s right flank, but 
was again confronted at 
Spottsylvania Court House 
by Lee’s whole army and was 
defeated in his purpose to 
crush that force. Again tak¬ 
ing up the movement about the 
enemy’s right, he was com¬ 
pelled to give battle at the North Anna 
River, but was again defeated and for the 
third time made a circuitous march to the 
left about Lee’s position. At Cold Harbor 
the two armies again met, and after probably 
the most stubborn contest of the whole war 
Grant withdrew and attempted by his usual 
methods to advance towards Richmond. At 
Petersburg he was brought to an abrupt halt 
and was compelled to begin a siege, lasting 
nearly a year. Meantime, in the Shenandoah 
Valley, the Confederates under Early had 
threatened Washington and had made costly 
raids upon Northern towns, but in the summer 
of 1864 they were driven from the valley by 
Federal cavalry under Sheridan. During this 
summer General Sherman was carrying out his 


part of the general campaign, advancing slowly 
but steadily toward the important city of Atlanta 
against a brilliant resistance by General Joseph 
Johnston. Johnston was superseded, however, 
just as Sherman’s campaign was drawing to a 
close, by General Hood. He was unable to 
stop the advance, and Sherman entered Atlanta, 
September 2. It was two months later that he 
left Atlanta and began his march to the sea, during 
which he destroyed everything of value in a strip 
sixty miles wide. He occupied the city of 
Savannah on Christmas day. Meantime, Gen¬ 
eral Hood had hoped to draw him from this 
operation by making a counter movement 
toward the north. Sherman dispatched Thomas 
to defend the State of Tennessee, and he did it 



Sherman’s marches 


admirably. Occupying Nashville, he awaited 
the approach of the Confederate force until 
December 15, when he opened a battle which 
resulted in the complete destruction of the Con¬ 
federate army, the 15,000 survivors never being 
reorganized. On the sea the Union cause was 
also victorious during this year, the Alabama, 
the most conspicuous of the Confederate priva¬ 
teers, being sunk by the United States corvette 
Kearsarge, in the harbor of Cherbourg, France. 
In Mobile Bay another daring feat had been 
placed to the credit of the American navy, Rear 
Admiral Farragut being the hero of the occasion. 

The successes of the Union arms during 1864 
were to culminate in the early spring in the com¬ 
plete defeat of the Confederate cause. General 
Sherman left Savannah February 1, marched 




Civil Wax m America 


Clam 


with almost no opposition through the Carolinas 
and was soon ready to cooperate with Grant in 
the final campaign of the war. During the 
winter, though the Union army had gained little 
in its conquest of Virginia, the siege which the 
Confederates had endured at Richmond and 
Petersburg had reduced their power of resistance, 
and Lee determined to evacuate both plaGes, 
attempt to join Johnston’s army, which had 
made a faint protest against Sherman’s advance, 
and flee to the mountains, where the contest 
could be continued indefinitely. The attempts 
of the Confederates to cut their way out of 
Petersburg, however, resulted in serious losses, 
and when the evacuation finally took place it 
was under such difficult conditions that Lee soon 
found himself confronted with the necessity of 
surrendering. This took place at Appomattox 
Court House, April 9,1865. The wild rejoicing 
which this news caused at the North was suddenly 
hushed on the following Friday, April 14, by 
the assassination of President Lincoln, who, 
because of his unfailing common sense and high 
purposes, had become the central figure of the 
whole struggle. On April 21 Johnston surren¬ 
dered to Sherman after a week of negotiation, 
and by May 26 all the forces of the Confederacy 
had laid do # wn their arms. On May 10 President 
Jefferson Davis was captured and was sent a 
prisoner to Fortress Monroe. 

The war had lasted four years; it had com¬ 
manded the services, all told, of more than four 
million men, three-fourths of whom were in 
the armies of the North. Nine of every ten men 
in the South, and four of every nine in the North, 
had served in the armies for an average of three 
years; 110,000 Union soldiers were killed in 
battle or died from wounds, while 250,000 
others died from disease, exposure or other 
causes. The South lost 94,000 men in battle, 
and nearly 200,000 others died in the service. 
Thus, in both armies, an average of 700 men 
died each day from the beginning of the war to 
the end. The war cost the United States govern¬ 
ment in money fully three and a half billion 
dollars; it cost the Confederacy fully two billion 
dollars. In addition to these sums the United 
States government has paid out to Union soldiers 
more than three billion dollars in pensions. 
The total cost to both sections, excluding the 
terrible destruction of property and the loss 
caused by the check to production, doubtless 
amounted to at least nine billion dollars. 

The greatest result of the whole contest was 
the abolition of slavery, which had been a con¬ 


stant source of weakness and dissension for a 
century. It made possible a real unity of all 
sections by removing the most conspicuous 
differences in their modes of life and thought. 
From the constitutional standpoint it decided 
that the United States was to be an “indestruc¬ 
tible union of indestructible states.” 

See articles upon the important battles, gen¬ 
erals and statesmen, and also the general article 
upon United States of America, subhead 
History. 

Claf'lin, Horace Brigham (1811-1885), an 
American merchant and capitalist, born at 
Milford, Mass. He established a dry goods 
store at Worcester, Mass., and in 1843 removed 
to New York, where in the course of twenty 
years he built up one of the largest business 
houses in America. He contributed largely to 
charities and other philanthropical enterprises. 

Claiborne, kla'bom, William (1589-1676), 
an American colonist. He arrived in Jamestown 
in October, 1621, and soon acquired an estate 
amounting to 45,000 acres. In 1628 he was 
commissioned to make discoveries and to open 
trade with the indians. He settled the Isle of 
Kent, in Chesapeake Bay, established a trading 
post and induced many settlers to locate on his 
lands. When Lord Baltimore’s first colony 
arrived at Saint Mary’s, in March, 1634, they 
claimed control over the island. The dispute 
was continued for many years, until Virginia, 
in 1776, released all claims to the territory 
beyond the Potomac River. Claiborne joined 
the Puritan party in its contest with the crown 
and was an important official in Virginia under 
the Commonwealth. 

Claiborne, William Charles Cole (1775- 
1817), an American politician, first governor of 
Louisiana. He was a member of the conven¬ 
tion which prepared the Tennessee state con¬ 
stitution of 1796, and in 1797 he was elected to 
Congress, where he served two terms. In 1802 
he was appointed governor of the Territory of 
Mississippi, and when Louisiana was bought 
from the French he was appointed one of the 
commissioners to take possession of the territory, 
of which he was made governor in 1804. Again, 
when Louisiana was made a state in 1812, he 
was elected governor, and in 1816 he was elected 
to the United States Senate, but was prevented 
by ill health from taking his seat. 

Clam, the popular name of a number of 
species of mollusks, which resemble one another 
in having a double-hinged shell (See Mollusc a). 
In the United States the name is <nven to two 


Claremont 


Clamp 


species, the hard shell, or quahog, and the long, 
or soft, clam. The quahog has a nearly globular 
shell and lives on sandy bottoms, on which it 
stands erect on its thin edge. It is found from 
Cape Cod south, and m the New York markets 
it is generally known as the clam. The young 
are known as little necks. 



THE 


A —Right Valve of Shell, 
to show internal organs. 

a. Anterior muscle for 
closing shell. 

b. Opening of repro¬ 
ductive organ. 

e. Brain. 

d. Foot. 

e. Gill. 

/. Heart. 



CLAM 


B —Dissection. 

g. Intestine. 

h. Kidney, 
t. Liver. 

j. Rear muscle for clos¬ 
ing shell. 

k. Space through which 
water passes in leaving shell. 

l. Stomach. 


Soft clams have a thin, smooth, somewhat 
oval shell and possess siphons that are often 
longer than the shell itself. These clams bur¬ 
row in the sand above low water mark to such 
a depth that only the tips of their siphons pro¬ 
trude. When disturbed they emit a spurt of 
water from the siphon and withdraw from sight. 
They are obtained by digging them from the 
sands at low tide, and in many places they are 
found in large numbers. They are highly prized 
for food, and under favorable conditions are 
often cultivated. The term clam is also applied 
to fresh water mussels (see Mussel). The 
shell of the quahog was used as money by the 
indians who formerly inhabited the New Eng¬ 
land states (See Wampum). 

Clamp, a tool used by carpenters and carriage 
makers to hold parts of their work together, or 
to fasten the work to a bench. The bench 
clamp is usually made of iron and has but one 
screw. The carpenter’s clamp is made of wood 
and has two screws; it is frequently called a 
hand screw. The hand screw is especially use¬ 
ful when it is desired to clamp pieces of wood 
together. One jaw is known as the screw jaw 
and the other as the shoulder jaw. In using it, 


care should be taken to keep the jaws parallel, 
so that an equal pressure may be maintained 
on all parts of the wood with which the jaws 
come in contact. When this is done a strong 
pressure is brought to bear upon the work by 
turning the screws until they are as tight as 
possible. 

Clan, the name given to an indefinite social 
institution which has existed in almost every 
stage of civilization, both in eastern and western 
countries. It signifies a group of families claim¬ 
ing descent from common ancestors and united 
under one leader. The most common principle 
upon which the clan was organized was the 
obligation of all members to avenge one another’s 
injuries. The most familiar form of clanship 
Was furnished by the Highlanders of Scotland. 
Among them the name of the clan was frequently 
formed from that of the original ancestor, with 
the prefix mac, meaning son; thus the MacDonalds 
were the sons of Donald, and every individual 
of that name was considered a descendant of 
the founder of the clan and a brother of every 
one of its members. The chief exercised his 
authority by right of inheritance as the father 
of his clan. The clansmen revered and served 
the chief with the blind devotion of children. 
Each clan occupied a certain portion of the 
country, and hostilities with neighboring clans 
were frequent. Few traces of the institution 
now remain in Scotland, except those which are 
perpetuated by sentiment; thus, all who possess 
the same clan name often speak of their “chief,” 
though the latter has neither land nor special 
influence. A somewhat different form of the 
clan was developed among the American Indians. 
In this case the clan was made up of blood 
relations in the female line. 

Clapp, Moses Edwin (1851- ), an Ameri¬ 

can lawyer and statesman, born at Delphi, Ind. 
educated in Wisconsin and at the University of 
Wisconsin law school and admitted to the bar 
in 1873. He began the practice of his 
profession in Saint Croix County, Wisconsin, 
and became its district attorney, but soon 
removed to Fergus Falls, Minn., and in 1891 
to Saint Paul. He was for three terms attorney 
general of Minnesota. He was an unsuccessful 
candidate for the Republican nomination for 
governor in 1896. He succeeded the late senator 
Cushman K. Davis in the United States Senate 
in 1901 and was reelected in 1905 and 1911. 

Claremont, klair'mont, N. H., a town in 
Sullivan co., 50 mi. n. w. of Concord, on the 
Sugar River and the Boston & Maine railroad. 



Clarendon 


Clark 


It has good water power, contains granite and 
marble yards and manufactures cotton and 
woolen goods, shoes, machinery and various 
other articles. The town has the Fisk Free 
Library. Population in 1910, 7529 

Clar'endon, Constitutions of, a code of 
laws adopted in 1164 at a council of prelates 
and barons held at the village of Clarendon, 
Wiltshire, England. These laws, which were 
finally digested into sixteen articles, were brought 
forward by the king as “the ancient customs of 
the realm,’’ and were enacted as such by the 
council, but they really involved a great scheme 
of administrative reform in the assertion of the 
supremacy of the State over clergy and laity 
alike. The power of the ecclesiastical courts 
was restricted, the crown secured the right of 
interference in elections to ecclesiastical 
offices, appeals to Rome were made depend¬ 
ent on the king’s leave, ecclesiastical digni¬ 
taries were forbidden to leave the country 
without the royal permission, and, most im¬ 
portant of all, the death penalty was made 
possible for the clergy by the provision that 
they might, in criminal cases, be brought before 
secular courts. 

Clarendon, Edward Hyde, Earl of (1608- 
1674), chancellor of England. He began his 
political career in 1640 as a member of the 
Short Parliament, and he was later in the same 
year returned to the Long Parliament. At first 
he acted with the more moderate of the popular 
party, but he gradually separated himself from 
the democratic movement until, by the autumn 
of 1641, he was recognized as the real leader of 
the king’s party in the House. Upon the break¬ 
ing out of the Civil War he joined the king, 
was knighted, was made privy councilor and 
was appointed chancellor of the exchequer. In 
September, 1649, he joined Prince Charles at 
The Hague and was sent by him on an embassy 
to Madrid. After Cromwell’s death Clarendon 
did more than any other man to promote the 
restoration of Charles, who as a reward made 
him lord chancellor. The marriage of the duke 
of York with his daughter, Anne Hyde, con¬ 
firmed for a time his power, but by 1663 his 
influence with the king began to decline, and 
his station as prime minister made the nation 
regard him as answerable for the ill success of 
the war against Holland and for the sale of 
Dunkirk. In 1668 the king deprived him of his 
offices, an impeachment for high treason was 
commenced against him and he was compelled 
to seek refuge in Calais. 


Clar'inet'or Clar'ionet', a wind instrument of 
the reed order, regulated by the fingers on holes 
and keys, the tone being produced by the vibra¬ 
tion of a thin reed in the mouth-piece. Its lowest 
note is E below the F clef, from which it is 
capable, in the hands of good performers, of as¬ 
cending more than three octaves. A clarinet 
can be played in only one key, therefore differ¬ 
ent clarinets are attuned to different keys, B 
flat, A flat and E flat being those most commonly 
used. The instrument was invented in 1690. 

Clark, Champ [James Beauchamp] (1850- 
), an American lawyer and politician, born 
in Anderson co., Ky., educated in the common 
schools and at Kentucky University, Bethany 



CHAMP CLARK 


College and the Cincinnati Law School. He at 
different times was employed as farm laborer, 
clerk, editor, lawyer and president of Marshall 
College in West Virginia. He removed to Mis¬ 
souri and in 1889 was elected a member of the 
House of Representatives. From that date he 
has served continuously in that body, except 
for two terms, from 1891 to 1893, and from 
1895 to 1897. In 1911 he was elected speaker 
of the House of Representatives, and in the fol¬ 
lowing year was an unsuccessful candidate for 
the Democratic nomination for president. In 
1913 he was reelected speaker of the House. 

Clark, Charles Heber (Max Adeler) (1841- 
1915), an American author. He engaged in 
journalism in 1865 and thereafter devoted him- 









Clark 


Clarke’s Fork 


self almost exclusively to that work. Economic 
subjects occupied much of his attention, espe¬ 
cially while editor of The Manufacturer, organ 
of the Manufacturers’ Club of Philadelphia. 
However, his humorous writings, under the 
pseudonym of Max Adeler, are better known. 
In Happy Hollow, Elbow Room, Random Shots 
and Desperate Adventures are among his amus¬ 
ing books. 

Clark, Francis Edward (1851- ), a 

Congregational clergyman, born in Aylmer, 
Canada, a graduate of Dartmouth College and 
Andover Theological Seminary, noted as the 
founder of the Young People’s Society of Chris¬ 
tian. Endeavor. After 1887 Mr. Clark was 
continuously president of the United Society of 
Christian Endeavor. He was pastor of a Con¬ 
gregational church in Portland, Me., 1876- 
1883, and of a Boston church, 1883^887. 

Clark, George Rogers (1752-1818), an 
American pioneer. He began life as a land 
surveyor and commanded a company of militia 
in Lord Dunmore’s war with the indians. In 
1776 he moved to Kentucky and soon became 
the leader of the frontiersmen. He was largely 
instrumental in securing the organization of 
Kentucky as a separate county. In 1777, 
Major Clark obtained permission and means 
from Virginia to attack the fort at Kaskaskia, 
which he captured in the following year To 
revenge an invasion of Kentucky by Canadians 
and indians, he destroyed an indian town in 
Ohio in 1780. In the same year he went to 
Richmond to obtain approval from the authori¬ 
ties for his plans for the capture of Detroit, 
and while there took a command under Baron 
Steuben to defend Virginia against an invasion 
by a British force. In 1782 he gathered a large 
force and marched against indian towns on the 
Miami and Scioto, five of which were destroyed. 
About twelve years later he accepted a commission 
as major general in the French army, to con¬ 
duct an expedition against the Spanish posses¬ 
sions on the Mississippi. General Clark’s 
later years were spent in poverty. 

Clark, William (1770-1838), an American 
explorer, chiefly famous for his part in the cele¬ 
brated Lewis and Clark expedition to the Pacific 
Ocean. He was born in Caroline co., Va., 
but was taken by his parents to Louisville, Ky., 
in 1784. He served in indian campaigns with 
Wayne, but resigned in 1796. In 1803 he again 
entered the army as second lieutenant, and in the 
following year he was placed in joint command, 
with Meriwether Lewis, of an expedition for the 


exploration of the northwest (See Lewis and 
Clark Expedition). Upon his return he waL 
made brigadier general of militia, was governor 
of Missouri territory from 1813 to 1821, and from 
the following year until his death was super¬ 
intendent of indian affairs, with headquarters at 
Saint Louis. 

Clark, William Andrews (1839- ), an 

American capitalist and politician, born near 
Connellsville, Pa. He was educated at Iowa 
College for the law, but did not enter the pro¬ 
fession; he taught school for a time and removed 
to Colorado and then to Montana. There he 
became successively, machinist, banker, mine 
owner and manufacturer, and was largely inter¬ 
ested in copper mines and railways. He was 
the unsuccessful Democratic candidate for 
delegate in Congress from Montana in 1888 and 
was nominated by the Democrats for the United 
States Senate in 1890, and, though claiming 
election, was denied a seat. He was elected 
senator in 1898, but a contest ensued and 
charges of corruption were made. He resigned 
immediately, but was again elected by the legis¬ 
lature for the term of 1901 to 1907. 

Clarke, Charles Cowden (1787-1877), an 
English writer. He was one of the minor mem¬ 
bers of the famous group which included Shelley, 
Keats and Leigh Hunt. His publications include 
Adam the Gardener , Shakespeare Characters and 
Moliere Characters. He is best known, how¬ 
ever, by the edition of Shakespeare which he 
annotated in conjunction with his wife, and by 
The Shakespeare Key. 

Clarke, James Freeman (1810-1888), an 
American clergyman, born in Hanover, N. H. 
He graduated at Harvard and at the Cambridge 
divinity school, and founded in 1841, in Boston, 
the Church of the Disciples, of which he was 
pastor for forty-five years. It became one of the 
leading religious institutions of Boston. From 
1867 till 1871 he was professor of natural re¬ 
ligion and Christian doctrine in Harvard, and 
later was lecturer there on ethnic religions. He 
was an overseer of Harvard, a m.ember of the 
state board of education, a trustee of the Boston 
public library and the author of several histor¬ 
ical works and theological essays. He assisted 
in preparing the memoirs of Marchioness Ossoli 
(Margaret Fuller). His greatest work was Ten 
Great Religions. 

Clarke’s Fork, a river of the United States, 
rising in the Rocky Mountains, in western 
Montana. It flows in a northwesterly direction 
through the northern part of Idaho and enters 


Clarksburg 


Clay 


the Columbia in British Columbia. Its length 
is about 700 miles. 

Clarks'burg, W. Va., the county-seat of 
Harrison co., 81 mi. e. of Parkersburg, on the 
Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. It is a distributing 
point for a large part of the business of Central 
West Virginia. It is in the midst of rich oil 
and gas fields and in the district of the state’s 
earliest and most productive coal operations. 
Population in 1910, 9201. 

Clarks'ville, Tenn., the county-seat of 
Montgomery co., about 40 mi. n. w. of Nash¬ 
ville, or;, the Cumberland River and the Louis¬ 
ville & Nashville and the Tennessee Central 
railroads. Clarksville is one of the largest 
tobacco markets in the South and has tobacco 
and snuff factories, lumber, flour and iron mills 
and other works. The Southwestern Presby¬ 
terian University is located here. The place was 
settled in 1780 and was incorporated five years 
later. Population in 1910, 8548. 

Clark University, an institution of higher 
learning at Worcester, Mass., founded in 1887 
by James Gilman Clark. Its special object is 
to afford educators and specialists the best oppor¬ 
tunities for research along the lines in which they 
are interested. In accordance with the terms 
of a bequest by Mr. Clark, a collegiate depart¬ 
ment was organized in 1902, to be conducted 
upon the same general plan as that of the post¬ 
graduate department. The University publishes 
the American Journal of Psychology, the Paeda- 
gogical Seminary and the Mathematical Review. 
Many important memoirs and monographs have 
also been published by its students and grad¬ 
uates. There are 24 instructors and about 100 
students, and the library contains over 60,000 
volumes. 

Claud'ius, (10 b. c.-54 a. d.), a Roman 
emperor, whose full name was Tiberius Claudius 
Drusus Nero Germanicus. He was the son of 
Claudius Drusus Nero, stepson of Augustus. 
He lived in privacy, spending his time in writing 
and studying, until the murder of Caligula, when 
he was dragged from his hiding place and 
proclaimed emperor (41 A. D.). His reign was 
marked by the embellishment of Rome and by 
successes in Germany and Britain. Latterly 
he became debauched and left the government 
largely to his infamous wife, Messalina, who with 
his freedmen committed the greatest enormities. 
He was poisoned by his fourth wife, Agrippina, 
the mother of Nero. 

Claxton, Philander Priestley (1862- ), 

an American educator, born in Bedford co., 


Tenn. He received his degree from the Univer¬ 
sity of Tennessee and did post-graduate work at 
Johns Hopkins University and in Germany. 
After serving successively as superintendent of 
schools at Kinston, Wilson and Asheville, N. C., 
he became in 1893 professor of pedagogy in the 
North Carolina State Normal and Industrial 
College. From 1902 to 1911 he was professor of 
education in the University of Tennessee, and 
during the last five years of that time had charge 
of the department of secondary education and 
inspection of high schools. In July, 1911, he 
became United States commissioner of educa¬ 
tion. 

Clay, the name of various earths, which con¬ 
sist of silicate of aluminum, with small propor¬ 
tions of the silicates of iron, calcium, magnesium, 
potassium and sodium. All the varieties are 
characterized by being weighty, compact and 
hard when dry, but plastic when moist; smooth 
to touch; not readily diffusible in water, but 
when mixed, not readily settling in it. Their 
tenacity and ductility when moist and their 
hardness when dry have made clays from the 
earliest times the materials of bricks, tiles and 
pottery. One of the chief varieties is porcelain 
clay. Kaolin, or china clay, a white clay with occa¬ 
sional gray and yellow tones, is the purest (See 
Kaolin). Potter’s clay and pipe clay, which 
are similar but less pure, are generally of a 
yellowish or grayish color, from the presence of 
iron. Fire clay is a very refractory variety, 
always found lying immediately below the coal; 
it is used for making fire bricks and crucibles 
and for lining furnaces used in smelting iron 
and some other metals. Loam consists of clay 
mixed with sand, oxide of iron and various other 
foreign ingredients. Other varieties are fullers' 
earth, Tripoli and boulder clay, the last a hard clay 
of a dark brown color, with rounded masses of 
rock of all sizes embedded in it, the result of 
glacial action. The distinctive property of clays 
as ingredients of the soil is their power of absorb¬ 
ing ammonia and other gases and vapor generated 
on fertile and manured lands; indeed, no soil will 
long remain fertile unless it has a fair proportion 
of clay in its composition. 

Clay, Cassius Marcellus (1810-1903), an 
American statesman, bom in Kentucky. He 
graduated at Yale in 1832, and in 1$45 he estab¬ 
lished an abolitionist paper, entitled The True 
American. His presses were seized by pro¬ 
slavery mobs, and he was threatened with assassi¬ 
nation, but he removed his office to Cincinnati, 
continuing the circulation of his paper in Ken- 


Clay 

tucky. He was a member of the Kentucky 
legislature in 1835, 1837 and 1840. During the 
Mexican War he served with distinction, and 
in March, 1861, he was appointed minister to 
Russia, but he returned in the following year 
to become major general of volunteers. He 
resigned in March, 1863, and was again sent to 
Saint Petersburg. Upon his return in 1869 he 
resumed the practice of law. 

Clay, Henry (1777-1852), an American 
statesman, born in Ashland, Hanover co., 
Va. He received practically no education, but 
after acting as clerk in two or three state offices. 



HENRY CLAY 


meantime being closely associated with Chan¬ 
cellor George Wythe of Virginia, he began the 
study of law and opened his first office at Lex¬ 
ington, Ky., in 1797t He soon became famous 
as a jury advocate and public speaker, and at the 
age of twenty-six was a member of the Kentucky 
legislature. In 1806 to 1807 and 1810 to 1811 he 
filled unexpired terms in the United States 
Senate and was already conspicuous as a forceful 
debater and as an earnest advocate of a protec¬ 
tive tariff, in 1811 he was chosen to the House 
of Representatives, where he was at once made 
speaker. Here he became prominent as an ad¬ 
vocate of'war and from his official position 
practically forced the War of 1812 upon the 
country. He acted as one of the American com¬ 
missioners in the peace negotiations in 1814. 

Clay was continuously reelected speaker of 


Clayton 

the House until his retirement in 1821 and again 
occupied that post when reelected to Congress 
in 1823. During his career in the House his 
most important act was doubtless the introduc¬ 
tion of the famous Missouri Compromise of 1820 
(See Missouri Compromise). In 1824 he was 
an unsuccessful candidate for the presidency 
against Crawford, Jackson and John Quincy 
Adams. No candidate had a majority of the 
electoral vote, and the contest was therefore 
sent to the House of Representatives, where 
Clay, being fourth in the list, was ineligible for 
election. He transferred his strength to Adams, 
and upon the latter’s election Clay was appointed 
secretary of state. This fact gave the basis for 
the charge of corruption between Adams and 
Clay, which, though utterly ungrounded, was 
used to the latter’s political injury throughout 
his career. As chief of Adams’s cabinet he 
displayed considerable ability, but he lost his 
prestige in Congress through absence and never 
regained it. 

Clay was again elected to the Senate in 1831, 
became a bitter opponent of President Jackson 
and was his competitor in the election of 1832, 
but was overwhelmingly defeated. He again 
became conspicuous as pacificator in the nulli¬ 
fication controversy of 1833, when, by his com¬ 
promise tariff measure, he probably prevented 
a resort to arms. Throughout the rest of his 
career, Clay was one of the foremost orators in 
America, and though unsuccessful in his great 
ambition to become president of the United 
States he was an acknowledged leader of the 
Whig party. He retired from the Senate in 1842. 
was defeated for president by Polk in 1844 and 
was defeated for the nomination by Taylor in 
1848, but in the same year he was reelected to 
the Senate. From this time forward he devoted 
his efforts to allaying the sectional strife upon 
the slavery question, and he made his last great 
speech in the Senate in support of the Com¬ 
promise of 1850. Though a man of strong 
convictions. Clay often sacrificed popular favor 
by seeking to win the support of all sections and 
factions, and thus gained the reputation of being 
vacillating and even insincere. 

Clay'ton, John Middleton (1796-1856), 
an American jurist, born in Sussex co., Del., 
and educated at Yale. He studied law, gained 
a large practice, became United States senator 
and was appointed secretary of state in 1850 
in President Taylor’s cabinet. His principal 
achievement was the negotiation of the Clayton- 
Bulwer Treaty. 






Clayton 

Clayton Powell (1833-1914), an American 
soldier and politician, born at Bethel, Pa. He 
was educated at the Bristol Academy in Penn¬ 
sylvania and later studied civil engineering. In 
1859 he was chosen engineer and surveyor of 
Leavenworth, Kan., and began his life in the 
West. At the beginning of the war he enlisted 
as captain of the First Kansas Infantry, and a 
year later he was appointed lieutenant colonel 
of the Fifth Kansas Cavalry. The greater part 
of his military service was carried on in Arkansas, 
where he led several minor expeditions and where 
he settled as a planter at the close of the war. 
In 1868 he was elected governor of Arkansas, 
and from 1871 to 1877 he was United States 
senator. From 1897 to 1905 he was United 
States minister to Mexico. 

Clayton-Bulwer Treaty, a treaty between 
Great Britain and the United States, concluded 
in 1850, by which both parties agreed to guar¬ 
antee the neutrality of a canal through Central 
America, but not to exercise any control over 
the territory nor to erect any fortifications there. 
The United States made several attempts to 
have this treaty modified or abrogated, but the 
British government refused to concur, until 
1901, when the Clayton-Bulwer treaty was abro¬ 
gated (See Hay-Pauncefote Treaty). The 
negotiators were Secretary of State John M. 
Clayton, for the United States, and Sir Henry 
Bulwer, special ambassador, for Great Britain. 

Clear'field, Pa., the county-seat of Clear¬ 
field co., 172 mi. n. e. of Pittsburg, on the west 
branch of the Susquehanna River, and on the 
Pennsylvania and other railroads. The borough 
is in a fertile agricultural region, near deposits 
of coal, limestone and fire clay, and contains 
lumber and flour mills, brick yards, foundries, 
tanneries and other factories. It was settled in 
1805 and was incorporated in 1840. Population 
in 1910, 6851. 

Clearing House, a place or institution where 
the claims of several parties against one another 
are adjusted. The term has come to have a 
special significance as an important part of 
modern banking methods. In this special sense, 
the method of operations of the clearing house 
is about as follows: Each bank sends to a 
central office two representatives, a so-called 
delivery clerk and a settling clerk. In a large 
room each bank is assigned a desk. Upon 
arrival at the clearing house, usually about 
11 A. M., the clerks from each bank deposit at 
the manager’s table a ticket showing the aggre¬ 
gate amount due to them from other banks, as 


Cleavage 

shown by checks which these clerks have brought 
with them. The manager enters this sirm to 
the credit of the bank presenting the ticket. 
The checks which each set of clerks have brought 
with them are divided into bundles, each of 
which contains checks upon some other one 
bank. At a given signal the settling clerks seat 
themselves at their respective desks and the 
delivery clerks pass among them, delivering to 
each settling clerk bundles of checks drawn on 
the bank which he represents. When each 
settling clerk has received all the bundles of 
checks drawn against his bank he draws up a 
statement of the demands made upon him. 
The lists of all the settling clerks are then sent 
to the manager, who draws up a statement 
showing the amount which each bank owes to 
each of the other banks in the association. 
The checks against the banks are then returned 
to the banks by their respective clerks; the 
separate items are approved, and at a certain 
hour the debtor banks must pay to the creditor 
banks the amounts due. This operation is 
repeated every business day of the year. 

The clearing house system first arose in 
Lyons, France, as early as 1667, but the meth¬ 
ods in use at present originated in London not 
earlier than the beginning of the nineteenth 
century. By far the most important clearing¬ 
house association in the world is that, of New 
York City, organized in 1853. During its first 
year it transacted a business of $5,750,455,985. 
In 1912 its business amounted to $96,672,300,- 
863, or an average daily business of more than 
$300,000,000. The immense saving of time and 
labor which this method accomplishes may be 
seen from the fact that of this immense amount 
about 4J per cent of the daily balances were 
paid in actual money. Next in importance in 
the United States to the New York clearing 
house is that of Chicago, but its business equals 
scarcely one-seventh that of the New York 
clearing house. Then follow Boston, Philadelphia, 
Saint Louis, Pittsburg, Kansas City, San Fran¬ 
cisco, Baltimore, in the order named. The 
clearings of the whole country amounted to 
more than $168,500,000,000 in 1912. See Banks 
and Banking. 

Clearing Nut, a small tree of the same genus 
as the nux vomica, common in Indian forests. 
Rubbing the seeds on the inside of a vessel 
containing turbid water speedily Drecipitates the 
impurities. 

Cleavage, Jcle'vaj, the manner or direction in 
which crystallized substances regularly cleavt 


Cleburne 


Clemens 


or split. The regular structure of most crystal¬ 
lized bodies becomes manifest as soon as they 
are broken. Each fragment presents the form 
of a small polyhedron, and the very dust appears 
under the microscope an assemblage of minute 
solids, formed according to some plan of crystal¬ 
lization. The directions in which such bodies 
thus break up are called their planes of cleavage. 
In certain rocks, again, there is a tendency to 
split along planes which may coincide with the 
original plane of stratification, but which more 
frequently cross it at an angle. This tendency 
is the consequence of the readjustment by pres¬ 
sure and heat under which the character of the 
rock is changed See Crystallography; 
Metamorphism; Stratified Rocks. 

Cle'burne, Texas, the county-seat of John¬ 
son co., 55 mi. s. w. of Dallas, on the Gulf, 
Colorado & Santa F£, the Missouri, Kansas & 
Texas and other railroads. The city has a 
large trade with the surrounding agricultural 
region. It contains cotton compresses, oil mills, 
flour mills, foundries, machine shops and divi¬ 
sion offices and shops of the Santa Fe railroad. 
Population in 1910, 10,364. 

Clem'atis, a genus of woody, climbing plants. 
The most common species, virgin’s bower or 
traveler’s joy, is conspicuous in the hedges both 
of England and the south of Scotland, first by 
its copious clusters of white blossoms and after¬ 
ward by its feather-tailed, silky tufts attached 
to the fruits. There are about one hundred 
species of clematis, most of which are found in 
temperate climates. In North America about 
twenty species grow well. The most common of 
these is the virgin’s bower, which resembles the 
European clematis both in its color and in its 
feathery pistils. A rarer species, found in 
Maine, Wisconsin and a few other states, has 
large, single, purplish drooping flowers. 

Clemens, Jclem'enz, Samuel Langhorne 
(1835-1910), an American humorist, generally 
known as “Mark Twain.” Mr. Clemens was 
born at Florida, a little hamlet in northeastern 
Missouri, about 50 miles west of the Mississippi, 
Nov. 30, 1835. His early education consisted of 
the limited training he could then get in this 
small country town and at thirteen years of age 
he entered a printing office. After becoming an 
expert compositor he worked for short periods 
of time in Saint Louis, Philadelphia, New York 
and other places. In 1851 he gave up his work 
in printing offices and went on a Mississippi 
Steamboat as apprentice, where in 1857 he 
became a pilot. Here he met with a great 


variety of experiences which later he used to 
much advantage in writing the series of highly 
entertaining chapters which now make his book 
Life on the Mississippi. Here, too, he must have 
originated his pen name, for ‘‘By the mark, 
twain” was the cry used by the man who sounded 
the depth of the water to tell the pilot that it was 
two fathoms deep. It is said that Captain Isaac 
Sellers had signed articles Mark Twain in the 
New Orleans Picayune previous to the time 
Clemens assumed the name, but it now belongs 
completely to the latter and thousands upon 
thousands of readers know the genial humorist 
by no other. When the Civil War broke out 



navigation on the Mississippi ceased and Mr. 
Clemens lost his occupation as pilot. For some 
little time he was a member of a company of 
Confederate sympathizers organized near his 
home, but he never was engaged in active war 
service. About this time his brother had been 
appointed Territorial Secretary of Nevada and 
Mr Clemens went out with him to Nevada City, 
where for a time he was interested in mining. 
In 1862, however, he became a reporter for 
a Virginia City paper, and several years later 
he removed to California, where he was a 
reporter for the Morning Call. In 1866 he 
went to the Sandwich Islands, and upon his 
return began his career as lecturer, attracting 
considerable attention. The publication in 1867 
of the Jumping Frog of Calaveras County 





Cleopatra 


Cleveland 


Increased his reputation, and Innocents Abroad, 
an account of an excursion through Egypt and 
the Holy Land, won him international fame. 
In 1870 he married, and after editing for two 
years the Buffalo Express, settled in Hartford, 
Conn. He joined a publishing firm of New 
York in 1884, but after a few years of success 
the firm became bankrupt, and Clemens, to 
meet his heavy losses, traveled as a lecturer, 
meeting with the greatest success. For some 
years after 1890 he lived in Europe, and many 
of his books were written during that period. 

Besides the works mentioned above, Clemens 
is noted chiefly for his A Connecticut Yankee 
at King Arthur’s Court, Pudd'nhead Wilson, 
The Prince and the Pauper, the Adventures of 
Tom Sawyer and the Adventures of Huckleberry 
Finn. The last two, especially, are of their 
kind unrivaled, not only because they are full 
of Clemens’s genial humor, but because they 
give truthful, vivid pictures of the free life of a 
boy along the Mississippi River. 

Cleopa'tra, (69-30 b. c.), a Greek queen of 
Egypt, the last of the Ptolemies. When she was 
seventeen years old her father died, leaving 
her as joint heir to the throne with his eldest 
son, Ptolemy; when she was deprived of her 
part in the government she won Caesar to her 
cause and was reinstated by his influence. In 
a second disturbance Ptolemy lost his life, and 
Caesar proclaimed Cleopatra queen of Egypt, 
though she was compelled to take her brother, 
the younger Ptolemy, as colleague. Caesar 
continued some time at Cleopatra’s court. Bv 
poisoning her brother, she became sole pos¬ 
sessor of the regal power, took the part of the 
triumvirs in the civil war at Rome anti after 
the Battle of Philippi went to do homage to 
Antony at Tarsus. Their meeimg was cele¬ 
brated by splendid festivities; she accompanied 
him to Tyre and was followed by him on her 
return to Egypt. After his conquest of Armenia 
he again returned to her. On the commence¬ 
ment of the war between Augustus and Antony, 
the latter lost a whole year in festivals and 
amusements with Cleopatra at Ephesus, Samos 
and Athens, and when at last the fleets met at 
Actium, Cleopatra suddenly took to flight, with 
all her ships, and Antony immediately followed 
her. Augustus advanced on Alexandria and 
proved himself proof against Cleopatra’s remark¬ 
able fascinations. Believing Cleopatra to be 
dead, Antony threw himself on his sword, and 
shortly afterward Cleopatra killed herself, by 
applying an asp to her arm, to escape the igno¬ 


miny of being led in 

Cleopatra’s 
Needles, the name 
given to two Egyp¬ 
tian obelisks, for¬ 
merly at Alexan¬ 
dria; one of them is 
now in New York, 
theother in London. 

They are made 
of rose-red granite 
and were originally 
erected by Thoth- 
mes III in Heliop¬ 
olis, being dedicat¬ 
ed to the god Ra, or 
the Sun. They were 
taken to Alexandria 
shortly before the 
commencement of 
the Christian era 
and remained there 
until 1877, when 
they were present¬ 
ed to Great Britain 
and the United 
States by the Khe¬ 
dive Ismail Pasha.' 

The New York obe- 
lisk is 69 feet high 
a nd weighs200tons. 

The sides are cov¬ 
ered with inscrip¬ 
tions of Thothmes 
III andRameses II. 

Clep'sydra or Water Clock, an ancient in¬ 
strument for the measurement of time by the 
escape of water from a vessel through an orifice, 
in the older ones the hours were estimated 
simply by the sinking of the surface of the 
water, in others the water surface is connected 
with a dial plate and hand by a system of 
weights and floats. See Clock. 

Cleveland, kleev'land, Ohio, the county- 
seat of Cuyahoga co., and second largest port 
of the Great Lakes, situated on Lake Erie at 
the mouth of the Cuyahoga River, 183 m. s. w. 
of Buffalo, 263 mi. n. e. of Cincinnati and 367 
mi. s. e. of Chicago, on the Lake Shore & Michi¬ 
gan Southern, the Pennsylvania, the Erie, the 
Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & Saint Louis, 
the Baltimore & Ohio and other railroads. The 
city is built upon slightly rising ground and 
extends along the lake front for a distance of 10 
miles; its greatest extent inland is about 5 miles. 


a Roman triumph. 



Cleopatra’s needle 
In Central Park New York 







Cleveland 


Cleveland 


end its area is 33 square miles. The Cuyahoga 
River divides the city into two unequal parts, the 
eastern and the western, the latter of which is 
known as West Cleveland. This stream flows 
through a deep and somewhat broad valley, 
whose surface is considerably below the remain¬ 
ing portions of the city, and this valley is occupied 
by freight depots, factories and lumber yards. 
The stream and valley are crossed by two noted 
bridges, one of which cost over $2,250,000. 
The streets are broad and well paved, and 
many of them are shaded with maples and elms, 
which add to the beauty of the city and have 
given it. the name Forest City. From Monumental 
Park the streets extend in all directions, but the 
longest thoroughfares in the lower part of the 
city are parallel to the lake shore, while farther 
inland they are nearly east and west. Crossing 
these are streets extending from the lake to the 
southern portion of the city. In nearly all sec¬ 
tions the streets cross at right angles. Euclid 
Avenue is noted for its beauty and begins at 
Monumental Park and extends eastward for 
several miles. This street is lined with beautiful 
residences surrounded by well-kept lawns, and 
is considered one of the finest boulevards in 
America. 

The city contains a number of parks, the most 
important of these being Rockefeller Park of 
800 acres, situated in the eastern part of the city; 
Lake Front Park, running along the lake shore; 
Wade Park, and Forest City Park. Wade Park 
is noted for its gardens and for the statue of 
Commodore Perry, which was formerly located 
in Monumental Park. Besides Euclid Avenue, 
boulevards worthy of mention are Ambler 
Parkway, Gordon Boulevard, the Ridge Road 
and the Grand Public Boulevard. Among the 
cemeteries the Erie Street, Monroe Street, Jewish 
and Lakeview are worthy of mention. The last 
occupies an eminence east of the city, and on its 
highest point it contains the Garfield memorial, 
a magnificent tomb erected to the memory of 
the martyred president. This structure is of 
Ohio sandstone and contains in relief sculptures 
representing incidents in Garfield’s life. The 
interior is in the form of a chapel decorated with 
symbolical friezes and containing a marble statue 
of Garfield in the center. The remains are in a 
crypt underneath the chappl. The whole monu¬ 
ment cost about $130,000. 

Among the public buildings worthy of note 
are the new government building and the post- 
office. These with the customhouse and city 
hall, enclose a square near the center of the city 


and form its most noted architectural feature. 
The county courthouse, the art museum, the 
chamber of commerce, the Superior Arcade, the 
Sheriff Street Market, the West-Side Market and 
the Music Hall, seating 5,000, are worthy of note. 
The most noted churches are the Catholic cathe¬ 
dral; Saint Paul’s and Trinity Protestant Epis¬ 
copal; the First Presbyterian, familiarly known 
as Old Stone; Calvary and Woodland Avenue 
Presbyterian; First Congregational; First Metho¬ 
dist; Euclid Avenue Baptist. 

The city has a public library of over 200,000 
volumes and the Case Library, open to members 
only, of 50,000 volumes; also the library of the 
Western Reserve Historical Society, and others' 
belonging to various organizations and institu¬ 
tions. There is an excellent system of public 
schools, and the higher institutions of learning 
include the Western Reserve University, the 
Case School of Applied Science, the Saint 
Ignatius College (Roman Catholic), besides 
numerous parochial and private institutions. 

The location of Cleveland renders it an impor¬ 
tant port foi the transshipment of coal and iron 
ore; consequently, the city has built up one of 
the largest iron industries in the country. Am ong 
the manufactures the most important are those 
connected with the output of iron and steel and 
their manufactured products. Cleveland is also 
one of the largest centers of the petroleum 
industry and has large refineries. The city is 
the most important shipbuilding point on the 
Great Lakes, and each year a large number of 
steamboats and other craft are launched from 
her yards. It is also an important railroad cen¬ 
ter, besides being one of the principal lake ports, 
and its traffic is enormous. The harbor is pro¬ 
tected by a government breakwater nearly twe 
miles in extent, and it is so constructed as to 
enclose on two sides a basin over 300 acres in 
extent. The river has been dredged and con.- 
tains piers along both its banks, so that there are 
now five miles of wharfage accessible to all 
lake steamers. Industries of lesser importance, 
though large, include meat packing, the manu¬ 
facture of clothing and the manufacture of 
numerous small articles, such as scientific and 
optical instruments, paints and chemicals. 

Cleveland is within the territory of the old 
Connecticut claim known as the Western Reserve 
(See Western Reserve). It was named from 
Moses Cleveland, who was sent from Connecticut 
to survey the land and who established a settle¬ 
ment in 1796. In 1810 Cuyahoga County was 
organized and Cleveland became the county-seat 


Cleveland 


Click Beetle 


Five years later it was incorporated as a village, 
and in 1818 the Cleveland Gazette and Commer¬ 
cial Register appeared. This was the first 
newspaper published in the town. The growth 
of Cleveland was slow until after the cutting of a 
tunnel across the bar at the mouth of the river, 
which made its harbor accessible to lake boats. 
In 1836 it was incorporated as a city, and from 
that time to the present its growth has been 
steady. Population in 1910, 560,663. 

Cleveland (Stephen) Grover (1837-1908), 
an American statesman, twice president of the 
United States, born in Caldwell, Essex co. 
N. J. The death of his father, a Presbyterian 



GROVER CLEVELAND 


clergyman, compelled young Cleveland to earn 
his own living, and he became a clerk and assist¬ 
ant teacher in the New York institution for the 
blind. In 1855 he started west, but stopped at 
Buffalo, where he was admitted to the bar in 
1859. In 1863 he became assistant district 
attorney of Erie county and he was made sheriff 
in 1870. In 1881 he was elected mayor of 
Buffalo on the Democratic ticket, though the 
city was strongly Republican, and his vigorous 
and efficient administration led to his nomination 
and election as governor of the state by a remark¬ 
able plurality. His career as governor was 
marked by exceptional ability, fearlessness and 
honesty. He was nominated for president at 
the national Democratic convention held in 
Chicago in 1884, and was elected over Blaine, 
Republican, by a small plurality. 

As president he made extraordinary use of 
the veto power to cnrb unworthy legislation, 


especially private pension bills, and boldly 
advocated a reduction in the tariff. In 1888 
he was again Democratic candidate for president, 
but he was defeated by the Republican candidate, 
Benjamin Harrison. He then removed to New 
York and practiced law. On June 2, 1886, he 
had married, at the White House, Miss Frances 
Folsom, daughter of his former law partner. 
He was again nominated by his party for presi¬ 
dent in 1892, in spite of opposition from his own 
state, and was elected. His second term was 
memorable because of a fearful financial panic, 
which he strove to avert by the repeal of the 
Sherman silver purchase law and by the issue 
of government bonds for the replenishment of 
the treasury’s gold reserve; for the passage of the 
Wilson tariff law, which, though reducing some 
duties, was deemed so ineffectual by the president 
that he would not sign it, and for the notable 
message from the president to Congress, in 
accordance with which steps were taken to com¬ 
pel England to arbitrate her controversy with 
Venezuela. 

After his retirement from the presidency, 
Mr. Cleveland did not enter public life, but he 
was a frequent contributor to magazines upon 
topics of timely importance, and delivered each 
year a series of lectures in Princeton University. 
He was elected a trustee of the University 
soon after his retirement from the presidency, 
and took an active interest in its affairs. The 
tower of the new graduate school is called the 
Cleveland Memorial Tower in his honor. 

Cle'venger, Shobal Vail (1812-1843), an 
American sculptor. His father was a weaver, 
who went to Cincinnati with his son and appren¬ 
ticed him to a stonecutter. The son at once 
manifested artistic ability in carving tombstones 
and he soon learned to hew busts in freestone. 
Subsequently he chose the career of a sculptor 
and settled in New York City. Many of his 
works are contained in the art galleries of New 
York, Boston and Philadelphia. In 1840 he 
went to Rome, where he produced his North 
American Indian, which attracted considerable 
attention. Bat for his early death he would 
probably have gained a high reputation as a 
sculptor. 

Click Beetle, Springing Beetle and Skip¬ 
jack, names given to a family of beetles because 
of their peculiar behavior. If the click beetle 
is touched or alarmed, he folds up his legs and 
feigns death. If placed upon his back, he will 
lie quietly for a moment, and then by a sudden 
jerking motion, accompanied by a clicking 





Clients 


Cliff Dwellers 


sound, he will throw himeelf 3ome little distance 
in the air, and, landing on his feet, will run away. 
There are about 500 species of click beetles in 
the United States alone. The largest and most 
conspicuous is the eyed elater, which is grayish- 
black in color and has two large black spots, 
like eyes, on the sides of its thorax. These 
beetles usually live singly in flowers, grass and 
decaying wood. The destructive larvae are 
known as wireworms. Some of the tropical 
click beetles are luminous, and one species carries 
two glowing spots on each side of its thorax. 
These beetles are sometimes worn as ornaments. 

Cli'ents, in ancient Rome, citizens of the 
lower ranks who chose a patron from the higher 
classes, whose duty it was to advise and assist 
them, particularly in legal cases, and in general 
to protect them. The clients, on the other hand, 
were obliged to provide a dowry for the daughters 
of the patron if he had not sufficient fortune; 
to follow him to the wars and to vote for him 
if he was candidate for an office. This relation 
continued till the time of the emperors. 

The name is now applied to one who consults 
an attorney, or who engages him to prosecute or 
defend an action at law or to represent him in a 
business transaction. 

Cliff, a steep slope of the earth’s surface. 
The name is also applied to a headland or a 
precipice. Cliffs frequently form the sides of 
narrow valleys and the walls of canyons (See 
Canton). They are formed by erosion, by 
volcanic action and by upheaval. In the first 
case they are formed when running water cuts 
deep canyons through plateaus, such as those 
along the Colorado and Yellowstone rivers, in the 
western part of the United States. They are 
formed by volcanic action when, a viscid lava 
pours down the slope of a mountain in thick 
sheets. The first flow becomes solid, and the 
lava which follows piles up behind it and over¬ 
flows, sometimes forming cliffs several hundred 
feet in height, with very rough surfaces. Violent 
upheavals of the earth’s crust sometimes fracture 
the strata, elevating a portion and forming a nearly 
perpendicular cliff. Overhanging cliffs along 
river banks are formed when the lower strata 
of the rocks, being softer than those above, are 
gradually worn away by the water, the rock above 
being left suspended over the water. See 
Erosion. 

Cliff Dwell'ers, an aboriginal American 
race who preceded the Pueblo indians and who 
built houses in the cliffs and rocks. Their cave 
dwellings were often artificial caves, closed and 

42 


strengthened by stone walls, while their cliff 
houses were veritable fortresses, to which the 
inhabitants retreated when menaced by an} 
serious danger. Any situation pleased them, 
provided it gave hope of a little security. These 
dwellings have even been found hollowed in 
layers of volcanic ashes, hardened by time, while 
all around, pieces of cut silex and fragments of 
pottery attest the long sojourn of the people. 
One “cliff palace’’has a length of 421 feet, con¬ 
tains 127 rooms and is capable of affording 
shelter to 1500 persons. The dwellings are 
constructed either of assorted stones, held 
together with moistened clay, or of adobe or sun- 
dried bricks. The circular ruins contain a 
number of small cells, and a building, often 
half-subterranean in the center, which the 
Spaniards called an estufa. Some contend that 
these estujas were the council chambers where 
the principal men of the tribe assembled; while 
others hold that they were meant to keep the 
sacred fire, which is even to-day an object of 
veneration with the indians. The cliff houses 
take the shape of the platform oh which they 
stand, and the walls are soldered to the sides of 
the rock. Even to-day the marks of the tools and 
the workmen’s fingers can be seen on the masonry. 
Sometimes the homes of the Cliff Dwellers were 
at a great altitude, being as high as 800 feet above 
the level of a river. Later researches have 
revealed the existence of springs which had been 
tapped and brought into natural or skillfully 
made reservoirs. 

The entire San Juan valley is strewn with the 
ruins. There is one long, narrow structure run¬ 
ning in front of a cave 200 feet wide at the mouth, 
where windows eighteen inches square are the 
only means of entrance. Several human hands 
painted in ocher are to be seen on the walls. 
Recent explorations have brought to light a small 
number of mummies in a fair state of preserva¬ 
tion. Side by side with the bodies, weapons, 
utensils and ornaments were found. The access 
to the dwellings is often very difficult. A nar¬ 
row, dangerous path leads down from the top of 
the cliff, but is barred by a house built of quarried 
and well-cemented stone, of better and probably 
later construction than the other dwellings. 
Agriculture seems to have been more perfect 
among the inhabitants of Arizona than among 
those of New Mexico. The former cultivated 
maize, beans, watermelons, cotton and tobacco, 
and irrigation ditches show their skill and 
industry. Among their domestic animals were 
the turkey, and probably the rabbit and a species 


Clifford 


Climate 


of llama. Neither here nor anywhere else in 
these regions have the excavations resulted in 
the discovery of any metal objects, with the 
exception of a few small amulets made of copper. 
On the other hand, a great variety of pottery has 
been found, always tastefully decorated. Numer- 
ous weapons of polished stone, bone implements 
and sea shells have also been discovered. 

The excavations carried out in one place in 
Arizona produced some 300 skeletons, about 
fifty of which are complete. The bodies had 
been laid, fully-dressed and bent double, in a 
chamber measuring twenty-two feet in diameter. 

Cliff'ord, Nathan (1803-1881), an Ameri¬ 
can lawyer and jurist, born in Rumney, N. H. 
He began the practice of law in York county, 
Maine, in 1827. He was elected to the state 
legislature, became speaker of the house and 
attorney general of the state in 1834. Five 
years later he was elected to Congress, where he 
served two terms, and in 1846 he became attorney 
general of the United States. He negotiated 
the treaty with Mexico by which California and 
the adjoining territory was annexed to the Union. 
In 1858 Clifford was appointed associate justice 
of the United States Supreme Court, and in 1877 
he was president of the electoral commission 
which decided the Hayes-Tilden controversy. 

Cli'mate, the average condition of the atmos¬ 
phere, with respect to temperature, humidity, 
rainfall, wind and storms. Weather is the 
atmospheric condition for a short period of time, 
as a day or a week, but climate is the condition 
of weather or the sort of weather for a long period 
of years. Weather is constantly changing; but 
there have been no marked changes of climate 
for centuries. 

The chief determining factors of climate are 
latitude, altitude, the inclination of the earth’s 
axis to the plane of its orbit, distance from the 
sea and prevailing winds. Of all these, latitude 
is the most important factor, since upon it, more 
than upon any other cause, depends the tem¬ 
perature of a region, which is the most important 
climatic feature. The temperature is the highest 
in the equatorial regions and gradually diminishes 
toward the poles. Were the surface of the earth 
perfectly smooth, there would be little or no 
variation in temperature for places having the 
same latitude; but the general effect produced 
by the different angles at which the sun’s rays 
strike the earth between the equator and the 
poles is modified by numerous local conditions. 
Chief among these is altitude', and this, next to 
latitude, is the most important agency that affects 


climate. The average temperature of a place 
falls one degree for every 300 feet in ascent above 
sea level. In other words, 300 feet in altitude 
will produce the same variation in temperature 
as from 30 to 60 miles in latitude, according to 
the location of the place. Hence in the moun¬ 
tainous regions of the tropics are all grades of 
climate from that of the torrid zone to that of 
the arctic regions. Illustrations of this occur in 
the equatorial regions of South America and 
among the Himalayas in Asia. 

Water is a great equalizer of temperature. It 
warms and cools much more slowly than the 
land. Hence, regions located in the vicinity of 
large bodies of water, such as those on the sea 
coast or near the Great Lakes, have a more 
equable temperature than those situated far 
inland. Winds blowing over the oceans acquire 
the same temperature as the water. Hence in 
the temperate regions countries situated on the 
western coasts of the continents usually have a 
warmer climate than those on the eastern coasts 
in the same latitude, since the general direction 
of the winds is westerly. This is seen very 
clearly in comparing the temperature of places 
having the same latitude on the eastern and 
western coasts of North America. In each 
instance the higher temperature on the western 
coast is due to the prevailing westerly winds 
which have been warmed by blowing a long 
distance over warm marine currents. A similar 
contrast exists between the eastern coast of North 
America and the western coast of Europe. 

Mountain ranges influence rainfall and winds; 
hence, they are important factors in determining 
the climate of certain localities, as that of the 
Great Central Plain in North America. This 
region is situated between the Appalachian 
Mountains on the east and the Rocky Mountains 
on the west. The prevailing winds are from 
the north or the south; hence, all of the interior 
of North America is subject to sudden changes 
of temperature, since the north wind causes a 
fall and the south wind a rise in temperature. In 
Europe the comparatively low western coast 
allows the warm winds from the Atlantic to 
blow over a large area; hence, that portion of 
the continent, though far north, has a compara¬ 
tively warm climate. The Alps form a barrier 
which prevents these winds from blowing over 
the countries to the south, so that these countries 
are wholly under the influence of the warm winds 
blowing across the Mediterranean; hence, Spain 
and Italy have a warmer climate than portions 
of the United States in the same latitude. 


Climbing Perch 

Climate is the chief factor in determining the 
animal and vegetable life and the character of 
civilization of any locality. While the largest 
land animals and the most luxuriant vegetation 
are found in the tropics, it is within the temperate 
regions that the most intelligent and useful of 
the lower animals and the most valuable plants 
have developed. It is also within the north 
temperate region that the great nations of civili¬ 
zation have originated and reached their highest 
stage of enlightenment. See Meteorology; 
Weather Bureau. 

Climbing Perch, an oriental fish, remarkable 
for having little sacs at the side of its head, 
which can retain sufficient water to keep the gills 
moist and to enable the fish to live out of water 
for six days. The climbing perch of India 
proceeds long distances overland in search of 
water, when the pools in which it has been living 
have dried up. 

Clin'ton, Iowa, the county-seat of Clinton eo., 
is located on the Mississippi River, 138 mi. w. 
of Chicago, on the main line of the Chicago & 
Northwestern and on the Chicago, Milwaukee 
& Saint Paul, the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy 
and the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific rail¬ 
roads. The Northwestern machine shops are 
located here. The manufactures include lumber, 
sash, doors and blinds, brick, locks, machinery, 
wagons, harness, furniture and other articles. 
Wartburg College, Mount Saint Clare Academy 
and Our Lady of Angels Seminary are located 
here. Lyons was annexed to the city of Clinton 
in 1895. Population in 1910, 25,577. 

Clinton, Mass., a town in Worcester co., 12 
mi. n. of Worcester, on the Nashua River and 
on the Boston & Maine, the New York, New 
Haven and Hartford railroads and a number 
of electric lines. There is good water power, and 
the place contains manufactures of dress goods, 
machinery, wire work, carpets and other articles. 
It was incorporated as a separate town in 1850. 
Population in 1910, 13,075. 

Clinton, Mo., the county-seat of Henry co., 
90 mi. s. e. of Kansas City, on the Missouri, 
Kansas & Texas, the Saint Louis & San Francisco 
and other railroads. Baird College is located 
here. The place was settled in 1835 and was 
incorporated as a village five years later. Pop¬ 
ulation in 1910, 4992. 

Clinton, De Witt (1769-1828), an American 
statesman and lawyer, born at Little Britain, 
Conn., and educated at Columbia College. He 
was admitted to the bar in 1788, and in 1797 he 
was elected to the assembly, in 1798 was a mem- 


Clinton 

ber of the senate of the State of New York and 
in 1801 was elected United States senator. For 
twelve years, with two short intervals, he was 
mayor of New York. He was again member of 
the senate of New York from 1803 to 1811, and 
he was lieutenant governor of the state for two 
years. In 1812 he was defeated by Madison 
for president. In 1817 he was chosen governor 



of the state and was reelected three times. During 
his third term, in 1825, he officiated at the open¬ 
ing of the Erie Canal, thus witnessing the com¬ 
pletion of a work to whose promotion he had 
devoted the best years of his life, and with 
which his name will be inseparably connected. 
See Erie Canal. 

Clinton, George (1739-1812), an American 
soldier and statesman. He served in the last 
French and Indian war and was elected to the 
New York assembly. In 1775 he was a delegate 
to the Continental Congress and was appointed 
a brigadier general in the Continental Army in 
1777. He was the first governor of the State of 
New York, serving from 1777 till 1795 with 
exceptional ability. Clinton was of great service 
to the colonial cause, through his influence over 
the indians. He opposed the Federal Constitu¬ 
tion on account of its centralization of power. 
In 1791 he advocated the improvement of inter¬ 
nal communication by navigation companies. 
He was again chosen governor in 1801, and 






Clinton 


Clock 


three years later he was elected vice-president, 
which office he held until his death. 

Clinton, Sir Henry (about 1738-1795), a 
British general. He arrived in Boston as major 
general in 1775, served at Bunker Hill, was 
second in command in the movements that 
compelled the Americans to evacuate New York 
in September, 1775, and was left in command 
of that city in the summer of 1777. He stormed 
Forts Clinton and Montgomery, and was 
appointed commander in chief of His Majesty’s 
forces in America, with the rank of lieutenant 
general. In June, 1778, he evacuated Phila¬ 
delphia, and on his retreat through New Jersey 
he fought with Washington at Monmouth Court¬ 
house. He went to South Carolina in Decem¬ 
ber, 1779, and captured Charleston in the spring 
of the following year. In October, 1781, he 
set sail for Chesapeake Bay with a large force 
to aid Lord Cornwallis, but at the entrance of 
the Chesapeake he learned that Cornwallis had 
surrendered, and thereupon he returned to New 
York. In June, 1782, he returned to England. 
He was elected to Parliament and was afterward 
placed in cotnmand of Gibraltar, where he died. 

Clinton, James (1736-1812), an American 
soldier, the brother of George Clinton and the 
father of De Witt Clinton. During the French 
and Indian War he distinguished himself at Fort 
Frontenac, and he served in General Montgom¬ 
ery’s expedition to Canada at the opening of the 
Revolution. He was made brigadier general 
in the Continental army in 1776, commanded 
Fort Clinton when it was attacked by Sir Henry 
Clinton in 1777 and was the last man to leave 
the works. Although suffering from a severe 
bayonet wound, he escaped by sliding down a 
precipice of one hundred feet to the creek. He 
took part in General Sullivan’s expedition 
against the Iroquois of western New York in 
1779. After the close of the war he served in 
the New York convention which decided on the 
ratification of the United States Constitution. 

Cli'O, in Greek mythology, the muse of history, 
daughter of Zeus and Mnemosyne. Her attri¬ 
butes are a wreath of laurel upon her head, a 
trumpet in her right hand and a roll of papyrus 
in her left. 

Clive, Robert, Baron of Plassey (1725-1774), 
an English general and statesman. He went to 
India as a clerk in the service of the East India 
Company, and when in 1747 war broke out in 
India between the French and English he joined 
the army. By his capture of Arcot and his 
defense of it against a greatly superior force of 


French and natives in 1751, he won a very 
favorable reputation, and this was heightened by 
his future successes over the French. In 1753 
he sailed to England to recover his health, and 
he was received most cordially. Two years 
later he was back in India, and he was in the 
same year placed in command of the expedition 
sent to Bengal. He took Calcutta and defeated 
the nawab of Bengal in a battle at Plassey, thus 
establishing English supremacy in India. He 
placed on the throne of Bengal a general of the 
defeated nawab, and through him he became 
possessed of great wealth. On his second 
return to England in 1760 he was accorded 
many honors, but he was sent back to India to 
straighten out the affairs of the East India 
Company. This he accomplished in about 
eighteen months. Returning to England, he 
was met with the accusation of having abused 
his power to gain wealth, and an investigation 
was made. His complete acquittal followed, 
but the disgrace of the accusation so preyed 
upon his mind that he committed suicide. 

Cloa'ca Max'ima, the great sewer at Rome, 
built some 2500 years ago. A portion of it is 
still in use, and it may be seen under the Roman 
Forum and where it empties into the Tiber. It 
is about thirteen feet square. 

Clock, an instrument for measuring time and 
indicating hours, minutes and, usually, seconds, 
by means of hands moving over a dial plate. 
The necessary parts of a clock are the weight or 
spring, which furnishes the motive power; the 
escapement, which is connected with the pen¬ 
dulum or balance wheel; the tram of wheels; 
the dial, and the hands. The weight is attached 
to a cord, which is wound around a drum, to one 
end of which a large wheel is fastened. As the 
weight descends, the unwinding of the cord 
imparts motion to the train of wheels. The 
motion is regulated by a pendulum, which is 
connected with the escapement wheel, as shown 
in the figure. At the top of the pendulum rod 
is a pallet, E. When the pendulum swings 
to the right, the tooth A of the escapement wheel 
escapes from the pallet B, while the tooth C is 
brought against the pallet D. The ends of these 
pallets are so shaped that as the teeth of the 
escapement wheel are released by them, suffi¬ 
cient force is imparted to the pendulum to keep it 
swinging. The pinion of the escapement connects 
with cogs, usually called leaves, on a larger wheel, 
whose pinion connects with another large wheel, 
and so on until the necessary number of wheels 
is used to produce a rotation, once in twelve 


Clock 


Cloth 



hours, of the wheel which carries the hour hand. 
Another wheel, carrying the minute hand, makes 
a complete rotation once an hour. The move¬ 
ment of the wheelwork 
is regulated by the vibra¬ 
tions of the pendulum. 

The clock can be made 
to run faster or slower 
by shortening or length¬ 
ening the pendulum, and 
the pendulum of any 
common clock has a 
hand and screw below 
the bob for this purpose 
(See Pendulum). The 
hands are attached to 
pivots, which pass through 
the dial, the pivot of 
the minute hand passing 
through that of the hour 
hand, so that each hand moves past the other 
without hindrance. 

The striking part of a clock is entirely separate 
from the time-keeping part and is operated by a 
different weight or spring. It is, however, set in 
motion by a lever which is connected with the 
time-keeping part. 

Sun dials and water clocks were the earliest 
instruments used for measuring time (See Sun 
Dial; Clepsydra). It is not known when the 
first attempts at clock-making were made, but 
there are accounts of such attempts as early as the 
seventh century. In the early part of the ninth 
century a clock was presented to Charlemagne, 
and in the following century one was given to 
Pope Sylvester II; but it is not known that these 
were clocks with wheels and a weight, like those 
of a later date. It is probable that the invention 
of the clock is due to the monks, who needed 
a timepiece which would enable them to dis¬ 
charge their various duties at stated periods. 
Clocks are known to have been in use early in 
the fourteenth century, and some of them were 
quite elaborate. They not only marked the 
hours of the day, but they also indicated the 
course of the sun and moon and the ebb and 
flow of the tides. In the fourteenth century the 
first large clocks on steeples also appeared, and 
from that time to the present the manufacture 
of clocks has been an important industry. 

The first clocks used in the United States had 
no case, but they were fastened to the wall of 
the room near the ceiling, and the weights and 
pendulum were without protection. Later a 
case was added, which rested upon the floor and 


extended upward for six feet or more. For many 
years the works of all American clocks were of 
wood and were made entirely by hand. Finally, 
brass clocks replaced the wooden ones, and these 
at first were also made by hand, but later a die 
for casting the wheels from rolled brass plates 
was used. With the introduction of this inven¬ 
tion, clock-making by machinery was inaugu¬ 
rated and machine-made timepieces took the 
place upon the market of those made by 
hand. The largest clock manufactory in the 
United States is at Waterbury, Conn. See 
Watch. 

Clois'ter, an arched way or gallery, often 
forming part of certain portions of monastic and 
collegiate buildings, usually having a wall of the 
building on one side, and an open arcade, or a 
series of windows with piers and columns adjoin¬ 
ing an interior yard or court, on the other side. 
The central open space, or garth, contained the 
well and garden, and here the monks met and 
talked, for the cloisters were especially intended 
for recreation. Many beautiful cloisters still 
remain in the churches of Rome, Germany, 
France and England. In a strict sense, the term 
denotes the entire space inclosed within the 
walls of a monastery or other religious insti¬ 
tution, comprising the church, dormitories, 
chapter house and all other buildings. 

Cloquet, klo kwet', Minn., is situated 30 mi. 
w. of Duluth, on the Northern Pacific and the 
Great Northern railroads. It is in the midst of 
an extensive lumber region and has a number 
of large sawmills, shingle mills and pulp mills. 
Population in 1900, 3072; in 1910, 7031. 

Clot'bur. See Cocklebur. 

Cloth, a woven fabric, usually made of cotton, 
wool, flax or silk. But in tropical countries it 
may be made of the fiber of hemp, jute or other 
plants. Cloth is woven on the loom (See Loom). 
The weaver uses two sets of threads, the warp 
threads, which are run lengthwise of the goods, 
and the weft or woof threads, which run across 
the warp. The selvage is the edge of the cloth, 
woven in such a manner as to prevent raveling. 
The warp takes various names; it is sometimes 
called the foundation or back of the goods, and 
the woof is often called the filling. When one 
says that a piece of goods has a cotton back 
and a silk filling, he means that the warp is of 
cotton and the weft of silk (See Weaving). 
All-wool cloths have both the warp and weft of 
wool, but most so-called woolens contain more 
or less cotton or other fiber. Worsted goods 
are made of combed wool that is well twisted 






Clothes Moth 

(See Worsted). The varieties of cotton cloth 
most extensively used are muslins, including 
sheetings and shirtings, as well as the finer 
goods of this name; also the cotton cambric, 
canvas, duck, dimity, gingham and calico. 
Satinette, tweeds, jeans and some cashmeres 
are made on a cotton warp with a weft of wool. 
Lawns, cambrics, Damascus sheetings and 
towelings are made of flax and are called linens. 
Cloth may be plain, like common muslin; 
twilled, like tweeds; piled, like velvet and plush; 
figured, like damask; mixed, like cheviot, and 
checked or striped, like gingham, according to 
the way in which the weft threads are woven into 
the cloth. The width of the cloth depends 
upon the number of threads in the warp; its 
fineness or coarseness depends on the size of the 
threads and their distance apart. See Spin¬ 
ning; Weaving. 

Clothes, kloze, Moth, the name given to 
several moths whose larvae are destructive to 
woolen fabrics, feathers and furs. They not 
only feed upon the material, but the larvae use 
it in the construction of the cases in which they 
undergo the pupa stage. It is not easy to pre¬ 
vent the damage done by clothes moths, but 
airing and sweeping closets frequently, and 
beating, brushing and exposing clothes to the 
sunlight will diminish the ravages. Tobacco, 
camphor, naphthalene and cedar shavings seem 
obnoxious to the insects. 

Clo'tho. See Fates. 

Cloud, a collection of visible vapor, or watery 
particles, suspended in the atmosphere at a con¬ 
siderable altitude. Clouds differ from fogs 
only In their height and degree of density. The 
average height of clouds is calculated to be two 



fig. 1 


and one-half miles, thin and light clouds being 
much higher than the highest mountains; while 
thick, heavy clouds often touch low mountains, 
steeples and even trees. Clouds differ much in 
form and character, but they are generally 


Cloud 

classified into four simple or primary forms: 
(1) The cirrus (Fig. 1), so-called from its resem¬ 
blance to a lock of hair, consisting of fibers which 
diverge in all directions. Clouds of this descrip¬ 
tion float at a general height of from three to five 
miles above the earth’s surface. (2) The 



fig 2 


cumulus (Fig. 2), a cloud which assumes the 
form of dense convex or conical heaps, resting on 
a flattish base. It is called also the summer 
cloud. Under ordinary circumstances these 
clouds accompany fine weather, especially in the 
heat of summer. They attain their greatest 



FIG. 3 


size early in the afternoon and gradually decrease 
toward sunset. (3) The stratus (Fig. 3), so 
named from its spreading out uniformly in a 
horizontal layer, which receives all its additions 
in volume from below. It belongs essentially 
to the night, and it is frequently seen on calm 
summer evenings after sunset ascending from 
the lower to the higher grounds, and dispersing 
in the form of a cumulus cloud at sunrise. (4) 
The nimbus, or rain cloud, is recognized by its 
fibrous border and uniformly gray aspect. It is 
a dense cloud, spreading out into a crown of 
cirrus and passing beneath into a shower. It 
presents one of the least attractive appearances 
among clouds, but it is only when the dark sur¬ 
face of this cloud forms its background that the 
splendid phenomenon of the rainbow is exhibited 
in perfection (See Fog; Rain; Wind). 

The first three primary forms of clouds are sub¬ 
divided as follows: 1, the cirro cumulus, com¬ 
posed of a collection of cirri, and spreading itself 

















Cloudberry 

frequently over the sky in the form of beds of 
delicate snowflakes; 2, the cirro stratus, or wane 
cloud, so called from its being generally seen 
slowly sinking and in a state of transformation— 
when seen in the distance a collection of these 
clouds suggests the resemblance of a shoal of 
fish, and the sky, when thickly mottled with them, 
is called in popular language a mackerel sky ; 
3, the cumvlo stratus , or twain cloud, one of the 
grandest and most beautiful of clouds, consisting 
of a collection of large, fleecy clouds overhanging 
a flat stratum or base. 

Cloud'ber'ry, a fruit found plentifully in 
the north of Asia, America and Europe, and 
common in some of the more elevated moors of 
Great Britain. The plant is from four to ten 
Inches high, with a rather large, handsome leaf. 
The flowers are large and white, and the berries, 
which have a very fine flavor, are orange yellow 
in color and about the size of a brambleberry. 

Cloud'-burst, the name generally applied 
to an unusually heavy local rain. In the United 
States the term is restricted to a rain exceeding six 
inches and falling at the rate of ten inches, or 
more, per hour. Cloud-bursts cover only very 
small areas, usually but a few acres in extent. 
They generally occur in mountainous regions and 
seem to be caused by thunder storms. In the 
United States they are quite frequent along the 
eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains, but the 
term cloud-burst is often incorrectly applied to 
local heavy rains occurring among the Appa¬ 
lachians. A cloud-burst causes the sudden over¬ 
flow of streams and often converts dry channels 
into mountain torrents whose effect is very 
destructive. That they are the result of the 
sudden condensation of large quantities of water 
vapor is evident to all, but the causes which 
produce this condensation are not yet well 
understood. 

Clove'-bark is furnished by a tree of Brazil 
and the West Indies. It is in pieces more or less 
long, almost flat, thick, fibrous, covered with a 
white epidermis of a reddish-yellow color inside, 
of a nutmeg and clover odor, and of an aromatic 
and sharp taste, similar to both cloves and 
cinnamon. The culilawan, which grows in the 
Molucca Islands, is often confounded with the 
clove-bark, as is also the cinnamon. 

Clo'ver, a name given to a large genus of the 
pea family. There are more than one hundred 
fifty species, of which some are weeds, but many 
are valued as food for cattle. Common red clover 
lives for two years and sometimes, especially on 
chalky soils, for three years. This is the kind 


Cloves 

most commonly cultivated, as it yields better 
than any of the other sorts. White clover is a 
most valuable plant for pasturage over the whole 
of Europe, Central Asia and North America, 
and it has also been introduced into South 
America. The bee gathers much of its best 
honey from the flowers of this species. Alsike, 
hybrid, or Swedish clover has been long culti¬ 
vated in the south of Sweden, and for some time 
also in other countries; it is strongly recom¬ 
mended for cold, moist, stiff soils. It resembles 
the common red clover in duration, stature and 
mode of growth. Perennial red or meadow 
clover much resembles the common red, but 
differs somewhat in habh, and the bright red 
flowers are larger and form a less compact head. 
Its produce is less in quantity and is not so 
nutritive as that of the common red. Clover 
is an excellent crop for exhausted lands, for the 
tubercles on the plant roots gather and store 
quantities of nitrogen, which go to restore the 
fertility of the soil. 

Cloves, klohvz, the dried flower buds of a tree 
which is a native of the Molucca Islands. It 



CLOVE 

Opened and unopened flower bud and a longitudinal 
section of bud. 


belongs to the myrtle tribe, now cultivated in 
Sumatra, Jamaica, the West Indies and Brazil. 
The tree is a handsome evergreen, from fifteen 
to thirty feet high, with large, elliptic, smooth 
leaves and numerous purplish flowers on jointed 





Clovis 


Coach 


stalks. Every part of the plant abounds in the 
oil for which the flower buds are prized. The 
spice yields a very fragrant odor, and it has a 
bitterish, sharp and warm taste. It is some¬ 
times employed as a hot and stimulating medicine, 
but it is more frequently used in cooking. 

Clo'vis (465-511), king of the Franks, suc¬ 
ceeded to the throne in 481. In 486 he over¬ 
threw the Roman governor at Soissons and 
occupied the country between the Somme and 
the Loire. He married a Christian princess, 
and he himself became a Christian as a result 
of the favorable outcome of a battle, for the 
success of which he had prayed to the God of 
his wife. In a struggle with the Visigoths he was 
entirely successful. 

Club, a select number of persons in the habit 
of meeting for the promotion of some common 
object, as social intercourse, literature or politics. 
The coffee houses of the seventeenth and eight¬ 
eenth centuries are the best representatives 
of what is meant by a modern club, while the 
clubs of that time were commonly nothing but a 
kind of restaurant or tavern where people resorted 
to take their meals. The first celebrated London 
c'ub was the one which met at the Mermaid 
Tavern, and of which Shakespeare, Beaumont, 
Fletcher and Raleigh were members. The Kit- 
Kat Club, founded early in the seventeenth 
century, took its name from Christopher Katt, 
the man who supplied its mutton pies. Addison, 
Congreve and Sir Robert Walpole were among 
its members. Another club, formed about the 
same time, was the Beefsteak Club, which 
numbered among its members Fox, Sheridan 
and Hogarth. Its motto was “ Beef and Liberty.” 
Originally these two clubs had no pronounced 
political views, but in the end they began to 
occupy themselves with politics. Perhaps the 
most celebrated club of the eighteenth century 
was that which was first called “The Club,” 
and which numbered among its members Doctor 
Johnson, Sir Joshua Reynolds, Edmund Burke, 
David Garrick, Oliver Goldsmith, Edward 
Gibbon and others. This club exists to the 
present day. 

The growth of the club in its modern sense 
began after the close of the wars with Napoleon, 
when the army and navy officers, living on half 
pay, combined their resources. Among the 
most important London political clubs of the 
present day are the Carlton Club, a sort of 
headquarters for the Conservative party, and 
the Reform Club, the great club of the Liberal 
party. Clubs for social purposes, for literary, 


musical, artistic or dramatic purposes, are very 
numerous, and the whole number of prominent 
London clubs is estimated at over one hundred. 
Clubs and club-life have reached a very high 
plane in the United States. Every important 
city numbers in its more important buildings the 
palatial quarters of some prominent club. New 
York, Chicago, Boston. Philadelphia and San 
Francisco vie with one another in the sumptuous 
surroundings of their clubs. The Union League, 
Manhattan and Metropolitan clubs of New 
York, the Union League and Chicago clubs of 
Chicago, may be mentioned among the more 
important ones. Clubs for women have become 
common of late years, especially in the United 
States, and many men’s clubs admit women as 
visitors. 

Club Moss, a common name for two different 
genera of plants that are grouped with the ferns 
and scouring rushes. In many respects the club 
mosses resemble the true mosses, having slender 
running stems, which branch and bear a great 
number of minute leaves. These club mosses, 
or ground pines, as they are sometimes called, are 
pretty little plants of no especial value except for 
decorative purposes, but they grow luxuriantly 
in mild or moist climates in all parts of the globe. 
In the earlier history of the world, during the 
carboniferous period, some species attained 
enormous size, rivaling trees in their height and 
in the thickness of their stems. Remains of 
these are found in great quantities in coal deposits. 

Cluny or Clugny, kloo ne ', a town of eastern 
France, 11 mi. n. w. of Macon. Here was a 
Benedictine abbey, founded in 910, at one time 
the most celebrated in France, having 2000 
monastic communities directly under its sway 
in France, Italy, Spain and England, the inmates 
of which formed the congregation of Cluniac 
monks. The Abbey church was destroyed in 
1789. In the museum of the town is kept a 
model of the magnificent structure. 

Clyde, Lord. See Campbell, Sir Colin. 

Cly'temnes'tra, in Greek mythology, the 
half-sister of Helen and of Castor and Pollux, 
and the wife of Agamemnon. During the 
absence of her husband in the war against Troy, 
she bestowed her favors on Aegisthus, and 
together they murdered Agamemnon on his 
return from Troy. Then with Aegisthus she 
governed Mycenae for years, until she, with her 
lover, was killed by her son Orestes. 

Coach, koche, a closed, four-wheeled carriage, 
drawn by horses and designed for the convey¬ 
ance of passengers. The earliest carriages 


Coal 


Coal 


appear to have been all open At Rome both 
covered and uncovered carriages were in use. 
After the fall of the Roman Empire they went 
out of use again, and during the feudal ages the 
custom was to ride on horseback, the use of 
carriages being considered effeminate. They do 
not appear to have become common till the 
fifteenth century, and even then they were 
regarded exclusively as vehicles for women and 
invalids. Later on they became, especially in 
Germany, part of the appendages of royalty. 
Coaches seem to have been introduced into Eng¬ 
land about the middle of the sixteenth century, 
but they were for a long time confined to the 
aristocracy and the wealthy classes. Hackney 
coaches were first used in London in 1625. They 
were then only twenty in number and were kept 
at the hotels, where they had to be applied for 
when wanted. In 1634 coaches waiting to be 
hired at a particular stand were introduced. 
Stagecoaches were introduced into England 
about the same time as hackney coaches. The 
first stagecoach in London appears to have run 
early in the seventeenth century, and before the 
end of the century they were started on three of 
the principal roads in England. Their speed 
was at first very moderate, about 3 or 4 miles an 
hour. They could run only in the summer, and 
even then their progress was often greatly 
hindered by floods and by the wretched state of 
the roads. Mail coaches next followed 

The first coaches in America belonged to 
wealthy families and were used in the colonial 
period. They were forerunners of the stage¬ 
coach. Previous to the Revolution four-horse 
stage wagons were in use for conveying passen¬ 
gers and goods between the largest cities. Later 
the stagecoach took the place of these wagons 
and continued in use until the construction of 
railways. The stagecoach has been the pioneer 
of transportation from the Atlantic to the Pacific, 
and each decade has seen it abolished in different 
localities as railways have rendered it unneces¬ 
sary. The most common pattern in the United 
States is the Concord coach, which has the body 
supported on strong leather straps, instead of 
on springs. While these straps prevent jolting, 
they give the coach a peculiar lurching motion 
which is extremely tiresome when driving over 
rough roads. The tallyho is a coach used for 
pleasure in large cities and about fashionable 
resorts. It has seats, not only within, but also 
on top, and can carry a large number of passen¬ 
gers. 

Coal, hole, in the ordinary meaning of the 


term, a mineral fuel in solid form; in its broadest 
application, any substance formed by the burn¬ 
ing of organic matter with a limited supply of 
air. When we speak of coal in the commercial 
sense, we mean mineral coal. 

Formation. Coal is found in seams, or veins, 
which are separated from one another by layers 
of slate-like rock. From the fossils and the 
impressions of plants which these rocks con¬ 
tain, we know the sort of vegetation from which 
the coal was formed and are also able to determine 
the method of its formation. Coal was formed 
in a manner similar to that in which peat is 
formed at the present day. During the coal 
period (See Carboniferous System) large areas 
of low land were choked with vegetation, which 
died at the bottom, but kept growing at the top. 
As the plants died they partially decayed, and 
the weight of the vegetation above pressed them 
closely together. In the course of time these 
areas were depressed and covered with water 
and sand After remaining under water for a 
long time, they were again elevated and the sand 
became rock, upon the surface of which soil 
accumulated, and in this flourished another 
growth of vegetation similar to that previously 
destroyed. In time this was sunk below the 
water and was covered. The pressure and heat 
attending these changes converted the vegetable 
matter into coal. There were as many upheavals 
and depressions as there are seams of coal, and 
since these have not all been discovered, we do 
not yet know how many such changes occurred. 
The veins of coal and the rock lying between 
them, taken together, are known as the coal 
measures. The vegetation of the time resembled 
ferns, rushes and club mosses, and it also 
included certain species of trees that are now 
extinct. It was very luxuriant, the ferns form¬ 
ing trees twenty-five or more feet in height, and 
some of the club mosses exceeding in size the 
largest climbing plants of the tropical regions. 

Varieties. Coal is divided into three vari¬ 
eties, according to its degree of hardness and the 
amount of carbon which it contains. These are 
anthracite, bituminous and lignite. The early 
geologists applied the name bituminous to a 
certain kind of coal, because it had some of the 
properties of real bitumen—it melts at a temper¬ 
ature far below the burning point. Later in¬ 
vestigations proved that no kind of coal con¬ 
tains bituminous matter, but the name is still 
applied to the coal with 50 to 80 per cent of fixed 
carbon. Anthracite coal has from 80 to 90 per 
cent of carbon. 


Coal 


Coal 


Anthracite. Anthracite is the hardest and 
best variety of coal. It is supposed to be that 
which was first formed, and it occurs deep in the 
earth. The largest mines are found in the 
eastern part of Pennsylvania and in Nova Scotia. 
Though some of the veins of anthracite occur at 
great depths, many of them, on account of the 
disturbance of the coal measures, have been 
thrown up and outcrop on the hillsides in the 
anthracite region. Veins of this sort are easily 
mined, since the coal is obtained by excavating 
a gallery or tunnel into the side of the hill. 
Anthracite is generally used for heating dwellings, 
and it is now to quite an extent employed in the 
manufacture of illuminating gas. It burns with 
little or no flame and without smoke, but it 
produces an intense heat. 

Bituminous Coal. Bituminous coal is often 
known as soft coal. It contains much more 
bituminous matter than anthracite and is much 



COAL FIELDS OF 


more or less earthy matter. It is found in the 
coal measures west of the Mississippi River, 
and important mines have been opened in North 
Dakota, Montana and a number of states in the 
Rocky Mountains. Because of the scarcity of 
other fuel in these localities, lignite is of con¬ 
siderable local value, though its impurities ren¬ 
der it useless for manufacturing purposes, and 
it does not burn as readily or produce as intense 
heat as either of the other varieties described. 

Distribution, Coal is quite generally dis¬ 
tributed over the earth. In Europe the leading 
coal producing countries are Great Britain, 
Germany, France, Austria, Belgium and Russia. 
The Russian fields are the most extensive on 
the Continent, but they have not been fully 
developed. In Asia coal is found in India, 
China, Japan and the Malay Archipelago. It 
is supposed that the coal fields of China are the 
most extensive in the world, but as yet they have 



STATES AND CANADA 


softer; many varieties of it burn with consider¬ 
able flame and produce a dense black smoke 
caused by the unconsumed carbon escaping into 
the air. This coal is found upon the western 
slope of the Appalachian Mountains, and the 
fields extend westward as far as the Mississippi 
River. The great coal fields of Ohio, West 
Virginia, Indiana and Illinois contain bituminous 
coal measures. Bituminous coal is much more 
extensively distributed than anthracite and is 
mined in much larger quantities. It is used on 
locomotives, in the manufacture of coke and for 
many other industrial purposes. 

Cannel Coal is a variety of bituminous coal 
which is very compact and which, when lighted, 
burns from one end of the lump like a candle; 
hence its name. It is desirable for burning in 
open grates. 

Lignite. This is the most recently formed 
coal, is usually of a brown color and contains 


not been developed. As far as discovered, the 
coal fields of Africa are in the southern part of 
the continent, in Cape Colony and the vicinity 
of the Zambesi River. There are also valuable 
coal fields in Australia, New Zealand and the 
Philippine Islands, and profitable mines have 
been opened in Mexico, Argentina and Chile. 

As far as it is known the coal measures of the 
United States far exceed in area those of any 
other country. Altogether, they include over 
300,000 square miles, or an area of more than 
six times the size of the State of Ohio. These 
coal fields are distributed as follows: (1) Those 
of the Appalachian region, extending along the 
Appalachian Mountains from the northern 
boundary of Pennsylvania to Alabama, having 
a length from northeast to southwest of over 900 
miles and a width of from 30 to 180 miles; (2) 
coal measures of the Mississippi valley, extending 
from the western slope of the Appalachians to 









Coal 


Coastal Plain 


the river, these measures including the coal 
fields of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and western 
Kentucky; (3) the western field, which includes 
the coal areas west of the Mississippi River, 
south of the forty-third parallel of latitude and 
east of the Rocky Mountains, and (4) the Rocky 
Mountain field, including the areas in the Rocky 
Mountains and on the Pacific slope. Important 
coal districts of this field occur in Washington, 
Oregon and California. There is also another 
small area in Michigan, from which bituminous 
coal is obtained. 

The coal measures of Canada are geologically 
extensions of those in the United States. The 
most important fields are in Nova Scotia and 
British Columbia. These fields yield a high 
grade of bituminous coal. The coal produced 
in Saskatchewan and Alberta varies from a low 
grade of lignite to a good bituminous. 

Production. Great Britain produces nearly 
as much, coal as the United States, though her 
coal beds are of much smaller area, including 


United 

tmmamtumm ■■■■ Great Britain 
Germany 

■ Austria-Hungary 
I France 

Belgium Relative Rank of 

tapan Coal Producing Countries 

■ All Other Countries 


only about 12,000 square miles. The annual 
output of coal for the world is about 1,200,- 
000,000 short tons. Of this, the United States 
produces about 450,000,000 tons. Great Britain 
about 300,000,000 and Germany 250,000,000. 
These three countries supply approximately 85 
per cent of the world’s demands for coal. 
Canada’s production is still small, from 12,000,- 
000 to 14,000,000 tons a year, of which Nova 
Scotia produces one-half, British Columbia one- 
fourth and Alberta a little less than one-fourth. 

The following table summarizes the average 
annual production of the United States: 


States 

Tons 

Value 

Pennsylvania. .. . 
West Virginia.... 

Illinois. 

Ohio. 

Indiana. 

Alabama. 

Colorado. 

215,000,000 

60,000,000 

55,000,000 

30,000,000 

15,000,000 

13,500,000 

10,000,000 

51,500,000 

$270,000,000 

65.000,000 

70,000,000 

35,000,000 

15,000,000 

18,000,000 

15,000,000 

212,000,000 

Other States. 

Totals. 

450,000,000 

$700,000,000 


History. It is not known when or by whom 
coal was first used. It is referred to by Greek 
historians as early as 300 B. c., and it was in use 


in Great Britain as early as 852 A. D. It is 
supposed that the Britons were the first people 
to make practical use of it, and coal-mining was 
in successful operation in the island more than 
three hundred years before Columbus discovered 
America. The first discovery of coal in the 
United States, of which we have any record, 
was made by Father Hennepin near Ottawa, 
Ill., in 1679. The first mine worked in the 
United States was opened at Richmond, Va., 
in 1750. Anthracite was mined as early as 
1793, but on account of the difficulty of 
igniting it, it had not come into general use 
until the second quarter of the nineteenth 
century. Bituminous coal came into use in the 
United States earlier than this, but on account of 
difficulty of transportation it was not placed on 
the market until after 1820. From that date 
the use of coal became general, and with the 
increase of railway lines its uses have multiplied. 
Coal is now so closely connected with all lines 
of industries that the business of the country is 
practically dependent upon it. 

Coal Tar or Gas Tar, a substance obtained in 
the distillation of coal, for the manufacture of 
illuminating gas. It is a dark-colored, more 
or less viscid, mass, with a strong, disagreeable 
odor. It passes over with the gas into the con¬ 
densers, along with ammonia liquor, but being 
heavier than the latter, it is easily separated from 
it when the whole is allowed to stand. Coal tar 
was formerly of comparatively little use; but in 
recent years a great number of valuable products 
have been derived from it by distillation, such 
as ammonia, naphtha, creosote, carbolic acid and 
benzene, while it is also the source of the whole 
series of aniline colors, other dyes, of alizarine 
and salicylic acid. See Aniline. 

Coastal, Jcose'tal, Plain, in general, a plain 
formed along the coast by the action of waves 
and tides, but, particularly, that portion of North 
America lying along the coast of the Atlantic 
Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico and extending 
from about the latitude of New York to the city 
of Vera Cruz. The western boundary of this 
plain is the foothills of the Appalachian Moun¬ 
tains, and the upper portion of it is usually called 
the Piedmont region. The plain varies in width 
on the Atlantic coast from 50 to 200 miles, and 
from the Gulf of Mexico it extends northward 
into the Mississippi Valley as far as the Ohio 
River. A narrower section also extends south 
and west through Texas and along the coast of 
Mexico. Along the Atlantic coast the western 
boundary is marked by an abrupt rise, caused by 























Coast and Geodetic Survey 


Coati 


the upheaval of the rocks which formed the 
mountains. This edge, or rise, is usually known 
as the Fall Line. Below this most of the streams 
are navigable, and at the fall line they furnish 
abundant water power. For these reasons num¬ 
erous thriving cities are located along this line. 
Among these are Richmond, Va., Raleigh, N. C., 
and Columbia, S. C. 

Coast and Geodetic Survey, United States, 
a bureau in the department of commerce and 
labor, having charge of the surveys of the United 
States and its dependencies, including the 
interior, coasts and coast waters. This bureau 
was established in 1807 and was made a bureau 
in the treasury department, but its work was so 
delayed that but little was accomplished pre¬ 
vious to 1832. From that year to the present 
time the scope of its work has been rapidly 
broadened. In 1878 the bureau was designated 
as the Coast and Geodetic Survey, and in 1903 
it was transferred to the department of commerce 
and labor. As now organized the bureau is in 
charge of a superintendent and operates under 
two divisions, the field division and the office 
division. 

Some of the most important results accom¬ 
plished by the bureau are the making of a minute 
survey of the coasts and the mapping of the same, 
together with the coast waters as far out as 
necessary, of the entire coast line of the United 
States, including Alaska, and of a part of the 
island possessions; the making of a network of 
levels over the eastern half of the United States, 
from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes; the 
making of important triangulations across the 
United States, notably that along the thirty- 
ninth parallel, and another along the ninety- 
eighth meridian, which extends into Mexico.* 
These triangulations form the basis for many 
other surveys. The bureau also publishes an 
annual report, besides numerous charts and 
tide tables for all the principal, and many of the 
minor, ports of the world. 

Coast Defense. See Fortification. 

Coast Guard, an organization consisting of 
about 4000 veterans of the British navy, whose 
duty it is to patrol the coast of England con¬ 
stantly. The coast guards resemble somewhat 
the life-saving corps of the United States, but 
the duties in England include the prevention of 
smuggling and the manning of ships maintained 
for coast defense. 

Coasting, a favorite winter pastime from the 
earliest days, and still in the United States the 
most popular winter sport with children, ex¬ 


cepting, perhaps, skating. The sleds used in 
coasting are made in a great variety of forms, 
some low and some high, some long and narrow. 
In some the runners are of solid board, shod 
with steel, while in others the runners consist 
of open iron framework, drawn forward and 
curved upward in front. Where the snow is loose 
the high sleds are better, but on a well-packed 
slide the low ones make better time and are 
easier to handle. Bobs are constructed by 
fastening two ordinary sleds together by a long 
plank, the first one being attached to the plank 
by a pivot, which allows motion in steering. 
The steersman usually lies flat and grasps the 
forward sled in such a way that he may turn it 
easily, while the rest of the party group them¬ 
selves behind him. See Tobogganing. 

Coast Range, a range, or series of ranges, at 
a short distance from the Pacific coast, extending 
through the western part of California, across 
Oregon into Washington, where it is continued 
by the Olympic Mountains, and thence into 
British Columbia. Some of the summits rise to 
a height of 7000 and 8000 feet, and among the 
best known in California are Mounts Hamilton, 
Tamalpais and Diablo. The San Bernardino 
Mountains are sometimes considered a part of 
the Coast Range. 

Coatesville, kohts'vil, Pa., a borough in 
Chester co., on the Philadelphia & Reading and 
the Pennsylvania railroads. The industrial 
establishments include boiler factories, iron and 
steel works, foundries, and silk, woolen and 
paper mills. The place was settled about 1800 
and was incorporated in 1867. Population in 
1910, 11,084. 

Coati, ko ah’te, or Coati-mondi, the name of 
certain South American flesh-eating mammals. 



COATI 


belonging to the raccoon family. The coati 
has a longer body than other members of the 
same family, and has a .long, flexible snout. 
Coatis feed on worms, insects and the smaller 
quadrupeds, but chiefly on eggs and young birds. 
There are two species, the Mexican and the 
Brazilian. 


Cobalt 

Cobalt, ko'balt, a greenish-white metal, very 
brittle and' of a fine, close grain, compact but 
easily reducible to powder. It crystallizes in 
parallel bundles of needles. Cobalt is not found 
in a pure state, except in meteorites, and it is 
seen in nature most frequently with arsenic or 
sulphur, though it has other compounds. Its 
usefulness is confined largely to the arts, as it 
furnishes a permanent blue color to glass and 
enamels upon metals, porcelains and earthen¬ 
ware. Arsenical cobalt is white or steel-grayish 
in color, is of a granular texture and when heated 
gives off the odor of garlic. Sulphide of cobalt 
is compact and massive in its structure; oxide 
of cobalt is brown or brownish-black, generally 
friable and earthy. Cobalt is mined in large 
quantities near Cobalt, Ontario, about 330 miles 
north of Toronto. 

Cobb, Henry Ives (1859- ), an American 

architect, born in Brookline, Mass., and edu¬ 
cated at the Massachusetts Institute of Technol¬ 
ogy and at Harvard University. He went to 
Chicago in 1881, where he soon attained 
success. Among the buildings in Chicago which 
he designed are the Newberry Library, the 
Church of the Atonement, and the Federal 
building. He was special architect for the 
United States government from 1893 to 1903, and 
designed the state capitol at Harrisburg, Pa. 

Cobb, Howeel (1815-1868), an American 
statesman, born in Cherry Hill, Ga., and edu¬ 
cated at Franklin College. In 1843 he was 
elected to Congress and he was chosen speaker in 
1849, after a bitter contest. In 1851 he was 
elected governor of Georgia, serving until 1853, 
and two years later he again entered Congress. 
Later Cobb was made .secretary of the treasury, 
serving from 1857 to 1860. When the Civil 
War began, he was appointed brigadier general, 
and subsequently major general, in the Confed¬ 
erate army, but took no part in military 
movements. He was a bitter ^opponent of the 
Congressional reconstruction policy. 

Cob'den, Richard (1804-1865), an English 
statesman, known as the “apostle of free trade.” 
After receiving a meager education, he was taken 
as an apprentice into a warehouse in London. 
In 1830 he started a cotton manufactory in 
Manchester. His first political writing was a 
pamphlet entitled England, Ireland, and America, 
published in 1835. In this he gave clear utter¬ 
ance to the political views to which he adhered 
throughout his life, advocating non-intervention 
in the disputes of other nations, and maintaining 
it to be the only proper object of the foreign 


Coburg 

policy of England to increase and strengthen her 
connections with foreign countries in the way of 
trade and peaceful intercourse. In 1841 he 
entered Parliament, and he directed his efforts 
toward the repeal of the Com Laws. The credit 
for the repeal, which was accomplished in 1846, 
belonged largely to Cobden. During the Civil 
War in America he was strongly in favor of 
the North. 

Coblenz or Koblenz, Ico'blents, a fortified 
town of Germany, capital of Rhenish Prussia, 
at the confluence of the Moselle and the Rhine, 
49 mi. s. s. e. of Cologne. The Moselle here is 
spanned by a stone bridge of fourteen arches, 
dating from the Middle Ages. The city is 
strongly fortified, and on the opposite side of the 
Rhine is the strong fortress of Ehrenbreitstein. 
Its industrial products include cigars, machinery, 
champagne, wines and pianos. Population in 
1910, 56,478. 

Cobourg, Jco'burg, a port of Canada, in Onta¬ 
rio, on Lake Ontario, 69 mi. n. c. of Toronto. 
The leading industries are car works, woolen and 
rolling mills and matting factory. The post- 
office, town hall, armories, collegiate institute, 
asylum for the insane and several fine churches 
are noteworthy buildings. Beautiful parks, wide 
Streets and pleasant location make it a favorite 
summer resort. Population in 1911, 5074. 

Co'bra or Co'bra de Capel'lo, a poisonous 
snake, of which there are six or seven species, 
found in southern Asia and Africa. It is called 
spectacled snake from a singular marking on 
the back of the neck. So exceedingly poisonous 
is its bite that in numerous instances death has 
followed within a few minutes, and under ordi¬ 
nary circumstances, where prompt measures have 
not been taken, a few hours is the longest time 
a person can expect to live. In India thousands 
of natives lose their fives yearly through cobra 
bites. It is probably the most deadly serpent 
known and does more damage than any other. 
The cobra is sometimes six feet in length, and 
when angry it raises its head and about a third 
of its body, swells its neck into a wide hood 
and assumes a very terrifying appearance. Its 
food consists of small reptiles, birds, frogs and 
fishes. See Asp; Adder; Viper. 

Coburg, ko'boorg , a town of Germany, capital 
of the duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, 106 mi. 
e. by n. of Frankfort-on-the-Main. The princi¬ 
pal buildings are the palace of the duke of 
Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, and on an eminence over¬ 
hanging the town the ancient castle of the dukes 
of Coburg, in which are still shown the rooms 


Coca 


Cochrane 


occupied by Luther during his concealment here, 
with his bedstead and pulpit. Coburg has 
various manufactures, also extensive breweries. 
Population in 1910, 23,789. 

Co'ca, a South American plant. The leaf, 
mixed with finely powdered chalk, is chewed by 
the inhabitants of countries on the Pacific side 
of South America. It bus effects somewhat 
similar to those of opium. A small quantity of 
it enables a person to bear up against fatigue 
even when receiving less food than usual; and it 
prevents the difficulty of breathing felt in 
climbing high mountains. Cocaine, a crystal¬ 
line alkaloid, is prepared from the leaves. See 
Cocaine. 

Cocaine, ko ka'in, a white crystalline sub¬ 
stance prepared from coca leaves. When 
injected beneath the skin or in contact with 
the mucous surfaces, it produces insensibility, 
and accordingly it has been used extensively by 
dentists and oculists in deadening the sensibility 
to pain during minor operations. Cocaine has 
a quieting and restful influence, but its use tends 
to breed a dangerous habit, as does the use of 
opium. 

Coc'culus or Fish Berry, the name given to 
the fruit of certain climbing plants of the East 
Indies. The leaves are heart-shaped and the 
flowers small. The fruit contains a very 
poisonous quality, which acts in a way similar 
to strychnine. In India the berries are thrown 
into the rivers, where fish abound, so as to 
stupefy them and enable the fishermen to catch 
them easily. The berries are also used medici¬ 
nally for various purposes, but care is necessary 
in order that they do not poison. 

Coccus, kok'kus, a genus of scale insects. The 
males are elongated, have large wings and 
apparently no means for sucking, but the females 
are rounded or oval, about an eighth of an inch 
in length, have no wings and possess a beak 
or sucker by which they take up the juices of 
plants. At a certain time the females attach 
themselves to a plant. Here they ray their eggs 
and die, the bodies of some species drying up 
and forming habitations for their young. While 
some of these insects are garden and hothouse 
pests, others are of great value; for example, 
kermes, cochineal and gum lac are either per¬ 
fect insects dried, or the dried secretions which 
the insects have formed. 

Cochabamba, ko cha bahm'ba, the capital of 
a province of the same name in the interior of 
Bolivia, situated in a fertile valley 8435 feet above 
sea level. It is a pleasant place of residence. 


The trade is mostly in Peruvian bark and com. 
The manufactures are cotton and woolen goods, 
and earthenware. Population in 1909, 24,512. 

Cochin, ko cheen' or ko’chin, a seaport of the 
Malabar district, Madras, British India. Cochin 
was one of the first places in India visited by 
Europeans. In 1502 Vasco da Gama set up a 
factory, and soon after Albuquerque built a fort. 
In 1663 the place was taken by the Dutch and in 
1796 by the British. Cochin has a safe harbor, a 
citadel and an arsenal, and it is one of the chief 
cities on the coast for shipbuilding and com¬ 
merce. Population in 1911, 19,300. 

Co'chin-Chi'na, a French possession, forming 
part of the peninsula of southeastern Asia, be¬ 
tween Cambodia and Annam on the north and 
the China Sea. The country is traversed by the 
Mekong, the deposits of which have produced 
an exceedingly fertile soil. In the low and wet 
grounds much rice is grown. In the more ele¬ 
vated districts are grown tobacco, sugar cane, 
maize, indigo and betel. Among the other 
products are tea, gums, cocoanut oil, silk, spices. 
The natives excel in the use of wood, of which 
their temples and tombs are built. Population 
in 1906, 2,870,514; area, 22,000 sq. mi. 

Cochineal, koch'i neel , a dyestuff, consisting 
of the dried bodies of a species of insect, a native 



COCHINEAL INSECTS ON CACTUS 

Male and female. 


of the warmer parts of America, particularly 
Mexico. The insects, which are found living 
on a species of cactus, are brushed softly off, 
and are killed by being placed in ovens or dried 
in the sun. A pound of cochineal contains about 
70,000 bodies. The finest cochineal is prepared 
in Mexico, where it was first discovered. Cochi¬ 
neal produces crimson and scarlet colors and is 
used in making carmine and lake. 

Cochrane, kok'ran, Thomas, Tenth Earl of 
Dundonald (1775-1860), a British naval officer, 
born in Scotland. At the age of eighteen he 
embarked in his uncle’s ship, The Hind, and 
soon distinguished himself by his daring and 
gallantry. In 1800 he was placed in command 
of a ship, and during the years that followed 
he made many daring captures and performed 



Cockatoo 

some remarkable exploits in cutting out vessels, 
storming batteries and destroying signals. On 
his return to England in 1806 he entered Parlia¬ 
ment, but he made himself unpopular by his 
exposure of the abuses that existed in the navy. 
In 1818 he took service in the navy of Chile, 
and his exploits were of much service to that 
country in its struggle for independence. After 
leaving Chile h<? served for a time in the Greek 
navy, but in 1831 he returned to England, 
where he was restored to his old rank and honors. 

Cockatoo', the name of a number of climbing 
birds belonging to the parrot family, or, as some 



COCKATOO 


naturalists consider, forming a group by them¬ 
selves. They have large, hard bills, crests capa¬ 
ble of being raised and lowered at the will of 
the bird, tails somewhat longer than those of the 
parrots, and long wings. Most of the cockatoos 
are white in plumage, though some of them are 
tinged with yellow or red. Their home is in 
Eastern Archipelago and Australia, where they 
live on roots, fruits, grain and insects. They 
can be easily tamed and are often kept in cap¬ 
tivity, where some learn to speak a few words. 

Cock'chafer, a species of beetle, remarkable 
for the fact that it exists four or five years in the 
larval stage, during which time it preys upon the 
roots of grass and stalks of corn. In its adult 
stage it is about an inch long and is black in 
color. As it usually comes from the ground 
about the beginning of May, it is called the May 
bug or May beetle. It is destructive to leaves 
of various trees. 

Cockfighting, an amusement practiced in 
various countries, first, perhaps, among the 
Greeks and Romans. At Athens there were 
annual cockfights, and among the Romans 
quails and partridges were also taught to fight. 
It was long a favorite sport with the British, 
and the training, dieting and breeding of cocks 


Cock of the Rock 

for fighting was the subject of many treatises. 
The cruelty of the sport led to its being discon¬ 
tinued among the better classes of people, and 
now it is prohibited by law throughout England 
and in most of the states of the United States. 

Cockle, kok’l, a name for bivalve mollusks 
common on the sandy shores of the ocean and 
much used as food. The two valves of the 
shells are nearly equal and have two small teeth, 
one on each side near the beak, and two larger 
remote teeth, one on each side. 

Cock'lebur or Clot'bur, a troublesome weed, 
of which three species are known in the United 
States. The burs, which are hard and covered 
with hooked prickles, are about an inch long, 
and as a number of these are borne on every 
plant the weed is a great nuisance in pastures 
or ranges where cattle or sheep feed. It is 
difficult to get them out of the wool of the sheep 
after they once are imbedded there, and, accord- 
iogly* efforts are always made to exterminate 
the weed in wool-raising districts. The plant 
dies to the ground every year; so it is not difficult 
to control its growth, if the plants are destroyed 
each year before the seed ripens. 



COCK OF THE BOCK 


Cock of the Rock, a showy South American 
bird, related to the bellbird. It is of a rich 













Cock of the Wood 


Cocoanut 


orange color and has a beautiful crest. The 
skins of these handsome birds have a high value 
in the market. The bird lives principally upon 
the ground near rocky streams and builds its 
mud nests upon the rocks. 

Cock of the Wood. See Capercailzie. 

Cock'ran, William Bottrke (1854- ), an 

American lawyer, orator and statesman, bom 
in Ireland. He was educated in Ireland and in 
France, emigrated to the United States in 1871, 
taught school for a time and then became a 
lawyer. He soon attained prominence in Demo¬ 
cratic politics, and at the national Democratic 
convention of 1884 he won a national reputation 
by a noteworthy speech opposing the nomi¬ 
nation of Grover Cleveland for president. He 
was elected to Congress in 1887 and again in 
1891. He temporarily abandoned the Demo¬ 
cratic party in 1896, because of the money issue, 
but returned to it in 1900, being in favor of 
anti-imperialism. He was again elected to 
Congress in 1904 and served until 1909. 

Cock'rell, Francis Marion, (1834-1915), 
an American soldier and statesman, born in 
Johnson co., Mo. He graduated at Chapel 
Hill College, studied law and began practice at 
Warrensburg, Mo. He entered the Confederate 
army at the opening of the war and became 
brigadier-general. He was one of the leading 
Democrats in the United States senate from 
1875 to 1905. From 1905 to 1910 he was a 
member of the Interstate Commerce Commission, 
and in 1911 he was commissioner to settle the 
boundary dispute betweenTexas andNewMexico. 

Cock'roach, a genus of insects having an 
oval, elongated, flattened body, which is smooth 



COCKROACH 

a, view from above; b, view from below. 


on its upper surface. The males have parchment¬ 
like wing covers, and the wings of the females 
are imperfectly developed. They are exceed¬ 
ingly agile in the night time, and are trouble¬ 
some in houses, bakeries and wherever food is 
plentiful, as they eat all kinds of provisions. 


They conceal themselves in cracks and crevices, 
and very frequently find their way through water 
and steam pipes into all rooms of a house. The 
black croton bug breeds in water pipes and is 
sometimes a great nuisance. The cockroach, 
however, is a great enemy of the bedbug. Each 
female lays about thirty eggs in each of two 
compartments of a small case, which she carries 
about with her for seven or eight days. The 
young when hatched are nearly the same form 
as their parents, except that their wings are not 
well developed. There are about 1000 species 
known. 

Cocoa, ko'ko. See Cacao. 

Cocoanut, ko'ko nut, an oval, woody fruit, 
from three to eight inches in length, covered 
with a thick, stringy husk and holding, inside, 
a firm, white, fleshy kernel. Within, the fruit 
is hollow, or partially filled with milk, a sweet 
and watery liquid of a whitish color. The thick 
husk, which, protects the fruit, aids in spreading 
the tree among the islands where it is native, 
because the nut floats readily and may be carried 
long distances without injury. The cocoanut 
is the fruit of a palm which grows a straight, 
naked trunk from forty to sixty feet in height. 
The summit is crowned by feather-like leaves, 
among which the nuts hang in clusters of a dozen 
or more. The cocoanut forms a large part of 
the food of the islanders, who eat it as it comes 
from the tree, either ripe or green. A large 
quantity of oil is obtained by pressing the fruit, 
and this is known as cocoanut butter, which is 
exported and used in the manufacture of marine 
soap, in making stearin candles and for numerous 
other purposes. The cabbage-like bud at the 
top of the tree is boiled and eaten by the natives. 
From the sap a beverage is made which, when 
fermented, is called palm wine, and, when dis¬ 
tilled, is known as arrack, a very strong liquor. 
But the usefulness of the cocoanut tree does not 
end here. The natives use the leaves to thatch 
cottages, and from the fibers they make mats, 
cordage, baskets, sacks and other useful articles. 
The shells are made into beautiful cups, ladles 
and other ornamental utensils. From the 
trunks boats are made, or timbers for the con¬ 
struction of houses. The tree, which is a native 
of Africa, the East and West Indies and South 
America, is now grown almost everywhere in 
tropical countries and is one of the most useful 
trees in the world. It begins to bear when about 
ten years of age and continues to produce from 
fifty to one hundred years without special atten¬ 
tion. See Coir. 


Cod 


Cod, an important family of sea fishes, con¬ 
sisting of two groups, the shore cod and the deep 
sea cod. Shore cod are confined to the temperate 
zones, but deep sea cod have a much wider 
range. The common cod, which constitutes the 
well-known food fish, has a slightly flattened 
body which tapers abruptly to the tail. It 
reaches maturity in about three years, but it is of 



COD 


sufficient size to be marketable when two years 
old. When full-grown, the fish weighs from 
twelve to twenty pounds, though larger speci¬ 
mens are sometimes taken. The cod spawns 
in February, and the best months for fishing are 
October, November and December. The most 
noted fisheries are the Grand Banks, off the 
coast of Newfoundland. 

The fish are caught by hook and line. The 
fishermen go out in schooners, to each of which 
two or more small boats are attached. When 
it reaches the fishing grounds, the schooner 
anchors, and the fishermen put out long lines 
called trawls, to which are attached at frequent 
intervals shorter lines bearing hooks. A good- 
sized schooner will put out lines containing from 
10,000 to 15,000 hooks. After the trawls have been 
set the fishermen go along the lines in their small 
boats and haul in the fish that have been caught. 
When brought to the schooner, the fish are 
immediately dressed, split open and salted. The 
livers are saved, as from them the remedy, cod- 
livei oil, is obtained. As soon as the schooners 
receive a load they return to port, where the fish 
are stretched on platforms and exposed to the 
sun and air, and are dried and salted. The cod, 
is the most important food fish taken off the 
eastern coast of North America. 

Co'dex (trunk of a tree, or tablet), a name 
first applied to books or tablets made by laying 
sheets one on another and then folding and 
stitching them, but the word is now used with 
reference to the original manuscripts of the 
whole or parts of the Bible. These codices 
were written on paper or parchment, with often 
three or four columns on a page, though later 
there was but one. Much work was done by 
the monks in illuminating or decorating these 
pages. The early manuscripts had neither 


Cody 

punctuation, accent nor word divisions. The 
Code:v Alexandrinus, a manuscript in the British 
Museum, of great importance in Biblical criti¬ 
cism, is written on parchment and belongs 
probably to the latter half of the sixth century. 
It contains the whole Greek Bible (the Old 
Testament being according to the Septuagint), 
together with the letters of Bishop Clement of 
Rome, but it lacks parts of Matthew, John and 
II Corinthians. The Patriarch of Constantinople, 
who in 1628 sent this manuscript as a present 
to Charles I, said he had received it from Egypt 
(whence its name). See Bible. 

Codling Moth, a small moth whose larva is 
the familiar apple worm. The eggs are laid on 
the leaves or on the forming fruit, and when the 
grubs appear a few days later, they eat their 
way into the tiny apples at the point where the 
flower has fallen off. When a larva has reached 
its growth it emerges, seeks a sheltered place in 
a crevice of the bark or on the ground, and spins 
its cocoon. In many localities the moth appears 
within a few weeks, and a second brood of grubs 
is ready for the late crop of apples. The codling 
moth is the most destructive of apple pests, the 
estimated damage in the United States being 
about $10,000,000 yearly. The best remedy is a 
thorough spraying with an arsenic solution just 
after the blossoms fall, and a second spraying 
about three weeks later. The poison should fall 
on the upturned flower ends of the little apples, 
for the worms must be killed before they have a 
chance to burrow in the fruit. When wormy 
apples fall to the ground they should be disposed 
of so as to kill the larvae, and as many of 
the cocoons as possible should be collected 
and destroyed before the moths emerge. 

Cod-liver Oil, an oil extracted from the 
livers of different species of cod. It is a pale 
yellow oil, of very disagreeable odor and taste. It 
is obtained by pressing it from the livers in a 
cold state, or by heat. It is easily digested, 
and if not taken in too large quantities, is con¬ 
sidered an extremely valuable remedy in all 
wasting diseases. On account of its disagree¬ 
able taste, it is administered in capsules and 
various other forms. The milky mixture, known 
as emulsion, consists of a preparation of cod- 
liver oil with other remedies. This oil is 
obtained in Norway, the United States and 
Canada. 

Co'dy, William Frederick (1845-1917), 
better known as “Buffalo Bill,” was born in 
Scott co., Iowa. He spent the early part of 
his life among the indians on the western frontier, 


Coelenterata 

until the Civil War broke out, when he offered 
his services as a Union scout. He rendered 
valuable service during the war to several com¬ 
manders. Cody was a member of a camp of 
United States troops which protected the laborers 
during the construction of the Union Pacific 
railroad, and he took the contract to supply the 
entire force with fresh buffalo meat for a certain 
period; hence his sobriquet of “Buffalo Bill.” 
Later, he collected a band of indians, cowboys, 
rough riders, unbroken bronchos and a small 
herd of buffalo, and commenced a series of 
exhibitions in the principal cities of America. 
The show is known as the “Wild West Show.” 
He made several tours of Europe with his 
exhibition. 

Coelenterata, se len'te ra'tah, the next to 
the lowest branch of the animal kingdom, 
including many-celled animals, all of which 
are very simple organisms, which have no 
distinct body cavity and no distinct circulatory 
system. They have a body cavity in which 
food is digested and from which it is carried to 
all parts of the body through branches of the 
cavity. These animals are more or less sym¬ 
metrical, their parts radiating from a center, 
resembling in this respect the echinodermata. 
Peculiar shining organs, or thread-cells, are 
located in the tentacles of most of the animals. 
The tentacles are grouped around the mouth, 
and though sometimes few, they are in other 
species hundreds, in number, and are long and 
trailing. By means of these tentacles food is 
captured and stunned or paralyzed by the 
stinging cells. Nearly all coelenterata are marine 
animals, and two distinct types are known: one, 
the free-swimming, bell-shaped form, medusa; 
and the other a more or less cylindrical form, 
fixed to some support. Some, like the coral 
animal, build in populous colonies and cover 
a great area of sea bottom. In color many of 
them are brilliant and show a great variety of 
delicate shades. See Hydra, Sea Anemone, 
Coral; Sponge. 

Cof'fee, the seed of an evergreen shrub which 
is cultivated in hot climates and is a native of 
Abyssinia and Arabia. The name is also 
applied to the drink prepared from the roasted 
seeds of this plant. The coffee tree, when wild, 
grows from fifteen to thirty feet high, but in 
cultivation it is seldom allowed to exceed six 
feet. The leaves are dark green and have a 
waxy appearance on the upper surface. The 
flowers are white and appear in the axils of the 
leaves. The fruit is an oval, dark red berry. 


Coffeyville 

resembling a cherry when ripe. Each berry 
contains two cells, and each cell has a single 
seed, wh ich forms the coffee nib or bean. These 
parts of the plant are shown in the color plate. 
Before r lasting, the seed is of a light green color. 
The tree, lives for about forty years and bears 
fruit from the time it is three years old. The 
average }early yield is about one pound of seeds 
to the tree, though some trees may produce from 
two to five pounds. 

When ripe, the fruit is gathered by placing 
canvas under the trees and shaking them. The 
berries are dried in the sun, then passed between 
rollers, which crush the dried pulp, but do not 
crush the seeds. The fragments of pulp are 
then removed from the seeds by winnowing. 
After being thoroughly dried, the seeds are 
packed in large sacks, in which they are shipped 
to market. The brown appearance of the coffee 
found in retail stores is due to the roasting. 
Since the aroma developed by the roasting 
evaporates rapidly, coffee should not be roasted 
until it is desired for use. The different varieties, 
such as Mocha, Java and others, may be due to 
the locality from which the coffee is obtained, 
the real Mocha coming from Arabia, but they 
are all liable to be produced from the seeds of the 
same orchard, the name Mocha usually being 
given to the small beans, and Java to the larger 
ones. Mixtures of these produce other varieties. 

Coffee is produced in Arabia and adjoining 
countries and to a small extent in northern 
Africa; but the principal producing region is 
Brazil, which now raises nearly two-thirds the 
world’s supply. Coffee plantations are also 
maintained in Central America and Mexico, 
and when carefully cultivated they yield the 
investors a good revenue. Most of the coffee 
used in the United States comes from Brazil. 
Our annual consumption amounts to about 
400,000 tons. See Industries, Vol. V. 

Cof'ferdam, a temporary wooden enclosure 
formed in water, in order to obtain a firm and 
dry foundation for bridges and piers. It is 
usually formed of two or more rows of piles 
driven close together, with clay packed in 
between the rows. See Caisson. 

Cof'feyville, Kans., a city in Montgomery co . 
170 mi. s. w. of Kansas City, on the Verdigris 
River, and on the Missouri Pacific, the Santa 
F4 and other raliroads. There is a large trade 
with the surrounding country, and especially 
with Oklahoma. It is in the natural gas 
region of the southeastern part of the state; it 
also has extensive strawboard, lumber and flout 


Coffin 


mills, brick and pottery works and various other 
factories. Since the recent oil discoveries the 
place has developed very rapidly. Population 
in 1900, 4953, and in 1910, 12,687. 

C of'fin, the chest or box in which a dead 
body is enclosed for burial. Coffins were used 
by the ancients chiefly to receive the bodies of 
persons of distinction. Among the Romans it 
was latterly the almost universal custom to 
consume the bodies by fire and deposit the 
ashes in urns (See Cremation). In Egypt 
coffins seem to have been universally used in 
ancient times. They were of stone, earthen¬ 
ware, glass and wood. The ancient Greeks 
made a coffin of a peculiar kind of limestone, 
.which in a few weeks absorbed the flesh and 
other tissues of the body. This stone was called 
sarcophagus, and the coffins made from it took 
the same name. Coffins among Christians 
were introduced with the custom of burying. 
Modern coffins are usually made of wood and are 
sometimes enclosed in a leaden case. Some 
tribes of indians make basket coffins. 

Coffin, Charles Carleton (1823-1896), 
an American journalist and author, born at 
Boscawen, N. H. He was a farmer’s son and 
received but little education. After attempting 
civil engineering and telegraphy, however, he 
worked his way into Boston journalism by sheer 
perseverance and became famous during the 
war as field correspondent for the Boston 
Journal, in which capacity he was present at 
Antietam, Gettysburg, the Wilderness and many 
other important battles. In 1866 he continued 
his reporting in the Austro-Prussian War and 
on a tour of the world, which permitted his 
presence at many famous occasions and ended 
with a stage ride from San Francisco eastward 
across the plains. He also lectured, served in 
the Massachusetts legislature and wrote many 
historical tales, usually for young people. 
Following the Flag, Winning His Way, Boys of 
'76, Building the Nation and Boys of '61 are 
among his popular books. 

Cognac, ho nyak ', a town in France, in the 
Department of Charente, near the River Cha- 
rente, 22 mi. w. of Angouleme. It is pleasantly 
situated on a hill, crowned by the remains of an 
old castle in which Francis I was born. It is 
famous for the brandy which bears its name 
and which is exported to all parts of the world. 
Population, 19,195. 

Cohe'sion, that property of matter by virtue 
of which particles of the same substance stick 
to one another when brought in close contact. It 


Coining 

is due to the variation in the force of cohesion 
that matter exists in its different states—as solid, 
liquid and gaseous (See Matter). Cohesion 
differs from adhesion in that it applies only to 
particles of the same kind, while adhesion applies 
to particles of different substances. See Adhe¬ 
sion. 

Cohoes, ho hoze ', N Y., a city in Albany co., 
9 mi. n. of Albany, at the confluence of the 
Hudson and Mohawk rivers, on the Delaware 
& Hudson and the New York Central railroads. 
The Mohawk here has a picturesque falls, 75 
feet high and about 900 feet wide. There is 
excellent water power, and the city has many 
extensive industrial establishments. The place 
was first settled by the Dutch about 1630 and 
became a city in 1870. Population in 1910, 
24,709. 

Coin'ing, the art of converting pieces of metal 
into current coins for the purposes of commerce. 
Coining is usually done in a government estab¬ 
lishment, called a mint. Coining is one of the 
prerogatives of the supreme power in all States, 
and counterfeiting or otherwise tampering with 
the coin is severely punished. In the United 
States the bureau of the mint was established 
as a division of the treasury department in 1873. 
It has charge of the coinage for the government 
and makes assays of precious metals for private 
owners (See Assaying). 

In making coins at a United States mint the 
metal is first melted and cast into a bar. It is 
then refined, after which the alloy is added to 
harden it, the proportion being one part alloy 
to nine parts pure metal. The metal is then 
cast into ingots, which are taken to the rolls, 
where they are reduced to bars. The rolling 
machines are four in number, the rollers being 
adjustable and the space between them governed 
by the operator. About 200 ingots are rolled 
per hour with each pair of rollers. When the 
rolling is completed the strip is about six feet 
long. As it is impossible to roll perfectly true, 
it is necessary to draw these strips after they are 
softened by annealing. The drawing benches 
resemble long tables, with a bench on either 
side, at the end of which is an iron box screwed 
to the table. In this are fastened two perpen¬ 
dicular steel cylinders with the space between 
them equal to the required thickness of the bar. 
As the bar is drawn between these cylinders 
they reduce it to an equal thickness. 

These strips are now taken to tne cutting 
machines, each of which will cut 225 blank 
coins per minute. The press now used consists 


Coir 


Colchester 


of a vertical steel punch. From a strip worth 
$1100 about $800 of blanks will be cut. These 
are then removed to the adjusting room, where 
they are adjusted. After inspection they are 
weighed on very accurate scales. If a blank is 
too heavy, but near the weight, it is filed off at 
the edges; if too heavy for filing, it is thrown 
aside with the light ones to be remelted. The 
blanks, after being adjusted, are taken to the 
coining and milling rooms, and are passed 
through the milling machine. The blanks are 
fed to this machine through an upright tube, 
and as they descend are caught upon the edge 
of a revolving wheel and carried about a quarter 
of a revolution, during which the edge is com¬ 
pressed and forced up. By this apparatus 560 
dimes can be milled in a minute; for large pieces 
the average is 120. The massive but delicate 
coining presses coin from 80 to 100 pieces a 
minute. These presses are attended by women. 
After being stamped, the coins are taken to the 
coiner’s room. The light and heavy coins are 
kept separate in coining, and when delivered 
to the treasurer they are mixed in such propor¬ 
tions as to give him full weight in every delivery. 
By law, the deviation from the standard weight 
for gold coin must not exceed the one-hundredth 
part of an ounce to $5000, and for silver coin, 
two-hundredths of an ounce to $1000. See 
Mint; Money. 

Coir, lewahr, cocoanut fiber, fiber from the 
husk of the nut, from which are manufactured 
matting, bagging, ropes and cables. Coir cord¬ 
age, because it lasts well in salt water, and also 
because it is light, strong and elastic, is preferable 
in many respects to ropes of hemp. Mats and 
matting are now largely made of coir, which is 
also used in coarse brushes, for stuffing mat¬ 
tresses and for other purposes. 

Coke, a variety of charcoal, made by burning 
bituminous coal with a limited supply of air. 
The coal is usually burned in a brick or stone 
kiln, called an oven. The coal is put in through 
an opening at the top of the oven, and the coke 
is taken out at the bottom. A ton of coal will 
produce about two-thirds of a ton of coke. 
Coke is also formed as a by-product in the 
manufacture of illuminating gas. Gook coke 
has an iron gray color, is hard, porous and 
brittle. It is almost pure carbon and is exten¬ 
sively used in smelting iron and other metals, 
since the sulphur contained in the coal injures 
the metal. Coke is also used to some extent 
as a fuel for heating purposes. It is manufac¬ 
tured in large quantities in England and in 


western Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Alabama 
and Tennessee in the United States. 

Coke, Sir Edward (1552-1634), an eminent 
English lawyer. He was chosen recorder of 
the cities of Norwich and of Coventry, knight 
of the shire for his county and attorney general. 
As such, he conducted the prosecutions for the 
crown in all great state cases. In 1613 he 
became chief justice of the Court of King’s 
Bench, but because he opposed James 1 and 
supported liberal measures in Parliament, he 
was in 1621 committed to the Tower and soon 
after expelled from the privy council. In 1628 
he was chosen member for Buckinghamshire 
and was one of the chief authors of the Petition 
of Right. On the dissolution of the Parliament 
he retired to his seat in Buckinghamshire, 
where he died. His principal works are legal 
text-books of the highest value, among them 
Coke upon Littleton; or the First Institute, and 
The Complete Copyholder. 

Co'la-nut. See Kola-nut. 

Colbert, hole bail*, Jean Baptiste (1619- 
1683), a French statesman and financier. 
Mazarin, in whose service Colbert had been 
for some years, recommended him at his death 
to Louis XIV, who made him comptroller 
general of finance. His sendees in the intro¬ 
duction of reforms were of inestimable value 
to France. He greatly increased the revenues 
of the country, patronized science and literature, 
and promoted commerce and manufactures. 
He may also be regarded as the founder of the 
French navy. 

Colburn, kole'bum, Warren (1793-1833), 
an American mathematician, born at Dedham, 
Mass., and educated at Harvard College. 
While a student at Harvard, he planned a work 
on elementary arithmetic, which was published 
under the title, First Lessons in Intellectual 
Arithmetic. The work was an entirely new 
departure and gained for its author more than 
a national reputation. It has been in continuous 
use in the public schools from its publication 
to the present time and has been translated into 
several European and oriental languages. 

Colchester, kole'ches ter, a borough of Eng¬ 
land, in the county of Essex, 52 mi. by rail n. e. 
of London. It has a good coasting trade and 
employs a great number of small craft in the 
oyster fishery. It is a place of great an¬ 
tiquity, there being no place in the kingdom 
where so great a quantity and variety oi 
Roman remains have been found as here. Pop¬ 
ulation in 1911, 43,500. 


Colchicum 


Coleridge 


Colchicum, Jcol'kik hum, a genus of plants, 
allied to the lilies. The meadow saffron is a 
bulbous-rooted, stemless, perennial plant which 
grows in various parts of Europe. From a 
small corm or buib buried about six inches deep 
and covered with a brittle brown skin, there 
rises in the early autumn a tuft of flowers hav¬ 
ing much the appearance of crocuses, flesh- 
colored, white or even variegated. They soon 
wither, and the plant disappears till the suc¬ 
ceeding spring, when some broad leaves are 
thrown up by each corm, along with a triangular, 
somewhat oblong seed Vessel. The plant is 
acrid and poisonous. 

Cold Harbor, Battles of, several battles of 
the Civil War, fought between June 1 and June 
12, 1864, between an army of 120,000 Union 
troops commanded by Grant and a force of 
100,000 Confederates commanded by Lee. 
Lee had occupied Cold Harbor and was en¬ 
trenched when an advance guard of the Union 
force reached the place on June 1. The Fed- 
erals made an ineffectual assault upon the works 
and then retired until June 3, when in the early 
morning several attacks were made along the 
whole Confederate line. In the last of these, 
which lasted less than thirty minutes, the Union 
forces were hurled back in confusion, with a 
loss of nearly 7000 men, ten times as great as 
the loss suffered by their opponent. For seven 
days desultory fighting continued, but on June 
10 General Grant began a flank movement 
toward Richmond. The Battles of Cold Harbor 
are considered by critics to have constituted the 
most serious mistake in Grant’s career. He 
himself once said, "No advantage whatever 
was gained to compensate for the heavy losses. 
Indeed, the advantages, other than those of 
relative losses, were on the Confederate side.” 

Cold Sto'rage, a system of preserving meats, 
vegetables and other perishable articles, by 
keeping them in rooms whose temperature is 
reduced nearly to the freezing point. Cold 
storage is used in connection with the transpor¬ 
tation of fruit, butter, meats and produce, in 
breweries and in large hotels and restaurants, 
and for protecting furs in summer. See 
Refrigeration. 

Cold'water, Mich., the county-seat of 
Branch co., 125 mi. s. w. of Detroit, on the 
Coldwater River and on the Lake Shore & 
Michigan Southern railroad. The river fur¬ 
nishes good water power and the city contains 
manufactures of shoes, cement, flour and other 
articles. It is the seat of the state school for 


dependent children. Coldwater was settled in 
1830 and was made a city in 1862. Population 
in 1910, 5945. 

Cold Wave, a wind or anti-cyclonic condition 
of the atmosphere, which produces a sudden 
fall of temperature of several degrees. In the 
United States cold waves usually come from 
the northwest, but in some localities they may 
come from other directions. They are gener¬ 
ally characterized by a high barometer and a 
clear atmosphere. Sometimes they extend so 
far south in the spring as to cause great damage 
to- the fruit crop. The most extensive cold 
waves are caused by a large area of high pres¬ 
sure, which seems to cover the earth with a 
blanket of cold air. The Weather Bureau is 
able to predict cold waves twenty-four or thirty- 
six hours in advance of their arrival. The signal 
indicating their approach is a white flag with a 
large black square in the center. See Climate; 
Weather Bureau. 

Cole, Thomas (1801-1848), an American 
landscape painter, born in England. His youth 
was spent in Ohio, and later he went to New 
York to study. His pictures are mostly Ameri¬ 
can scenes, among them being the Voyage of 
Life, Course of Empire and White Mountains. 

Coleop'tera. See Beetle. 

Cole'ridge, Samuel Taylor (1772-1834), 
an English poet, born at Ottery Saint Mary, in 
Devonshire. From his childhood he was a 
voracious reader, and such books as the Arabian 
Nights, which he read as a child, undoubtedly 
influenced the course of his genius. He entered 
Cambridge University, but did not remain to 
graduate, and shortly after leaving the university 
he became interested with Southey in a scheme 
for founding an ideal community on the banks, 
of the Susquehanna. As no unmarried people 
could join this community, Coleridge and 
Southey married in 1795, sisters, but their scheme 
went no further than this, as they had no funds 
to carry it out. In 1796 Coleridge took a 
cottage at Nether Stowey in Somersetshire, and 
here he lived for two years as a neighbor of 
Wordsworth and his sister. The two young men, 
with Dorothy Wordsworth, took long rambles, 
and together they planned the volume Lyrical 
Ballads, which appeared in 1798. Coleridge’s 
contribution to this was The Ancient Mariner. 
In the same year he traveled in Europe with 
W T ordsworth, and on his return he settled in 
Keswick. In 1804 he went to Malta, thinking 
to gain some relief from the rheumatism, but 
returned two years later without having bene- 


Coleridge-Taylor 


Collie 


fited his health. To gain escape from his rheu¬ 
matic pains, he had taken to opium, and the 
habit rapidly mastered him. Unable to fight 
against it alone, he lived from 1816 until his 
death chiefly with Doctor Gillman in London, 
leaving his family to the care of Southey. He 
was to a certain extent successful in mastering 
the habit, but it had seriously impaired his 
ability to work and his powers of concentra¬ 
tion, never great, and he produced little that was 
noteworthy during his later years. Coleridge’s 
conversational abilities were great, however, and 
during these years in London he was the center 
of a group of young men who met once a week 
to hear him talk. 

All the poetry for which Coleridge is most 
celebrated, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, 
Christdbel and Kubla Khan, was written in a 
little over a year. Few poets have attained so 
high a place with so small a body of work; yet 
the wonderful melody of his verse, its imagery, 
its fancy, its suggestiveness, entitle him to rank 
with the truest of English poets. His prose 
writings, while less permanently important than 
his poetry, were noteworthy in their day and 
had a great influence on his successors. Of 
especial importance was his Lectures and Notes 
on Shakespeare, which may be regarded as the 
basis of modern Shakespeare study. 

Cole'ridge-Tay'lor, Samuel (1875-1912), 
a modern English composer, of African descent. 
He studied at the Royal Academy from 1890 
to 1896, achieving distinction as a composer. 
His most important work was a musical setting 
for Longfellow’s Hiawatha. He composed music 
for some of Stephen Phillips’ dramas, and wrote 
a sacred cantata, The Atonement, besides numer¬ 
ous songs, ballads and orchestral compositions. 

Colfax, kole'Jaks, Schutler (1823-1885), an 
American statesman, born in New York City. 
He became prominent as a Whig editor in Indiana 
and was elected to Congress in 1854, serving 
until March, 1869. From Dec. 7,1863, to March 
4, 1869, he was speaker of the house, and was 
elected on the Republican ticket vice-president 
of the United States in 1868. During his 
incumbency of that office he was accused of 
complicity in postal frauds and the Credit 
Mobilier scandal, but nothing was proved 
against him. 

Coligny, ko le nye*, Gaspard de (1517— 
1572), a French admiral and Huguenot leader, 
who won distinction in the wars of Francis I and 
Henry II. He was made admiral in 1552. 
After the death of Cond£, he became commander 


in chief of the Huguenots, and on the night of 
Saint Bartholomew’s Day he was put to death. 
See Bartholomew’s Day, Saint. 

Colima, ko le'ma, a town of Mexico, capital 
of a state of the same name, situated in a fertile 
plain at an elevation of 1400 feet, with the 
volcano of Colima, which is 13,000 feet high, 
40 miles distant. The port of the city is 30 
miles southwest. Population about 25,000. 

College, in a general sense, a body or society 
of persons invested with certain powers and 
rights, performing certain duties, or engaged in 
some common employment or pursuit. In the 
United States and England some societies of 
physicians are called colleges. The most familiar 
application of the term, however, is to a society 
of persons engaged in the pursuits of literature, 
including the professors, lecturers or other 
officers, and the students. As applied to an 
educational institution the name is somewhat 
loosely used. The higher class of colleges in¬ 
cludes those in which the students engage in 
study for the purpose of taking a degree in arts, 
medicine or other subjects, and are connected 
with, or have more or less the character of, uni¬ 
versities. The early history of these institutions is 
somewhat obscure; the probability is that they 
were originally founded in the various universities 
of the Middle Ages. Hostels, or boarding houses, 
were provided, principally by the religious orders 
for the benefit of those of their own fraternity, in 
which the scholars lived under a certain super¬ 
intendence, and the endowment of these hostels 
by charitable persons for the support of poor 
scholars completed the foundation of a college. 
Out of this has developed the modern college, 
of which there are about 500 in the United 
States. See University. 

Col'lie, a variety of dog especially common 
in Scotland, because of its intelligence of 



COLLIE 


much use to shepherds. The collie will take a 
flock of sheep pasture, keep them together. 




Collier 

protect them from wolves and bring them all 
back safely at night. This dog is of medium 
size and varies much in coloring. Black and 
white collies are common, and those with black 
bodies and tan-colored legs are thought to be 
particularly handsome. The collie’s head is 
somewhat fox-shaped, his ears are erect, but 
have drooping points, and his tail is rather 
bushy, with a strong curl upward. 

Collier, kol'yur, John Payne (1789-1883), 
an English Shakespearean critic. In 1831 his 
best work, the History of English Dramatic 
Poetry, and Annals of the Stage, was published. 
Between 1842 and 1844 he published an annotated 
edition of Shakespeare in eight volumes, and 
in 1852 he brought out the notes and emenda¬ 
tions to Shakespeare which he professed to have 
discovered in the margin of an old folio. These 
marginal notes were afterward proved to be 
forgeries. 

Col'lins, William (1721-1759), an English 
poet. While studying at Oxford he wrote his 
Persian Eclogues, and in 1746 he published his 
Odes, Descriptive and Allegorical. Although 
this volume was unsuccessful, it contained some 
lyrics which entitle Collins to high rank among 
eighteenth century poets. Best known of his 
poems are the Ode on the Passions, the Song 
from Cymbeline and the ode beginning “How 
sleep the brave who sink to rest.” 

Collins, William Wilkie (1824-1889), a 
well-known English novelist. He was a friend 
of Dickens, who had much to do with his deci¬ 
sion to devote himself to literature rather than 
to the law, for which he had been educated. 
Among his best-known works are Antonina, 
After Dark, The Woman in White, The New 
Magdalen, The Evil Genius and The Moon¬ 
stone. 

Collo'dion, a substance prepared by dis¬ 
solving pyroxiline (gun cotton) in ether, or in a 
mixture of ether and alcohol, which forms a 
useful substitute for adhesive plaster in the case 
of slight wounds. When the fluid solution is 
applied to the cut or wound, it immediately dries 
into a semi-transparent, tenacious film, which 
adheres firmly to the part, and under it the 
wound or abrasion heals without inflammation. 
In a slightly modified form collodion is also 
employed as the basis of a photographic process 
called the collodion process. The common 
small toy balloons are made of collodion. A 
solution of it is poured into a flask, which is then 
rolled around so that the collodion will form in 
a coating of equal thickness over the inside; 


Cologne Cathedral 

then the air is exhausted from the flask and the 
collodion film pulls off and is easily removed. 

Coll'yer, Robert (1823-1912), a Unitarian 
clergyman, bo n in England. He attended a 
night school fcr two winters and at the age of 
fourteen was apprenticed to a blacksmith. In 
1850 he came to this country, worked as a ham¬ 
mer maker in Shoemakertown, Pa., and preached 
on Sundays. In 1860 he organized Unity Church 
of Chicago, of which he was the pastor until 
1879, when he removed to New York to assume 
charge of the Church of the Messiah. 

Colmar' or Kolmar', a city of Germany, in 
Upper Alsace, 39 mi. s. s. w. of Strassburg. It 
has manufactures of printed goods, calicoes, 
textiles, machinery and silks, besides cotton 
mills and tanneries. It was united to France in 
1697 by the Peace of Ryswick, but surrendered 
to Germany by the Treaty of Versailles in 1871. 
Population, 36,800 

Col'oca'sia, a genus of plants, native of the 
East Indies, whose tubers contain much starchy 
matter, which is used as a food after the acrid 
juice has been separated by boiling or washing. 
In the Pacific Islands the colocasia is called 
taro; in Japan, satoimo; in China, yu-tao and 
in Central America, oto. In the Sandwich 
Islands the natives eat the roasted leaves as well 
as the tubers. 

Cologne, ko lone ', a city of Rhenish Prussia, 
on the left bank of the Rhine, forming, in connec¬ 
tion -with Deutz, a fortress of the first rank. 
There are many fine old buildings, as well as 
excellent modem ones; the churches, in particular, 
are interesting. The most important edifice of 
all is the cathedral, begun in 1248, one of the 
finest and largest Gothic structures in Europe. 
The manufactures embrace sugar, tobacco, glue, 
carpets, leather, machinery, chemicals, pianos 
and the celebrated eau de Cologne, or Cologne 
water. Cologne was one of the most important 
members of the Hanseatic League and one of 
the most populous cities of Europe until the 
sixteenth century, when a decline set in. With 
the nineteenth century, progress began. Popula¬ 
tion in 1910, 516,167. 

Cologne Cathedral, one of the finest speci¬ 
mens of Gothic architecture in the world. It 
was begun in 1248 and was not completed until 
1880. It is in the form of a cross 444 feet long, 
and has two enormous towers, the loftiest church 
towers in the world, each 512 feet high. The 
roof is 200 feet high and has a central tower 
350 feet high. In the interior are pillared 
aisles, beautiful altars, mosaics, paintings. 


Cologne Yellow 


Colombia 


statuary and magnificent windows of stained 
giass. In the treasury are kept very many 
valuable jewels, precious stones and many 
sacred relics. 

Cologne Yellow, a pigment consisting of 
two parts yellow chromate of lead, one of sul¬ 
phate of lead and seven of sulphate of lime, or 
gypsum. It is prepared by precipitating a mix¬ 
ture of nitrate of lead and nitrate of lime with 
sulphate of soda and chromate of potash. 

Colombia, a republic in the northwestern part 
of South America; bounded on the n. by the 
Caribbean Sea, on the e. by Venezuela, on the s. 
and s. e. by Ecuador and Brazil and on the w. 
by the Pacific Ocean and the Republic of 
Panama. The boundaries toward the southeast 
are not yet definitely settled, parts being claimed 
by Ecuador, Peru and Brazil. The area is 
estimated at 513,000 square miles, or a little less 
than the combined area of California, Oregon 
and Texas. 

Surface and Drainage. The surface is 
very mountainous. The Andes, entering from 
Ecuador, divide in southwest Colombia into 
three branches, namely, the west range; the 
central range, which has the highest peaks in 
Colombia, including the volcanoes Tolema, 
18,000 feet high, Huila and Purace; the eastern 
range, a continuation or branch of the central, 
from which it is separated by Magdalena River. 
This chain divides in the north, the eastern 
extending into Venezuela, and the western 
extending northward, joining the Sierra Nevada 
de Santa Marta near the coast. There are 
many rivers, the chief of which is the Magdalena, 
which has a length of 1000 miles and is navigable 
for almost 850 miles. The tributaries are the 
Cauca and the Atrato, the Meta and the Guavi- 
are, the latter two tributaries of the Orinoco, and 
the Negro and Japara, both affluents of the 
Amazon. 

Mineral Resources. Colombia is rich in 
minerals. The mountainous regions abound 
in gold and silver. The chief center of gold 
mining is Antioquia. The annual output of 
gold and'silver amounts to $4,500,000. Iron, 
copper, lead and salt are also found to some 
extent. Emeralds of an exceedingly fine quality 
are mined in the State of Boyaco. 

Climate. The climate varies in different 
parts. The coast plains are generally hot and 
damp, while the central plateaus and high table¬ 
lands have a pleasant and healthful climate and 
abundant rains. In the southwest portion the 
plains are exceedingly dry. 


Agriculture. Agriculture is the chief indus¬ 
try of Colombia. Coffee, tobacco and sugar 
cane are grown in the hot regions, and wheat, 
corn and barley in the more temperate parts. 
In the deep forests vegetation is very luxuriant. 
The banana tree is found in most parts, and the 
fruit is an important article of export. 

Transportation. There are not many rail¬ 
roads, owing to the mountainous character of 
the country. In 1901 there were 400 miles in 
operation. The absence of good roads is partly 
compensated by the many navigable rivers. 
Many steamboats ply the Magdalena. 

Inhabitants and Language. Formerly Co¬ 
lombia was inhabited by indians, and in the 
southern cordilleras the forests are still inhabited 
by uncivilized tribes. The civilized population 
is found in the northern and western portions. 
The majority of the people are descendants of 
the Spaniards, and there are also many negroes. 
The language spoken almost everywhere is 
Spanish. 

Education. Education is largely maintained 
by the state. Besides the public schools, there * 
are a university at Bogota, a national institution 
for workmen and a school of arts and trades. 

Government. Colombia is a republic. The 
president and vice-president are chosen for six 
years by an electoral college. There is a council 
of state of six members. The Congress consists 
of two houses, a Senate of seven members, and 
a House of "Representatives, containing one 
member for every 50,000 inhabitants. Each of 
the eight departments into which Colombia is 
divided has a governor appointed by the presi¬ 
dent and an assembly elected by the people. 

Cities. The chief cities are Bogota, Medellin, 
Cartagena and Barranquilla, each of which is 
described under its own title. 

History. In 1536 the united forces of the 
Spaniards overcame the indians who dwelt 
around this region, .and after this Spanish settle¬ 
ments rapidly grew up. In 1740 a viceroyalty 
under the name of New Granada was formed, 
comprising the present Colombia. In 1811 
an insurrection against Spain broke out, and 
nine years later independence from Spain was 
secured. In the same year New Granada and 
Venezuela united to form the republic of Colom¬ 
bia, and Ecuador joined later; but this union 
lasted only until 1831, when the republic of New 
Granada was formed. There followed revolu¬ 
tions and political strife, with frequent changes 
in the constitution, until 1861, when a federal 
constitution was adopted and the name was 


Colombo 


Colonies and Colonization 


changed to the United States of Colombia. In 
1886 the present centralized republic was formed, 
the states now becoming Provinces. The Prov¬ 
ince of Panama broke away in 1903, and formed 
a republic. Population in 1912, 5,072,604. 

Colom'bo, the capital of Ceylon, on the west 
coast of the island. The city is of great com¬ 
mercial importance, owing chiefly to its immense 
breakwater, sheltering 500 acres of water. 
Colombo is the center of the tea and cocoanut 
industry. Population in 1911, 211,284. 

Colon ho Ion', a seaport of the Republic of 
Panama, on Manzanillo Island, on the north 
coast of the Isthmus of Panama. It is at the 
Atlantic end of the Panama Canal, and is also 
the terminus of the Panama Railway. The 
city was founded in 1850, and was named 
Aspinwall, in honor of a New York financier, 
who was chiefly responsible for the construction 
of the first railway across the isthmus, but later 
it was renamed Colon,for Christopher Columbus. 
The town-site belongs to the Panama Rail¬ 
way, under the terms of its original -franchise, 
and the railway is now the property of the 
United States government. The harbor of 
Colon, which is deep but exposed, has been 
improved by the erection of a long breakwater, 
and the city is now a port of call for over a dozen 
lines of steamers. Unlike most Central and 
South American ports, it has good docks and 
piers, at which steamships may take on and dis¬ 
charge cargoes. Although Colon, for purposes 
of government, is in Panama, all matters of 
sanitation and quaratine are under the control 
of the United States. Population in 1911, 
17,748; in 1915, estimated, 25,000. 

Col'onies and Col'oniza'tion. A colony 
strictly is a settlement formed in one country 
by the inhabitants of another, but now it is used 
loosely to describe a territory distant from, but 
dependent upon, another government. Such 
a country as Australia, which is a colony in a 
true sense, is classed with Gibraltar, which is only 
a military station. The ambition of extending 
territory, the desire of increasing wealth, 
and, latterly, the necessity of providing an 
outlet for the surplus population of Europe, 
have been the chief motives in colonization. 

Ancient Colonies. Among ancient nations 
the chief colonizers were the Phoenicians, Greeks 
and Romans. The Phoenician colonies were 
partly due to dissensions and over-population, 
at home, but were chiefly commercial, serving 
as depots and ports of repair for Phoenician com¬ 
merce in the Mediterranean Sea. In Spain they 


numbered probably more than two hundred. 
But it was in Africa that the most famous arose, 
Carthage, the greatest colonizing state of the 
ancient world. The Greek colonies, which were 
widely spread in Asia Minor and the islands of 
the Mediterranean, on the coasts of Macedonia 
and Thrace, in South Italy and Sicily, were com¬ 
monly independent, and frequently soon sur¬ 
passed the mother states in power and impor¬ 
tance. The colonies of Rome were chiefly 
military, and while the Empire lasted were all in 
strict subordination to the central government. 
As the Roman power declined the remains of 
them amalgamated with the people among 
whom they were placed, thus forming, in coun¬ 
tries where they were sufficiently strong, what 
are known as the Latin races, with languages 
(Spanish, Portuguese, French and Italian) which 
are merely modifications of the old Roman 
tongue. Before America and the sea route to 
the East Indies were discovered, the only colonies 
belonging to European states were those of the 
Genoese, Pisans and Venetians, in the Levant 
and on the Black Sea, flourishing establishments 
on which the mercantile greatness of Italy in 
those days was largely built. 

Portuguese Colonies. The Portuguese 
were the first great colonizers among modem 
states. In 1419 they discovered Madeira, the 
Azores and the Cape Verde Islands; soon after 
they reached the Kongo and the Cape of Good 
Hope, and before 1500 Vasco da Gama had 
landed at Calicut, in dndia. The first Portu¬ 
guese colonies were garrisons along the coasts 
where traders stopped, but real colonies were 
established in Ceylon in 1505 and in the Moluccas 
in 1510. Brazil was discovered in 1499, and it 
fell to Portugal by the Bull of Demarcation and 
was colonized about 1530. Bad government at 
home and the subjection of the country to Spain 
caused the loss of most of the Portuguese colonies. 
The Portuguese now possess several territories 
in India, China and the Indian Archipelago. 
In Africa they possess the Cape Verdes, settle¬ 
ments along the coast and other islands amount¬ 
ing in area to about 700,000 square miles; but 
Portuguese influence is really limited to a very 
small portion of this. 

Spanish Colonies. Soon after the Portu¬ 
guese, the Spaniards commenced the work of 
colonization. In 1492 Columbus discovered the 
island of San Salvador. Hayti, or San Domingo, 
Porto Rico, Jamaica and Cuba were soon 
colonized; before the middle of the sixteenth 
century Mexico, Ecuador, Venezuela, New 


Colonies and Colonization 


Colonies and Colonization 


Granada, Peru and Chile were subdued, and 
Spain took first rank among the colonizing powers 
of Europe. But the Spaniards never really 
attempted to develop the industrial resources of 
the subject countries. The pursuit of mining 
for gold or silver occupied the colonists almost 
exclusively, and the enslaved natives were driven 
to work themselves to death in the mines. Cities 
were founded, at first along the coasts, for the 
sake of commerce and as military posts, and 
afterwards in the interior. The colonial inter¬ 
course with Spain was confined to the single 
port of Seville, af terward to that of Cadiz. When 
the power of Spain declined, her colonies in 
America declared their independence, and 
Cuba, Porto Rico and the Philippines were ceded 
to the United States at the close of the Spanish- 
American War. The Ladrone Islands were sold 
to Germany in June, 1899, and Spain now owns 
only a few small places in India and Africa. 

Dutch Colonies. The hate of Philip II, 
who excluded Dutch vessels from the port of 
Lisbon, forced the Dutch to import directly 
from India or lose the large carrying trade they 
had acquired. Several companies were soon 
formed, and in 1602 they were united into one, 
the Dutch East India Company, with a monopoly 
of the East India trade and sovereign powers over 
all conquests and colonies in India. The Dutch 
rapidly deprived the Portuguese of nearly all their 
East Indian territories, settled a colony at the 
Cape of Good Hope (1650), established a West 
India Company, made extensive conquests in 
Brazil (1623-1660), which were soon lost, and 
more permanent ones on some of the smaller 
West India islands. The growing power of the 
British and the loss of Holland’s independence 
during the Napoleonic wars were heavy blows 
to the colonial power of the nation. But the 
Dutch still possess numerous colonies in the 
East Indies, among which the more important 
are Java, Sumatra, Dutch Borneo, the Molucca 
Islands and part of New Guinea, also several 
small islands in the West Indies, and Surinam. 

British Colonies. No other colonizing power 
of Europe has had a career of such uniform pros¬ 
perity as Great Britain. The English attempts 
at colonization began nearly at the same time 
as the Dutch. After many fruitless attempts 
to find a northeast or northwest passage to the 
East Indies, English vessels found their way 
round the Cape of Good Hope to the East Indies 
in 1591. The East India Company was estab¬ 
lished in 1600. The ruin of the Mogul Empire 
in India after the death of Aurengzebe (1707) 


afforded the opportunity for the growth of British 
power, as the British and French were compelled 
to interfere in the quarrels of the native princes 
and governors. By the victory of Clive at 
Plassey in 1756, France was practically driven 
from India, and England laid the foundation of 
an exclusive sovereignty there. By the middle 
of the nineteenth century the British territory 
embraced nearly the whole of India, which was 
still under the government of the East India 
Company—a mercantile company, controlled, 
indeed, by Parliament, but exercising many of 
the most important functions of an independent 
sovereignty. On the suppression of the Indian 
mutiny (1857-1858) the government of India was 
transferred to the crown by act of Parliament in 
1858. 

The discoveries of the Cabots, following soon 
after the voyages of Columbus, gave the English 
crown a claim to North America, which in the 
reign of Elizabeth led to colonization on a large 
scale. Raleigh’s settlement on Roanoke Island 
(North Carolina) in 1585 failed to become per¬ 
manent, but in 1607 the colonists sent out by the 
London Company to Chesapeake Bay founded 
Jamestown in Virginia. The next great settle¬ 
ment was that of the Pilgrim Fathers, who 
landed Dec. 21, 1620, in Massachusetts Bay. 
The colonization of New Hampshire, Maine, 
New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Mary¬ 
land, Pennsylvania, the Carolinas and Georgia 
followed within a century, and, meanwhile, New 
Amsterdam was seized from the Dutch, and its 
name was changed to New York. Colonies were 
early established in the West India islands; 
Newfoundland was taken possession of in 1583 
and colonized in 1621; Canada was surrendered 
to Britain by the Treaty of Paris in 1763. In 
1764 began the disputes between Great Britain 
and its North American colonies, which termi¬ 
nated with the acknowledgment of the inde¬ 
pendence of the United States, Canada still 
remaining a British dependency. 

Australia was discovered in the beginning of 
the seventeenth century. The first settlements 
of Britain there were penal colonies, the first 
being established in New South Wales about 
1770. In 1851 the discovery of the abundance 
of gold in Victoria gave a great impetus to the 
prosperity of the Australian colonies. In 1874 
the Fiji Islands, and in 1884 part of New Guinea, 
were annexed as crown colonies. In South 
Africa, Cape Colony, first settled by the Dutch 
in 1652, became an English colony in 1814, and 
English influence there has since been steadily 


Colonna 

\ 

expanding, now extending over a large part of 
South, East and North Africa. In Europe 
Great Britain has a few colonies acquired for 
military reasons—Gibraltar in 1704, Malta and 
Gozzo in 1800. It is estimated that the existing 
British colonies and dependencies embrace about 
one-sixth of the land surface of the globe and 
nearly the same proportion of its population. 

French Colonies. France was somewhat 
late in establishing colonies. Champlain was 
the pioneer of the French in the exploration of 
the North American continent and founded 
Quebec in 1608. Colbert purchased several 
West India islands, as Martinique, Guadeloupe, 
Saint Lucia, and sent out colonists in 1664 to 
Cayenne. In 1670 the East India Company, 
formed by Colbert, founded Pondicherry, which 
became the capital of extensive possessions in 
the East Indies. At the beginning of the eight¬ 
eenth century France had settlements in Canada, 
Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and the most 
flourishing of the West India islands, and she 
seemed to have a prosperous career before her in 
India. Before long, however, the rival interests of 
British and French colonists brought about a 
conflict, which terminated in the loss of Canada 
and other North American possessions, as well 
as many of the West India islands and a large 
part of India. France has colonial possessions 
at present in India, Cochin-China and south¬ 
eastern Asia, New Caledonia, and other islands 
in Oceania, in Africa and in the West Indies. 

Other Colonies. Of recent years Germany 
has made an effort to take rank as a colonial 
power and has acquired territories in Africa and 
in the islands of the Pacific, as well as posts in 
China. Denmark's northern dependencies, Ice¬ 
land, Greenland and the Faroe Islands, though 
of considerable extent, are of small value. In the 
West India islands she has Saint Thomas, 
settled in 1672, Santa Cruz, purchased from 
France in 1733, Saint John and some smaller 
islands. Since 1898 the United States has taken 
rank as a colonizing power, having gained, by 
the Spanish-American War, the island of Porto 
Rico in the Caribbean Sea and the Philippines 
in the Pacific, and since that time other small 
islands and coaling stations. 

Colon'na, Vittoria (1490-1547), an Italian 
poet. At the age of seventeen she was married 
to the marquis of Pescara, to whom she had 
been betrothed for thirteen years. During his 
life her poems related mostly to his absences; 
after his death they were devoted to his memory. 
She was a friend of Michelangelo, who wrote a 


Colorado 

number of sonnets to her. Her most celebrated 
work is the Rime Spirituali. 

Colophon, kol’o fon, an ancient Ionian city 
of Asia Minor, about 8 mi. n. of Ephesus, one 
of the places that claimed to be the birthplace 
of Homer, and the native city of other eminent 
men. 

Color, kul’ur , the name used to distinguish 
the different sensations that lights produced 
by various rates of vibration give to the eye. 
White is composed of seven colors, violet, indigo, 
blue, green, yellow, orange and red. These are 
known as the 'prismatic colors (See Light, 
subhead Spectrum ), and all other colors are 
produced by combinations or modifications of 
the prismatic colors. The color of bodies is 
due to their different powers of reflecting light. 
A red body reflects the red rays and absorbs all 
the others; a blue body reflects only the blue 
rays; a green body, the green, and so on. The 
primary colors are those from which all other 
colors can be made by mixing. They are blue, 
yellow and red. The remaining prismatic 
colors are known as secondary , because they can 
be produced by mixing two of the primary 
colors, as blue and yellow produce green; red 
and yellow, orange, and blue and red, violet or 
indigo, according to the quantity of red used. 
Complementary colors are those which, when 
mixed, produce white; any one of the primary 
colors is a complementary color when mixed 
with the other two. In the scientific sense of 
the word, white and black are not considered 
colors. A white body reflects all the rays, and 
the black body absorbs all without separating 
them. This, however, is only theoretical. In 
all cases some rays are absorbed and some 
reflected. 

Colorado, kol o rah’do, the Centennial State, 
is situated in the west central part of the United 
States. It is bounded on the n. by Wyoming 
and Nebraska, on the e. by Nebraska and 
Kansas, on the s. by Oklahoma and New 
Mexico and on the w. by Utah. Its average 
length from north to south is 380 miles, the 
breadth of 280 miles, and the total area, 103,948 
square miles. Population in 1910, 799,024. 

Surface and Drainage. The eastern part 
of the state, including about one-third of its 
area, is a treeless plain which rises from an 
elevation of about 3000 feet on the eastern 
border to meet the foothills of the Rocky 
Mountains. This plain is a continuation of the 
prairie region to the east and also a portion of 
the Great Central Plain of North America. To 


Colorado 


Colorado 


the west of the foothills are the Rocky Moun¬ 
tains, rising from a plateau which occupies about 
one-third the area of the state. The Main or 
Front Range, lying on the east, crosses the state 
from north to south. West of the Front Range 
are numerous others which extend irregularly 
across the state, and with the Front Range 
and their spurs enclose a number of elevated 
valleys called parks. The most important of 
these ranges are the Saguache, the Elk and 
the White River mountains. The parks, known 
respectively as the San Luis, the South, the 
Middle and the North Park, are quite level, well 
watered and fertile. San Luis Park, lying in the 
south central part of the state, is nearly as 
large as Massachusetts. 

The mountains of Colorado are noted for the 
large number of lofty peaks and the grandeur 
of their scenery. Within the state there are 
more than 200 peaks over 13,000 feet in alti¬ 
tude, and 40 over 14,000 feet. The highest, 
Mount Blanca (14,464), in the southern part 
of the state, is, next to Mount Whitney in 
California, the highest peak in the United States 
proper. Pike’s Peak (14,147) is the most cele¬ 
brated. The summit is reached by a mountain 
railway and it is visited by thousands of tourists 
every summer. Other celebrated peaks are 
Long’s, Evans, Castle and the Mount of the 
Holy Cross. The mountains contain many deep 
and precipitous gorges, through some of which 
railways find their way to the Pacific slope. 
Some valleys contain columns of sandstone which 
have been worn into fantastic forms by wind and 
water. The Garden of the Gods and Monument 
Park are especially interesting to visitors. 

The Great Continental Divide crosses the 
western part of the state. To the east of this 
the rivers flow into the Mississippi, and to the 
west, into the Pacific. In the mountain parks 
are the sources of the Platte, the Arkansas, the 
Rio Grande and the Colorado, formed by the 
Green and the Grand after they enter Utah. 
The canyons of these streams are noted for 
their beauty and sublimity (See Royal Gorge). 
Hot springs are found in many localities. 

Climate. A diversified surface gives Colo¬ 
rado a varied climate, but pure dry air and 
abundant sunshine characterize all regions. 
While the heat of summer is often excessive, 
prostrations from heat are practically unknown. 
In the shade the heat is never oppressive, nor 
are the nights ever sultry. The cool shade and 
the rapid fall of temperature toward evening 


are easily explained. Dry air cools four times 
as fast as watery vapor; it also permits the heat 
to radiate freely from the earth, while vapor 
catches and holds this heat. Again, the capac¬ 
ity of air for heat increases with its density. 
The atmosphere of the elevated plains is rarified 
and contains little moisture; hence, it cools 
rapidly when not exposed to the sun’s rays. 
The rarified dry air also accounts for the fact 
that neither the heat of summer nor the cold of 
winter seems as great as the thermometer indi¬ 
cates. The annual rainfall is slight, averaging 
not more than fifteen inches. The state is a 
celebrated health resort, especially for con¬ 
sumptives. 

Mineral Resources. The mineral resources 
of the state are extensive and varied, including 
large deposits of gold, silver, lead, copper and 
other metals, extensive coal fields and some oil 
fields. Mining is the chief industry of the 
state, and Colorado produces more gold than 
any other state in the Union. In 1900 the out¬ 
put was $30,000,000, but the yearly average is 
now about $20,000,000. Silver, zinc, iron and 
lead are also mined in large quantities, while the 
annual output of coal amounts to 10,000,000 
tons. In all, the yearly value of the mineral 
products is about $50,000,000. The principal 
mining centers are Leadville, Cripple Creek, 
Silverton, Creede and Telluride. 

Agriculture. Owing to the light rainfall, 
many portions of the state are unsuited to agri¬ 
culture, but since 1$90 this industry has grown 
very rapidly. Over 4,300,000 acres are under 
cultivation, and wherever water can be obtained 
the soil yields abundant returns. Irrigation is 
practiced to a very great extent, and the area of 
irrigable land is increasing each year. The 
chief crops are alfalfa, wheat, oats, barley, com, 
potatoes and sugar beets. The last constitutes 
an important agricultural industry, and the 
yearly output of beet sugar amounts to 
$6,250,000. In the mountain valleys, apples 
and other fruits of the temperate region are 
grown with the greatest success, and on 
many of the plains there is an abundance of 
grass for grazing. In these regions the raising 
of live stock is carried on successfully. The 
mountains below the snow line are covered with 
pine, spruce and fir, which furnish a supply 
of lumber, and lumbering is an important 
industry. 

Manufactures. Various circumstances have 
combined to make Colorado one of the leading 









































































GRAND CANYON OF THE COLORADO 

One of the world’s scenic wonders, painted by nature in marvelous colors beyond the 
power of the artist to reproduce. At a depth of a mile the Colorado River is seen 










Colorado 


Colorado River 


manufacturing states west of the Mississippi. 
The value of her manufactures is about 
$130,000,000 annually. Smelting and refining 
take the lead of all manufacturing industries, 
and many of the other most important manufac¬ 
tures are closely allied with the mining industry 
—such as brass works, lead, tin and copper 
works and the manufacture of iron and steel 
products. Brick of fine quality is made near 
Denver, and the products of the flour and grist 
mills are of considerable value. Slaughtering 
and meat-packing are of increasing importance. 

Transportation. The state has over 4500 
miles of railroads. The first line was built in 
1870 and extended from Denver to the Union 
Pacific at Cheyenne. Numerous lines extend 
from Denver to the Missouri River, and connect 
with all of the leading commercial points in the 
Mississippi Valley, while the Denver & Rio 
Grande and the Colorado Midland form trunk 
lines extending westward and connecting with 
the Union Pacific at Salt Lake City and Ogden. 
The Denver & Northwestern, now under con¬ 
struction, will soon be completed to the Mormon 
capital and form a link in a more direct route to 
the Pacific coast. Several narrow gauge lines 
are operated in the mountains where standard 
gauge roads would prove unprofitable. The 
Santa F6-system and other lines form a connec¬ 
tion with New Mexico and the Southwest. 
Electric lines are found in and about the larger 
towns, so that the settled portions of the state 
have good railway facilities. Owing to the 
mountainous character of the country, the 
rivers are not navigable. 

Education. The sales and rental from over 
3,500,000 acres of school lands form a perma¬ 
nent fund to be expended for public instruction. 
The state institutions are the University of 
Colorado at Boulder, the School of Mines and 
an Industrial School at Golden, the Agricultural 
College at Fort Collins, the Mute and Blind 
Institute at Colorado Springs and the Colorado 
Teachers College. There are, besides, several 
denominational colleges of high rank. 

Cities. The principal cities are Denver, 
the capital, Pueblo, Colorado Springs, Lead- 
ville and Cripple Creek, each of which is de¬ 
scribed under its proper title. 

History. The name of the state, taken from 
that of the Colorado River, signifies red water. 
The country was visited by Spanish adven¬ 
turers in the sixteenth century, but was not 
settled. By the Louisiana Purchase the United 
States gained possession of about half of the 


territory of Colorado, and the remainder was 
acquired from Mexico by the Treaty of Guada- 
lupe-Hidalgo. It was explored by Zebulon Pike 
in 1806 and by Fremont in 1843. The discovery 
of gold in 1858 was followed by settlement in 
the regions of the mines, and Denver and Boul¬ 
der were established. In 1861 the territory of 
Colorado was organized from portions of Kan¬ 
sas, Nebraska, New Mexico and Utah, and after 
two acts for her admission as a state had been 
vetoed, she finally was admitted in 1876, becom¬ 
ing known as the Centennial State. Woman 
suffrage was adopted in 1893, and a capitol 
building which cost $2,500,000 was completed 
in 1894. The state has generally been Repub¬ 
lican in politics, but cast its vote for Weaver, 
the Populist candidate in 1892, for Bryan, the 
Democratic free-silver candidate in 1896 and 
1900, and for Wilson in 1912. State-wide pro¬ 
hibition went into effect on January 1, 1916. 

Colorado, University of, an institution of 
higher learning at Boulder, Colo., incorporated 
by the territorial legislature in 1861. In 1876 
the constitution of Colorado provided for its 
erection as a state university. It now comprises 
the following departments: the college of liberal 
arts, the graduate school, the school of applied 
science, the medical school and the school of law. 
The faculty numbers over 200, the students 
number 1200 and the library contains 64,000 
volumes. 

Colorado River or Rio Colorado is formed 
by the junction of the Green and Grand rivers 
in Utah. It flows southwest and south through 
Utah into Arizona, forming the boundary 
between Arizona on one side and Nevada and 
California on the other. After a course of about 
two thousand miles from the source of the Green 
River it empties into the Gulf of California. 
The basin of this river shows a most wonderful 
example of the erosive power of water. In its 
course the river receives many tributaries in 
deep canyons and valleys, and many of the 
minor tributaries are incised in deep canyons 
like the main stream. Among the most won¬ 
derful natural objects in the world is the Grand 
Canyon of the Colorado in Arizona, through 
which the Colorado River rims for over 250 miles. 
This canyon is from 5 to 6 miles wide at the 
top and from 5000 to 6000 feet deep. The 
descent is gradual until the canyon proper, in 
the middle of the depression, is reached. Here 
the walls fall suddenly from 2000 to 3000 feet, 
and at the bottom of this narrow gorge runs the 
river. 


Colorado River 


Colossus 


Colorado River, a river of Texas, rising in 
the northwest part of the state. It flows in a 
southeasterly direction through the state and 
empties into the Gulf of Mexico, through 
Matagorda Bay. The chief towns on its banks 
are Bay City, Austin, La Grange and Bastrop. 
It is 650 miles long and is navigable up to 
Austin, a distance of 200 miles. 

Colorado Springs, Col., the county-seat of 
El Paso co., 73 mi. s. of Denver, on the Atchison, 
Topeka & Santa F6, the Denver & Rio Grande 
and other railroads. The city is located on a 
plain about six thousand feet above the sea, 
near the base of Pike’s Peak, and the healthful 
climate has made this section a popular resort 
for tuberculosis patients. Colorado College and 
the state institutes for the blind and the mute 
are located here. The place was settled in 1870 
and was incorporated two years later. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 29,078. 

Color Blindness, a defect of the eye, which 
prevents the recognition of certain colors. The 
most common forms are known as green blind¬ 
ness, in which the affected eye fails to recognize 
green, that color usually appearing as yellow; 
and red blindness, in which the eye cannot recog¬ 
nize red but sees it as a bright yellow or a pale 
yellow. Some eyes are so defective that they 
fail to recognize three colors, while occasionally 
one is found who can recognize only black and 
white. Color blindness is caused by an insuffi¬ 
cient amount of light or by a defective retina. 
The first cause is common to all eyes, as objects 
seen in the night seldom show colors, except 
different shades of black and white, while nearly 
all objects seen by moonlight have a bluish tint. 
The second cause is limited to individuals whose 
eyes are defective in this respect. The con¬ 
tinual straining of the eye in observing objects 
at long distances sometimes produces color 
blindness of the objects continually looked for, 
as in the case of trainmen on railways who have 
followed the road for a long time. These »men 
frequently become color blind to red and green. 

Color Printing. See Printing, subhead 
Color Printing. 

Col'osse'um, a name given to the Flavian 
Amphitheater in Rome, a large edifice for 
gladiatorial combats, fights of wild beasts and 
similar sports. It was begun by Vespasian and 
finished by Titus, 80 A. d. The outline of the 
Colosseum is elliptic, the exterior length of the 
building being 620 feet, its breadth, 513 feet, 
and its height, 157 feet. It is said to have 
seated 87,000 people and to have had standing 


room for 20,000 more. The arena, or central 
space, measured 280 by 176 feet and was enclosed 
by a low wall, a protection against the wild 
beasts. The flooring was of boards covered 
with red sand (arena) to soak up and conceal 
the blood. Underneath were rooms for housing 
men and animals. The exterior of the building 



THE COLOSSEUM 


was decorated by three rows of columns, the 
first story with Doric, the next with Ionic and 
the third with Corinthian columns. Down to 
the sixth century this imposing building remained 
almost uninjured, but at that time Theodoric, 
king of the Goths, had material taken from it 
for the construction of various buildings. The 
ruins to-day show four stories on one side only. 
The name is derived from the colossab statue of 
Nero, which stands close by. 

Colos'sus, in sculpture, the name for a statue 
of very large size. The Egyptians have furnished 
us with many excellent examples of colossal 
statuary, among which the most celebrated are 
those of Amenophis III, one of which was the 
so-called Memnon, whose vocal powers were 
fabled as one of the wonders of ancient times. 
The Greeks produced the most artistic colossi, 
among which were the bronze statue of Pallas 
Athene, on the Acropolis of Athens; the statue 
of Athene of gold and ivory, in the Parthenon 
at Athens, and the Olympian Zeus, sculptured 
by Phidias. One of the seven wonders of the 
world was the Colossus of Rhodes, representing 
Helios, the sun god. It stood astride the 
entrance of the harbor of Rhodes, a bronze figure 
probably ninety feet high. The Romans fol¬ 
lowed the Greeks in this form of art and produced 
such colossi as the statue of Jupiter, on the 
Capitol, and that of Nero, 110 feet high, from 
which the near-by amphitheater derived its 
name of Colosseum. Among modern works of 
this nature are the Germania at Niederwald, on 
the Rhine; Bavaria, at Munich; the statue of 
Peter the Great, at Saint Petersburg, and the 











Colt 

statue of Liberty Enlightening the World, New 
York (See Liberty, Statue of). 

Colt, Samuel (1814-1862), an American 
machinist and the inventor of the revolver, born 
in Hartford, Conn. He began his career as a 
lecturer on chemistry and traveled over a por¬ 
tion of the United States and Canada while 
engaged in this work. In 1835 he secured the 
patent for a revolving pistol, but it was a number 
of years before the value of his invention was 
realized. The Mexican War created a demand 
for the revolver, and in 1852 Colt built a large 
factory in Hartford, where he manufactured not 
only revolvers but other firearms for English 
and Russian arsenals. He was also noted as the 
inventor of a submarine battery for harbor 
defense. 

Columbia, S. C., the capital of the state and 
the county-seat of Richland co., 82 mi. n. e. of 
Augusta, Ga., 153 mi. n. of Savannah and 130 
mi. n. w. of Charleston on the Seaboard Air Line, 
the Southern and other railroads and on the Con- 
garee River. The city is in a cotton region, 
near extensive forests, and a canal from the river 
furnishes water power. The manufacturing of 
cotton products is the chief industry, and there 
are also machine shops, foundries and wood¬ 
working plants. The courthouse, the city hall, 
the statehouse, the Y. M. C. A. building and 
several office buildings are noteworthy. Colum¬ 
bia is the seat of the University of South Caro¬ 
lina, the Presbyterian Theological Seminary and 
other denominational institutions. It was set¬ 
tled about 1700 and remained small until the 
capital was moved here from Charleston in 1786. 
During the Civil War Sherman entered the city, 
February 17, 1865, and the following night 
three-fifths of the place was destroyed by fire. 
The city recovered rapidly after the war, and 
its recent development is a part of the general 
revival in the South. The commission form of 
government was adopted in 1910. Population, 
according to the federal census of 1910, 26,319; 
the annexation of a number of suburbs raised 
the total to 56,992 in 1913. 

Columbia, Mo., the county-seat of Boone co., 
144 mi. w. of Saint Louis, on the Wabash rail¬ 
road and on a branch of the Missouri, Kansas 
& Texas system. The city is situated in a farm¬ 
ing, fruit-growing and stock-raising district and 
has extensive flour and planing mills and manu¬ 
factures of agricultural implements. The state 
university and the state agricultural college are 
located here. Columbia contains a monument 
to Thomas Jefferson, a state hospital and an 


Columbia University 

agricultural experiment station. The place was 
settled in 1821. Population in 1910, 9662. 

Columbia, Pa., a borough in Lancaster co., 
28 mi. s. e. of Harrisburg, on the Pennsylvania 
and the Philadelphia & Reading railroads and 
on the Susquehanna River. It is an important 
industrial center and manufactures engines, 
boilers, machinery and wagons; it also has oil 
refineries and distilleries. Columbia was settled 
in 1726 by the Quakers and was known for many 
years as Wright’s Ferry. It is connected with 
Wrightsville on the west bank of the river by 
one of the longest bridges in the United States. 
Population in 1910, 11,454. 

Columbia, Tenn., the county-seat of Maury 
co., 45 mi. s. of Nashville, on the Duck River 
and the Louisville & Nashville and the Nashville, 
Chattanooga & Nashville railroads. It is located 
in a fertile agricultural region and has an 
extensive trade in grain and live stock. Am ong 
the industrial establishments are cotton and 
flouring mills. Columbia Institute, for girls, and 
Columbia Military Academy are located here. 
Columbia was settled in 1811 and was incor¬ 
porated in 1822. Population in 1910, 5754. 

Columbia, District of. See District of 
Columbia. 

Columbian Exposition. See World’s Co¬ 
lumbian Exposition. 

Columbia River or Oregon River, a. river 
rising in the Rocky Mountains in British Colum¬ 
bia, flowing in winding course, chiefly through 
the United States, into the Pacific Ocean. Near 
its mouth it forms the boundary between Wash¬ 
ington and Oregon. The salmon fisheries of 
this river are famous. The river is also noted 
for its beautiful scenery. Its chief tributaries 
are Clarke’s Fork, the Spokane River and the 
Snake River. It is about 1400 miles long and 
drains an area of 300,000 square miles. 

Columbia University, one of the oldest 
educational institutions in the United States, 
situated in the city of New York; chartered in 
1754 by George II, under the name of King’s 
College. The first president was Dr. Samuel 
Johnson of Connecticut. In 1784 its name was 
changed to Columbia College; and in 1896 the 
name Columbia University was adopted to 
designate the institution as a whole, and the 
name Columbia College was restricted to the 
undergraduate department. The institution at 
present comprises the following schools and 
colleges: (1) Columbia College; (2) Barnard 
College, an undergraduate school for women: 
(3) Teachers’ College; (4) the school of law; 


Columbine 


Columbus 


(5) the College of Physicians and Surgeons, 
with which are connected Vanderbilt Clinic and 
Sloane Maternity Hospital; (6) the schools of 
political science, philosophy and pure science; 
(7) the school of applied science, which is com¬ 
posed of the schools of chemistry, mining and 
engineering; (8) courses in the fine arts; (9) the 
summer school. The number of instructors is 
over 700, and of students about 9500; the library 
contains about 450,000 bound volumes. 

Col'umbine, the popular name of plants with 
five colored sepals and five spurred petals. 
The common columbine is a favorite garden 



WILD COLUMBINE 


flower and owes its name to the fancied resem¬ 
blance of the petals to the form of pigeons. 
In the United States several species grow wild 
and are known commonly, but erroneously as 
honeysuckles. 

Colum'bus, Ga., the capital of Muscogee co., 
on the left bank of the Chattahoochee River, 
100 mi. s. of Atlanta It is on the Georgia 
Central, the Southern and the Georgia and 
Alabama railroads. The principal industries 
are large cotton mills, iron works, plow, barrel 
and bagging factories. The export trade in 
cotton is extensive. Population in 1910, 20,554. 

Columbus, Ind., the county-seat of Bar¬ 
tholomew co., 41 mi. s. by e. of Indianapolis, 
on the e. fork of the White River, and on the 


Pennsylvania, and the Cleveland, Cincinnati, 
Chicago & St. Louis Railroads. It manufac¬ 
tures pulleys, tools, starch, flour, furniture, 
tanned leather and threshing and saw-mill 
machinery. Population in 1910, 8813. 

Columbus, Miss., a city of Lowndes co., on 
the Tombigbee River and on the Southern and 
the Mobile & Ohio railroads. The industries 
include cotton mills flouring mills, iron foundry, 
manufacture of agricultural implements and 
many small factories. Large quantities of coal 
are found in the vicinity. It is the seat of the 
Mississippi Industrial Institute and College, 
one of the largest girls’ schools in the country. 
Population in 1910, 8988. 

Columbus, Ohio, the capital of the state and 
the county-seat of Franklin co., situated on the 
Scioto River, 120 mi. n. e. of Cincinnati, and 
on the Baltimore & Ohio, the Cleveland, Cin¬ 
cinnati, Chicago & Saint Louis, the Pennsyl¬ 
vania and other railroads. Among the public 
buildings the most important is the state capitol, 
a large stone structure. The present large state 
buildings are in the Doric style, covering nearly 
three acres and costing $2,500,000. There are 
various charitable and educational institutions, 
among them being the Ohio State University, 
the Capital University, Ohio Medical Univer¬ 
sity, Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College, 
five public hospitals, including a hospital for the 
insane, a deaf and dumb asylum, a blind 
institute and a state library. Columbus is the 
site of the state penitentiary. The city has a 
large inland trade in grain, wool, live stock, 
and has, also, important manufactures, princi¬ 
pally iron and steel products, agricultural imple¬ 
ments and carriages. In the neighborhood are 
extensive coal and iron fields. Columbus was 
chartered as city in 1834. Population in 1910, 
118,511. 

Columbus, Christopher (1446-1506), the 
discoverer of America, born in or near Genoa, 
Italy. He was carefully educated and early in 
life he developed a taste for adventure and a 
desire for geographical knowledge. About 1470 
he came into possession of maps and papers 
which confirmed his opinion that the continent 
of Asia could be reached by sailing westward. 
Already he had become acquainted with the 
principles of navigation and had had consider¬ 
able experience as a seaman, on voyages to 
England, the Canaries, Guinea and perhaps 
Iceland. For years he worked unceasingly 
to gain financial support for his enterprise. 
He first went to wealthy individuals in Genoa, 




Columbus 

Venice and Lisbon, and then unsuccessfully- 
implored the aid of King John of Portugal. 
He finally went to Spain, and for five years 
followed the court from place to place, pleading 
his cause at every opportunity. When al¬ 
most disheartened by his many reverses, he 
stopped at a convent, La Rabida, where he 



CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS 

From a bust by an unknown sculptor, Capitoline 
Museum, Rome 


accidentally met a well-known mariner, whose 
interest was at once aroused. A messenger 
was dispatched to the Spanish court, then 
encamped before Granada. The mission was 
successful, owing, probably, to the brilliant 
termination of the war against the Moors, which 
ended in the fall of their great stronghold, 
Granada. By the aid of Isabella, queen of Spain, 
he was enabled to start on a voyage to prove his 
theories, and on October 12, 1492, he landed on 
one of the Bahama Islands and named it San Sal¬ 
vador. He reached Cuba October 28, and Hayti 
December 6. Establishing a colony, called La 
Navidad, there, he returned to Spain. He made a 
second and a third voyage, discovering a num¬ 
ber of islands and the mainland of South 
America. But, meantime, his settlement had 
been destroyed or deserted, and he built a new 
town, Isabella. He showed surprising incapacity 
as an administrator, and was superseded and 
sent in chains to Spain. He was released, how¬ 
ever, and undertook a fourth voyage, May 9, 
1502. He encountered terrible storms, suffered 
44 


Column 

shipwreck and returned to Spain, sick and 
exhausted, in 1504. After two years of illness 
and despondency, he died at Valladolid. 

Column, kol'um, in architecture, a pillar, 
generally cylindrical in form, made of wood, 
stone, iron or other material and used to support 
a weight or to serve as an ornament. Strictly 
speaking, a column consists of a base, on which 
it rests; a shaft, cylindrical in form, and a capital, 
the portion surmounting the shaft. The Egyp¬ 
tians very early began to use columns extensively, 
as may be seen in the ruins of their temples. A 
great variety of designs and forms were employed, 
some columns being plain, smooth cylinders,, 
elaborately decorated; others, square or polyg¬ 
onal in shape, and others, resembling a bundle 
of palms or lotus stems bound together. All 
were massive and heavy in appearance. The 
Persian columns were generally tall and slender. 

The Greeks developed the forms of columns 
to their highest perfection, and their designs 
became conventionalized into the so-called three 
orders of architecture, in which the styles of the 
base, shaft and capital conform to certain fixed 
rules. 

_ The Doric order (Fig. 1) is the oldest and 
simplest, and it is most frequently seen among 
the remains of ancient Greek architecture. It 
is distinguished by its want of a base and by its 
plain capital. The shaft is about five diameters 
high and is fluted, the flutes being few in number 
and joined together. The capital has two parts, 
of equal thickness, the upper a square block or 
plinth, called the abacus, resting upon a circular 
tablet, or echinus. The entablature is the portion 
above the capital and consists of three parts, the 
architrave, or portion directly above the column; 
the middle, or frieze, which is the only part deco¬ 
rated in the Doric order, and the cornice, or upper 
part. The best example of the Doric order of 
architecture is the Parthenon at Athens. 

The Ionic order (Fig. 2) was invented by the 
Asiatic Greeks and was far more graceful and 
decorative than the Doric, though not elaborate. 

It is light and slender, the shaft being about 
eight times its diameter in length. The capital 
is higher than the Doric, is ornamented and 
connected with the architrave by a thin orna¬ 
mented abacus. The shaft is fluted and the 
twenty-four flutes are separated by narrow flat 
surfaces. The Erechtheum, on the Acropolis 
at Athens, is a good example of the Ionic style. 

The Corinthian order (Fig. 3), though invented 
by the Greeks, hardly attained the dignity of an 
order till Roman times. It is really an Ionic 








Column 


Combustion 


column with a more elaborate capital, adorned 
with beautifully carved acanthus leaves. The 
Choragic Monument of Lysicrates at Athens 
contains fine examples of Corinthian columns. 

The Romans borrowed their styles of columns 
from the Greeks and added the Tuscan and the 
Composite orders, besides perfecting the Corin¬ 
thian base and entablature. The Tuscan was a 
development of the Doric, being perfectly plain, 
with an unchanged base and pedestal, and was 
invented by the Etruscans and other early 
Italian races. The Composite, also called the 
Roman or Italic order, combined the Ionic and 
Corinthian orders and was especially pleasing 
to the Romans on account of its rich orna¬ 
mentation. The use of the arch among the 
Romans compelled the building of heavy piers 


any building, have been erected at all times as 
monuments to commemorate important names 
and events, though they had at first only a reli¬ 
gious significance. The Romans especially ex¬ 
celled in these monuments, the chief of which 
are the Column of Trajan and the Column of 
Antonine. See July, Column of; Trajan’s 
Column. 

Comanche, ko man'che, an indian tribe which 
formerly roamed through Texas and parts of 
Mexico. They were excellent horsemen and 
extremely warlike, but their numbers are now 
insignificant. About 1500 of them have been 
collected on a reservation in the western part 
of what was formerly Indian Territory. 

Combus'tion or Bum'ing, in the ordinary 
sense of the word, is the union of some substance 



to support the structure, as slender columns 
would have been too fragile, and thus the column 
came to be used merely for decorative purposes. 
Columns were often embedded in the masonry 
between the arches or attached to the faces of the 
piers and ornamented with beautiful designs. 

Early Christian and medieval European 
architecture made free use of the column and 
introduced varied forms, especially in the shafts, 
whioh were often spiral, twisted or knotted, and 
were employed more often in groups or clusters 
than singly, chiefly as supports for arches. They 
were a feature of interior architecture, rather 
than exterior, as was the case with the Greeks. 
In modem architecture the column plays a 
subordinate part, both in decoration and use¬ 
fulness. 

Columns standing alone, unconnected with 


with oxygen, the union producing light and heat; 
for example, when wood or paper bums there 
is a bright flame and considerable heat. The 
term may be used, however, to mean the chem¬ 
ical union of any two substances, so as to give 
heat and light. Thus, chlorine bums in an 
atmosphere of hydrogen. The amount of heat 
given out by burning substances depends on 
their chemical composition and on the way the 
elements are combined. Heat may be produced 
rapidly, as when phosphorus is burned in the 
air and a flame results, or it may be formed 
slowly, as when phosphorus slowly combines 
with oxygen and is said to oxidize slowly. The 
amount of heat produced in each case is the same, 
and both are said to be in a state of combustion. 
The temperature of a burning substance is 
different from the amount of heat produced. In 



















































































































Comedy 

the case of brightly burning phosphorus, the 
temperature, measured by a thermometer, is 
high; but in the case of slowly oxidizing phos¬ 
phorus, the temperature is low. 

The products of combustion in most cases 
are gases and some solid matter. In early times 
it was thought that when a substance burned it 
was destroyed; but when chemists were able to 
collect the gases that came off from a burning 
body and analyzed them, it was found that such 
was not the case. Nothing is destroyed. The 
form is merely changed. 

Com'edy, a form of drama in which the sub¬ 
ject matter is less serious and the treatment less 
dignified than in tragedy, and in which the out¬ 
come is happy. It is in general less exaggerated 
in its humor than the farce or the burlesque. 
The following list includes some of the best- 
known comedies in modern literature: 


L’Avare (1668).Molifere 

Minna von Bamhelm (1767).Lessing 

She Stoops to Conquer (1773).Goldsmith 

The Rivals (1775).Sheridan 

The School for Scandal (1777).Sheridan 

Comedy of Errors (1594).Shakespeare 

Merchant of Venice (1597).Shakespeare 

Much Ado About Nothing (1597). .Shakespeare 

As You Like It (1599).Shakespeare 

Twelfth Night (1602).Shakespeare 


Rip Van Winkle (1866), Jefferson and Bouci- 
cault. 

See Drama. 

Come'nius, John Amos (1592-1671), a 
Moravian clergyman and educator, bom at 
Komna, Moravia, and educated at the University 
of Heidelberg. He began his career as a teacher 
in the school of the Bohemian Brethren in 
Moravia. He afterwards became a preacher 
and assumed charge of a school in his parish. 
After the Thirty Years’ War he settled in Poland 
and assumed the direction of a gymnasium. It 
was while holding this position that he published 
his first great work, The Gate of Tongues 
Unlocked. This work completely revolutionized 
the methods of teaching language and met with 
extraordinary success. Within a few years it 
was translated into nearly ail the languages of 
Europe and several of those of Asia. The year 
following the appearance of the work, Comenius 
was elected bishop of the Moravian Brethren 
and he spent the next few years in the preparation 
of a still greater pedagogical work, which set 
forth in several volumes logical and natural 
methods for teaching all branches of knowledge. 
The influence of this work was such that Come- 


Gomets 

nius received invitations from the governments 
of England and Sweden to reform the school 
systems of those countries. He was unable to 
accomplish anything in England, because of 
political conditions, but he greatly improved the 
school system of Sweden. He then published 
his third work, The World Illustrated. This 
was the first illustrated text-book ever issued, 
and it created nearly as great an interest as the 
work on teaching languages. In some form or 
other this book has been handed down to the 
present time. 

Comenius was the greatest educator of his 
time and can justly be considered the originator 
of methods and principles in general use at the 
present day. He divided schools into four 
classes: the mother school, which was the home; 
the vernacular school, or the primary school; 
the Latin school, and the university. He 
believed in the study of the mother tongue, the 
various branches of natural science and natural 
history. He also advocated the development of 
the child’s moral and spiritual nature along with 
his intellectual powers, and he believed in phys¬ 
ical training and an equal education for both 
sexes. Consult Quick’s Essays on Educational 
Reformers. 

Com'ets, bodies moving with incredible speed 
from or toward the sun, in remarkable orbits. 
To the naked eye the comet appears to be com¬ 
posed of three parts: a star or bright spot, called 
the nucleus ; a foggy mass surrounding this, 
called the coma, and the field of light, or tail, 
which follows the main comet. The tail is 
usually bright and narrow near the head, but it 
widens into a fan-shaped appendage farther from 
it. While the comet is approaching the sun, the 
tail trails behind, but as the comet goes away 
from the sun, the tail precedes it. The three 
parts are not always present, however, for some¬ 
times a comet may seem like a thin cloud with a 
bright spot near the middle, or even like a small 
hairy mass. Comets vary greatly in brilliancy, 
some being exceedingly bright, but not many of 
them are visible to the naked eye, only about 
thirty of such appearing in a century. By means 
of the telescope new ones are continually being 
discovered. Some of these bodies travel around 
the sun in elliptical orbits; others appear from 
some unknown source, go toward the sun, pass 
around it and then depart on a line nearly 
parallel with the one on which they approached; 
while a third class, after going beyond the sun. 
leave it on*a line which diverges from the one of 
their approach. It is evident that comets 











Comets 


Commerce 


traveling in either of the last two orbits will 
never again approach the sun unless' they are 
attracted from their respective courses. No 
astronomer knows with certainty the exact com¬ 
position of a comet or its origin; it is hard to 
tell what force has sent some of them from some 
other system, apparently, into this one of ours 
for a time; but the astronomers can predict the 
return of comets which have once appeared, if 
they are of the type that do return. 

It is supposed that the nucleus is composed 
of hard matter, perhaps meteoric stones, and 
that the tail is gaseous, not necessarily itself in 
combustion, but perhaps bearing only reflected 
light of the sun. One comet at least has been 
known to divide into two and then to disappear, 
and it is thought that others are fading away. 
Of the comets that have been seen thus far, 
Halley’s comet, which was discovered in 1682 
and remained in sight for about a month, is the 
most important. Records show that it appeared 
in 1607, 1531 and 1456. It appeared again in 
1759, 1835 and 1910. Upon observations of 
this comet much of the modem theory is based. 
Other comets of importance are Lexell’s comet, 
which was seen in 1770, but never reappeared; 
Biela’s comet (1772, 1805, 1826, 1845), which 
later broke into two parts and then disappeared; 
and Encke’s comet (1786). The last returns at 
irregular intervals of about three years. The 
most remarkable and .brilliant of all was Donati’s 
comet, which appeared in 1858. This will 
probably return in about the thirty-eighth cen¬ 
tury. In 1843 a very remarkable comet appeared, 
passing so near the sun that it probably went 
through the outer vapor of that body. In 1880 
a similar comet appeared, apparently in the 
same orbit, and again in 1882, a third, to all 
appearances exactly similar to the two pre¬ 
ceding. These are the first cases on record 
where several comets have been found in the 
same orbit, following one another in close suc¬ 
cession. 

So wonderful a phenomenon as the appearance 
of one of the brilliant comets in the sky has 
always been accompanied by superstitious dread 
among ignorant people, and before science had 
accounted for the appearance of these curious 
heavenly bodies, they occasioned the greatest 
terror; they were thought to indicate the rapid 
approach of the end of the earth. Even yet 
speculation as to what would happen should the 
earth meet a comet is rife. It is not impos¬ 
sible that such a collision might take place, and it 
is possible, too, that meteoric showers are in some 


way associated with the near approach of a 
comet. 

Comitia, ho mish'i ah, the name given in 
ancient Rome to the meetings of the people 
in which state questions were voted upon. 
The Comitia Curiata was the oldest of the 
comitiae and was made up of patricians only. 
For centuries, until the time when the plebeians 
grew strong in their demands for equal rights, 
the Comitia Curiata had the highest power in 
the state. Its importance grew less, however, 
as the Comitia Centuriata became more promi¬ 
nent. This second assembly admitted the 
entire free population of Rome, and the vote 
was taken by units containing one hundred or 
more persons, and called centuries. The third 
assembly, the Comitia Trihula, was an assembly 
of the tribes and was probably made up 
entirely of plebeians, although this is not cer¬ 
tain. 

Commencement, kom mens f ment, in colleges 
and universities of the United States, the day 
upon which the degrees of bachelors of arts, 
masters of arts and honorary degrees are con¬ 
ferred upon students and scholars. It is com¬ 
monly used to designate the exercises mark¬ 
ing the close of secondary and elementary 
schools, but this use of the term is hardly jus¬ 
tified. 

Commerce, kom'murs, the exchange of prod¬ 
ucts, and specifically, an exchange transacted 
between people remote from each other. The 
first means of commerce was barter, the different 
producers meeting in person and exchanging 
their goods. With the development of civiliza¬ 
tion and industry, exchanges became so common 
and complex that some men devoted them¬ 
selves entirely to conducting exchanges. Thus 
arose the class known as_ merchants. During 
the Middle Ages these merchants began to con¬ 
gregate at certain times and places for the more 
economical exchange of their wares; so markets 
and fairs came into vogue. Eventually, these 
market places grew in importance and size until 
whole towns were given over to this trade and 
were licensed by the king. With the decline of 
feudalism, however, and the gradual growth in 
the independence of individuals, commerce 
became more general and the old market towns 
lost their prestige, though fairs and markets are 
still held in some isolated parts of Europe. 
Commerce between Europe and Asia was stimu¬ 
lated by the Crusades, but not until the sixteenth 
century did trade between nations begin to 
assume its present world-wide importance. 


Commerce 


Commercial Education 


The impetus which it received at that time was 
due to the invention of the compass and advance¬ 
ment in the science and art of navigation, which 
led to more extended voyages on the open seas 
and to the spirit of exploration, which, during 
the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, resulted in 
the discovery of new fields of riches. The 
establishment of colonies in the New World led 
to an interchange of products between them 
and the mother countries. Each European 
nation carefully guarded and restricted the 
commerce between itself and its colonies, but 
often with more zeal than wisdom, for anxiety 
to derive revenue from colonial possessions led 
to a policy of repression which often retarded 
the development of the colonies. Previous to 
the Revolutionary War, the commerce of the 
American colonies of England was restricted by 
navigation acts, which eventually became the 
cause of serious disagreement and finally of 
separation of the colonies from the mother 
country. 

The commerce of the United States as a nation 
dates from 1790; during the first decade the 
imports amounted to $91,252,768, and the 
exports to $70,971,780. For a few decades, 
owing to international complications and domes¬ 
tic disturbances, commerce did not increase, but 
after 1830 it developed rapidly, and its growth 
has continued steadily ever since, as shown by 
the following table: 


FISCAL YEAR 

IMPORTS 

EXPORTS 

1845 

8 113,184,322 

$ 106,040,111 

1850 

173,509,526 

144,375,726 

1860 

353,616,119 

333,576,057 

1870 

435,958,408 

392,771,768 

1880 

667,954,746 

835,638,658 

1890 

789,310,409 

857,828,684 

1900 

849,941,184 

1,394,483,082 

1901 

823,172,165 

1,487,764,991 

1902 

903,320,948 

1,381,719,401 

1903 

1,025,719,237 

1,420,141,679 

1,460,827,271 

1904 

991,087,371 

1905 

1,117,512,629 

1,518,561,720 

1910. 

1,557,906.671 

1,710.000.000 


The internal commerce of the country greatly 
exceeds its foreign commerce and is larger than 
that of any other country in the world. This 
is due to its wide extent of territory, its exten¬ 
sive railway systems (See Railroads), its 
unequaled facilities for transportation by lakes 
and navigable rivers, the inventive genius of 
the American people and their general pros¬ 
perity. 

The nineteenth century, especially its last 
quarter, was remarkable for commercial devel¬ 
opment throughout the world, and the progress 
then =bown has continued in the opening years 
or tbe twentieth century. In the following table 


the commercial progress of the leading countries 
of the world is shown, the sums representing 
millions of dollars: 


COUNTRY 

IMPORTS 

EXPORTS 

1870 

1910 

1870 

1910 

Austria-Hungary .... 

210 

570 

192 

483 

Belgium. 

184 

852 

138 

680 

Canada . 

74 

391 

73 

301 

China . 

45 

308 

47 

253 

France . 

553 

1434 

541 

1246 

Germany . 

775 

2233 

551 

1868 

Great Britain . 

1259 

2872 

971 

2150 

India . 

170 

575 

255 

720 

Italy. 

192 

641 

200 

401 

Japan . 

35 

232 

15 

229 

Netherlands. 

187 

1292 

153 

1046 

Russia . 

201 

477 

216 

692 

Spain. 

101 

200 

77 

193 


Commerce, Chamber of, a board chosen 
from among the merchants and traders of a 
city to protect the interests of commerce; to 
lay before the legislature the views of their 
members on matters affecting commerce; to 
furnish statistics as to the trade of the locality, 
and to attain by combination advantages which 
could not be reached by individual enterprise. 
A system of international chambers of com¬ 
merce, for promoting relations with foreign 
countries, has been largely adopted. Nearly 
every city has a chamber of commerce, which is 
usually the most important factor in its com¬ 
mercial fife. 

Commerce, Department of, a department 
of the United States government, established 
by an act of Congress, February 11, 1903, as 
the department of commerce and labor, but 
since March 4, 1913, a separate department. 
The department embraces a number of bu¬ 
reaus that formerly belonged to other depart¬ 
ments, such as the lighthouse board, the light¬ 
house establishment, the steamboat inspection 
service, the coast and geodetic survey, the 
bureau of statistics, the bureau of navigation, 
the census bureau, the bureau of foreign com¬ 
merce, the bureau of standards, and the fish 
commission. It also includes two new bureaus, 
those of corporations and manufactures. 
It is thought that the former will be one 
of the most important branches of the depart¬ 
ment. The duties of this bureau will be to deal 
with the corporations, other than railroads, 
engaged in commerce with foreign nations and 
between states. The commissioner has the same 
authority to investigate such corporations and 
secure evidence as is given the Interstate Com¬ 
merce Commission over railroads. See United 
States, subhead Government. 

Commercial Education. See Business Cod* 

LEGE. 





























Commercial Law 


Common Schools 


Commercial Law, the law which regulates 
commercial affairs. It is derived from the 
maritime codes of medieval Europe, the 
imperial code of Rome, international law and 
the customs of merchants. In the United States 
the term includes chiefly the law dealing with 
contracts. The principal subjects embraced 
within it are the laws of shipping, negotiable 
bills of exchange, promissory notes and sales. 
See Bill of Exchange; Note; Mortgage. 

Commission System. See Municipal Gov¬ 
ernment. 

Commit'tee of Public Safety, a body elected 
by the French Convention, April 6, 1793, from 
among its own members. At first it had very 
limited power conferred upon it—that of 
supervising the executive and of accelerating 
its actions. Subsequently, however, its powers 
became extended; all the executive authority 
passed into its hands. See French Revolution. 

Com'mon Coun'cil, the legislative body of a 
city or incorporated town. The common council 
sometimes consists of two houses, chambers or 
courts, and sometimes forms only one. In 
American cities the city council is elected by 
the people, and in some instances it appoints 
the mayor. 

Common Law, the unwritten law, the law 
that receives its binding force from immemorial 
usage and universal reception. It consists of 
that body of rules, principles and customs 
which has been received from former times, 
and by which courts have been guided in their 
judicial decisions. It is contrasted with (1) the 
statute law, contained in acts of a legislature; 
(2) equity, which is also an accretion of judicial 
decisions, but is formed by a new tribunal, 
which first appeared when the common law had 
reached its full growth; (3) the civil law, inherited 
by modem Europe from the Roman Empire. 
Wherever statute law runs counter to common 
law the latter is entirely overruled; but common 
law asserts its preeminence where equity is 
opposed to it. In the United States there is no 
national common law, but state courts have 
relied on the English common law and have 
developed a fairly uniform system of common 
law throughout the country. See Law; Civil 
Law; Equity; Statute. 

Com'mons, House of. See Great Britain, 
subhead Government. 

Common Schools, schools giving instruction 
in elementary branches. In the United States 
common schools mean public schools below the 
high school. 


Early History. In the ancient oriental 
nations, all systems of education were either 
military or religious, and education was confined 
to the ruling classes, whose power depended 
upon the ignorance of the great mass of people. 
Sparta gave a military education to all boys, 
and Athens added intellectual training to mili¬ 
tary training Here education was the affair of 
both the family and the State. In Rome, educa¬ 
tion was the especial care of the mother, or ma¬ 
tron, during the period of Roman ascendency; 
later, it was turned over to nurses and teachers. 
During the Middle Ages, education was almost 
entirely under the control of the Church, till 
some of the great rulers, such as Alfred the Great 
and Charlemagne, took a wide interest in educa¬ 
tion and extended the educational influence of 
their empire. But education was not general, 
and all teachers came from the ranks of the 
clergy. 

The Reformation. The Reformation and 
the invention of printing with movable types 
are responsible for the establishment of public 
schools throughout Europe. Luther not only 
favored public schools, but his doctrine made 
them a necessity to his followers. He held that 
individuals were responsible for their beliefs, 
and that these beliefs were to be based on the 
personal study of the Bible; hence, it was neces¬ 
sary for every one to learn to read. Previous to 
Luther’s time, Latin had been generally taught 
in the schools, and little or no attention had 
been given to the teaching of the mother tongue. 
Now children were taught to read and write 
their own language. The invention of printing, 
which occurred a few years before, made it 
possible to supply the people with books and 
thus aided in the work of general education. 
See Luther, Martin; Reformation. 

Common schools were established in Prussia, 
France, Holland and Scotland. The Thirty 
Years’ War in Prussia proved disastrous to the 
progress of education, and it was not until after 
the close of that struggle that the common 
schools were firmly organized. In France ele¬ 
mentary schools were established among the 
Huguenots, but with the revocation of the Edict 
of Nantes and the consequent emigration of 
large numbers of these people and an accom¬ 
panying decline in revenues, government aid to 
public education became practically impossible 
(See Huguenots; Nantes, Edict of). Public 
schools under state aid were not founded until 
1833. Common schools existed in Scotland even 
before the Reformation, and from their first estab- 


Common Schools 


Common Schools 


lishment to the present time that country has 
given them the necessary support. The com¬ 
mon schools of England are called board schools, 
being established under an act of parliament, 
passed in 1870, which provided that in every 
school district public elementary schools should 
be maintained for the accommodation of all the 
children resident in the district. These schools 
are called board schools because the act creating 
them provides for the election of school boards 
by the taxpayers to carry out the provisions of 
the act, which compels the attendance of chil¬ 
dren between the ages of five and thirteen. 
The so-called public schools, of which Eton and 
Rugby are good examples, are great prepara¬ 
tory schools for boys of the wealthier classes. 
The early elementary schools in that country 
were generally known as dame schools, because 
they were taught by women. See Education, 
National Systems of. 

United States. The American colonists 
gave early attention to education. Schools were 
established in Boston as early as 1635, and in 
1637 the General Court of Massachusetts decreed 
that every town having fifty families should 
establish a common school for the instruction 
of the children who desired to attend. The 
expenses of such schools were to be met either 
by the town as a whole or by the families whose 
children attended. The same act provided for 
the establishment of a grammar school, which 
should fit boys for college, in every town of 100 
or more families. Connecticut and New Haven 
followed within the next few years, but no sys¬ 
tem of public schools was established in Rhode 
Island until 1790. Among the Middle Colonies, 
the Dutch in New York organized a system of 
public schools before that colony was taken by 
the English. After this event little attention 
was paid to public education until after the 
Revolution. The Swedes in New Jersey and 
Delaware also founded schools, and the charter 
granted William Penn provided for a system of 
public education. This, however, was not car¬ 
ried out until long after Penn’s death. In 1698 
the Society of Friends established a school in 
Philadelphia, which is now known as the Penn 
Charter School, but it was not until after the 
middle of the eighteenth century that measures 
were taken for systematic instruction of the 
children bv the colony. 

The Southern colonies, having an entirely 
different social system, did not establish public 
schools. The large plantations and the con¬ 
sequently sparse settlement of the country made 


such institutions practically impossible during 
the early history of these colonies. The children 
of planters were taught in their homes, either by 
tutors or governesses, and the boys of some 
wealthy families were sent to England to com¬ 
plete their education. The growth of slavery, 
following the Revolutionary War, perpetuated 
the early institutions of the South, so that few 
free public schools were established in the slave- 
holding states until their reorganization after the 
Civil War. 

The resources of the country were so thor¬ 
oughly taxed during the Revolutionary War that 
but little attention could be given to education; 
consequently there was no progress in the com¬ 
mon schools during that period. After the close 
of the war the New England states gave atten¬ 
tion to their schools. With the exception of 
Massachusetts, in New England and all other 
parts of the country, free public schools were 
considered charitable institutions, maintained for 
the education of the children of those families 
who were too poor to pay for the instruction; 
and wherever possible rate bills or local taxes 
were assessed on all families sending children to 
these schools. This plan made the schools 
odious to those for whom they were established, 
and contemptible to others; consequently it did 
not succeed. 

The establishment of public schools at state 
expense was undoubtedly delayed because of the 
lack of funds, and the condition of the country 
was such during the years immediately following 
the Revolution that increased taxation for any 
purpose was impossible. In 1805 the Public 
School Society of New York was formed. The 
purpose was to maintain schools for the instruc¬ 
tion of those children whose parents were unable 
to provide it themselves, but the plan was soon 
broadened to include all children who applied, 
and from this the ascent to the support of com¬ 
mon schools by the state was comparatively 
easy. Soon after this New York provided for 
county supervision of schools. Pennsylvania 
.was somewhat behind New York, but the New 
England states were in the van of the movement. 
As the states west of the Alleghanies were 
organized, school systems, modeled after the 
plan of the states from which the settlers had 
come, were instituted. 

The' support of co mm on schools has been 
obtained from various sources. The early 
schools were supported almost entirely by local 
taxation on the families receiving their benefit. 
From this the taxation of the township or village 


Common Schools 


Commune of Paris 


was developed, and later the state tax, the 
appropriation of land rents and direct national 
aid were secured, but the most extended aid 
has been received from the congressional grants 
of public lands. The first of these was provided 
for in the Ordinance of 1787, which contained a 
provision that one section of land in every town¬ 
ship in the states organized from the North¬ 
west Territory should be devoted to the support 
of the common schools (See Ordinance of 
1787). By this means, all of the states embraced 
within the provisions of this ordinance obtained 
a large school fund. In 1848 the law was 
changed to provide two sections for each town¬ 
ship, so that all states admitted since that date 
have twice the public land that those organized 
from the Northwest Territory received. In 
addition to this, Congress has made extensive 
grants of land which have been apportioned 
among the older states. These, all told, include 
over 80,000,000 acres, or 125,000 square miles, 
an area larger than Colorado, Maryland and 
New Hampshire combined. In addition to the 
funds derived from public lands, the govern¬ 
ment in 1836 distributed among the states about 
$28,000,000 of surplus revenue, the amount 
received by each state being determined by the 
ratio of its population to the entire population 
of the country. A number of these states 
invested their share in a permanent school fund. 
The provision for state funds necessarily led 
to state control of these funds. In some states, 
like Illinois, the lands are leased, and the revenue 
thus derived is apportioned by the state depart¬ 
ment of public instruction according to provi¬ 
sions of the school law; in other states, like 
Minnesota, the land is sold, and the funds thus 
obtained are invested at a good rate of interest. 

The control of the first public schools in the 
country was vested in the community in which 
the school was to be located. This was the 
origin of the so-called district system, which 
still has a strong hold upon many states. With 
the increase in population and the development 
of new states, there has been a tendency to. 
administer the school system in larger units. In 
many of the New England states the township 
constitutes this unit, while in the Southern states, 
which have never been accustomed to township 
government, the county often constitutes the 
unit. The states in the Middle West, such as 
Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota, adopted 
the plan of the older Eastern states from which 
their settlers came, and they still maintain the 
school district. But the county is the unit in 


all these states for the purpose of supervision 
and for the examination and licensing of teachers. 
Large cities usually administer their school 
affairs under a special charter, which provides 
for a superintendent and a board of education. 
Each state has a department of public instruc¬ 
tion, at the head of which is the superintendent. 
In some states this department has executive 
powers and is responsible for unifying the 
courses of study and determining the qualifi¬ 
cation for teachers, as in Minnesota; while in 
others the work of the department is almost 
wholly clerical and advisory. 

The common schools of the United States 
are now, with few exceptions, thoroughly 
organized and economically managed. All cities, 
large towns and villages have graded schools, 
and in many states graded courses of study are 
provided for the rural schools. Immense sums 
have been spent upon buildings, grounds and 
appliances in cities and towns and in the wealth¬ 
ier rural communities. While each state is a 
law unto itself, as far as its determination of 
courses of study, qualifications of teachers, 
methods of organization and management are 
concerned, yet in their main features all of the 
state systems are essentially the same. Though 
there is not, technically or legally, a national 
system of education, the uniformity of these 
state systems practically makes the whole system 
national. The common schools of the United 
States enroll about 17,000,000 pupils, or one- 
fifth of the entire population, and they employ 
over 500,000 teachers. See Education, His¬ 
tory of, subhead United States; Secondary 
Schools; University. 

Commonwealth of England, the name 
usually given to the form of government which 
was in force from the death of Charles I, 1649, 
to the restoration of Charles II, in 1660. Cor¬ 
rectly, however, the term should be applied only 
to the years between the abolition of the mon¬ 
archy and the appointment of Cromwell to the 
protectorate. See Cromwell, Oliver. 

Commune, kom mune', the smallest govern¬ 
ment district in France and in some other coun¬ 
tries, as Belgium. A commune sometimes 
embraces a number of villages, while some large 
cities are divided into a number of communes. 
In either case each commune is governed by an 
officer called a mayor, who is assisted by a 
deliberative assembly called the conseil muni¬ 
cipal. 

Commune of Paris, (1), a revolutionary com¬ 
mittee which in 1792 took the place of the 


Communism 


Compass 


municipal government of Paris and soon usurped 
the supreme authority in the State. Among 
its chiefs wese some of the most violent of the 
demagogues, such as Hubert, Danton and 
Robespierre. (2), The name adopted by the 
ultra-radical party in Paris brought into promi¬ 
nence by the events of the Franco-German War 
and. more immediately,^by the siege of Paris 
(October, 1870, to January, 1871). This party 
ruled Paris for a brief period after the evacuation 
of the German troops and had to be suppressed 
by troops collected by the National Assembly of 
France. 

Com'munism, the economic system or theory 
which upholds the absorption of all proprietary 
rights in a common interest, an equitable division 
of labor and the formation of a common fund for 
the supply of all the wants of the community. 
It is based on the denial of individual rights in 
property. No communistic society has as yet 
been successful, though many have been organ¬ 
ized and some still exist. The most famous of 
those in the United States were those of Brook 
Farm, Mass. (See Brook Farm), and New 
Harmony, Ind., the latter established by an 
Englishman, Robert Owen. Of those still in 
existence, the Oneida Community, in New 
York, and the Amana Community, near Daven¬ 
port, Iowa, are of the most importance. Saint 
Simon, Fourier and Proudhon have been the 
chief exponents of the system in France. Com¬ 
munism differs from simple socialism, in includ¬ 
ing the socialization of 'products, as well as of 
the means of production, though some socialists 
do demand complete communism. 

Com'muta'tor. See Dynamo-Electric 
Machine. 

Co'mo, capital of the province of Como, in 
the north of Italy, 24 mi. n. n. w. of Milan, in 
a delightful valley at the southwest extremity of 
Lake Como. It has a splendid marble cathe¬ 
dral, dating from the fourteenth century. The 
manufactures comprise woolens, silks and 
cotton. Here were bom Pliny the Elder and the 
Younger, and Volta, the natural philosopher. 
Population in 1911, 44,146. 

Como, a lake in the north of Italy, at the foot 
of the Alps, fed and drained by the river Adda. 
It is celebrated for the beautiful sceneiy of its 
shores, which are covered with handsome villas, 
gardens and vineyards, behind which mountains 
rise to the height of 7000 feet. Trout and other 
fish abound in the lake. The chief towns on its 
shores are Bellano, Bellagio and Menaggio. 

Com'oro Islands, a volcanic group in the 


Indian Ocean, between the northern extremity 
of Madagascar and the continent of Africa, 
covering an area of 800 sq. mi. They are four 
in number: Great Comoro, Mohilla, Johanna 
and Mayotta. The soil is fertile and produces 
fruits, sugar cane, rice and cocoanuts. The 
entire group was ceded to France in 1886, but 
Mayotta has been a French colony since 1842. 
Population, estimated at 90,000. 

Company, Icum'pa ny, in commerce See 
Partnership; Joint Stock Companies; Cor¬ 
poration; Trading Companies. 

Compass, hum'pas, an instrument for deter¬ 
mining direction with reference to the north and 



south points. The earth is a gigantic magnet, 
with its poles near the geographical north and 
south poles; and the attraction of these mag¬ 
netic poles is sufficient to keep the needle point¬ 
ing north and south. See Magnetism. Com¬ 
passes are usually classified as the surveyor’s 
compass, the mariner’s compass and the varia¬ 
tion compass. The surveyor’s compass consists of 
a magnetic needle enclosed in a circular box and 
moving over a disk graduated to degrees, min¬ 
utes and seconds. The frame has two vertical 
sights at opposite ends of a diameter, so as to se¬ 
cure accurate pointing. The direction of the 
line in which the compass points is determined 
by reading the number of degrees between the 
north pole of the needle and the line of sight. 
A level and a tripod are necessary parts of a 
surveyor’s compass. 

The mariner’s compass is used on board ship; 
it consists of several magnetic needles arranged 
parallel to one another and attached to a card, 
which is mounted at its center upon the end of 
an upright steel pivot. The whole arrangement 
is enclosed in a circular brass box, which is 
hung within u wooden box and is so fixed that 
the compass card remains horizontal, whatever 
position the ship may take. The card is divided 
into thirty-two equal parts by lines drawn from 
the center to the circumference. The intervals 
between these points are divided into halves and 




Compasses 


Compositae 


quarters, so that the entire circumference is 
divided into 360 equal parts or degrees. Four 
principal points, north, south, east and west, 
are designated as cardinal points. The names of 
the others are compounds of these. The 
direction of the ship is determined by noting the 
number of degrees between the north pole of 
the needle and the course as indicated by a line 
from the center of the wheel to the point of the 
bow. Since the needle is subject to variation 
on account of the magnetism of the earth and 
also because of the influences of the ship itself, 
nearly all vessels carry several compasses, which 
are read and carefully compared several times 
each day. The variation is greater on steel 
vessels than on those constructed of wood. 
Navigators’ tables, indicating the variation of 
the compass in various parts of the ocean, are 
in general use, and by these the navigator is able 
to correct his compass without difficulty. 

The variation compass is so made as to show 
the changes that occur daily in the variations 
from the magnetic meridian. Its needle is 
much longer than that of the ordinary mariner’s 
compass, so that minute variations are more 
easily read. 

Compasses or Dividers, a mathematical 
instrument, used for describing circles and 
measuring fines. The compasses consist simply 
of two pointed legs, movable on a joint or pivot, 
and they are used for measuring and transfer¬ 
ring distances. For describing circles the 
lower end of one of the legs is removed and 
its place is supplied by a holder for a pencil or 
pen. Hair compasses are compasses having a 
spring, tending to keep the legs apart, and a 
finely threaded screw, by which the spring can 
be compressed or relaxed with the utmost 
nicety and the distance of the legs regulated 
to a hair’s breadth. Bow compasses are com¬ 
passes having the two legs united by a bow 
passing through one of them, the distance 
between the legs being adjusted by means of a 
screw and nut. Proportional compasses are 
compasses used for reducing or enlarging draw¬ 
ings, having the legs crossing so as to present 
a pair on each side of a common pivot. By 
means of a slit in the legs and the movable 
pivot the relative distances between the points 
at the respective ends may be adjusted to the 
required proportion. 

Compass Plant, an annual plant belonging 
to the family Compositae, common in the 
prairies of the Western states. The large ragged 
leaves grow upright on rather long stems. As 


the structure of these leaves is the same on 
both sides, both surfaces are equally sensitive 
to the light, and they are able to secure an 
equal amount of fight for both sides of the 
leaves only by having their edges vertical and 
their tips to the north and the south. Resin 
weed is another name for this plant, derived 
from the fact that the stems contain resinous 
matter. 

Com'plex Num'ber. See Number.' 

Compositae, kom poz'i tee, the largest family 
of plants, containing over 12,000 known species, 
which are grouped in 1000 genera. They con¬ 
sist of herbs or shrubs and are distributed all 
over the world. The characteristic of the family 
is the head of small flowers, which in itself is 
sometimes mistaken for one large flower. The 
resemblance is made stronger by the fact that 
in many species the flowers in the outer margin 
of the head are different in form from the others, 



COMPOSITAE 

a, flower head; b, single ray flower; c, single disc flower; 
d, small head with tubular flowers only. 

and their tubular corollas are modified so as to 
resemble the petals of a simpler flower. The 
small flowers in the middle of the head, which 
resemble the pistils and stamens of a typical 
flower, are intermingled with bristles and scales 
of various forms, that, with the appendages to 
the seeds, are important factors in classifying 
the plants of this difficult group. While a 
typical flower is on the plan of five and is per¬ 
fect, yet the outer flowers are irregular and not 
infrequently imperfect and sterile. When it is 
remembered that nearly one-seventh of the 
known species of flowering plants belong to 
this one family, its importance may be under¬ 
stood. A great many of the plants are culti¬ 
vated for ornament, and some few serve as food 
plants. Others have considerable medicinal 
value. A great many different plants of this 
order are described under appropriate titles in 
this work. See Arnica; Aster; Chrysan- 


Composite Number 



themtjm; Dahlia; Daisy; Goldenrod; Let¬ 
tuce; Tansy; Thistle, and many others. 

Composite, kom poz'it , Number. See Num¬ 
ber. 

Composite Order. See Column. 

Composition, kom po zish'un, of Forces, in 

mechanics, the union of several forces that are 
acting in differ¬ 
ent directions, in¬ 
to an equivalent 
force acting in 
another direction. 

Thus, two forces, 
as X and F, act¬ 
ing in the direc¬ 


tions of the adjacent sides of the parallelogram 
ABCD, unite to form a force acting in the direc¬ 
tion of the diagonal AC. If the lengths of the 
adjacent sides of the parallelogram represent 
the relative magnitudes of the forces, the 
diagonal will represent the magnitude of the 
compounding force. 

Compressed, kom prest ', Air, atmospheric air 
compressed by means of pumps (See Air Com¬ 
pressor). As a means of transmitting power, 
compressed or condensed air received the atten¬ 
tion of scientists as early as 1700 A. d. In that 
year, Dr. Papin, of Blois, the first man to apply 
a piston in a steam cylinder, the inventor of the 
digester and the steelyard safety valve, employed 
compressed air to drive a piston in a cylinder 
which was intended to drive a pump. He used 
a fall of water to compress the air in a cylinder. 
His experiments were not successful. About one 
hundred years later, a Welsh engineer used the 
power derived from a heavy fall of water to 
work a blowing cylinder, from which the air 
was conveyed to a blast furnace, a mile and a 
half distant. The blast, however, was too 
feeble to do much work. About 1840, an Eng¬ 
lish patent for the application of compressed air 
to working cranes, hoisting machines and other 
machinery was granted. The air was com¬ 
pressed by an air pump, or compressor, and was 
conducted through pipes to the machinery. 
The elastic air under pressure transmits the 
power used in compressing it, when it is per¬ 
mitted to expand in a suitable device which will 
respond to the pressure exerted. 

Air Motors. Another method of using com¬ 
pressed air has been developed by the improve¬ 
ments made in automobiles and motors for 
hauling street cars. The air, under enormous 
pressure, is stored in steel bottle-shaped reser¬ 
voirs made seamless from a solid ingot of steel. 


Compressed Air 

These bottles are made to sustain a pressure 
of 3000 pounds or more to the square inch. 
When charged with the compressed air, they 
are coupled, singly or in series, with the auxiliary 
reservoir on the motors, and a suitable reducing 
valve permits the air to fill the auxiliary reservoir 
until the working pressure of from 10 to 100 
pounds is secured. In practice, a small fire of 
coal, coke, gasoline or kerosene is maintained to 
heat the air, just before it is expanded into the 
working cylinder. The heat not only gives 
the compressed air added efficiency, due to the 
expansion caused by heat, but it also removes 
the objection due to the snow and ice formed 
by the suddenly released air. In compressing 
the air, heat is formed; in suddenly expanding 
the air, the heat is absorbed so rapidly that ice 
and snow are formed. This has been an objec¬ 
tionable feature in the use of compressed air for 
transmitting power. Compressed air is also used 
to operate rock drills, air motors in manufac¬ 
turing establishments, air hoists of every descrip¬ 
tion; to operate canal locks, elevators and clocks; 
to lift water, acids and other liquids; as a treat¬ 
ment for tuberculosis, by expanding the lungs; 
to paint broad surfaces, bridges, freight cars, 
warehouses and buildings; to force plastic 
material through dies, holes and pipes; to operate 
mine cars and cars on railroads; to operate 
motocycles, automobiles and all forms of horse¬ 
less vehicles; to inflate pneumatic tires for bicy¬ 
cles and carriages; to drive the sand in a sand 
blast; to clean carpets, rugs, cars, and for hun¬ 
dreds of other purposes. Following are some 
of the uses to which compressed air is put in 
railroad shops: elevating sand at engine house; 
elevating oil at oil house; hoisting heavy castings 
and tools; forcing couplings on air hose; operat¬ 
ing cylinder-boring bar; operating valve-facing 
machine; filling cylinders of hydraulic presses; 
removing and applying driving tires; testing 
water pumps after repairs; drilling, tapping and 
reaming with motors; cleaning boilers and 
machinery; punching jacket rivet holes; taking 
old paint off tin roofs; chipping, cutting and 
caulking; operating letter presses; jacking up 
cars and trucks; cleaning interior of cars and 
upholstered work; burning paint off coaches 
and painting cars. 

Compressed air is used on the vessels of the 
United States navy for the following purposes: 
to operate the main engine auxiliaries; to operate 
auxiliary, fire, bilge and water-service pumps; 
to operate boat cranes, turret-turning engines, 
hydraulic cylinders for working guns, ammu- 




Compromise of 1850 

nition hoists, ash hydro-pneumatic hoists, feed 
pumps, smoke hose for guns, whistle and siren; 
to send messages about the ship through pneu¬ 
matic tubes; to clear a compartment of water 
when filled; to ventilate, heat and cool the ship, 
and to operate the engine of the ordinary work¬ 
ing launch. Compressed air also is used in 
dynamite guns. See Air Brake; Pneumatic 
Tools. 

Compromise, kom'pro mize, of 1860, a set of 

compromise measures passed in August, 1850, 
in the Congress of the United States, their pur¬ 
pose being to allay the strife over slavery by 
granting concessions to both parties. Under the 
compromise, Texas was allowed $10,000,000 
for New Mexico; California was admitted to 
the Union as a free state; New Mexico and 
Utah were organized as territories, with the 
right to adopt or reject slavery, and fugitive 
negroes were denied a trial by jury, but were 
to be returned to their owners upon certain 
affidavits. This latter provision was known as 
the Fugitive Slave Law. The compromise was 
passed largely through the efforts of Daniel 
Webster, Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun, 
each of \*hom made his last great speech in its 
behalf. 

Compul'sory Education. See Education, 
Compulsory. 

Com'stock Lode, a large and extremely rich 
vein of ore containing gold and silver, in the 
western part Of Nevada, on the eastern slope of 
the Virginia Mountains. To it belong the Big 
Bonanza and other mines. During the first 
twenty years that it was worked, this vein 
yielded over $306,000,000. 

Comte, koNt, Isidore Auguste Marie 
Francois Xavier (1798-1857), the founder of 
the positive system of philosophy, or Positivism, 
was born at Montpellier, France. When six¬ 
teen, he entered the polytechnical school at 
Paris, from which he was expelled two years 
later. After this he became interested in the 
socialistic teachings of Saint Simon, from which 
the doctrines of his own system originated. In 
1826 he undertook a series of lectures, but was 
unable to complete the work, because of tempo¬ 
rary mental derangement. After recovery he 
began systematic work upon the exposition of 
his doctrines, which he gave in his Course of 
Positive Philosophy, a work consisting of six 
volumes and requiring twelve years for its 
preparation. He was for a few years professor 
of mathematics in the polytechnic school, but 
was dismissed, and during the remainder of his 


Concepcion 

life he was supported chiefly by his friends 
The fundamental principle of Comte’s philosophy 
is known as “the law of three stages.” Accord¬ 
ing to this law, intelligence, whether of the 
individual or of society, has passed through 
three stages or periods of development: the 
theological stage, in which supernatural beings 
are believed to produce all phenomena; the 
‘metaphysical stage, in which abstractions, such 
as mental or physical force, are regarded as the 
causes of all activity, and finally, the positive 
stage, in which the search for ultimate causes 
is given up, and effort is confined to discovering 
the actual relations or associations that obser¬ 
vation shows to exist among phenomena. 

These relations or laws have no other reality 
than that of existing together in time and that of 
sequence. They vary in the scope of their 
application; that is, some are more general than 
others. On this difference in the application of 
laws, Comte classified the sciences according to 
their degrees of complexity. In this classification 
mathematics constitutes the foundation, because 
the laws of this science are necessary in all 
departments of knowledge. Following this, in 
their order, are astronomy, physics, chemistry 
and biology, which includes psychology as an 
essential physiological science, and finally, 
sociology. Each of these sciences incorporates 
the laws of that which precedes it and adds 
laws peculiar to itself. Philosophy is nothing 
but the correlation of the sciences, by the dis¬ 
covery of their common laws and by the estab¬ 
lishment of their separate provinces. There is 
no higher knowledge than that gained by sense 
perception, and metaphysical theories are but the 
inventions of superstition. 

In his attempt to create a science of sociology 
Comte established the fact that the law of social 
development is not merely to be reasoned from 
the laws of human nature, but is quite distinct 
from them. He maintained that the character¬ 
istics of society are determined more and more, as 
time advances, by the social spirit of the past, 
and less by the natural qualities of human nature; 
hence a careful study of all phases of historical 
development is important in order to discover 
the dominant tendency or law that has deter¬ 
mined social progress. 

Concepcion, kon sep'se own', a seaport of 
Chile, South America, capital of a province of 
the same name, situated 6 mi. from the mouth 
of the Biobio River and 270 mi. s. s. w. of 
Santiago. The chief buildings are a cathedral, 
an agricultural school, a normal school and a 


Concept 

town hall. The port at Talcahuano, about 8 
miles distant, is one of the largest in Chile and 
has an active trade. Concepcion was founded 
in 1550 by Valdivia and has been several times 
nearly destroyed by earthquakes. Population 
in 1907, 55,330. 

Concept, Jeon'sept, in psychology, the name 
generally given to the idea of a class, or general, 
notion. The first step in the formation of con¬ 
cepts is the acquisition of individual ideas 
through the senses (See Perception). As these 
ideas are acquired, they are compared and their 
points of similarity and dissimilarity are noted. 
The qualities given to the ideas are separated 
from the others (See Abstraction) and grouped 
together, forming an idea which applies to all 
the objects of the class. This idea is a-concept. 
One’s idea of orange, apple, horse, applies to ajl 
oranges, all apples or all horses, as far as his 
knowledge of each of these classes of objects 
extends, and it is not an idea of any particular 
orange, apple or horse. A concept is an abstract 
idea consisting of a group of qualities common 
to all objects to which it can be applied. In this 
respect it is different from an image. An image 
is a mental picture of an individual object, which 
includes all of that object’s peculiarities. One’s 
concept of man, if accurate, will apply to all 
men; but the mental image of one’s father 
includes all of those peculiarities pertaining to 
the father’s personal appearance, such as height, 
weight, facial expression, color of hair and eyes. 

The chief characteristics of a concept are its 
content and extent. By content is meant the 
qualities which the concept contains; by extent, 
the number of objects to which it applies. These 
characteristics exist in inverse ratio, as the 
larger the content, the smaller the extent. Since 
one’s concept is built upon his observation, the 
concept formed by limited observation will have 
a larger content and a narrower extent than one 
formed upon broad observation. For instance, 
a child’s concept of cat will be limited to the cats 
which he has seen, and may possibly be confined 
to those of his own home. If his observation 
has not extended beyond cats of one color, his 
concept will include this color. When he sees 
cats of another color, he will be obliged to 
modify his concept by rejecting the quality of 
color. He will then extend it to apply to the 
new specimens that he has observed. As he 
goes on in extending his observations, he will 
continue to reduce the number of qualities in his 
concept by rejecting those which do not apply to 
the new specimen, until finally it includes only 


Concertina 

those qualities that will apply to all cats. It 
now has its narrowest or smallest content and 
its widest extent. 

The formation of concepts is the first step in 
thinking (See Thought). It begins early in 
life and is at first spontaneous. The earliest 
concepts are very crude, and they need to be per¬ 
fected through voluntary observation. Parents 
and teachers can materially assist children in the 
formation of concepts, by observing the follow¬ 
ing principles: 

(1) There is a vital connection between 
sensation, perception and the formation of con¬ 
cepts. The child’s success in forming class 
ideas depends upon the care with which he has 
acquired individual ideas. 

(2) The child should be trained to form clear 
and correct concepts early in life, since the time 
soon comes when ideas of individual objects 
obtained through perception will not be sufficient 
for his needs, and he will have to draw upon the 
ideas earlier acquired as a basis of comparison, 
in order that he may correctly classify his 
knowledge. If his early concepts are correct, 
his classification will be much more accurate 
than if these concepts are false. 

(3) Concrete illustrations are necessary to 
enable children to form correct concepts, and 
these should be chosen with care. They should 
bring before the child the idea which he should 
obtain and should be clear and pointed. 

(4) One should always be able to change his 
concepts into images of the individuals for which 
the concept stands. In other words, one should 
be able to apply his general notions to individual 
cases. If he is not able to do this, his concepts 
are not clear. Much of the difficulty which 
pupils experience in arithmetic, grammar and 
other branches arises from their -inability to 
image their concepts, or, in other words, to apply 
the principles and rules which they have learned 
to the solution of problems presented to them. 
This difficulty can usually be avoided if concepts 
are formed through observation. See Induct¬ 
ive Method; Methods of Teaching, sub¬ 
head Formal Steps in Learning; Judgment; 
Thought. 

Concertina, Jeon'sur te'nah, a musical ins t.m- 
ment, composed of a bellows, with two faces or 
ends, generally polygonal in shape, on which are 
placed the various stops, or studs, by the action 
of which, manipulated by the performer’s 
fingers, air is admitted to metallic reeds, which 
produce the sounds. It is an improved form of 
the accordion. 


Conch 


Concrete 


Conch, honk, a name given to many species 
of large mollusks, which have a heavy spiral 
shell that may be used as a trumpet if the end 
be broken off. In the 
East Indies the shell of 
one species is perforated 
at the tip, fitted with a 
mouthpiece and used as 
a musical instrument. In 
the United States there 
are two different kinds of 
shells called eonchs; from 
one of these the indians 
made their white wam¬ 
pum. The egg cases of 
these mollusks are disc-shaped and look like 
leathery circles strung upon a cord. 

Conchology, kon kol'o jy. See Shells. 

Conciergerie, koN syair'zhWe', La, the 
famous prison in Paris, where political prisoners 
were kept during the French Revolution. Male- 
sherbes, Madame Roland, Danton, Desmoulins, 
Robespierre and Marie Antoinette were con¬ 
fined there. The prison is still used as a place 
for temporary detention. 

Con' clave, the assembly of the cardinals for 
the election of a pope. A two-thirds vote is 
necessary for an election. The cardinals meet 
in a large hall, which has been made into small 
rooms, three of which are given to one of princely 
rank and two to an ordinary cardinal. After 
the first day the cardinals are locked in and are 
allowed no communication with the outer world 
till after the election takes place. Even the food, 
passed through a window, is thoroughly examined 
that no letters or notes may reach the members 
of the Sacred College. 

Con'cord, Mass., a town of Middlesex co., 
near the Concord River, 18 mi. w. n. w. of 
Boston. Here, at Concord Bridge, April 19, 
1775, the first shots of the American Revolution 
were fired, and a monument on the bank of the 
river marks where two English soldiers fell. It 
is famous as the home of Ralph Waldo Emerson, 
Hawthorne, Thoreau and Alcott. Population 
in 1910, 6421. 

Concord, N. C., the county-seat of Cabarrus 
co., 21 mi. n. e. of Charlotte, on the Southern 
railroad. It was incorporated in 1793 and is a 
very old city; but new industries have been 
introduced in recent years, and the place has 
experienced a rapid growth. There are found¬ 
ries, machine shops, rolling mills and manu¬ 
factures of cotton goods and other articles. 
Population in 1910, 8715. 


Concord, N. H., the capital of the state and 
the county-seat of Merrimac co., 75 mi. n. w. 
of Boston, on the Merrimac River and on the 
Boston & Maine Railroad. The noteworthy 
buildings include the statehouse, latelyremodeled, 
the federal building, the courthouse, the state 
insane asylum and the State Library. Saint 
Paul’s school for boys is located here. The 
quarrying of granite in the vicinity is the lead¬ 
ing industry. The manufactures include car¬ 
riages, shoes, leather, cotton and woolen goods, 
silverware and pianos. Concord was founded in 
1725 as Pennacook, and it was incorporated as 
Rumford eight years later, but was renamed 
Concord in 1765 and incorporated as a city in 
1853. The town suffered greatly from an 
Indian massacre in 1746. Population in 1910, 
21,497. 

Concord, Battle of. See Lexington, 
Battle of. 

Concor'dance, an index in which all the 
important words of any work are arranged 
alphabetically, with references 1 to show where 
each word occurs. This sort of concordance is 
called a verbal concordance, while a similar 
work in which subjects are indexed is known 
as a real concordance. By far the greatest 
number of concordances treat of the Bible, and 
the first of these was made by Anthony of Padua, 
early in the thirteenth century. The best con¬ 
cordances of the English Bible are Cruden’s, 
Robert Young’s and James Strong’s. Con¬ 
cordances have been made for Shakespeare, 
Tennyson, Milton, Pope, Dickens and others. 

Concrete, kon'kreet, a composition used in 
building, consisting of hydraulic, or other, mor¬ 
tar, mixed with gravel or stone chippings about 
the size of a nut. Ordinary builders’ concrete 
is made of one part of cement, three parts of sand 
and six parts of crushed stone. Concrete seems 
to have been used by the Romans, and even by 
the ancient Babylonians and Egyptians. Ce¬ 
ment is used extensively in building under water; 
for example, to form the bottom of a canal or 
sluice, or the foundation of any structures raised 
in the sea; and it is also frequently used to make 
a bed for asphalt pavements, or to form founda¬ 
tions for buildings of any kind. It is becoming 
increasingly common as a material with which 
the walls of houses are built, the concrete being 
firmly rammed into moulds of the requisite shape, 
and then allowed to set. Concrete, reinforced by 
steel rods or bars, which are put in place be¬ 
fore the concrete is molded, is now extensively 
used for factories and industrial plants of all 



Conde 

kinds; it is cheaper than ordinary steel construc¬ 
tion and fully as durable. 

Conde, koN da', Louis de Bourbon, Prince 
of (called the Great Conde) (1621-1686), a 
famous French general. His first noteworthy 
exploit, the defeat of the Spanish at Rocroi, in 
1643, was followed by his defeat of Mercy at 
Nordlingen and by his capture of Dunkirk, in 
the year in which he inherited his father’s title. 
During the troubles of the Fronde he at first 
took the side of the court; but believing himself 
to be Jl-treated by Mazarin, he put himself at 
the head of the opposite factions and was impris¬ 
oned for a year by Mazarin. On his release 
he at once recommenced his resistance to the 
court, entered upon negotiations with Spain and, 
his attack on Paris being indecisive, retired to 
the Netherlands, where he was appointed com¬ 
mander in chief of the Spanish armies. In this 
capacity he unsuccessfully besieged Arras, but 
he was more fortunate at Valenciennes and at 
Cambrai. He was defeated before Dunkirk by 
Turenne, but was restored to his rank in France 
after the peace of 1659. In 1668 he accom¬ 



plished the reduction of Franche Comt£ in three 
weeks. His successes over Montecuculi in Alsace 
closed his military career. 

Condensed Milk. See Milk, Condensed. 

Con'dor, the largest of the birds of prey. Its 
length sometimes exceeds 50 inches and its 
expanse of wing 10 feet. The home of the 


Confederate States of America 

condor is in the South American Andes, where 
it lives in small flocks, laying its eggs on the bare 
mountain rocks. The condors live upon dead 
animals and decaying flesh, but under pressure 
of hunger they sometimes attack live goats, 
sheep, deer and even bullocks. In color the 
condor is black, with whitish wings and a white 
downy ruff around the neck. Above its ruff 
the neck is bare and the skin is folded in great 
wrinkles. The male has a comb and wattles of 
red skin. 

Conduc'tor, Electrical. See Electricity, 
subhead How Electricity Travels. 

Cone, a geometric solid, generated by a right- 
angled triangle, revolved about one of the sides 
that contain the right angle. Its volume is equal 
to the area of it base multiplied by one-third of 
its altitude (that is, the perpendicular distance 
between its apex and its base). The area of its 
surface, excluding the base, is equal to the cir¬ 
cumference of its base multiplied by one-half its 
slant height. See Conic Sections. 

Co'ney Island, N. Y., in Kings co., a popular 
resort, situated at the southwestern end of Long 
Island. It is famous historically as the place 
of Henry Hudson’s landing in 1609. All parts 
of the island are reached by railroad lines from 
New York City, Jersey City and Brooklyn. It 
was annexed to Brooklyn in 1894. During the 
summer months it is crowded with pleasure 
seekers from many parts of the country. 

Confectionery, kon fek'shun er'y. See Can¬ 
dy Making. 

Confed'erate States of Amer'ica, the 

federation tormed in 1861 by the eleven states 
which seceded from the Union. The conven¬ 
tion of South Carolina passed an ordinance of 
secession, Dec. 20, 1860, and expressed the hope 
that the other states contemplating secession 
would join in a federation. Three weeks later 
the convention of Mississippi indorsed this pro¬ 
posal, as did also the convention of Florida, 
January 10. On January 11, the convention of 
Alabama recommended that the seceding states 
send delegates to a congress called to meet at 
Montgomery, Ala., February 4, 1861, to form a 
federation. South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, 
Alabama, Georgia and Louisiana were repre¬ 
sented in this convention and organized as a 
Provisional Congress of the Confederacy. On 
February 8, a temporary constitution was 
adopted, to be in force for one year from the 
inauguration of the president or until a perma¬ 
nent constitution should be adopted. Jefferson 
Davis of Mississippi was chosen temporary 


Confederate States of America 

president and Alexander H. Stephens of Georgia, 
temporary vice-president. The congress enacted 
that all laws of the United States in force in the 
Confederate States on Nov. 1, 1860, and not 
inconsistent with the constitution of the Confed¬ 
eracy, be continued in force until repealed or 
altered by the Confederate congress. The 
more important congressional committees—on 
war, finance and foreign relations—were ap¬ 
pointed at once. During the year 1861 Texas, 
Arkansas, Virginia, North Carolina and Ten¬ 
nessee passed ordinances of secession and joined 
the Confederacy. On March 11 a permanent 
constitution was adopted by* the congress and 


submitted to the various states for ratification. 
This constitution was in general similar to that 
of the United States, but differed from it in some 
important respects: The term of the president 
was fixed at six years, and he was ineligible for 
reelection; slavery was sanctioned, and slave¬ 
holders were given the privilege of taking their 
slaves into any state or territory; cabinet officers 
were given seats in congress, according to the 
system prevailing in Great Britain; the states 
expressly retained their sovereignty. Meantime, 
the executive departments had been organized, 
and President Davis had chosen his cabinet, 
which represented every state in the Confed- 


Confederate States of America 

eracy, among the members being men of excep¬ 
tional ability, as Robert Toombs and Judah P. 
Benjamin. 

The first important act of the congress was to 
make provision for a permanent army. It then 
devoted itself to seeking foreign recognition and 
assistance and to building up a financial system 
for the support of the government. From the 
first, however, it also sought peace upon the 
basis of the separation of the North and South, 
but all efforts in this direction were vain. On 
Nov. 6, 1861, Davis was chosen permanent 
president and Stephens permanent vice-president 
of the Confederacy by a unanimous vote. Dur¬ 


ing the next few months the extraordinary 
demands made upon the government by the 
war and the necessity of using all the capable 
soldiers in military capacities led to a decline 
in the strength of congress as a body, and the 
consequent centralization of power in the hands 
of the executive, and especially of President 
Davis. His services, therefore, as head of both 
the civil and military administrations of the 
Confederacy, involved tremendous responsi¬ 
bilities, and he was not free from criticism, 
especially directed at the gradually growing 
supremacy of the military over the civil law* 
and at the extraordinary orders and decrees 















Confederate Veterans 


Confucius 


which he found necessary in order to secure 
support for the government. The chief diffi¬ 
culties of the Confederacy were due to the lack 
of funds; for the import duties, which under 
ordinary conditions would have constituted the 
chief source of revenue, were almost entirely 
excluded by the blockade, and there was also a 
strong sentiment against the imposition of inter¬ 
nal taxes. The government was finally com¬ 
pelled to issue vast sums in paper money, or 
government notes, and to exchange government 
bonds for provisions and ammunition. The 
confusion was increased by the issuance by states, 
cities, banks, corporations and even private 
citizens, of notes for circulation as money. The 
decline in value of this money naturally led to 
an increase in the price of all commodities, and 
during the war the price of flour was at times 
$400 per barrel, shoes sold at $150 a pair, the 
use of tea and coffee was practically abandoned, 
ice was used only by the most wealthy citizens, 
and such common necessities as coal, wood, 
medicines and salt were classed as luxuries. 

The permanent senate and house held two 
sessions, the final adjournment being taken 
March 18, 1865, about a month before the close 
of the struggle. 

Confederate Vet'erans, United, a patri¬ 
otic society composed of veterans of the Confed¬ 
erate army, organized at New Orleans, La., in 
1889, for the purpose of strengthening the 
friendships formed during the war, preserving 
the memory of dead comrades and aiding veter¬ 
ans and their widows and orphans. The organi¬ 
zation is supported by 1600 local camps, divided 
into three departments, and it includes about 
75,000 members. It holds annual reunions. 

Confederate Veterans, United Sons of, 
a patriotic society composed of the male de¬ 
scendants of Confederate veterans, organized 
at Richmond, Va., in 1896, for the purpose of 
gathering and preserving historic relics and 
data, from which to write a history of the Civil 
War from the Southern standpoint. The organi¬ 
zation is divided into three departments and 
many local camps, and has a membership of 
about 10,000. In 1902 it purchased Beauvoir, 
the home of Jefferson Davis, which will be used 
hereafter as a home for Confederate veterans. 

Confed eration, Articles of, the written 
instrument of government adopted by the thir¬ 
teen states in America in 1781. They were 
the work of a committee appointed upon the 
same day as was the committee to draw up the 
Declaration of Independence. The Articles were 
45 


reported to Congress July 12, 1776, but a pro¬ 
longed debate ensued and they were not adopted 
until November, 1777. They were then sent to 
the state legislatures, whose unanimous consent 
was necessary to their final adoption. By May, 
1779, all the states except Maryland had ratified 
the Articles, but Maryland demanded that the 
states should first cede their territorial claims in 
the Northwest Territory to the Federal govern¬ 
ment. This being done, Maryland signed the 
articles, March 1, 1781. The Articles provided 
for a “firm league of friendship,” under the 
title United States of America, and declared that 
each state should retain its sovereignty and all 
the rights and powers which were not expressly 
delegated to the United States. The govern¬ 
ment was to be in the hands of Congress, com¬ 
posed of not less than two nor more than seven 
delegates from a state, each state having, how¬ 
ever, but one vote. Congress could decide 
disputes between the states. It had no power 
to regulate commerce or to raise revenue; it 
could declare war, but could not raise troops; 
it could make appropriations, but could not 
collect taxes; it could pass laws, but could not 
compel their observance; it could borrow money, 
but could not guarantee its repayment. Under 
this weak and decentralized government, con¬ 
ditions in the colonies became grave, and the 
conviction became widespread that a new gov¬ 
ernment must be formed, possessing more powers 
than did the one created by the Articles. The 
result was the constitutional convention and the 
Federal Constitution adopted in 1787. 

Confucius, Icon Ju'she us, or Kongfutse 
(that is, the teacher, Kong) (550-478 B. c.), 
the famous Chinese sage, was born in the 
province of Shantung, then belonging in part 
to the small vassal kingdom of Lu. His father, 
who was of royal descent, died three years later, 
and the boy was reared in comparative poverty 
by his mother. At the age of seventeen he was 
made inspector of corn markets; at nineteen he 
married, and after about four years, in which 
a son and two' daughters were born him, he 
commenced his career as a teacher. In 517 b. c. 
he was induced by two members of one of the 
principal houses in Lu, who had joined his band 
of disciples, to visit the capital with them, 
where he had interviews with Lao-tze, the 
founder of Taoism. Though temporarily driven 
from Lu to Tsi by a revolution, he soon returned 
thither with an increased following, and at the 
age of fifty-two he was made chief magistrate 
of the city of Chung-too. So striking a refor- 


Confucius 


Congregationalists 


mation was effected by him that he was chosen 
minister of crime, and with the aid of two power¬ 
ful disciples, he elevated the state of Lu to a lead¬ 
ing position in the kingdom. Its marquis, how¬ 
ever, soon after gave himself up to debauchery, 
and Confucius became a wanderer in many 
states for thirteen years. In 483 he returned to 
Lu, but he would not take office. The deaths of 
his favorite disciples did much to hasten his own 
end. Confucius left no work detailing his moral 
and social system, but the five canonical books 
of Confucianism are the Yih-king, the Shu-king, 
the Shi-king, the Le-king and the Chun-tsien, 
with which are grouped the “ Four Books,” by 



CONFUCIUS 

disciples of Confucius, the Ta-heo, or Great 
Study, the Chung-Yung, or Invariable Mean, 
the Tun-yu, or Philosophical Dialogues, and the 
Hi-tse, written by Meng-tse. By a strange 
fate, Confucius, who avoided the subject of im¬ 
mortality, was deified after his death. The 
teaching of Confucius has had, and still has, an 
immense influence in China, though he can 
hardly be said to have founded either a religion 
or a philosophy. All his teaching was devoted 
to practical morality and to the duties of man 
in this world in relation to his fellow men; in it 
was summed up the wisdom acquired by his 
own insight and experience and that derived 
from the teaching of the sages of antiquity. 
Every market town, district, sub-prefecture and 
prefecture in China must, by law, contain a 
temple to Confucius. The emperor goes twice 


a year on fixed days to the Imperial College at 
Peking, where he does homage to the great sage. 
Confucius has many descendants. 

Con'ger, Edwin Hurd (1843-1907), an 
American diplomat, born in Knox co., Ill. 
He was educated at Lombard University, Gales¬ 
burg, Ill., enlisted in an Illinois regiment in 
1862 and served during the war. being promoted 
to captain and brevetted major for gallant con¬ 
duct. Mr. Conger practiced law in Galesburg, 
but removed to Dexter, Iowa, in 1868, and soon 
became prominent in the Republican party. 
He was elected state treasurer in 1880; repre¬ 
sented his district in Congress, and was appointed 
United States minister to Brazil by President 
Harrison. He was transferred by President 
McKinley to Peking, where, through his dignified 
administration during the Boxer uprising, he 
won a wide reputation as a diplomat. He was 
appointed ambassador to Mexico in 1905, but 
soon resigned. 

Conger Eel, a genus of marine eels, charac¬ 
terized by a long dorsal fin, beginning near the 
nape of the neck, immediately above the base 
of the pectoral fins. It is pale brown above 
and grayish-white below. It grows to a length 
of eight feet and to a weight of thirty pounds. 
In some places along rocky European coasts it 
is quite common. 

Conglomerate, a term applied by geologists 
to rocks consisting mostly of water-worn peb¬ 
bles, or angular fragments cemented together 
by silica, lime, iron or some other substance, 
which usually forms the main body of the rock. 
When the rock contains a large number of peb¬ 
bles, it is called pudding stone, because of its 
resemblance to a plum pudding. When angular 
fragments are cemented together, they form 
breccia. See Breccia. 

Con'go Free State. See Kongo Free 
State. 

Congo River. See Kongo River. 

Congrega'tionalists, The, a religious 
denomination, receiving its name from the 
belief of the members that every congregation 
of Christians should be an independent body. 
In England the Congregationalists are known 
as Independents, the separate churches being 
formed so that each congregation may have the 
form of worship which its members desire. 
Every Congregational church has the right to 
elect or depose its officers; to discipline its 
members, and to determine its own way of 
worship. There is no appeal to a "higher church 
or to any high church official or conference. 




Congress 


Coniferae 


but the advice of neighboring churches is often 
sought. The officers of the church are the 
pastor, deacons and clerk, a treasurer and a 
Sunday school superintendent. The expenses 
of Congregational churches, including the salary 
of the pastor, are met by voluntary offerings. 
The local churches are organized into state 
associations, and a national council meets every 
three years and is composed of members elected 
by the state organizations. 

In the United States the Congregational 
Church is relatively strongest in the New Eng¬ 
land and Eastern states. It has always stood 
for higher eduoation, and among the institutions 
founded by it, or its members are Yale, Dart¬ 
mouth and Amherst Colleges and Andover 
Theological Seminary, in the East; and Oberlin 
College and Chicago Theological Seminary in 
the central part of the country. The denomi¬ 
nation in the United States has about 735,000 
communicants, and about 660,000 persons en¬ 
rolled in its Sunday schools. 

Congress, an assembly of the delegated 
representatives of sovereign states, for the purpose 
of considering matters of international interest. 
The term is used in America in a slightly differ¬ 
ent sense, but it has a similar origin, the first 
congress being that of the delegates from various 
British colonies, who met Oct. 7, 1765. The 
name has been applied to many important 
meetings, at which extensive schemes of future 
policy were determined by the great powers of 
the world. To this class belong the famous 
Congress of Vienna in 1815; that of Carlsbad in 
1819, for regulating the affairs of Germany; 
that of Paris at the end of the Crimean War of 
1854-1856; that at Berlin after the Russo- 
Turkish War of 1877-1878, and that which 
arranged for the partitioning of Africa in 1885. 
The word congress is often used interchangeably 
with conference. See Congress op the United 
States. 

Congressional, kon gresh' un al, Library, 

See Library op Congress. 

Congressional Record, the daily printed 
report of the proceedings of the Congress of the 
United States. From 1789 to 1824 this was 
known as the Annals of Congress; from 1825 to 
1837, as the Register of Debates; from 1837 to 
1874 as the Congressional Globe. It does not 
contain an accurate record of the actual pro¬ 
ceedings of Congress, since members are often 
allowed the right to insert speeches which they 
have never delivered, or to revise remarks which 
they have made before the House. 


Congress of the United States, the national 
legislature of the United States. It is composed 
of two houses, the upper house, known as the 
Senate, containing two representatives from 
each state of the Union, chosen by popular vote; 
the lower house, known as the House of Repre¬ 
sentatives, containing representatives of the 
whole people, apportioned according to the 
population of the states. See Legislature; 
United States, subhead Government; see, also, 
Vol. V. Civil Government. 

Con'greve, William (1670-1729), an English 
dramatist. His plays belong to the artificial 
school of comedy, which aimed rather at the 
production of a sustained flow of wit than at the 
precise delineation of character. The immorality 
by which they are marred is perhaps the fault 
of the age rather than of Congreve. 

Con'ic Sections, three curves, the hyperbola, 
the parabola and the ellipse, so called because 
they are formed by the intersection of the sur¬ 
face of a cone with planes that cut the cone in 
various directions. If the cutting plane be 
parallel to the axis, the curve formed is the hyper¬ 
bola; if parallel to the slope of the cone, the 
curve is a parabola; if passing through both 
sides of the cone obliquely, the section is an 
ellipse. A section perpendicular to the axis of 
the cone forms a circle, which may also be con¬ 
sidered one of the conic sections. 

Coniferae, konif'eree, or Pine Family, alarge 
group of trees and shrubs which are found in the 
north and south temperate regions, with very 
few within the tropics. By the peculiar struc¬ 
ture of their flowers they are separated widely 
from most of the flowering plants, and with three 
other small families they are known as gym- 
nosperms. The trees have a somewhat uniform 
habit of growth. Usually the branches grow 
out horizontally and diminish in length toward 
the top, giving a characteristic cone-like appear¬ 
ance to the whole tree. The .leaves are slender 
and needle-like, or in the form of flat scales; 
and as on many species they persist through the 
winter, they have earned for the trees the name 
of evergreens. The name coniferae, or cone- 
bearing, is given these trees because of their 
peculiar fruit, which is cone-shaped and composed 
of heavy scales, under which are borne the seeds. 
In some species these are long in ripening, and 
the scales cling firmly together until the seeds are 
ready for distribution, at which time the scales 
open and the seeds are blown about by the wind. 
The stamens are borne in small and usually 
inconspicuous cones, which fall as soon as the 


Conjunction 


Connecticut 


pollen has been distributed by the wind. They 
are so removed from the fertile cones that the 
latter can be fertilized only by the wind, and in 
consequence the yellowish pollen is composed 
of countless minute grains which fly about as a 
yellow dust. Not all the coniferae, however, 
bear cones. Some, as the juniper, form berries. 
Some species are very widely scattered, while 
others are closely restricted to certain localities. 
See Cypress; Fir; Hemlock; Larch; Pine; 
Sequoia; Spruce; Yew. 

Conjunction, kon junk'shun, in astronomy, 
the position of two of the heavenly bodies, as 
two planets, or the sun and a planet, when they 
are in the same direction from the earth. Some¬ 
times one appears to cover the other, or the two 
appear to occupy the same spot in the heavens; 
and when this happens with the sun and the moon 
we call the phenomenon an eclipse. When a 
star and the moon are in conjunction it is called 
an occultation. When it is* simply said that a 
planet is in conjunction, conjunction with the 
sun is to be understood. The planets nearer to 
the sun than the earth are said to be in superior 
conjunction or inferior conjunction, according 
as the sun is between them and us, or they 
are between the sun and us. 

Conjunction, in grammar, the part of speech 
which connects words, sentences or phrases 
which have the same grammatical connection. 
They are of two kinds; coordinating con¬ 
junctions, which connect words, phrases or 
sentences of the same rank, as “The army 
rushed forward and fell upon the enemy”’; 
and subordinate conjunctions, which introduce 
dependent clauses, as “They could not advance 
because the bridges were destroyed.” Con¬ 
junctions which are used in pairs, as both — and, 
not only—but also, are called correlative con¬ 
junctions. 

Conjunctivitis, kon junk'ti vi'tis, or Oph¬ 
thalmia, of thal'mi a, an inflammation of the 
mucous membrane of the eye socket and the 
outer surface 4 of the eyeball. There are a num¬ 
ber of distinct varieties of the disease, occasioned 
by differing causes. These varieties vary from 
the slight inflammation caused by an acute 
attack of catarrh to a purulent form that is 
highly contagious and frequently destroys vision. 
Granular conjunctivitis, or, as it is usually 
known, granular lids, is a contagious trouble, 
which is readily communicated by towels or 
wash basins that are not carefully cleaned. 
This is a common disease in crowded prisons or 
even in schools that are carelessly supervised. 


In some parts of the world it is exceedingly 
common. In Egypt the greater part of the 
native population are suffering from it, and a 
large per cent of the adults have had their sight 
permanently injured by it. Ophthalmia need 
not be acquired by a person who is habitually 
cleanly and careful in the use of public towels 
or bathing places, and the disease is promptly 
curable if intelligent measures are taken. 

Conk'ling, Roscoe (1829-1888), an Ameri¬ 
can politician, born in Albany, N. Y. In 1850 
he was admitted to the bar and in the same year 
became district attorney for Oneida county. 
In 1858 he was elected mayor of Utica and 
within a few months was rewarded for long 
political activity by nomination and election to 
Congress. He served several terms, and in 
January, 1867, took his seat in the United States 
Senate, being reelected in 1873 and in 1879. 
He vigorously supported Grant in his campaign 
for the presidential nomination in 1880, and he 
was extremely hostile to President Garfield’s 
administration, claiming, with his colleague, 
Thomas C. Platt, the right to control federal 
appointments in his state. They finally resigned 
their seats in the Senate and appealed to the 
legislature of New York for a reelection as a 
vindication of their course, but they were unsuc¬ 
cessful. Conkling declined the nomination of 
justice of the United States Supreme Court and 
practiced law until his death. 

Conneaut, kon ne awt', Ohio, a village in 
Ashtabula co., 62 mi. n. e. of Cleveland, near 
the Pennsylvania state line, on Conneaut Creek 
and on the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern 
and several other railroads. The first white 
settlers of northern Ohio landed here in 1796, 
and it was incorporated as a village in 1832. 
There is a good harbor, and considerable ore, 
coal, sand and agricultural produce are exported. 
The place contains railroad shops, and canning 
and other factories. Population in 1910, 8319. 

Connecticut, kon net'i kut, the Nutmeg State, 
also, Land, of Steady Habits, one of the original 
thirteen states, is situated in the southern part of 
New England and is bounded on the n. by 
Massachusetts, on the e by Rhode Island, on 
the s. by Long Island and on the w. by New 
York. Its average length is 95 miles, and its 
average breadth, 55 miles. The total area is 
4965 square miles, making Connecticut the third 
smallest state. Population in 1910, 1,114,756. 

Surface. Connecticut occupies the southern 
slope of the hill region of New England, and its 
surface includes three great river valleys, which 


Connecticut 


Connecticut 


cross the state from north to south and are 
separated from one another by ranges of low 
hills. In the eastern part of the state is the 
valley of the Thames, which, with its two 
tributaries, drains this part of the state into 
Long Island Sound. The Connecticut valley 
occupies the central part of the state. The 
western part of the state is traversed by the 
Berkshire Hills, which are a continuation of the 
ranges crossing Massachusetts. This region has 
a diversified surface, the hills being interspersed 
with numerous valleys containing small streams. 
There are a number of low mountains in this 
region, the highest being Bear Mountain, which 
attains an altitude of 2354 feet. Other peaks 
worthy of mention are Gridley Mountain, Riga 
Mountain, Bradford Mountain, Dutton Moun¬ 
tain and Mount Ball. The southern portion of 
the state along the coast is quite low and level, 
but inland the surface is everywhere character¬ 
ized by low hills, all of which are more or less 
stony. Along the streams are narrow, level flood 
plains, usually called meadows. 

Climate. The climate is subject to sudden 
changes, the winters are quite severe and among 
the hills and mountains the snows are usually 
deep. The summers are hot. The rainfall is 
everywhere sufficient for agricultural purposes. 
The climate is considered healthful, and the 
pleasantest season is autumn. 

Mineral Resources. Hematite occurs in 
a number of places, and some of the iron mines 
have been worked since 1732. There are also 
deposits of lead, nickel, cobalt and other metals, 
but not in sufficient quantities to pay for work¬ 
ing. The brown sandstone, known as brown- 
stone, and valued so highly for the construction 
of residences, is quarried near Middletown. 
There are also quarries of marble, flagstone, 
feldspar and stone suitable for the manufacture 
of lime- and cement. The annual output of 
mineral products is about $1,500,000. 

Agriculture. Agriculture is not a leading 
industry, but the soil in general is fertile, and 
most of it is tilled. The chief crops are corn, 
rye, oats, potatoes and hay. The nearness to 
New York and other large cities affords the 
Connecticut farmer a good market for garden 
produce, and truck farming is quite extensive 
along the streams. Dairying is also an impor¬ 
tant industry. Connecticut raises large quanti¬ 
ties of tobacco. Much of this is grown in fields 
protected by a cover of thin muslin, which is 
stretched over frames that rise a few feet above 
the plants. 


Manufactures. Connecticut is one of the 
leading manufacturing states of the Union. 
According to government statistics it produces 
three-fourths of the ammunition, more than half 
of the brass products, more than sixty per cent 
of ihe clocks, nearly half of the hardware, over 
three-fourths of the plated and Britannia ware, 
and nearly sixty-five per cent of the needles and 
pins made in the United States. Besides these 
industries, others which have attained large 
proportions are the manufacture of rubber goods, 
textiles, including cottons, woolens and silk 
fabrics, and machinery. New London has an 
extensive shipbuilding plant, where some of the 
largest steamers afloat have been constructed. 
The development of Connecticut’s manufac¬ 
turing industries is due to her favorable location 
in reference to large cities, to the abundance of 
water power and to the ingenuity of her people. 
In proportion to population, more patents are 
owned and controlled by the citizens of Con¬ 
necticut than by those of any other state. 

Transportation. The Connecticut River 
is navigable for steamers to Hartford, and 
beyond for small boats, and the Thames is 
navigable as far as Norwich. The state con¬ 
tains over 1000 miles of railway, nearly all of 
which is owned or leased by the New York, 
Hartford & New Haven system. Electric rail¬ 
ways are found in all of the important towns, 
and numerous lines have been constructed 
connecting adjoining cities, so that the state is 
well provided with transportation facilities. 
The numerous inlets on the coast provide good 
harbors, and New London, New Haven and 
Stonington are important ports. The state 
carries on an extensive commerce, owing to its 
great variety of manufactures. The exports 
consist of agricultural and dairy products and 
manufactures, while the imports include food 
products and raw material for the factories. 

Education. Connecticut maintains a good 
system of public schools, supported in part by 
income from the state school fund and in part 
by local taxation. There are normal schools 
at Danbury, New Britain, New Haven and 
Willimantic. The state agricultural college 
is located at Mansfield, and among higher 
institutions of learning the most noted are Yale 
University at New Haven, Wesleyan University 
at Middletown, Trinity College at Hartford and 
Hartford Theological Seminary. 

The state maintains a hospital for the insane 
at Middletown and a school for the feeble¬ 
minded at Lakeville, also two institutions for 


Connecticut 


Connective Tissue 


the deaf and one for the blind. There are also 
numerous hospitals and sanitariums, and each 
county has a temporary home for the indigent. 
The state’s prison is at Wethersfield, and there 
is an industrial school for girls at Middletown 
and one for boys at Meriden. All of these 
institutions are under the supervision of a state 
board of charities. 

Cities. The important cities are Hartford, 
the capital, New Haven, Bridgeport, Waterbury, 
New London and Danbury, each of which is 
described under its appropriate title. 

History. The territory of Connecticut was 
granted to the Plymouth Company in 1606 and 
was explored by the Dutch in 1614. In 1623 
they established a trading post at Hartford. 
Meantime, the English had become interested 
in the region, and in 1631 the land from Narra- 
gansett Bay to the Pacific was granted to Lord 
Say and Sele, who soon afterward founded 
Saybrook. Early in 1636 Thomas Hooker led 
his congregation westward from the coast and 
settled at Windsor, near Hartford. Others 
followed and established English towns in the 
neighborhood. English Puritans founded a 
settlement at New Haven in 1638, which was to 
be governed largely by the Scriptures. Both 
the Connecticut and New Haven settlements 
expanded, and the former became known as one 
of the most prosperous and liberal of the New 
England colonies. Connecticut absorbed New 
Haven in 1662. In the struggle against the crown 
to obtain the charters, Connecticut took a 
prominent part, and when Governor Andros 
appeared in 1687 to demand the charter, it was 
hidden away until 1693. In the French and 
Indian Wars, Connecticut took an active part, 
and, also, in the pre-Revolutionary discussion. 
The state furnished the Continental army about 
30,000 men, was one of the first to form an 
independent government (1776) and the war 
governor, Jonathan Trumbull, was one of the 
closest friends and advisers of Washington. 
Connecticut suffered through raids against its 
defenseless towns, the last one being directed 
by the traitor Benedict Arnold, in September, 
1781. Its representatives, Sherman, Johnson 
and Ellsworth, were prominent in the con¬ 
stitutional convention and proposed the present 
system of representation, by states in the Senate 
and according to population in the House of 
Representatives. Connecticut opposed the War 
of 1812 and was prominent in the Hartford 
Convention in 1814 (See Hartford Conven¬ 
tion). The sentiment of the state was against 


slavery and in favor of union, when the crisis 
in the slavery struggle came. The war gov¬ 
ernor, Buckingham, was a prominent figure in the 
period. Hartford and New Haven were long 
the joint capitals of Connecticut, but the former 
became the sole capital in 1873. The state has 
been doubtful politically for many years, but it 
is inclined to be Republican. Population io 
1910, 1,114,756. Consult Johnston’s Connecticut, 
in American Commonwealths Series. 

Connecticut River, the largest river in New 
England. It rises on the north border of New 
Hampshire, forms the boundary between Ver¬ 
mont and New Hampshire, passes through the 
west part of Massachusetts and the central part 
of Connecticut and falls into Long Island Sound. 
It is about 375 miles long and drains an area of 
over 1100 square miles. It is navigable for large 
steamers for about 50 miles from its mouth. 
The chief affluents that enter it are the Pas- 
sumpsic. White, Deerfield, Farmington and 
Chickopee rivers. 

Connective Tissue, one of the elementary 
structures of the body. It forms the bones, 
cartilages, ligaments and a framework for 
nervous, glandular and muscular tissue. Con¬ 
nective tissue includes the areolar, adipose, 
retiform, white fibrous, yellow elastic, cartilag¬ 
inous and osseous. The areolar tissue is widely 
distributed, as it is found in the true skin, in the 
outer sheaths of blood vessels and in the mucous 
membranes. It makes the sheaths for glands, 
nerves and muscles and connects the finest parts 
of the different organs. It is composed of bun¬ 
dles of fine fibers, interlacing in every direction. 
Adipose tissue, found in nearly all parts of the 
body, but most abundant under the skin and 
around the kidneys, is not found in the sub¬ 
stance of the lungs and some other organs. It 
exists in small lobules, or masses, surrounded by 
areolar tissue. No nerve fibers terminate in the 
fatty tissue, but it contains blood vessels. White 
fibrous tissue is arranged in wavy parallel bundles 
which give to the surface of tendons the appear¬ 
ance of watered silk. It constitutes the tendons 
of the muscles, the ligaments around joints, is 
found in the periosteum, pericardium, the 
largest tissues around the muscles and the 
sclerotic coat of the eye. Yellow elastic tissue, 
as its name implies, is very elastic and can often 
be extended sixty per cent of the length before 
breaking. It is found in the skin, the trachea, 
the true vocal cords and in veins. Cartilaginous 
tissue differs from other connective tissue in 
density and is composed of cells imbedded in a 


Connells ville 


Consonant 


substance called the matrix (See Cartilage). 
It contains no nerves. It furnishes attachment 
for muscles and ligaments, binds bones together 
and keeps the larynx and trachea in their tubular 
shape. Osseous tissue makes the solid part of 
the bone (See Bone). 

Con'nelbville, Pa., a borough in Fayette 
co., 60 mi. s. e. of Pittsburg, on the Youghio- 
gheny River and on the Baltimore & Ohio and 
the Pennsylvania railroads. It is the center of 
a coke region which produces more than one- 
half the total output of the United States and 
more than three-fourths of that of Pennsylvania. 
There are also machine shops, automobile works 
and one of the largest lock factories in the 
country. It was settled in 1770 and became a 
borough in 1806. Population in 1910, 12,845. 

Con'nersville, Ind., the county-seat of 
Fayette co., 60 mi. s. e. of Indianapolis, on the 
White Water River and on the Cincinnati, 
Hamilton & Dayton and other railroads. There 
are natural gas wells in the vicinity. The manu¬ 
factures of the city include carriages and carriage 
parts, furniture and flour. The town was incor¬ 
porated in 1813. Population in 1910, 7738. 

Con'nor, Ralph. See Gordon, Charles 
William. 

Con/sanguin'ity. See Relationship. 

Consciousness, kon'shus nes. See Psychol¬ 
ogy. 

Conscrip'tion. See Drafting. 

Conservation, the name given a movement 
originated in 1908 by President Roosevelt, and 
having for its purpose the preservation for the 
people of the natural resources still under con¬ 
trol of the National Government. In May the 
president called a conference of the governors 
of all the states and other representative men 
to meet in Washington to consider measures for 
preserving the public lands, streams, forests and 
minerals from monopolies and from unnecessary 
waste. Following this meeting, on June 8 the 
president appointed a national conservation com¬ 
mission, consisting of 48 members and repre¬ 
senting all states and territories. This commis¬ 
sion organized with Honorable Gifford Pinchot 
as chairman, and was divided into the following 
sections: water resources, land resources, forest 
resources and mineral resources. A commission 
was also appointed to devise plans for the 
cooperation of the various state governments 
with the National Government. 

The Natural Conservation Association was 
organized in 1909, and has permanent head¬ 
quarters in New York City. Its purpose is to 


unite in one great national organization all who 
take an active interest in the conservation move¬ 
ment. There are also associations which em¬ 
brace only sections of the country, as the southern 
and western associations. 

The second National Conservation Congress 
convened in Saint Paul, September 5, 1910, 
and recommended several important measures, 
among them being the continuance of the rec¬ 
lamation service, the maintenance of a federal 
commission empowered to deal with all uses of 
waters, the withdrawal of public lands pending 
classification, the separation of surface rights 
from mineral, forest and water rights and the 
leasing by the government of public lands con¬ 
taining mineral fuels, iron ores and phosphates. 

Conservative , in Great Britain and Canada, 
the political party which favors the mainte¬ 
nance of existing conditions rather than the 
introduction of radical reforms. The Con¬ 
servatives in England are the successors of the 
Tories. See Liberal; Tory. 

Conservatory, a school giving instruction 
in all branches of music. Conservatories were 
originally benevolent establishments attached 
to hospitals, charitable or religious institu¬ 
tions. In France the musical school established 
in connection with the Opera in 1795, under 
the name of Conservatoire de Musique, is now 
the most famous school of music in the world. 
The Conservatorium at Leipzig is perhaps the 
most influential in Germany. The most noted 
American conservatories are the National 
Conservatory in New York, the New England 
Conservatory in Boston and the Peabody 
Institute in Baltimore. 

Con'shohock'en, Pa., a borough in Mont¬ 
gomery co., 13 mi. n. w. of Philadelphia, on the 
Schuylkill River and on the Philadelphia & 
Reading and the Pennsylvania railroads. It 
has rolling mills, foundries, furnaces, cotton and 
woolen mills and pottery works. The place was 
founded in 1830 and was incorporated in 1852. 
Population in 1910, 7480. 

Consid'era'tion. See Contract. 

Con'sole, in architecture, a projecting orna¬ 
mental bracket, often in the form of a scroll or 
letter S. It is employed to support a cornice, 
bust, vase or the like, but it is an almost purely 
decorative element. See Bracket; Corbel. 

Con'sonant, a letter so named because it is 
usually sounded in connection with a vowel. 
Some consonants have hardly any sound, even 
when united with a vowel, serving then merely 
to determine the manner of beginning or ending 


Conspiracy 

the vowel sounds; as in ap, pa, at, ta. In 
uttering a consonant there is always greater or 
less obstruction of the breath by the organs of 
speech; in uttering a vowel the vocal passage 
is open, though modified in shape. 

Conspiracy, in law, a combination of two 
or more persons to accomplish an unlawful pur¬ 
pose or a lawful purpose by unlawful means. 
According to modem statutes in the United 
States, it is necessary, in order for the offense to 
be complete, that some open act to accomplish 
the object of the conspiracy be committed. In 
this case the offense amounts to a felony and is 
punishable accordingly. 

Constable, kun'sta b’l, Archibald (1774- 
1827), a Scottish bookseller and publisher. He 
was the publisher of the Edinburgh Review, the 
poems of Sir Walter Scott, the Waverly Novels 
and an addition to the Encyclopaedia Britannica. 

Constable, John (1776-1837), an English 
landscape painter, founder of the modern art of 
landscape painting. His paintings at first at¬ 
tracted no particular notice, and it was not until 
1823 that he found recognition. At that time 
some of his pictures were exhibited at the French 
Salon, and the king honored him. In 1829 he 
was admitted to the Royal Academy. His care¬ 
ful studies of landscape, in respect to tone, were 
of great influence in art. Some of his best pro¬ 
ductions are Cornfield, Valley Farm, Hay Wain, 
The Cottage and Glebe Farm. 

Con'stance, Lake, a lake in central Europe, 
at the north base of the Alps, bounded by 
Switzerland, Austria and the German states of 
Bavaria, Baden and Wurttemberg. It extends 
northwest and southeast, and at its northwest 
extremity it divides into two branches, the north 
being called Ueberlingen See, and the south, 
Untersee, or Zeller See. The Rhine enters it at 
the south and flows out at the northwest. Lake 
Constance is about 40 miles long and 9 miles wide. 

Constantine, Icon'stantine, Arch of, a tri¬ 
umphal arch in Rome, dedicated to Constan¬ 
tine, in 315, in memory of his victory over 
Maxentius. It is the best preserved specimen 
of ancient Roman monuments, having escaped 
the ravages of the Middle Ages, probably be¬ 
cause Constantine was a Christian emperor. 

Constantine, Caius Flavius Valerius 
Const antinus (274-337), Roman emperor 
(sumamed The Great), son of the emperor 
Constantine Chlorus. After the death of his 
father in 306, he was chosen emperor of the 
West by the soldiery and in 325 he became 
the sole head of the Roman Empire. His inter- 


Constantinople 

nal administration was marked by a wise spirit 
of reform. In 329 he removed his capital from 
Rome to Byzantium, which was called after him 
Constantinople and which soon rivaled Rome 
herself. In 337 he died near Nicomedia, leaving 
his empire to be divided among his three sons, 
Constantine, Constantius and Constans. 

Constantine I (1868- ), king of Greece, 

oldest son of George I. In 1889 he married the 
Princess Sophia, sister of Emperor William II. 
He entered the army and rose to important com¬ 
mands. In the war of the Balkan allies against 
Turkey, in 1912-1913, his personal bravery and 
the brilliant successes of his troops made him a 
public idol. Constantine succeeded to the throne 
on the assassination of his father, March 18,1913. 

Constan'tino'ple (city of Constantine), a 
celebrated city of Turkey in Europe, capital of 
the Turkish Empire, situated on a promontory 
jutting into the Sea of Marmora, having the 
Golden Horn, an inlet of the latter, on the n. 
and the Bosporus on the e. The city proper is 
thus surrounded by water on all sides except the 
west, where is an ancient and lofty double wall 
four miles in length, stretching across the prom¬ 
ontory. On the opposite side of the Golden 
Horn are Galata, Pera and other suburbs, while 
on the Asiatic side of the Bosporus entrance is 
Scutari. Occupying the extreme point of the 
promontory on which the city stands is the Serag¬ 
lio, or palace of the sultan, which, with its build¬ 
ings, pavilions, pardens and groves, includes a 
large space (See Seraglio). At the principal 
entrance is a large and lofty gate, called Bab 
Humayum, the high door or sublime porte, from 
which has been derived the well-known diplo¬ 
matic phrase. Of the 300 mosques, the most 
remarkable are the royal mosques, of which there 
are about fifteen, esteemed the finest in the 
world. First among these is the Mosque of 
Saint Sophia, the most ancient existing Christian 
church, converted into a mosque in 1453, on the 
capture of the city by the Turks (See Sophia, 
Church of Saint). Another magnificent 
mosque is that of Solyman. Besides these, are 
those of the Sultana Valide, built by the mother 
of Mohammed IV, and of Sultan Achmet, the 
most conspicuous object in the city, when 
viewed from the Sea of Marmora. The streets 
are mostly extremely narrow, dark, dirty and 
ill paved and exceedingly crooked and tortuous. 
The numerous covered and uncovered bazars 
are severally allotted to particular trades and 
merchandise. The few manufactures are chiefly 
confined to articles in morocco leather, saddlery, 


Constellations 


Constitution 


tobacco pipes, fez caps, arms, perfumes and gold 
and silver embroideries. The foreign commerce 
is considerable. The harbor, the Golden Horn, 
which more resembles a large river than a har¬ 
bor, is deep, well sheltered and capable of con¬ 
taining 1200 large ships, which may load and 
unload alongside the docks. It is about six miles 
long and a little more than half a mile broad at 
the widest part. Among the imports are corn, 
timber, cotton stuffs and other manufactured 
goods. The exports consist of silk, carpets, 
hides, wool, goats’ hair and valonia. The suburb 
Galata is the principal seat of foreign commerce. 
Here are situated the arsenals, the dockyard 
and the artillery barracks, extending along the 
Bosporus for nearly one and a half miles. Both 
Pera and Galata have now much of the appear¬ 
ance of modern European towns. Top Haneh 
is situated a little farther up the Bosporus than 
Galata, of which it forms a continuation. It has 
a government foundry and arsenal for cannon. 

Constantinople occupies the site of the ancient 
Byzantium, and it was named after Constantine 
the Great, who rebuilt it about 330 A. d. It was 
taken in 1204 by the Crusaders, who retained 
it till 1261; and it was captured by the Turks 
under Mohammed II in 1453—an event which 
completed the extinction of the Byzantine 
Empire. Population, including suburbs, esti¬ 
mated at 1,125,000. 

Constellations, the groups into which 
astronomers have divided the fixed stars, and 
which have received names for convenience 
in description and reference. It is plain that 
the union of several stars into a constellation, 
to which the name of some animal, person or 
inanimate object is given, must be entirely 
arbitrary, since the several points (the stars) 
may be united in a hundred different ways, just 
as imagination directs. The grouping adopted 
by the Egyptians was accordingly modified by 
the Greeks, though they retained the Ram, the 
Bull, the Dog and others. The Greek constel¬ 
lations were again modified by the Romans, and 
again by the Arabians. At various times, also, 
Christianity has endeavored to supplant the 
pagan system, the Venerable Bede having given 
the names of the twelve apostles to the signs of 
the zodiac, and Judas Schillerius having, in 1627, 
applied Scripture names to all the constellations. 
Weigelius, a professor of Jena, even grouped the 
stars upon a heraldic basis, introducting the 
arms of all the princes of Europe among the 
constellations. The old constellations have, 
however, been for the most part retained. The 


different stars of a constellation are marked by 
Greek letters, a denoting those of the first magni¬ 
tude, /? those of the second, and so on. Stars 
of the sixth magnitude are the smallest visible 
to the naked eye. Several stars in a constellation 
may have also particular names. See Zodiac; 
Bear, Great; Cassiopeia; Orion. 

Con'stitu'tion, a body of rules by which the 
activities of a state are governed. It may be 
either a written instrument of a certain date, or 
an aggregation of laws and usages which have 
grown up in the history of the state. Constitu¬ 
tions are of two kinds, considered as to their 
place in the political system of different states: 
(1) those which constitute the supreme funda¬ 
mental law, combining and limiting the legis¬ 
lative and executive departments of govern¬ 
ment; (2) those which are only ordinary law, 
leaving the legislative department supreme in 
the government. Of the former class the Con¬ 
stitution of the United States is the greatest 
example. Of the latter the constitution of Great 
Britain is typical. In the British system of 
government Parliament is supreme. Its decrees 
form a large part of the constitution of the 
Empire; but the constitution also contains or 
includes (1) important treaties, such as the 
acts of union with Scotland (1707) and Ireland 
(1800); (2) decrees of the executive which 

have been approved or given silent consent 
until they form a part of the administrative 
system of thfe country; (3) agreements, declara¬ 
tions and compacts made between the monarch 
and the people or Parliament, such as the Magna 
Charta (1215), the Declaration of Right (1689), 
the Act of Settlement (1701); (4) the great body 
of the common law; (5) many practical methods 
and means devised for carrying on government 
activities, but not having the direct legal sanction 
of any competent authority. The Constitution 
of the United States differs in one important 
respect from the constitutions of the states of 
the union. The former formed a new govern¬ 
ment of enumerated or delegated powers, the 
source of authority being the states. The state 
constitutions are but instruments placing restric¬ 
tions upon the powers of government already 
existing. See Constitution of the United 
States; United States, subhead Government; 
Supreme Court. 

Constitution, The, the most famous vessel 
in the history of the American navy. She was 
launched October 20,1797, but was not equipped 
until the following year. In the war with the 
Barbary powers she was Commander Preble’s 


Constitutional Law 


Consul 


flagship and took part in several bombardments 
of Tripoli. In July, 1812, under the command 
of Captain Isaac Hull, she engaged in a spirited 
race with a British squadron and escaped. On 
August 19 she fought her famous battle with 
the Guerriere, an English frigate under Captain 
Dacres, off Cape Race. She left the British ves¬ 
sel a total wreck after a contest of a half-hour. In 
1828 the Constitution was condemned as unsea- 
frorthy and was ordered to be destroyed, but 
popular sentiment, aroused partly by Holmes’s 
poem, Old Ironsides, compelled the abandon¬ 
ment of the project, and the Constitution was 
rebuilt in 1833. She was put out of commission 
in 1855, was again partially rebuilt in 1877 and 
Was stored at the Boston Navy Yard in 1897. 

Constitutional Law. See Law. 

Constitutional Union Party, a name 
assumed by a remnant of the Whig party in 
the South in the election of 1861. It held a 
convention at Baltimore, in which twenty states 
were represented by delegates, and nominated 
John Bell of Tennessee for president and 
Edward Everett of Massachusetts for vice- 
president. Its platform announced no definite 
principles regarding the slavery controversy, 
but claimed to recognize “no political principle 
but the Constitution of the country, the union 
of the states and the enforcement of laws.” 
It received no support in the North, but carried 
the border states of Kentucky, Tennessee and 
Virginia. See Political Parties in the 
United States. 

Constitution of the United States, the 

supreme fundamental law of the United States 
of America, by which all powers of the national 
government are established and limited. The 
preamble declares that “We, the people of 
the United States, in order to form a more 
perfect union, establish justice, insure do¬ 
mestic tranquility, provide for the common 
defence, promote the general welfare, and 
secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and 
our posterity, do ordain and establish this 
Constitution for the United States of America.” 

Article'I gives the form of the legislative 
body and defines its powers, qualifications for 
membership and method of elections. Ar¬ 
ticle II states the duties and powers of the 
President, the head of the executive depart¬ 
ment. Article III deals with the judiciary. 
These three articles provide the framework of 
the government machinery. Article IV guar¬ 
antees certain rights of the separate states, 
such as a republican form of government, the 


right of requisition on other states for crirr^ 
nals and the formation of new states. Article 
V determines the method of amending the 
Constitution, and requires the assent of three- 
fourths of the states. Article VI recognizes 
the validity of debts contracted under the 
Articles of Confederation, defines the Consti¬ 
tution as the supreme law of the land and pre¬ 
scribes an oath for the officers of the separate 
states and of the United States. Article VII 
states that the ratification of nine states was 
necessary for the establishment of the national 
government under this Constitution. 

The Constitution has received seventeen 
amendments. The first ten, which correspond 
to the English Bill of Rights, were adopted in 
1791, and establish freedom in religion, speech 
and press, provide trial by jury, and generally 
conserve the rights of individuals. The Eleventh 
Amendment adopted in 1798 says that the 
United States courts have no jurisdiction over 
suits brought against individual states. The 
Twelfth Amendment changed the method of 
electing the president and vice-president, and 
established the system now in use. The 
Thirteenth, Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amend¬ 
ments abolished slavery in the United States 
and declared all persons born or naturalized 
in the United States to be citizens, whose 
rights shall not be denied or abridged on ac¬ 
count of race, color, or previous condition of 
servitude. The Sixteenth Amendment pro¬ 
vides for an income tax, and the Seventeenth 
for the direct election of United States senators 
by the people; these two amendments were 
ratified in 1913. See Income Tax; United 
States, subheads Government, History. 

Con'sul, a name originally given to the two 
highest magistrates in the Republic of Rome. 
These officers were annually elected, at first 
only from the patricians, at a later period also 
from the plebeians. The consul was required 
to be at least forty-five years of age and must 
have passed through certain inferior offices. 
These laws, however, were disregarded at 
various times in Roman history. The insignia 
of the consul were a staff of ivory, with an eagle 
at its head, a toga bordered with purple, an 
ornamental chair and twelve lictors, who, with 
fasces and axes, preceded him. At first, the 
consuls could declare war, conclude peace, 
make alliances and even order a citizen to be 
put to death. Though their powers were 
gradually curtailed, they remained the heads of 
the Republic—all officers were under them, the 


Consumption 


Continental System 


tribunes of the people excepted; they convoked 
the Senate, proposed and executed the laws. 
In times of emergency they received unlimited 
power, and could even sentence to death with¬ 
out trial, levy troops and make war. Under 
the emperors the consular dignity rapidly 
declined and became merely honorary. 

In France the name of consul was temporarily 
adopted for the chief magistrates after the 
Revolution. The directory having been abol¬ 
ished by the Revolution of the Year VIII 
(Nov. 9, 1799), a provisional government, con¬ 
sisting of Bonaparte, Sieyes and Roger Ducos, 
established the fourth constitution, by which 
France was declared a republic under a govern¬ 
ment of three elective consuls (Bonaparte, 
Cambac^ris, Lebrun), who had almost uncon¬ 
trolled executive authority. August 2, 1802, 
Bonaparte was proclaimed first consul for life, 
and on April 10, 1804, he was proclaimed 
emperor. Thus even the nominal consulate 
ended. 

At present consuls are officials appointed by 
the government of one country to attend to its 
commercial interests in the cities of another 
country. The duties of a consul are to pro¬ 
mote trade; to give advice and assistance, when 
called upon, to his fellow subjects; to uphold 
their lawful interests and privileges; to transmit 
reports of trade, industry and navigation to his 
government; to authenticate certain documents. 
The consular service of the United States is 
divided into three ranks, consuls general , consuls 
and commercial agents , the first-named having 
charge of all consuls in a certain district, besides 
performing the regular duties of consuls, and 
the last-named, though having the same duties 
and powers as consuls, being not officially 
recognized by the governments to which they 
are sent. 

Consump'tion. See Tuberculosis. 

Consumption, in political economy, all use 
or expenditure of the products of industry or 
of things having an exchangeable value. It is 
usually characterized as productive or unpro¬ 
ductive, according as it does or does not conduce 
to further production. Thus, wealth in the 
form of machinery is consumed productively by 
wear and tear in the processes of production; 
but the wealth expended in the maintenance 
of an operatic artist is, from the ordinary point 
of view, unproductively consumed. In the case 
of the operatic artist, however, it is sometimes 
urged that the recreative benefit conferred upon 
the community tends indirectly to increase 


efficiency in production, and that from this point 
of view the artist consumes productively. So 
the expenditure of wealth in war, or in prepara¬ 
tions for war, usually classed as unproductive, 
may be really productive consumption, as tend¬ 
ing to the assurance of the producer in the 
stability of the commercial conditions. The 
distinction between productive and unproductive 
consumption, therefore, is not very definite and 
should be employed with caution. 

Consumption is the end of all production, 
and as the demand of the consumer determines 
the employment of the various coefficients of 
production—land, labor and capital—it is 
urged by many later economists that the scien¬ 
tific treatment of economics should proceed 
from consumption to production, instead of from 
production to consumption. Too much stress 
may be laid upon this method, but the consid¬ 
eration of economic problems from the stand¬ 
point of the consumer is of advantage, as giving 
the social need, rather than the producer’s profit, 
the prior claim upon the attention. 

Contempt', an offense against the dignity, 
order or authority of a court or legislative 
assembly, usually consisting in failure to obey 
its specific commands, or in insults. The power 
of vindicating their authority against contempt 
is incident to all superior courts. 

Con'tinen'tal Congress. See United 
States , subhead History. 

Continental System, a plan devised by 
Napoleon to exclude Great Britain from all 
intercourse with the continent of Europe. It 
began with the Berlin Decree of November 21, 
1806, by which the British Islands were declared 
to be in a state of blockade; all commerce, 
intercourse and correspondence were prohibited* 
every Englishman found in France, or in a 
country occupied by French troops, was declared 
a prisoner of war; all property belonging to the 
English was declared fair prize, and all trade 
in goods from Britain or British colonies was 
entirely prohibited. Great Britain replied by 
Orders in Council, prohibiting trade with French 
ports and declaring all harbors of France and 
her allies subjected to the same restrictions as 
if they were closely blockaded. Further decrees 
on the part of France, of a still more stringent 
kind, declared all vessels of whatever flag, 
which had been searched by a British vessel or 
which had paid duty to Britain, denationalized, 
and directed the burning of all captured British 
goods. These decrees caused great annoyance 
and gave rise to much smuggling, till annulled 


Continuation Schools 


Contract 


at the fall of Napoleon in 1814. The insistence 
of England on her Orders in Council was one 
cause of the War of 1812 with the United States 
(See War of 1812). 

Continuation Schools, a term used to de¬ 
scribe schools intended for people already em¬ 
ployed. Of such schools there are two more or 
less distinct classes—those which provide tech¬ 
nical education for people engaged in industrial 
work, and those which pay more attention to 
the so-called cultural branches. In Germany, 
where schools of this type have been common 
for half a century, those of the former class pre¬ 
dominate, as the compulsory laws guarantee a 
fair general education to everyone. In Eng¬ 
land schools of both classes are common, and 
attendance is very large, but results have not 
been entirely satisfactory. 

In the United States much attention has been 
paid to continuation education, and in many 
of the cities evening schools are numerous. For 
the most part these classes are cultural rather 
than technical; indeed, it has been found that 
when young people have been employed all day 
they are too tired to profit much from work 
that requires any high degree of alertness. If 
much is to be accomplished, then, in the way 
of higher technical education, the work will have 
to be done during the day. This in its turn 
makes necessary the cooperation of employers. 
Authorities on the subject feel that compulsory 
laws as to continuation education will have to 
be passed before the work can be systematized. 

Con'tract, in law, an agreement between two 
or more persons in which each party binds him¬ 
self to do or forbear some act, and each acquires 
a right to what the other promises. Contracts 
may be in expressed terms or may be implied 
from the acts of the parties; they may be verbal 
or written, and at common law both forms are 
binding, but usually under statute law the 
promise must be in writing. The law of con¬ 
tract occupies by far the larger place in the 
commercial law of all nations, and there is gen¬ 
eral harmony in the principles by which it is 
governed. 

Certain classes of persons are under peculiar 
disabilities as to the making of contracts: 
(1) In common law, contracts made by an 
infant (a person under twenty-one years) are 
voidable unless they are in some way for his 
°pecial benefit or, in particular, for the neces¬ 
saries of life. (2) A married woman, being in 
the eye of the law merged in her husband, can¬ 
not bind herself by contract. (3) Contracts 


made by a lunatic are voidable, except where 
his state of mind was not known to the other 
contracting party. The same principle is 
extended to drunkards. (4) A corporation can 
make binding contracts only for things or acts 
connected with the business for which it was 
especially created and chartered, excepting in 
cases of “convenience almost amounting to 
necessity” (See Corporation). (5) Contracts 
between citizens of two countries at war are 
illegal and void. 

The making of a contract comprises two acts: 
first, an offer; second, an acceptance. The 
offer may be either in oral or written words, 
or by action which a reasonable person would 
interpret as meaning a certain definite thing. 
The acceptance may be either by word or by 
action. It must be given directly to the offerer 
or addressed to him and delivered to the usual 
carriers of communication, such as the mail or 
telegraph. It constitutes an assent, and the 
bargain is closed, if it is delivered to the carrier 
within a time during which it is previously 
agreed the offer remains open. Every contract 
must be founded on a consideration, either of 
money or of some act whereby an advantage 
accrues to one or both parties. Thus, the 
promise of a gift for no compensation whatever 
cannot be enforced at law. However, the law 
considers such a consideration as love and 
affection between near relatives a good consid¬ 
eration in certain cases. Certain considerations 
are held to be insufficient or illegal; among 
others, the promise to do an unlawful or impos¬ 
sible act is not binding. A contract ob¬ 
tained by fraud, mistake or compulsion can¬ 
not be enforced. Contracts upon certain sub¬ 
jects, or between certain classes of parties, must 
be sealed, that is, signed and sealed by the con¬ 
tracting parties (See Seal). Certain others, 
known as parole contracts, must be reduced to 
writing in order to be enforced. Among these 
are the sale of real estate, contracts to be per¬ 
formed more than one year in the future, the 
guarantee to pay another man’s debt, agreements 
to confer property on marriage and, in some 
states, the sale of goods valued at more than a 
certain amount. 

Contracts are void when their subject matter 
is illegal. Such are contracts forbidden by 
statute (for instance, betting and gambling); 
those forbidden by common law (for instance, 
contracts to commit crime); contracts contrary 
to public policy (for instance, in restraint of 
trade; in restraint of marriage; those which 


Contralto 


Conwell 


pervert the acts of government, such as bribery; 
those which obstruct the course of justice, and 
those which are immoral). Certain other con¬ 
tracts are voidable, that is, can be set aside, 
though not necessarily illegal (for instance, those 
obtained by mistake, fraud, misrepresentation 
or compulsion). 

Contral'to. See Singing. 

Convention, National, the name given to 
the assembly which met in France immediately 
after the dissolution of the legislative assembly in 
September, 1792. Among its first acts were the 
abolition of the kingship and the proclamation 
of the Republic. It adopted a radically demo¬ 
cratic constitution, because almost from its first 
meeting the Jacobin element had gained the 
upper hand. In October, 1795, the national 
convention dissolved itself. 

Con'vict. See Prison. 

Convict La'bor, the system in force in 
penitentiaries, of employing prisoners in pro¬ 
ductive enterprises, in order to keep them from 
idleness and to make them earn their keeping. 
Three general plans are in use in the United 
States, known, respectively, as the lease system, 
the contract system and the public account 
system. In the first the convicts are leased to 
contractors, who thereupon assume entire 
responsibility for their care and safe-keeping. 
The contract system is used in two different 
forms: In one the state furnishes the material 
and tools-flthe work being supervised by the con¬ 
tractor; m the other the contractor furnishes 
the tools and material, the work is supervised 
by state officials and the finished product is 
bought at a fixed price by the contractor. The 
chief advantages of this plan are that the state 
avoids risk of loss in selling the product, is not 
compelled to make investment and furnishes 
steady employment to its prisoners. The 
objections, however, are many. It often inter¬ 
feres with prison discipline, it gives the con¬ 
tractor an unfair advantage over his competitors, 
and it probably tends to reduce wages in the 
lines in which it is used. The public account 
system is gaining ground. All materials and 
equipment are provided by the state; the work 
is also supervised by the state officials and the 
profits are turned over to public funds. The 
chief objection to this scheme of convict labor 
is that it tends to replace the fundamental pur¬ 
pose of prison discipline, namely, reformation, 
by the ideal of financial success. See Prison. 

Convol'vulus, a genus of slender, twining 
herbs with milky juice, bearing bell-shaped 


flowers. Some species are common weeds; 
others are cultivated in gardens for their beauty, 
and still others have strong medicinal properties. 
This genus gives the name to a large family of 
plants, many of which are of great interest. See 
Bindweed; Dodder; Jalap; Morning-Glory; 
Sc ammony; Sweet Potato. 

Con'way, Hugh. See Fargus, Frederick 
John. 

Conway, Moncure Daniel (1832-1907), 
American clergyman, born in Virginia. He 
entered the Methodist ministry in 1858, took 
a course in theology at Cambridge and became 
a Unitarian minister, first in Washington, D. C., 
and later in Cincinnati. His removal from 
Washington to Cincinnati was made necessary 
by his open opposition to slavery. For many 
years he preached or lectured at South Place 
Chapel, London, and he wrote much on political, 
social and religious subjects in the liberal press. 
Among his books are The Rejected Stone, The 
Golden Hour, The Wandering Jew and A Life 
of Thomas Paine, the last of which, together 
with his edition of Paine’s writings, is his most 
important work. 

Conway Cabal', a conspiracy organized among 
a group of officers in the American colonial 
army in 1777, whose chief object was the undue 
promotion of its members, especially of General 
Horatio Gates to supreme command of the Con¬ 
tinental Army. The conspiracy took its name 
from its most active member, Thomas Conway, 
and included many prominent men, among them 
General Charles Lee. Other more sturdy 
patriots, as John and Samuel Adams, though not 
intimately associated with the cabal, were not 
averse to its purposes. It accomplished much 
evil during its short life, but it was finally crushed, 
when an exposure of its dishonest methods and 
its unpatriotic purposes was made. 

Con'well, Russell Herman (1842- ), 

an American author and Baptist minister, born 
in Massachusetts. He entered the Yale law 
school in 1860 and graduated in law at Albany 
University in 1866, meantime having served in 
the Federal army and won the rank of lieutenant 
colonel. He practiced law in Minneapolis and 
Boston and spent some years in Germany as 
immigration agent for the State of Minnesota 
and as correspondent for the New York Tribune 
and the Boston Traveler. In 1879 he entered 
the ministry and soon began to preach in Phila¬ 
delphia, where, in 1891, he became the head of 
the Baptist Temple. He founded the Samaritan 
Hospital and also Temple College, of which he 


Cook 


Cook Inlet 


was chosen president. He early became a 
popular lyceum lecturer and published several 
works, including Acres of Diamonds, and lives 
of Bayard Taylor, Charles H. Spurgeon, James 
A. Garfield and Rutherford B. Hayes. 

Cook, James (1728-1779), a famous British 
navigator. In 1755 he entered the royal navy, 
and four years later, as sailing master of the 
Mercury, he performed valuable services in 
surveying the Saint Lawrence River and the 
coast of Newfoundland. His observations 
brought him into notice, and he was ap¬ 
pointed commander of a scientific expedition 
to the Pacific, with the rank of lieutenant in 
the navy. During this expedition he visited 
Tahiti and New Zealand, discovered New South 
Wales and returned by the Cape of Good Hope 
to Britain in 1771. In 1772 Captain Cook, now 
raised to the rank of a commander in the navy, 
commanded a second expedition to the Pacific 
and Southern oceans, which resulted, like the 
former, in many interesting observations and dis¬ 
coveries. He returned to Britain in 1774. Two 
years later he again set out on an expedition to as¬ 
certain the possibility of a northwest passage. On 
this voyage he explored the western coast of North 
America and rediscovered the Sandwich Islands, 
on one of which he was killed by the natives. 

Cook, Joseph (1838-1901), a noted lecturer, 
preacher and writer, born at Ticonderoga, N. Y., 
and educated at Harvard and Yale universities. 
In 1873, after three years of preaching, he 
traveled through Egypt and Syria, and on his 
return to America he began his lectures on the 
relation of religion to science. They attracted 
wide attention and became known as the u Boston 
Monday Lectures.” They were published in 
book form under the titles Conscience, Heredity, 
Labor, Occident and Orient and Biology. 

Cooke, Jay (1821-1905), an American finan¬ 
cier, born in Sandusky, Ohio. He was educated 
by private tutors and in 1838 became a clerk in 
the banking house of E. W. Clark & Co., Phila¬ 
delphia. From 1842 to 1858 he was a junior 
member of the firm, and in 1861 he established 
a new firm under the name of Jay Cooke & Co. 
During the Civil War he performed inestimable 
service to the government by taking charge of 
many large loans, amounting in all to $2,000,000,- 
000. In 1873 his firm failed, because of too 
heavy investments in railroad stocks and bonds, 
and this event contributed largely to the feeling 
of insecurity which resulted in the panic of the 
same year. In later life Cooke amassed another 
fortune through dealing in western lands. 


Cooke, John Esten (1830-1886), an Ameri¬ 
can novelist, bom at Winchester, Va. He was 
educated for the law, but turned his attention to 
literature and had produced a number of works 
before the outbreak of the Civil War. He served 
in the Confederate army, and his writings after 
the close of the war dealt largely with his army 
experiences. Among his writings are the novels, 
The Virginia Comedians, Leather Stocking 
and Silk", Life of Stonewall Jackson, Life of 
Robert E. Lee and Virginia: a History of the 
People. 

Cook'ery, the art of preparing food for the 
table by the use of heat. Cookery makes food 
more palatable and aids in its digestion. For 
the purpose of cooking, foods are classified into 
meats and vegetables, the meats including fish. 
Cooking meats coagulates the albumen which 
they contain, breaks up the muscular fiber, so 
that it is more easily separated and digested, and 
liberates juices and gases that contribute to its 
flavor. The general principle to be observed in 
cooking meats is to coagulate the albumen on 
the outside, so that it will not allow the juices 
to escape. This preserves the most nourishing 
part of the meat within the cut and makes the 
cooked part more palatable. Meats are cooked 
by boiling, roasting, baking, broiling, braising 
and frying. Unless it is desired for soup, the 
meat should be placed in a hot oven or over a 
hot fire, or in case of boiling, into very hot water, 
in order that the albumen on the outside may be 
coagulated. 

The object of cooking vegetables is to break 
up the starch which they contain and to soften 
and loosen the fiber. When cooked, starch 
becomes much more digestible than in the raw 
state. Vegetables are cooked by boiling, baking 
or steaming. Most vegetables are best cooked 
by i mm ersing them in boiling water for a short 
time and then completing the process at a lower 
temperature. Dough which contains a raising 
mixture, such as yeast or baking powder, is 
either baked or steamed, according to the article 
(See Bread). Vegetables should not be over¬ 
cooked, as over-cooking destroys much of their 
nutritive value and renders them indigestible. 

Cook In'let, a bay of the North Pacific 
Ocean, near Sitka, extending into Alaska for about 
200 miles. It affords magnificent scenery of 
glaciers, green fields, mountains and volcanoes, 
but owing to severe storms and high tides navi¬ 
gation is often dangerous. Captain Cook in 
1778 explored the inlet, hopmg to reach the Arctic 
Ocean. 


Cook Islands 


Cooper 


Cook Islands or Hervey Islands, a group 
of small islands in the Pacific. Rarotonga, the 
largest of the group, has an areq of 31 square 
miles, the entire area of the group being 142 
square miles. The chief products are coffee, 
copra and oranges. In 1900 these islands were 
annexed to New Zealand. They were named 
for their discoverer, Captain Cook. 

Cook Strait, the channel which separates 
the two principal islands of New Zealand, dis¬ 
covered by Captain Cook in 1770. 

Coo'ley, Thomas McIntyre (1824-1898), 
an American jurist and author, born at Attica, 
N. Y. He removed to Michigan and was admit¬ 
ted to the bar of that state in 1846. In 1859 he 
became professor, and subsequently dean of the 
faculty, of the law department of the University 
of Michigan. In 1864 he was appointed to the 
state supreme bench, and in 1867 he became 
chief justice. In 1887 he was placed at the head 
of the interstate commerce commission, but 
resigned in 1891. Cooley was recognized as high 
authority on constitutional law. His works 
include treatises on the constitutional limi¬ 
tations upon state legislatures, constitutional 
law and torts. 

Coo'massie. See Kumassi. 

Coombs, koomz, Leslie (1793-1881), an 
American soldier. In 1813 he was made captain 
of spies in a regiment of Kentucky volunteers. 
After the close of the war he became a lawyer 
and soon made for himself a reputation. In 
1836, during the struggle of Texas with Mexico, 
he raised a regiment of volunteers to aid Texas. 
In his native state of Kentucky he served suc¬ 
cessively in various public offices, and for several 
terms he was elected to the legislature. When 
the war with Mexico began he was active in 
raising volunteers in Kentucky. During the 
Civil War General Coombs was ardently devoted 
to the cause of the Union. 

Coo'per, Astley Patson, Sir (1768-1841), an 
English surgeon, who was born in Norfolk. 
He studied medicine in London and attended 
the lectures of John Hunter In 1794 he was 
appointed professor of anatomy at Surgeon’s 
Hall, and in 1800 he became head surgeon of 
Guy’s Hospital. In 1822 appeared his great 
work on Dislocations and Fractures. Shortly 
after, he became president of the Royal College 
of Surgeons. 

Cooper, James Fenimore (1789-1851), the 
first American novelist who became well known 
in Europe. He was born in Burlington, N. J., 
and studied at Yale, but he was not a close 


student and was expelled from college in his 
third year. Other things besides books he knew 
well, and his intimate acquaintance with the 
forests and his knowledge of the sea, gained 
while serving in the United States navy, fur¬ 
nished him later with the materials for his novels. 
After his retirement from the navy just before 
the War of 1812, he settled at Cooperstown, 
N. Y., and took to farming. Having boasted 
to his wife that he could write a better novel 
than many of the romantic ones which were 
appearing in his time, he produced Precaution, 
a tale which was commonplace, because it dealt 
with phases of English high life with which 
Cooper was totally unacquainted. When in 



1821 he turned to tales of adventure in his own 
country and wrote The Spy . he was recognized 
at once as a novelist of force. In the twenty 
years that followed he brought out many novels, 
chief among them The Pilot and The Red Rover, 
sea tales, and the Leather Stocking Tales, his 
great series dealing with frontier life in America. 
This series includes Deer slayer, The Last of the 
Mohicans, The Pathfinder, The Pioneer and The 
Prairie, of which The Last of the Mohicans is 
the best. These novels won for Cooper the 
title of the American Scott, but this comparison 
of Cooper with Scott rather lessens the fame of 
the American novelist by setting too high a 
standard for the judging of his works. 



Cooper 


Cooperation 


After spending seven years in Europe, Cooper 
returned to the United States and settled in his 
own home. The superior culture of Europe 
had made him look with displeasure on the 
ruggedness of his own country, and he attempted, 
by articles published in various papers, to 
explain to his fellow countrymen what he thought 
they ought to be. The result was, of course, 
bitter censure, and Cooper, unable to accept 
criticism, brought numerous lawsuits against 
those who attacked him. This course brought 
down upon him much ridicule at home and 
abroad. 

Cooper’s writings were immensely popular in 
their own day and are still very widely read. 
They were the first novels of forest and prairie 
life, and while they have many faults, his vivid 
description and stirring narrative account readily 
for the enthusiasm with which they were received. 
It has been objected that his indians are idealized, 
and that his characters are not real, but Cooper 
probably knew his indians much better than 
those who criticised him, and it must be admitted 
that in Natty Bumppo and Long Tom Coffin 
he has created characters which are worthy of 
a lasting place among the characters of fiction. 

Cooper, Peter (1791-1883), an American 
inventor, manufacturer and philanthropist, born 
in New York City. In 1808 he was apprenticed 
to a carriage maker, and while with him he 
invented a machine for mortising the hubs of 
carriages, which proved of great value to his 
employer. Later, Cooper undertook the trade 
of cabinetmaking, the grocery business and the 
manufacture of glue. In connection with the 
latter he made oil, prepared chalk, whiting and 
isinglass and became very wealthy. In 1828 he 
bought 3000 acres of land in Baltimore and 
erected the Canton iron works. In 1830 he 
constructed from his own designs the first loco¬ 
motive engine ever made in this country, the 
Tom Thumb. Soon after this he sold his iron 
works in Baltimore and, returning to New York, 
built an iron factory, which he afterward turned 
into a rolling mill, making the first rolled iron 
beams for construction purposes. In 1845 he 
removed his works to Trenton, N. J., and built 
three blast furnaces, the largest then known, 
bought the Andover iron mines and built a rail¬ 
road through the eight miles of country to bring 
the ore to his furnaces. He was a liberal pro¬ 
moter of the Atlantic cable and was president of 
the New York, Newfoundland and London 
Telegraph Company. In 1853 he founded 
Cooper Union for the advancement of science 


and art and erected a fine building for its pur¬ 
poses (See Cooper Union). During the 
financial agitation following the crisis of 1873 
he was active in the Greenback movement, and 
in 1876 he was the candidate of an independent 
party for president. 

Cooperage, Icoop'ur a], the art of making 
vessels from pieces of wood bound together by 
hoops. Barrels, casks, tubs, firkins and pails 
are good illustrations of vessels made by cooper¬ 
age. The parts of a cask are the staves, the 
hoops and the heads. The staves are widest 
in the middle and gradually taper toward the 
ends. This shape produces the bulge in the 
cask. When vessels are required which do not 
have the bulge, the staves are straight. If they 
are the same width throughout, the vessel is a 
cylinder. If they are wider at one end, the vessel 
flares, being larger either at the top or bottom. 
Formerly all cooperage was done by hand, the 
cooper carefully shaping the staves and giving 
the edges the proper slant to fit them together in 
the vessel, but now the work is done entirely by 
machinery. The staves are cut by a saw in the 
form of a cylinder, having teeth upon one end. 
They are then cut to the proper length by circular 
saws and placed upon an edging machine, which 
gives them the desired finish. The heads are 
made by matching the boards and fastening 
them together with pins and glue. When the 
glue is dry the boards are placed upon a turn¬ 
table, where they come in contact with a circular 
saw which cuts them into the desired shape and 
also trims the edges so that they will fit into the 
casks. See Barrel. 

Coop era'tion, a- term in social economics, 
which, though of general significance in the 
science of industry and trade, has a specific and 
technical sense, which is, the association of any 
number of individuals or societies for mutual 
profit, whether in the purchase and distribution 
of commodities for consumption, or in the pro¬ 
duction of commodities, or in the borrowing and 
lending of capital among workmen. 

The most powerful cooperative force in the 
industrial system is what economists have termed 
“the division of labor,” and this has its counter¬ 
part in the multiform divisions of capital in its 
application to the maintenance and extension 
of industry. 

Cooperation, as technically understood, occu¬ 
pies a middle position between the doctrines of 
the communists and socialists on the one hand, 
and private property and freedom of individual 
labor and enterprise on the other. It takes its 


Cooper’s Creek 


Coot 


departure from communism at a very definite 
and significant point. While the latter would 
extinguish the motive of individual gain and 
possession in the sentiment of a universal happi¬ 
ness or good and remodel all existing rights, 
laws and arrangements of society to this end, 
cooperation seeks to ameliorate the social con¬ 
dition by joining together increasing numbers 
of associates in a common but individual interest. 

The cooperative societies, though attended with 
the most varied fortune, have greatly increased 
in number and in amount of business in recent 
years. The form, objects and rules of these 
associations are by no means uniform. But the 
organizations may be divided into three general 
classes: (1) societies of consumption, the object 
of which is to buy and sell to members alone, 
or to members and non-members under differing 
conditions, the necessaries of life or the raw 
materials of their industry; (2) societies of pro¬ 
duction, the object of which is to sell the collective 
or individual work of the members; (3) societies 
of credit or banking, the object of which is to 
open accounts of credit with their members and 
advance them loans for industrial purposes. 
These societies have taken many forms, such as 
friendly societies, burial societies, arrangements 
of private firms by which the workmen share in 
the profits of the employers (more accurately 
known as profit-sharing), and building societies, 
the object of which is to enable members to 
become owners of dwelling houses. In recent 
years numerous cooperative stores and banks 
have been established in the United States, most 
of which have so far prospered. 

Cooper’s Creek, in Australia, is formed by the 
Thomson and Victoria rivers in Queensland 
and flows southwest into Lake Eyre. In sum¬ 
mer its lower course is dry, but during the rainy 
season it is two miles wide. 

Cooper Union, an educational institution 
established in New York City in 1859 by Peter 
Cooper, for providing for the working classes 
free instruction in applied science, art and social 
and political science. The building, situated 
at the point where the Bowery divides into Third 
and Fourth Avenues, was erected by Mr. Cooper 
and deeded to the board of trustees. Its cost 
was $630,000. Since its establishment, the 
institution has received bequests from a number 
of Mr. Cooper’s colleagues, and in 1900 an 
additional gift of $600,000 from Andrew Car¬ 
negie, so that it now has an endowment of 
over $2,000,000, with a total property valuation 
of $3,200,000, and an annual income of about 

46 


$100,000. As organized, the Union provides 
for both day and evening classes and affords the 
working people of New York a means for becom¬ 
ing proficient in applied sciences and technical 
trades; it also gives them an opportunity to 
study art, economics, sociology and kindred 
subjects. Lectures, reading rooms and scientific 
and art collections are maintained and are open 
to all patrons of the institution. The average 
enrollment is about 3000. 

Coor'dinates, in geometry, a term applied 
to magnitudes, such as lines, points and angles, by 
reference to which the position of a point under 
consideration is determined and expressed. 
When the position of a point is determined by 
references to a certain point, called the pole, and 
a line passing through the pole, by means of a 
distance and an angle, this distance and this 
angle are called polar coordinates. When the 
location is by reference to two perpendicular 
lines, the distances of a point from these two 
lines are called the rectilinear or cartesian 
coordinates. When the two lines of reference 
are not perpendicular, the distances of the point 
from these lines are called oblique coordinates. 
See Analytical Geometry. 

Coosa River, a river formed by the junction 
of the Etowah and the Oostenaula at Rome, Ga. 



COOT 


Its course is westward into Alabama and then 
southward. It unites with the Tallapoosa to 
form the Alabama. Its length is about 350 
miles, and it is navigable for small steamers for 
a part of its course. 

Coot or Mud Hen, a bird of the rail family, 
that lives near and on the water, fleeing to the 





Copaiba 


Copley 


weeds and grasses when alarmed. The common 
root of the United States is a dark slate color, 
almost black on the head and neck. The toes 
are not webbed, but have white scalloped bands, 
which nearly meet. The bill is a dull white. 

Copaiba, ko pa'bah, or Copaiva, ko pa'vah, a 
balsam obtained from incisions made in the stems 
of plants growing in Brazil and Peru. It con¬ 
sists of several resins dissolved in a volatile oil. 
The resins are partly acid and partly neutral; 
the oil is clear, colorless and has an aromatic 
odor. 

Co'pal is a gum resin, yielded by different 
trees in Africa, South America, India and 
Australia, and differing considerably in its 
qualities, according to its origin. In general 
it is hard, shining, transparent and citron- 
colored. When dissolved in alcohol or turpen¬ 
tine it makes a beautiful and very durable 
varnish. 

Cope, Edward Drinker (1840-1897), an 
American scientist. He graduated from the 
University of Pennsylvania and studied com¬ 
parative anatomy in the Academy of Science, 
Philadelphia, in the Smithsonian Institution, 
Washington, D. C., and in Europe. He was 
appointed professor of natural science in Haver- 
ford College in 1866, and afterward he accepted 
that professorship in the University of Penn¬ 
sylvania. He was a member of the Geological 
Society of France and of the American Associa¬ 
tion for the Advancement of Science. 

Co'penha'gen, (merchants’ harbor), the capital 
and largest city of Denmark, situated oa the 
islands of Amager and Zealand, the strait sepa¬ 
rating the two forming an excellent harbor. 
The city is handsomely laid out with gardens 
and fine buildings. It is the seat of the govern¬ 
ment and the residence of the king. Among 
the principal buildings are the Church of Our 
Lady; Holmens Kirke, dating from the seven¬ 
teenth century; the Church of Our Redeemer; 
the Roseburg Palace; the Exchange, dating 
from the seventeenth century; the Glyptothek, 
containing a very choice collection of sculpture; 
the new art museum; the royal library, con¬ 
taining 500,000 volumes; the National Museum, 
and the Thorwaldsen Museum, containing 
Thorwaldsen’s grave and a fine collection of his 
works of art, which he bequeathed to Copenhagen. 
Copenhagen also contains a university, the only 
one in Denmark and the oldest one in northern 
Europe, founded in 1478 and containing a 
library of 300,000 volumes. The city is the chief 
center of Scandinavian literature, science and 


art. Shipbuilding is extensively carried on 
here, and there are machine shops, sugar refin¬ 
eries, chemical works and textile factories. The 
commerce is very important, and more than one- 
half of Denmark’s trade passes through Copen¬ 
hagen. King Christopher, the Bavarian, in 1443 
made Copenhagen the capital of the kingdom. 
It has withstood several sieges, among which 
was the one by King Charles X of Sweden 
(1658-1660), when Copenhagen saved the Dan¬ 
ish monarchy, and the one by the English in 1807, 
when a part of the city was destroyed. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 462,161. 

Copernicus, ko pur'ni kus, Nicholas (1473- 
1543), a famous astronomer, bom at Thorn, 
Poland. Having studied medicine at Cracow, 
he afterward devoted himself to mathematics 
and astronomy, and in 1500 he taught mathe¬ 
matics at Rome with great success. Returning 
to his own country, he entered into holy orders, 
was made a canon in the Cathedral of Frauenburg 
and began to work out his new system of as¬ 
tronomy. Doubting that the motions of the 
heavenly bodies could be so confused and so 
complicated as the Ptolemaic system made them, 
he was induced to consider the simpler hypothesis 
that the sun was the center round which the earth 
and the other planets revolve. Besides this 
fundamental truth, Copernicus anticipated, for 
he can scarcely be said to have proved, many 
other of the principal facts of astronomical 
science, such as the motion of the earth round 
its axis and the immense distance of the stars, 
which made their apparent position the same 
from any part of the earth’s orbit. The great 
work in which Copernicus explained his theory 
was completed in 1530, and on account of it 
he was excommunicated by the pope, who did 
not consider his views to be in harmony with the 
Scriptures. 

Copiapo, ko pyah po\ a city of Chile, South 
America, capital of the province of Atacama, 
50 mi. from Caldera. Its importance is due to 
its position, which is in the center of a valuable 
mining district. It has a public library, a mining 
school, machine shops and smelting works.; 
Population, 9301. 

Cop'ley, John Singleton (1737-1815), an 
American painter of historical subjects and of 
portraits, born in Boston, Mass. He traveled 
extensively in Europe, and after 1776 he settled 
in London. He was elected a member of the 
Royal Academy in 1783. His most celebrated 
picture is the Death o) Lord Chatham, now in the 
National Gallery, 


Copper 


Copperhead 


Cop'per, a reddish metal about nine times 
heavier than water. Copper is one of the most 
ancient of the known metals and derives its 
name from the Latin word cuprium, the name 
for Cyprus, the island on which the copper used 
by the Greeks and Romans was obtained. Next 
to gold, silver and platinum, copper is the most 
ductile and malleable of metals. It is more 
elastic than any other metal except steel, and 
the most sonorous of all except aluminum. As 
a conductor of heat and electricity it ranks next 
to silver. It has a disagreeable odor, and a 
nauseous metallic taste. It is not acted upon 
by water, but tarnishes when exposed to the air, 
becoming covered with a green carbonate. 

Distribution. Copper occurs native in 
crystals, threads and thin plates. In some of 
the older rocks, blocks of native copper weigh¬ 
ing several tons have occasionally been obtained. 
The ores are numerous and abundant. The 
most important of these are compounds of copper 
with silver, oxygen, carbon or iron, such as 
copper glance, gray copper and copper pyrites, 
or yellow copper. Nearly all of these ores also 
contain more or less lead and silver, and in 
their reduction these metals are obtained as 
well as the copper. 

Copper is found in nearly all of the European 
countries, in Japan, Africa, Australia and South 
America; but the United States is the leading 
country in its production and yields about two- 
thirds of the world’s supply. The leading 
copper regions of the United States in the order 
of their importance are, in and around Butte and 
Anaconda in Montana, in Arizona, and in 
Keweenaw Peninsula in Michigan. These three 
regions produce nine-tenths of the output of 
the country. The copper found in the Lake 
Superior mines is native and occurs in a con¬ 
glomerate rock, but that obtained in the other 
mines is from an ore, either sulphide or carbonate. 

Reduction of the Ore. In extracting 
copper from the rock at the Lake Superior mines, 
all that is necessary is to crush the rock and 
separate the copper from it by washing. This 
is then melted. The process of separating it 
from ore containing sulphur is somewhat com¬ 
plicated. The ore is first crushed, then con¬ 
centrated, that is, caused to pass over a number 
of tables which have a vibratory motion and 
over which water is flowing. By this process the 
particles of rock not containing ore are separated 
out and rejected. The concentrated ore thus 
obtained is heated to redness, or roasted, for the 
purpose of driving off the sulphur. The ore is 


then smelted and an impure copper is obtained. 
This is usually sent to the eastern markets, where 
it is refined. Some of the ores are successfully 
treated by electrolysis (See Electrolysis), the 
use of a powerful electric current being employed 
instead of heat for extracting the metal. 

Uses. Copper is extensively used in con¬ 
nection with electrical appliances, especially for 
wires to conduct the current along electric rail¬ 
ways, and for the main conductors of telegraphs 
and telephone systems. This use consumes 
more than half of the product. The other 
extensive uses are for sheathing ships, covering 
roofs, the construction of stills and boilers of 
large size and in the manufacture of some house¬ 
hold utensils. Another portion is consumed in 
the manufacture of alloys, such as brass, bell 
metal and gun metal. See Bronze. 

There are a number of compounds of copper, 
and all of them are exceedingly poisonous. 
Native carbonates, known as malachite, form 
beautiful cabinet specimens, since they are of a 
brilliant green or blue color. Some of the largest 
pieces of this rock are sometimes cut and polished 
for mantels and table tops, and quite a good 
deal of it is used in the manufacture of small 
ornaments, such as paper weights and inkstands. 

Cop' peras, sulphate of iron or green vitriol, 
a salt of a peculiar puckery taste and of a fine 
green color. When exposed to the air it assumes 
a brownish hue. It is much used in dyeing 
black and in making ink, and in medicine as a 
tonic. The copperas of commerce is usually 
made by the decomposition of iron pyrites. 

Copper Glance, a copper ore of a leadish or 
iron gray color. It contains 81 parts copper and 
19 parts sulphur, and is found in large quantities 
in Cornwall, England, and other European 
countries. In the United States it occurs in the 
copper mines of the Lake Superior region and 
in the mines of New Mexico and Arizona, near 
the Gila River, and also in small quantities in 
New Jersey and Connecticut. When occurring 
in crystals it forms beautiful cabinet speci¬ 
mens. 

Cop'perhead, a North American snake of a 
golden or bronze color, that has a bright copper- 
colored head. On the body are V-shaped dark 
blotches which meet upon the back. The copper¬ 
head is a sluggish snake, appearing usually only 
at night, and it is not inclined to bite unless 
frightened or disturbed. It is one of the three 
poisonous snakes of the Northern states and has 
many names in different localities; among them 
are cottonmouth, moccasin and red adder. 


Copperhead 


Copying Devices 


Copperhead, a name applied by Union men 
during the Civil War to those Northerners 
who sympathized with the South in that 
struggle. 

Cop'permine River, a river of northern 
Canada, near Copperhead Mountains. It rises 
in Point Lake and flows into Coronation Gulf in 
the Arctic Ocean. This river is about three 
hundred miles long and contains a great number 
of waterfalls and torrents, which render it useless 
for travel. 

Cop'per-nick'el or Niccolite, nik'o lite, an 
ore of nickel, composed of about sixty parts 
nickel and forty parts arsenic. It is of pale 
copper red and has a metallic luster. It is found 
with ores of cobalt, silver and copper in the 
mines of Saxony. 

Copts, a class of people, resident in Egypt, 
who observe a rude form of the Christian religion 
and who are supposed to be a relic of the old 
Egyptian race who built the monuments. By 
association with the Moslems they have acquired 
many Moslem customs and are losing their dis¬ 
tinctness as a people. The men wear a black 
or brown turban and a long gown, with sometimes 
p, black coat or jacket over it. The women veil 
their faces in public. 

Cop'ying Devices, devices for duplicating 
letters and manuscripts without rewriting them. 
One of the oldest processes of duplicating letters 
and manuscripts is the letterpress, which 
usually consists of a book containing leaves of 
tissue paper and a press. The instrument to 
be copied is written in copying ink, either with 
a pen or upon the typewriter; this ink contains 
sugar or some other substance that prevents its 
drying rapidly. After writing, an oil-back is 
placed under the leaf in the book. The leaf is 
then dampened and the article to be copied is laid 
face down upon it, with another oil-back to 
protect the book from the moisture. The copy¬ 
ing book is then placed in a press which works 
with a lever or screw, and when the pressure is 
applied the writing is transferred to the damp¬ 
ened page of the book. Webs of paper which 
are passed between rollers to which damp 
cloths are attached are also used in place of the 
book in this form of copying. 

The most common method of copying now in 
use in offices is the use of the carbon paper with 
the typewriter. This paper has one side covered 
with a coloring matter which, when struck with 
the die of the typewriter or pressed with a pencil, 
is transferred to the surface of the sheet lying 
next to it. In copying, the carbon is laid next 


to the sheet upon which the writing is produced, 
with its colored surface lying upon another sheet 
of paper, and as the writing proceeds either with 
pencil or typewriter, the ink from the carbon 
is impressed upon the second sheet of paper. 
By employing two or three carbons, as many 
copies can be made from one writing. 

Devices for producing a larger number of 
copies from writing are the hektograph and the 
mimeograph. The hektograph consists of a pad 
or tablet, made by mixing gelatin and glycerin 
in proportions of two ounces of gelatin to thirteen 
ounces of glycerin. The gelatin should be dis¬ 
solved in water and the glycerin heated before 
mixing. The mixture should then be boiled 
for several hours over a salt water bath, then 
poured into a shallow pan. The ink used is 
usually an aniline ink containing a small pro¬ 
portion of glycerin. The copy is written upon 
ordinary paper, which is then laid face down 
upon the hektograph and carefully rubbed with 
the hand or a cloth, when the ink is transferred 
to the surface of the hektograph. The copy is 
then removed and as paper is pressed down upon 
the hektograph, a slight portion of the ink adheres 
to it so as to reproduce the writing. By using 
care, from fifty to one hundred copies can be 
made from a single writing. 

The mimeograph, invented by Thomas A. 
Edison, works on the principle of the printing 
press. It consists of a corrugated steel plate 
which resembles a very fine file, and a specially 
prepared linen paper which is coated on one side 
with paraffin wax. By writing on the paper with 
a stylus, over the steel plate, the wax is cut 
through, forming a stencil. The stencil is then 
placed in a frame and so adjusted that the paper 
upon which the impressions are to be made is 
easily placed under it and removed. The ink 
is applied by a roller similiar to that used in the 
hand printing press. As the roller moves over 
the paraffin paper, the ink passes through the 
stencil, reproducing the writing on the paper 
beneath. From such a stencil from one hundred 
to three hundred copies can be made. A recent 
modification of this mimeograph consists of a 
rotary apparatus, working very much on the 
plan of a cylinder printing press. The stencil 
is made on the paraffin paper by the typewriter. 
This is then attached to the cylinder and inked 
upon the inner side. As the cylinder revolves, 
the stencil is brought in contact with the paper 
upon which the copy is printed. By one of 
these devices several hundred copies can be 
made from one stencil. See Blue Print. 


Copyright 


Coral 


Cop'yright, the property which an author 
has in his literary works, or which any other 
person has acquired by purchase, and which 
consists of the exclusive right of publication; 
or the right which a designer, engraver, painter, 
draughtsman, photographer or sculptor has in 
his original products. The copyright law of the 
United States gives the copyright of a work 
exclusively to the author for twenty-eight years, 
with renewal for twenty-eight years more. In the 
case of encyclopedias, reviews, magazines and 
other periodical works, the copyright is vested 
in the proprietors, as if they were the authors. 
To obtain a,copyright send to the Register of 
Copyrights, Library of Congress, Washington, 
D. C., for an application blank. Fill out this 
blank and return it with a postal money order or 
bank draft for $1.00, and at the same time send 
two copies of the best edition of the publication 
which is to bear the copyright imprint, which 
should appear on the title page, or the page 
following. Other details can be obtained from the 
Register. Dramatic and musical compositions 
are subject to the same copyright as books. The 
exclusive right of performing such compositions 
not printed, or of causing them to be performed, 
belongs to the author. Lectures and public 
speeches are the property of the author and can¬ 
not be published without his consent, unless they 
are delivered under a public endowment, or under 
contrary agreement. Letters are the property of 
the receiver, but he has not the right to publish 
them without the writer’s consent. Any person 
copying or taking extracts from a copyright work 
is liable for damages, and all copies of pirated 
works become the property of the proprietor of 
the copyright. In European countries copy¬ 
right is generally for the author’s life, and a 
varying period thereafter—twenty, thirty or even 
fifty years. An author domiciled in Canada, 
or in any part of the British possessions, or a 
citizen of a State having an international copy¬ 
right treaty with Great Britain, may secure 
copyright in Canada for twenty-eight years and 
renewal of it for fourteen years, provided the 
work is published in Canada. 

A copyright may exist in a translation or in 
part of a work (as in notes or additional matter), 
but a bona fide abridgement of a book is not con¬ 
sidered in America and England a violation of the 
original copyright. So a person may use fair 
quotation, if by its application he makes it a part 
of his own work, but he cannot take the whole 
or a large part of a work under the pretense of 
quotation. 


International copyright is a mutual agreement 
between nations as to copyright. In March, 
1891, Congress passed an International Copy¬ 
right act. Under it agreements have been made 
with most countries by which works may be 
copyrighted therein, under special rules. A 
work to be copyrighted in the United States 
must be printed from type set in the United States. 

Coquelin, ko MaN', Benoit Constant (1841- 
1909), a noted French actor. His dramatic 
talent became evident early, and he was given 
a course in the Paris Conservatoire. His pres¬ 
entations of The Marriage of Figaro, The 
Misanthrope and The Barber of Seville met with 
great success and won him wide popularity. In 
the several visits which he made to the United 
States, some of them with Sarah Bernhardt, he 
was most enthusiastically received, especially in 
Cyrano de Bergerac. 

Coquimbo, ho keem'bo, a town of Chile, South 
America, capital of a province of the same name, 
situated 7 mi. s. w. of La Serena. It has an 
excellent harbor and an important trade in copper. 
The mountainous region in the neighborhood 
is rich in copper, silver, gold and other metals. 
Population in 1910, estimated, 15,700. 

Coquito, lco ke’to, a very beautiful palm of 
Chile, allied to the cocoanut, growing to the 



CORALS 

1, brain coral; 2, coral showing polyps; 3, tree coral 
4, organ-pipe coral. 


height of 40 or '50 feet, yielding a rich, sweet 
sap, which, when boiled, is called palm honey. 

Cor’al, the limestone skeleton formed by 
minute animals belonging to a family closely 


Coral 


Corbin 


resembling sea anemones (See Coelenterata). 
The animal, which is really a polyp, is commonly 
known as the cdral insect. It consists of a jelly- 
like mass, in the center of which is a sac which 
serves as a stomach, and radiating from this are 
minute arms, which assist the polyp in clinging 
to the rock and in drawing food into the stomach. 
There are numerous species of coral polyps, 
each of which builds a coral peculiar to itself. 
Tree coral, which is so named because it resembles 
the branches of a tree, is formed by a polyp 
that propagates by buds, which spring from 
its sides in such a way as to constitute the 
branches. Another species forms a coral resem¬ 
bling bundles of straw fastened together, and 
known as the organ-pipe coral. Still another 
forms a coral resembling in its shape and con¬ 
volutions the human brain. This is known as 
the brain coral. The most common and widely 
distributed polyp is that which forms the reef 
coral. 

In color corals range from pure white through 
yellow, pink and red, to black. The pink, red 
and black varieties are quite highly prized for 
jewelry and other ornamental purposes. The 
pink and red are found in the Mediterranean, 
and because of their value coral fisheries are 
maintained off the coasts of southern Europe 
and of northern Africa. These branching 
corals are procured by a grappling apparatus 
which is dragged over the bottom of the sea and 
breaks off the coral and holds it until it can be 
drawn to the surface. These corals take a high 
polish and are wrought into jewelry, necklaces 
and other ornaments, the chief centers of the 
industry being Naples and Genoa. In value they 
vary according to their color and fineness, the 
most beautiful specimens bringing a high price. 

Coral reefs are found in nearly all tropical 
waters, and in some localities, as off the coast of 
Australia, they are of great extent. The reef¬ 
building coral will not live in water that falls 
below a temperature of 60°. It begins building 
upon the bottom of the sea and each generation 
builds upon the skeleton formed by the one 
preceding it, so that in the course of centuries 
these little animals have built up great barriers 
that rise above the surface of the water. The 
reef as built by the coral polyp, however, does 
not approach within five or six feet of the surface, 
as the animals cannot live above that level. The 
upper portions of the reef are built up from 
broken pieces of coral or other rock lodged upon 
the original reef by the action of the waves. 
These finally reach the surface; soil is formed 


by the powdering of the coral; in this earth 
seeds lodge and plants spring up. Reefs thus 
built around the coast of submerged volcanoes 
take a circular form and enclose a lagoon of 
quiet water (See Atoll). The study of the 
various rock formations of the earth shows that 
the coral polyps have been working for many 
ages. 

Coral Fish, a name given to several fishes 
of different genera. They are found in all 
tropical seas, especially about coral reefs, and 
are all brilliantly colored. They are very small 
and are valuable as food. Many species are 
found in the waters from Bermuda to Brazil, 
where several are known as angel fishes. 

Coral Sea, part of the Pacific Ocean, north¬ 
east of Australia, and lying between that con¬ 
tinent and the Solomon Islands and the New 
Hebrides. It takes its name from the numerous 
coral reefs it contains. 

Coral Tree, a tree or shrub belonging to the 
pea family, a native of Africa, India and America. 
It bears spikes of bright scarlet flowers, and 
the spiny Indian species makes a good hedge. 

Cor'bel, in architecture, a piece of stone, 
wood or iron projecting from the vertical face of 
a wall, to support some 
part of the building. 

Corbels are of a great ' 
variety of forms and 
are ornamented in many 
ways. They were used 
especially in Gothic ar¬ 
chitecture. See Brack¬ 
et; Console. 

Corbie, Tear'be. 

Steps, in architecture, 
steps into which the 
sides or gables from 
the eaves to the apex are broken. They are 
common in old Scotch and French architecture 
and are met with in Flanders, Holland and 
Germany, both in houses and churches. 

Cor'bin, Henry Clark (1842-1909), an 
American soldier, bom in Clermont co., Ohio. 
He studied law, entered the Union army in 
1862 and was promoted from second lieutenant 
to colonel and brevetted brigadier general of 
volunteers. He entered the regular army in 
May, 1866, and served on the frontier. In 1880 
he was appointed major and assistant adjutant 
general of the United States army and served 
continuously in that department for nearly 
twenty-five years, being promoted to the grade 
of brigadier general. In recognition of his serv- 







Corcoran 


Corelli 


ices, especially in the war with Spain, Congress 
made him a major general. After 1904 he was 
placed in command of the Atlantic division, and 
then of the Philippine division, of the army. 

Cor'cpran, William Wilson (1798-1888), an 
American banker and philanthropist, bom in 
Georgetown, D. C. In 1828 he had charge 
of the real estate held by the United States Bank 
in the Disti'ct of Columbia, and continued as 
their agent until 1836. It was in 1837 that he 
began his career as banker and broker in Wash¬ 
ington, and during the Mexican War, by his 
connection with the placing of government loans, 
he acquired an immense fortune. In 1854 he re¬ 
tired from the banking business and gave much 
of his time to objects of benevolence, his principal 
monument being the Corcoran Art Gallery, 
Washington, containing some of the finest 
sculptures and paintings in America. 

Corcoran Art Gallery, a famous collection 
of works of art in Washington, D. C., founded 
and endowed with a fund of $900,000 by William 
W. Corcoran, a wealthy banker of Washington. 
There are many remarkable sculptures, paintings 
and ceramics in the collection, besides a school 
of art. Among the works of great merit are 
Powers’s Greek Slave and Velas’s Hying Napoleon. 
The collection is housed in a beautiful building, 
completed in 1897. 

Cordage, kor'daj, the term used to include 
all sizes of cords from binding twine to the 
largest cable. See Binding Twine; Rope. 

Corday d’Armont, kor da' dahr mahN r , 
Marie Anne Charlotte (1768-1793), com¬ 
monly called Charlotte Corday, was bom in 
Normandy. Her lover, an officer in the garrison 
of Caen, was accused by Marat as a conspirator 
against the Republic and was assassinated by 
villains hired for that purpose. This, as well 
as a deep-rooted hatred against all oppressors, 
determined Charlotte Corday to free her country 
from Marat. Having obtained an interview 
with Marat at his own house, she plunged her 
dagger into his bosom and gave herself up to the 
attendants who rushed in at his cries. When 
tried for the murder before the revolutionary 
tribunals, she was condemned to the guillotine 
and executed. 

Cordil'lera or Cordil'leras, a term applied 
to the mountain system which extends along the 
western coast of North and South America from 
Alaska to the southern point of South America. 
It includes the Rocky Mountains, the Sierra 
Nevadas and other ranges in the United States, 
several ranges in Mexico, Canada and Alaska, 


and the Andes in South America. The term 
is sometimes used in a more general way to 
denote any extensive mountain system. See 
Rocky Mountains; Andes; Sierra Nevadas. 

Cor doba or Cor'dova,a town of the Argentine 
Republic, capital of a province of the same name. 
It occupies a beautiful and well-sheltered site 
in the valley of the Primero, at an elevation 
of 1200 feet. Among the notable buildings are 
the cathedral, the government palace, the uni¬ 
versity, the library and several hospitals. The 
city is an important commercial center, and the 
industrial interests are considerable. Among 
the manufactures are lime, bricks and flour. 
Population in 1911, 70,380. 

Cordova, an ancient Spanish city on the 
Guadalquivir, 86 mi. n. e. of Seville. The 
river at Cordova is crossed by an old stone 
bridge, 730 feet long and including sixteen 
arches, built by the Arabs on foundations laid 
by the Romans. Cordova is well supplied with 
beautiful buildings, the chief one of which is a 
mosque erected in the eighth century. This is a 
fine example of Moorish architecture and is 
second only to the mosque of Mecca as a Moham¬ 
medan place of worship. In the interior are 
850 columns made of marble, jasper and por¬ 
phyry. Cordova carries on a considerable trade. 
Among the manufactures are leather, paper, 
liquors, hats and silver filigree work. Cordovan 
leather, made from goatskins, was at one time 
manufactured exclusively here and was exported 
to all parts of Europe during the Middle Ages. 
The Romans had possession of the city in 152 
B. c. It was taken by the Saracens in 711, and 
in the ninth, tenth and eleventh centuries it 
ranked among the first commercial cities of the 
world, at this time, it is said, having a population 
of one million. After it was taken by Ferdinand 
III of Castile in 1236, it never regained its power. 
Cordova is the birthplace of the two Senecas 
and of the Roman poet Lucan. Population 
in 1910, 65,160. 

Cor'dovan, a kind of leather, manufactured 
originally at Cordova, whence its name. Much 
is now made in Africa and surrounding countries. 
It is also called cordwain. 

Cor'duroy, a thick, cotton stuff, having a 
cut pile like velvet, but corded or ribbed on the 
surface. A corduroy road in the United States 
is a rough road over swampy or marshy places, 
made by laying logs side by side. 

Core'a. See Korea. 

Corel'li, Arcangelo (1653—1713), an Italian 
violinist, born near Bologna. By his sonatas 


Corelli 


Corinthian Order 


and concertos for the violin he established a new 
species of harmony, and by his marvelous per¬ 
formance he laid the foundation of modern violin 
technique. He is sometimes called “Corelli 
the Divine.” 

Corelli, Marik (1864- ), an English 

novelist. She was born in Italy and was edu¬ 
cated in England and France. Charles Mackay 
adopted her as his daughter in her childhood. 
Her first work, The Romance of Two Worlds, 
appeared in 1886. Among her other most 
widely known novels are Thelma, Barabhas, The 
Sorrows of Satan and The Master Christian. 

Corentyn, lco ren teen', a river of South 
America, forming the boundary between British 
and Dutch Guiana. It is navigable for small 
vessels 150 miles from its mouth, but for large 
steamers only 40 miles. 

Corfu (Roman Corcyra), a Greek island in 
the Mediterranean, the most northerly of the 
Ionian Islands. The area is 277 square miles, 
the length, 38 miles, and the width, from 3 to 20 
miles. The surface rises at one point -to the 
height of 3000 feet. The scenery is beautiful, 
the climate is pleasant and healthful, the soil, 
fertile. Oranges, citrons, grapes, honey, wax, 
oil and salt are abundant. Corfu, the capital, 
is finely situated on a promontory which termi¬ 
nates in a huge insulated rock, crowned by the 
citadel. The chief edifices are the cathedral, 
the government palace and the Ionian academy. 
There is a good harbor and considerable trade. 
A Corinthian colony settled in the island in the 
eighth century b. c. In 229 B. c. it became 
subject to Rome and at the division of the Roman 
Empire it became a part of the Byzantine realm. 
The Venetians possessed Corfu from 1386 to 
1797, since which time it has shared the fate 
of the other Ionian Islands and has belonged, 
with them, since 1863, to Greece. Population 
in 1907, 99,571. 

Corian'der, a plant of the parsley family, 
native of Italy and cultivated in other parts of 
Europe. The whole plant has an unpleasant 
smell, but the fruit, improperly called seed, is 
very agreeable and aromatic when dry. It is 
used in medicine and as an ingredient in cookery 
and confectionery. 

Cor'inth, an ancient city of Greece, upon the 
isthmus of Corinth, which unites the Pelopon¬ 
nesus with northern Greece. It was a renowed 
city in ancient Greece and was important com¬ 
mercially because of its advantageous position. 
It possessed all the splendor which wealth and 
luxury could create, and its citadel, the Acrocor- 


inthus, nearly 2000 feet high, rendered it a 
strong fortress. It had two harbors, Lechaeum, 
on the west side of the isthmus, and Cenqhreae, 
on the Gulf of Athens, or Aegina. Corinth was 
famous as the place where the Isthmian games 
were held. It was also one of the most magnifi¬ 
cent and one of the most voluptuous cities of 
Greece. It was conquered and destroyed by 
the Roman consul, Mummius, in 146 b. c. Julius 
Caesar rebuilt it about one hundred years 
later, but its commerce could not be restored, 
though it became a place of note and importance. 
In 1458 A. d. Mohammet II conquered Corinth, 
and it was held by the Turks till 1823, except 
from 1687 to 1715, when the Phoenicians held it. 
Saint Paul lived here a year and a half, and two 
of his epistles are addressed to the Corinthians. 
The present town, called New Corinth, lies 3 
miles northeast of the ancient city of Corinth. 
Population in 1907, 4100. 

Corinth, Miss., a city, the county-seat of 
Alcorn co., 90 mi. s. e. of Memphis, Tenn., 
on the Mobile & Ohio and the Memphis & 
Charleston railroads. Population in 1910, 5020. 
The place had an interesting history in the 
Civil War. It was a point of strategic impor¬ 
tance, since it was the junction of two railroads 
at right angles to each other. It was fortified 
by the Confederates, but was evacuated after 
the Battle of Shiloh, May 29,1862. On October 
3 of the same year. Generals Van Dorn and 
Price with 22,000 Confederates attempted to 
recapture Corinth, defended by Rosecrans with 
20,000 Federals. In spite of the greatest valor 
on the part of the Confederate troops, the attack 
was repulsed. The Confederates lost nearly 
5000 in killed, wounded and captured, while 
the Union forces lost about 2500. 

Corinth, Gulf of, or Lepanto, Gulf of, 
extends through the center of Greece about 80 
miles. Its shores, varied by rocky capes and 
fertile plains, and its high mountains further 
inland, furnish beautiful scenery. 

Cor'inth, Isthmus of, connects the Pelopon¬ 
nesus with northern Greece. It is about 10 
miles long and varies in width from four to 
eight miles. Here, where the wall built to pro¬ 
tect it from northern invasions terminated on 
the gulf, the Isthmian Games were celebrated. 
A canal across the isthmus, completed in 1893, 
connecting the Gulf of Corinth with the Saronic 
Gulf, enables the largest vessels to pass through. 
At the eastern end of the canal is the town of 
Isthmia, at its western, Poseidonia. 

Corin'thian Order. See Column. 


Cork 


Corliss 


Cork is the external bark of a species of oak 
which grows in Spain, Portugal and other parts 
of southern Europe and in the north of Africa. 
The outer bark falls off of itself if left alone, but 
for commercial purposes it is stripped off when 
judged sufficiently matured, this being when the 
tree has reached the age of from fifteen to thirty 
years. The first stripping yields the coarsest 
kind of cork. In the course of eight or nine 
years or even less the same tree will yield 
another supply of bark of better quality, and 
the removal of this outer bark is said to be bene¬ 
ficial, the trees thus stripped reaching the age of 
one hundred and fifty years or more. The bark 
is removed by a kind of ax, parallel circles, being 
cut round the tree and united by longitudinal 
cuts, so as to produce oblong sheets of bark. 
These vary in thickness between three-fourths 
of an inch and three inches. Care must be 
taken not to cut into the inner bark or the tree 
will be killed. The pieces of cork are flattened 
out by heat or by weights and are slightly charred 
on the surface to close the pores. Cork is light, 
elastic, impervious to water, and by pressure can 
be greatly reduced in bulk, returning again to its 
original size. 



CUTTING CORK PROM TREE 


The cork is sorted into four grades, after 
which it is put into sheet-iron boxes and steamed, 
so it will not take the temper out of the circular 
knives or punches which slice up the cork and 
make it into stoppers. The hollow punch which 
cuts into the cork twists around about eight 
hundred times a minute as it goes through the 
sheet, and the disk-shaped knife revolves six 
hundred times a minute. The circular knife 
which slices the cork into strips, which are just 
as wide as the corks to be punched from them, 


is a disk of fine-tempered, thin steel about 
twenty-eight inches in diameter. The revolving 
knife cuts the cork across the grain, the strips 
varying in length from eight to eighteen inches, 
and in width between about the same limits. 
The punches or cutters are hollow cylinders, 
made of the finest grade of tool steel, and they 
vary from an eighth of an inch to two and a half 
inches in diameter. The punch works hori¬ 
zontally and is held in place by a chuck on the 
end of the shaft. The shaft is drawn forward 
against the strip of cork, which is held against 
a stop. A straight cork is made every time the 
shaft is drawn forward. As the punch returns 
to its original position, the cork is forced out of 
it by a plunger, and it rolls into a basket beneath. 
About eighteen thousand corks can be punched 
in a single day by one of these machines. The 
leavings from the strips of cork are granulated 
for insulating material and packing for ice¬ 
houses and refrigerators. The straight corks 
are taken to a tapering machine, which is a large 
circular knife revolving in a horizontal position. 
The corks are fed into a device which carries 
them up against the knife. The cork is held 
in a slanting position, and the knife cuts off 
shavings so as to give a bevel, or taper, to the 
cork. The corks are then sorted into different 
grades and are placed in packages for shipment. 

Cork, a city in the south of Ireland, capital 
of the county of Cork, situated on the River Lee, 
137 mi. s. w. of Dublin. It is built partly on an 
island and partly on the banks of the river, 
which is crossed by nine bridges. It has a large, 
safe harbor, formed by the estuary of the Lee at 
the mouth of which is Queenstown. There are 
in the city four monasteries, a fine cathedral, 
a free library, schools of science and art, Queen’s 
College, a large park and many beautiful resi¬ 
dences. Cork has a large export and import 
trade. The principal manufactures are leather, 
iron, glass, gloves, paper and liquors. There 
are also iron foundries, yards for the building 
of iron ships and important fisheries. Cork 
was founded in 622, was taken by Cromwell in 
1649 and in 1690 by Marlborough. Population 
in 1911, 76,632. 

Cor'liss, George Henry (1817-1888), an 
American inventor, born at Easton, N. Y. The 
construction of stationary steam engines was 
revolutionized by his improvements, the most 
important being the introduction of a cut-off 
mechanism, by which the valves are opened and 
closed instantaneously. Corliss invented many 
ingenious devices, and furnished the Corliss 






Cormorant 


Com 


engine which moved all the machinery at the 
Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition in 1876. 

Cor'morant, a large web-footed bird, having 
a long and strongly-hooked bill, a long neck, 
short wings and a rather long, rounded tail. 
The cormorants, of which there are several 
species, are excellent swimmers and divers, and 
yet they often perch on trees. In color they are 



generally black or dark. The double-crested 
cormorant is found occasionally in the inland 
waters of the United States and often along the 
coast. The common European cormorant is 
larger than a goose, but has smaller wings. The 
Chinese have for many centuries trained the 
cormorants to fish for them, which they do very 
successfully, obediently bringing the fish to 
their masters without mutilation. 

Com, Indian, a plant of the grass family, 
extensively cultivated for its seed. In general 
appearance the plant resembles the sugar cane 
and sorghum. The stalks are from four to 
twelve feet high, according to the variety, are 
jointed at frequent intervals, are of a dark purple 
and green color and are concave on one side. 
The leaves are long, slender and pointed and are 
of a dark green color. The fruit, called the ears, 
grows from the axles of the leaves. The plant 
has two kinds of flowers, those at the top of the 
stalk, bearing the stamens and forming the 
tassel, and those on the ear, constituting the silk 
and bearing the pistils. Each thread of the silk 
is a pistil which terminates in a kernel. The 
6eeds or kernels are arranged in rows around a 


thick stem called the cob. The ears may have 
eight or twelve or more rows, but they always 
have an even number. The ears are covered 
with long, slender glumes called husks. Corn 
is a native of America and was not known previ¬ 
ous to the discovery of the New World. Colum¬ 
bus and other early explorers found it in general 
use among the indians, for whom it constituted 
the chief article of food. The Aztecs and Incas 
had developed its cultivation to such an extent 
that they raised com of a good quality. In its 
native state the plant belongs to the warm 
temperate and semi-tropical regions, but by 
cultivation it has been made to extend over a 
wide range of latitude, in the United States being 
cultivated as far north as the 46th and 47th 
parallels. There are a large number of varieties, 
those adapted to the short seasons of the cool 
temperate regions being much smaller in stalk 
and seed than those growing in the warmer 
portions of the com belt. The important 
varieties are the flint com, dent com, sweet corn 
and pop com. Flint com has a small stalk, 
seldom exceeding six feet in height, and 
small, closely compact ears and very hard ker¬ 
nels. Its color is either white or a deep yellow. 
The yellow variety is the com generally raised 
throughout New England, New York and the 
northern portions of Wisconsin and Minnesota. 
The dent com contains the largest number of 
varieties and is by far the most important 
This is the com grown all over the region known 
as the corn belt of the United States and fur¬ 
nishes nearly all the crop raised in the country. 
It takes its name from the peculiar form of the 
kernels, which have an indentation on the outer 
end and taper to a point. Under suitable 
conditions the stalks attain a height of from 
eight to ten feet and sometimes grow as high as 
twelve or fourteen feet, but this is uncommon. 
Sweet corn contains a larger proportion of sugar 
than the other varieties, its small kernels are 
soft and nutritious, and it is raised for food, 
being eaten green or canned in large quantities. 
Pop corn takes its name from the peculiarity 
of the kernel of cracking open when heated. 
The kernels are small and enclosed in an exceed* 
ingly tough outside covering. When heated, 
the steam arising from the moisture in the 
interior bursts this covering and causes the 
kernel to turn itself inside out. 

Corn is planted, cultivated and harvested 
almost entirely by machinery. The seed is 
planted in rows about four feet apart, and the 
hills are the same distance from one another. As 





(Crown 

[starch 


'licit. 


MHomy 


Istarch 


i r - y 

I ; ,. .m? 

BniiryolR 

c*/>»i HJ.— ■ - ."r.irS 


(Horny 




Stern j 


Germ 


Embryo) 

Root] 


Tip 

^Starch 


TARE** I 


ME/\^ 

HON/yV, 


ALCOHOL 




OIL 


|,j bOKtv 

j*i F LArv ES | I fCLUCCaT: 


CORN 

1, Cluster of Ears. 3, Husker and Shredder. 5, Corn Plant. 

2, Detail of Kernel. 4, Popcorn. 6. Corn Products. 

































Corn 


Cornelia 


soon as the young plants appear the cultivation 
begins and must be continued every few days 
until the plants become so large that they are 
liable to injury from the cultivator. The crop 
is then allowed to ripen. The methods of har¬ 
vesting depend upon the use for which the crop 
is intended. If only the ears are desired, the 
plants may be left standing until the seed is 
thoroughly ripened and dry. The ears are then 
broken off, husked and placed in granaries. But 
if the stalks are desired for fodder, the plants 
must be cut before the ears are dry, otherwise 
they will lose much of their nutriment. Com 
harvesters are now in general use on the large 
farms (See Corn Harvester). The most 
complete of these machines not only cut the 
stalks, but break the ears and remove the husks 
from them at the same time. 

Corn is one of the most valuable food plants 
in the world and is eaten by more people than 
any other grain except rice. When ground 
into meal it can be served in a great variety of 
ways. By cracking the kernels hominy is made, 
which is cooked by boiling and usually eaten 
in milk. By soaking the kernels in a weak 
lye and rubbing them, the outside coating or 
hull is removed, forming hull com, which is now 
canned in large quantities and extensively used 
for food. But the most extensive uses of com 
are in the manufacture of starch, glucose and 
alcoholic liquors. Com oil is made from the 
germs, which are taken from the kernels in the 
manufacture of starch and glucose, and is used 
for burning and other purposes. Com is also 
a most valuable fodder and may be fed either in 
the ear or when ground into meal. The stalks 
are of equal value with hay, but need to be cut 
or shredded and are improved by steaming and 
mixing with some concentrated food. Green 
corn is extensively used as fodder in localities 
where pasturage is scarce, and in nearly all dairy 
countries it is raised in large quantities for ensi¬ 
lage. 

The United States raises four-fifths of the corn 
produced in the world. The annual crop aver¬ 
ages about 2,250,000,000 bushels, valued at over 
$700,000,000. Corn-raising forms the most 
extensive agricultural industry of the country, 
the income from this crop exceeding that from 
wheat and cotton combined, our two next 
largest crops. The leading corn-producing 
states are Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska and Kansas, 
though it is raised in quite large quantities in 
other states of the Mississippi Valley. Foreign 
countries producing com in considerable quanti¬ 


ties are Canada, Argentina, Austria-Hungary, 
Italy, Russia and Egypt. See Glucose; Starch; 
Grains. 

Corn Crake, a name given in England to a 
pretty, reddish-brown bird, with dark streaks 
along the center of its feathers, and with a 
whitish breast. It is one of the rails and is a 
favorite bird in early summer. Its name has 
been acquired by its clear little note of crake, 
crake. 

Cornea, kor’ne ah. See Eye. 

Corneille, korna'y’, Pierre (1606-1684), 
one of the greatest of French dramatists. Previ¬ 
ous to 1636 he had published various comedies 
and tragedies, which, while they were far superior 
to the dramas then on the stage, had not estab¬ 
lished his claim to a high rank. But in 1636 
appeared his famous Cid, and at once he was 
recognized as the greatest dramatist which 
France had thus far produced. After the Cid, 
Horace, Cinna and Polyeude appeared in rapid 
succession, works which show Corneille’s genius 
at its best. The works which followed these 
added little to his fame. Corneille observed 
in his tragedies the three unities of the Greeks, 
making his action take place within twenty-four 
hours and within one town, and relating every 
incident to a central plot. 

Cor'nel, a name given to various plants 
which belong to the genus Cornus, of which 
there are about twenty species, mostly natives 
of the northern hemisphere. The English 
species, known as the cornelian cherry, is a small 
shrub, with greenish flowers and an oblong fruit, 
which has a sour but rather agreeable taste. In 
the United States none of these plants are cul¬ 
tivated as a fruit tree. The common dogwood 
is a small tree, which in early spring puts forth 
clusters of small green flowers, each cluster 
having four large white bracts beneath it, giving 
to the whole cluster the appearance of one large, 
handsome flower. No tree makes a pleasanter 
impression in early spring, as these flowers 
precede the leaves by some time. In the northern 
United States a little herb known as the bunch 
berry, or dwarf camel, grows to a height of three 
or four inches and bears red, fleshy berries, in 
the midst of a whorl of green leaves. There are 
a number of other native species of dogwood, 
but none of them is particularly noticeable or 
attractive, though the red twigs of one species 
make a handsome showing in the swamps during 
early spring. 

Corne'lia, a Roman matron, the daughter of 
Scipio Africanus the Elder, and the mother of 


Cornelian 


Com Laws 


Tiberius and Caius Gracchus. Her sons were 
educated under her supervision, and much of 
their lofty character was doubtless due to her 
training. When asked at one time to show her 
jewels, she led forward her sons, with the words, 
“These are my jewels.” On a statue erected 
to her memory are the words “ Cornelia, Mother 
of the Gracchi.” 

Come'lian. See Carnelian. 

Come'lius, Peter von (1783-1867), a Ger¬ 
man painter, the founder of modem German 
art. In 1811 he went to Rome, where, in con¬ 
junction with Overbeck, Veit and other associ¬ 
ates, he may be said to have founded a new 
school of German art. He also revived fresco 
painting in imitation of Michelangelo and 
Raphael. His frescoes of the History of Joseph, 
in the house of the Prussian consul of Rome, 
tho<e of scenes from the Iliad and of the Last 
Judgment are especially good. 

Cornell', Ezra (1807-1874), an American 
inventor and philanthropist, bom in New York 
State. He had very little education and began 
his career as a mechanic. His first work was in 
connection with the construction of telegraph 
lines, and the system of stringing wires on 
poles originated from his suggestion. After 
this he began to organize telegraph companies 
and gave much of his time to the construction 
of lines, in which business he amassed a large 
fortune. He is most widely known as the 
founder of Cornell University, at Ithaca, N. Y., 
to which he gave $500,000. See Cornell Uni¬ 
versity. 

Cornell University, an institution of higher 
learning, at Ithaca, N. Y., founded in 1865 by 
Hon. Ezra Cornell. The plan of the whole 
institution was modeled with a view to the prac¬ 
tical tendencies of the times. It comprises the 
following departments: graduate department, 
academic department, college of law, medical 
college, college of agriculture, state veterinary 
college, college of forestry, college of architecture, 
college of civil engineering and Sibley College 
of Mechanical Engineering and Mechanical 
Arts. The faculty numbers about 600, the 
enrollment is about 5000 and the libraries con¬ 
tain 370,000 volumes. John G. Schurman is 
president of the institution. 

Cor'net, a wind instrument of brass, with a 
cup-shaped mouthpiece, resembling the bugle in 
construction, but differing from it in the posses¬ 
sion of three keys, or pistons, which can be 
pressed down by the fingers, giving a wide range 
of tones. It has r. very agreeable tone and is 


much used in orchestras and military bands 
and with the organ. 

Corn Harvester, a machine for cutting corn 
and binding or shredding the stalks. The 
ordinary corn harvester comprises a cutting and 
a binding apparatus. The cutting apparatus 
is similar to that of the reaping machine, except 
that the knives work with a slower motion and 
are usually attached to a chain, instead of to 
a bar, and have their uniform speed maintained 
by a balance wheel (See Reaping Machine). 
The binding device is also an adaptation of the 
apparatus of an ordinary harvester and binder. 
As the corn is cut, the stalks are pushed under 
the binding frame and raised on a circular plat¬ 
form. When the frame has been filled, the 
shock is bound, and an automatic lifting device 
hoists it from the table and sets it on the ground. 
The modem com harvester has a shredder and 
husker combined with it. This consists of an 
inclined box, or trough, the bottom of which 
contains two or four parallel rollers, running 
lengthwise. These rollers contain flanges and 
operate in pairs, the rollers of each pair turning 
inward toward each other. As the stalk slides 
down the incline, the rollers first break off the 
ears, then strip the husks from them. The 
stalk falls through to the ground through one 
opening and the ears through another. This 
machine requires three or four horses to operate 
it. 

Com'ing, N. Y., one of the county-seats ol 
Steuben co., 18 mi. n. w of Elmira, on the 
Chemung River and on the New York Central 
and other railroads. The city has extensive coal 
mines/foundries, railroad car works and manu¬ 
factures of glass, terra cotta goods, brick and 
lumber. The important buildings include the 
city hail, a free academy and Saint Mary’s 
Orphan Asylum. Corning was incorporated as 
a village in 1849 and became a city in 1890. 
Population in 1910, 13,730. 

Corn Laws, a name commonly given to cer¬ 
tain statutes passed by the Parliament of Great 
Britain to regulate trade in grains. The first 
form of interference by legislative enactment 
with the trade in England, beginning soon after 
the Norman conquest, was the prohibition of 
exportation, an expedient used in those times to 
prevent scarcity in a sudden emergency. The 
policy was continued, with slight changes, till the 
time of Charles II, when import duties, upon a 
sliding scale, were for the first time introduced. 
These remained in force till 1846, when Sir 
Robert Peel, influenced by a popular agitation. 


Coras 

and more especially by the Anti-Com-Law 
League, headed by Cobden and Bright, carried 
a measure repealing the duty on imported grain, 
except a nominal sum of one shilling per quarter. 
This also in 1869 was done away with, thus leav¬ 
ing the importation entirely free. 

Coras, small, hard growths in the cuticle or 
true skin, which usually appear upon the feet 
where pressure and friction are brought to bear. 
There are three varieties of corns, recognized by 
the way in which they grow, the most common 
being the fibrous form, in which the surfaces 
are convex and are sunk into the skin, occasion¬ 
ally causing serious changes in the formation of 
the joints. In soft corns the cuticle does' not 
harden, but painful ulcerations appear, which 
need careful attention. Horses, as well as 
mankind, are affected by corns, and often serious 
lameness is caused unless the ailment is treated. 
Poorly set shoes and careless cutting away of 
the outer edge of the hoof may produce the 
trouble. 

Cor'nuco'pia (horn of plenty), a wreathed 
horn filled to overflowing with fruit, flowers and 
grain, used as the symbol of plenty. In art it 
is frequently represented as held by the Goddess 
of Plenty or some other symbolic figure. 

Com'wall, a manufacturing town of Ontario, 
Canada, situated on the north side of the Saint 
Lawrence, 67 mi. s. w. of Montreal, on the Corn¬ 
wall Canal and on the Ottawa & New York 
railway. Many woolen, paper, flour and cotton 
mills take advantage of its water power. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 6598. 

Cornwallis, horn wol’lis, Charles, Marquis 
of (1738-1806), a British soldier and statesman. 
On the outbreak of the American war he sailed 
for America with his regiment, although he was 
opposed to the war. He took part in the Battle 
of Long Island and afterward pursued Wash¬ 
ington through New Jersey; but a part of his 
army was captured at Trenton, and he himself 
was defeated at Princeton. The victory of the 
British at Brandywin^ was due largely to him, and 
he fought against General Gates at Camden 
and General Greene at Guilford. Six months 
later he was besieged in Yorktown and was com¬ 
pelled to surrender, October 19, 1781. In 
1786 Lord Cornwallis went to India as com¬ 
mander in chief and governor general, invaded 
Mysore in 1791 and obliged Tippu Sahib to 
surrender much territory. On his return to 
England he was created a marquis and appointed 
lord lieutenant of Ireland, and again in 1805 
he became governor general of India. 


Corporation 

Cororia. See Flowers. 

Cor'oman'del Wood, the wood of a tree 
found in Ceylon. Its ground color is chocolate 
brown, with black stripes and marks. It is 
hard, turns well and makes very handsome 
furniture. 



COBNWALLIS 


Corot, Jcoro', Jean Baptiste Camille 
(1796-1875), a French artist, born at Paris. 
His merit was not recognized at first, but in 
his later life honors were heaped upon him. 
He painted large sacred pictures, the Flight into 
Egypt and the Baptism of Christ', but his most 
characteristic and successful work was in land¬ 
scape. His woodland scenes, painted for the 
most part at dawn or twilight, in a scheme of 
pale greens and silvery grays, show a singularly 
subtle feeling for this phase of nature, and are 
undoubtedly among the most important con¬ 
tributions of the century to landscape art. 
Among his works are Dance of the Nymphs, 
View of Narni and Bath of Diana. 

Cor'pora'tion, an association of persons 
which the law treats in many respects as if it 
were itself a person. It has rights and duties 
of its own, which are not the rights and duties 
of its individual members. Thus, a corporation 
may own land, but the individual members of 
the corporation have no rights therein A 




Corporation 


Correlation 


corporation, may owe money, but the member?? 
as individuals are under no obligation to pay 
the debt. If, however, an individual has not 
paid up his stock in full, he is liable for the amount 
unpaid. The corporation is not dissolved by 
the death or withdrawal of members, or the 
substitution of other members, but the rights 
and duties of the corporation descend to the 
corporation as newly constituted. This capacity 
of perpetual succession is regarded as the dis¬ 
tinguishing feature of corporations, as compared 
with other societies. The conception of a cor¬ 
poration has been taken full grown from the 
law of Rome. The technical term in Roman 
law corresponding to our corporation is collegium. 

Corporations are divided into two main classes, 
public and private. Public corporations are 
those created for government purposes, such as 
corporations of states, counties, cities, villages, 
or incorporated official boards of officers, as a 
park board. Of private corporations, there are 
four classes: 

1. A corporation for the benefit of the mem¬ 
bers. In such a corporation there is no stock, 
no capital and no pecuniary profit. Examples 
are social, artistic, scientific, religious and pro¬ 
fessional societies. 

2. Corporations for the pecuniary profit of 
individual members. The basis is a capital 
fund engaged in commercial enterprise. Shares 
of stock are held by stockholders. Such cor¬ 
porations are regulated in the United States 
by statutes, which designate the relations and 
privileges of the corporation. Such corpora¬ 
tions are organized and chartered for specific 
purposes and cannot transact business other 
than that for which they are organized. Exam¬ 
ples are railroads, telegraph and telephone 
companies, insurance and banking corporations. 
The profits are divided pro rata among the stock¬ 
holders. (See Income Tax.) 

3. Corporations for mutual aid and relief. 
The first object is the element of personal mem¬ 
bership and benefit; the division of profit is a 
secondary consideration. Examples are building 
and loan associations, cooperative societies and 
lodges of various kinds. Such corporations 
are generally under state control. 

4. Incorporated trusts. Such corporations 
have a fund set apart for some special purpose, 
held usually by a board of trustees. Examples 
are colleges, hospitals and charitable associations. 

A corporation is usually formed by legislative 
act, and, more and more generally, in accordance 
with a general act, providing a certain set of 


steps for incorporation. It may be dissolved by 
the death of all its members, or of such number 
as leaves not enough to make new elections in 
the way the charter requires; by forfeiture of the 
charter through breach of its conditions, or by 
surrender of the charter. In all such cases the 
lands of the corporation revert to their several 
donors, the creditors, however, if any, being 
entitled in the first place to insist on a sale and 
distribution of the property. 

The power of the majority of shareholders to 
bind the society is one of the first principles of 
corporation law, even in cases where the cor¬ 
poration has a head. The binding majority 
is that of the number present at a corporate 
meeting duly summoned. A corporation has 
power to make such regulations (by-laws) as 
are necessary for carrying out its purposes, and 
these are binding on its members and on persons 
within its local jurisdiction, if it has any. Such 
by-laws must not be at variance with the law 
of the land, nor retrospective in their operation, 
nor unreasonable They must, further, be in 
harmony with the objects of the society and must 
not infringe or limit the powers and duties of its 
officers. See Trusts. 

Corpus Christi, Texas, the county-seat of 
Nueces co., is situated on Corpus Christi Bay at 
the mouth of the Nueces River, 200 mi. s. w. 
of Galveston, and on the Mexican National, the 
San Antonio and the Arkansas Pass railroads. 
The city is an important shipping point for fish 
and other products. Population in 1910, 8222. 

Correggio, kor red!jo, Antonio Allegri 
(1494-1534), a famous Italian painter, bom at 
Correggio, near Modena. Correggio is unrivaled 
in his handling of light and shade, in the grace 
and rounding of his figures and in the beauty of 
their expression. Among his best pictures are 
Night, Saint Jerome, Marriage of Saint Catharine, 
the Penitent Magdalene, the altar pieces of 
Saint Francis, Saint George , Saint Sebastian, 
and several madonnas. 

Cor'rela'tion, in pedagogy, the natural 
relation which different subjects of learning 
bear to one another. The principle of correlation 
was recognized by Pestalozzi, Froebel and 
Herbart, each of whom regarded it as an im¬ 
portant law in education. For a time correlation 
was greatly neglected by educators, but it has 
recently been recognized again and given a 
prominent place in all systems of primary and 
secondary instruction. Correlation considers 
the relation of each subject to other subjects; as, 
the relation of geography to nature study. See 


Correspondence Schools 


Cortez 


Methods op Teaching; also articles on teaching 
the various common branches. 

Correspondence Schools. See Schools, 
Correspondence . 

Corrigan, Michael Augustine (1839-1902), 
a Roman Catholic prelate and a scholar of fine 
attainments, born at Newark, N. J. In 1859 
he graduated from Mount Saint Mary’s College, 
Emmetsburg, Md., and was one of the twelve 
students with whom the American College at 
Rome was begun. In 1863 he was ordained 
priest, was professor in, and afterwards president 
of Seton Hall College, South Orange, N. J. 
In 1873 he was made bishop of Newark and in 
1885 archbishop of New York. 

Corro'sive Sub'limate, the bichloride of 
mercury, a white crystalline solid, a burning 
poison of great strength. The stomach pump 
and emetics are the surest preventives of its 
harmful effects, when accidentally swallowed; 
white of egg is also serviceable in stopping its 
poisonous influence on the stomach. It is a 
powerful antiseptic. 

Cor'ry, Pa., a city in Erie co., 37 mi. s. e. of 
the city of Erie, on the Pennsylvania and other 
railroads. Petroleum is found in the vicinity, 
and there are extensive steel works, machine 
'shops, flour mills, brickyards and manufactures 
of engines, furniture, tools and other articles. 
The city has three valuable mineral springs and 
is the seat of the state fish hatchery. Corry was 
settled in I860. Population in 1910, 5991. 

Cor'sairs, the term used to denote those 
pirates who sailed from Algiers, Tunis, Tripoli 
and the ports of Morocco. The name was also 
given to the vessels used by these pirates. 

Cor'Sica, an island in the Mediterranean, 
100 mi. s. of France, famous as the birthplace 
of Napoleon. It is the fourth in size of the 
islands of the Mediterranean, being about 110 
miles long and 59 miles wide, and having an area 
of 3367 square miles. There are fine forests, 
containing pine, oak, beech, chestnut and cork 
trees, and the mountain scenery is splendid. In 
the plains and numerous valleys the soil is 
generally fertile, but agriculture is in a backward 
state. Mules, goats, horses, cattle and sheep, 
and, among wild animals, the boar, the fox and 
the deer are common. The chief exports are 
wine, brandy, olive oil, chestnuts, fruit and fish. 
The chief towns, Ajaccio, the capital, and Bastia, 
are connected by railway. The island was first 
colonized by the Phoenicians, from whom it 
received the name of Cyrnos. The Romans 
afterward gave it that of Corsica. From the 


Romans it passed to the Goths, from them to 
the Saracens, and in the fifteenth century, to 
the Genoese, who ceded it to France in 1768. 
The British gained control of it in 1794, but 
were obliged to yield it again to France in 1796. 
Population in 1911, 288,820. 

Corsicana , kor se kah'na, Texas, the county- 
seat of Navarro co., 163 mi. n. e. of Austin, on 
the Houston & Texas Central and other rail¬ 
roads. There are many oil wells in the vicinity, 
and the city is quite a manufacturing center. 
It has cottonseed oil mills, brickyards, flour 
mills, grain elevators and manufactories of 
cotton presses and cotton gins. Population in 
1910, 9749. 

Cortel'you, George Bruce (1862- ), an 

American statesman, born in New York and 
educated at Georgetown University and Colum¬ 
bian Law School. For several years he was a 
court reporter in New York and afterwards was 
principal of preparatory schools in that city. In 
1889 he entered the government service and was 
successively private secretary to various officials, 
until November, 1895, when he became stenog¬ 
rapher to President Cleveland. He held this 
place until July, 1898, when he was appointed 
assistant secretary to President McKinley. In 
1900 he was made secretary to the president 
and he was reappointed by President Roosevelt. 
President Roosevelt made him first secretary of 
the department of commerce and labor. In 1904 
he was chairman of the Republican National 
Committee. In 1905 he was made postmaster 
general, and in 1907, secretary of the treasury. 
In 1909 he engaged in business. 

Cortes, kor'tas. See Spain, subhead Govern¬ 
ment. 

Cortez, kor lays', Hernando (1485-1547), 
the conqueror of Mexico, born at Medellin. 
He went to the West Indies in 1504, and in 1518 
he set out from Santiago de Cuba with eleven 
vessels, about 700 Spaniards, eighteen horses 
and ten small field pieces. He landed on the 
shore of the Gulf of Mexico, where he caused 
his vessels to be burned, in order that his soldiers 
might have no other resources than their own 
valor. After meeting stubborn resistance from 
several tribes near the coast, he was able to go 
on his way toward the Aztec capital. Monte¬ 
zuma received him in a friendly spirit and housed 
the Spanish leader hospitably. Cortez learned 
of a conspiracy against him and by trickery 
secured Montezuma as a hostage. The Aztec 
king died, and the Spaniards were driven from the 
city with great loss. It was not until the middle 






Cortland 


Costa 


of 1521 that Cortez was able to re-enter the city, 
for the Aztecs fought stubbornly and well (see 
Montezuma; Aztec). In 1528 Cortez returned 
to Spain, but two years later he was again sent 
out to Mexico, where he remained for ten years. 



HERNANDO CORTEZ 


Cort'land, N. Y., the county-seat of Cort¬ 
land co., 37 mi. s. of Syracuse, on the Tioughnioga 
River and on the Erie and the Lackawanna & 
Lehigh Valley railroads. The manufactures of 
the city include wire and wire products, carriages 
and carriage parts, wall paper and other articles. 
It is the seat of a state normal school. The 
place was settled in 1792. Population in 1910, 
11,504. 

Corun'dum, the earth alumina, as found 
native in a crystalline state. In hardness it is 
next to the diamond. The amethyst, ruby, 
sapphire and topaz are considered varieties of 
this mineral, which is found in India and China, 
usually in the form of a six-sided prism or 
six-sided pyramid. It is nearly pure anhydrous 
alumina, and its specific gravity is nearly four 
times that of water. Emery is a variety of 
corundum. Its color, which is due to traces of 
iron, copper and other metals, may be green, 
blue or red, inclining to gray. Emery is found at 
some places in the United States and Canada. 

Cor'win, Thomas (1794-1865), an American 
lawyer and statesman, born in Kentucky. He 
studied law and began to practice in Ohio, where 


he soon won fame as an eloquent attorney and 
was elected to the legislature, to Congress and 
finally to the governorship. For six years 
following 1844 he was a member of the Senate, 
later secretary of the treasury and finally minister 
to Mexico. He is especially well known for his 
famous speech against the Mexican War, which, 
however, cost him the favor of his constituents. 

Coshoc'ton, Ohio, the county-seat of Co¬ 
shocton co., 69 mi. n. e. of Columbus, on the 
Muskingum River and on the Wheeling & Lake 
Erie and the Pennsylvania railroads. The city 
has machine shops, novelty works and glass and 
other factories. It was settled in 1811 and was 
incorporated in 1833. Population in 1910, 9603. 

Cos'sacks, tribes who inhabit the southern 
and eastern parts of Russia, paying no taxes, 
but performing, instead, the duty of soldiers. 
Writers are not agreed as to the origin of this 
people and of their name, but they now differ 
from the Russians more in their manner of life 
than in blood and lineage. Originally their 
government formed a kind of democracy, at the 
head of which was a chief, or hetman, of their 
own choice. The democracy has gradually 
disappeared under Russian domination. The 
title of chief hetman is now vested in the heir 
apparent to the throne, and all the subordinate 
officers are appointed by the crown. Care, 
however, has been taken not to interfere with 
any arrangements which foster the military 
spirit of the Cossacks. Each Cossack is liable 
to military service between the ages of eighteer 
and fifty, and is obliged to furnish his own hors« 
The Cossacks are the most valuable elements 
in the national army, forming a first-rate irregular 
cavalry that has been one of the mainstays of 
the government in dealing with its rebellious 
subjects or its foreign enemies. In 1570 the 
principal tribe, the Don Cossacks, built their 
principal rendezvous, called Tcherkask, on the 
Don, not far above its mouth. As it was ren¬ 
dered unhealthy by the overflowing of the island 
on which it stood, New Tcherkask was founded 
in 1805, some miles from the old city, and to 
this nearly all the inhabitants removed. The 
province has an area of about 62,000 square 
miles and a population of over one and a half 
million. 

Costa, ko'sta, Sir Michael (1810-1884), an 
Italian-English composer and conductor. He 
studied under Zingarelli and first attained dis¬ 
tinction in 1828 as a tenor singer in a musical 
Droduction at Birmingham, England. Elated 
by his success, he remained in England, and in 


























































■* 



























1, Shipping Cotton. 

2, Blossom. 

3, Calico. 


4, Cotton Plant. 

5, Cotton Oil. 


COTTON 

0. Cotton Fiber. 

7, Boll open. 

8, Cottonseed Meal. 


9, Cottolene. 

10, Spinning Frame. 


11, Loom. 

12, Gin and Press. 

13, Cotton Field. 













Costa Rica 


Cotton 


1847 he became conductor at Covent Garden 
Opera and at other musical festivals. His most 
important works are the oratorios Eli (1855) 
and Naaman (1864) 

Costa Rica, ko'sta re'ca, the most southern 
state of the republics of Central America. Its 
<irea is 18,400 square miles. The country is 
intersected diagonally by the primary range, or 
cordillera, of the isthmus, some peaks of which 
attain elevations of 10,000 to 11,000 feet. There 
are a number of volcanoes, and earthquakes are 
frequent. Costa Rica is said to contain some 
rich gold mines; at present, however, they are 
not worked to a great extent. Silver and cop¬ 
per are also found. The country is extremely 
fertile, coffee, rice and maize being raised on 
the tableland in the interior, and cacao, vanilla, 
sugar, cotton and tobacco being cultivated in 
the low coast regions. The forests are valuable 
and cover a large part of the country. The 
capital is San Jos€, and the twp established 
ports are Punta Arenas, on the Pacific side, 
and Porto Limon, on the Caribbean Sea. From 
1823 to 1839 Costa Rica was a part of the United 
States of Central America. It has been an 
independent republic sin^e 1848. Population, 
estimated at 380,000. 

Cos'ter, Laurens (1370-1440), whose name 
is connected with the origin of printing, was 
born in Haarlem, Holland. His claim to the 
invention of printing with movable types has 
been defended by Dutch scholars. Investiga¬ 
tions by Van der Linde in 1870 and by others 
in 1900 show that his claims are without foun¬ 
dation. See Printing. 

Oos'tume. See Dress. 

Cotopaxi, ho to pak'se, the most remarkable 
volcanic mountain of the Andes, in Ecuador, 
about 60 mi. n. e. of Chimborazo. Its altitude 
has been estimated at 19,500 feet. It is the 
most beautiful of the great summits of the 
Andes. Recent eruptions have occurred, one 
of the most violent in 1768 and one in 1877. 

Cotton, a plant of the mallow family, exten¬ 
sively cultivated for its fiber. The cotton plant 
is closely allied to the marsh mallow and the 
hollyhock. It was originally a tropical plant, 
but cultivation has extended its range to about 
the fortieth parallel on each side of the equator; 
it will not thrive where the mean annual tem¬ 
perature is not over 60°. It requires a soil 
consisting of a sandy loam containing large 
amounts of lime and phosphate, and rainfall of 
not less than forty inches, so distributed as to 
leave a gradually drying season in which to 

47 


mature. The plant most extensively cultivated 
in the United States attains a height of about 
two feet, while that known as sear-island cotton 
may grow as high as eight or ten feet. The 
leaves are dark green, with blue veins. The 
flower resembles a single hollyhock. The seed 
vessel, or fruit, is a round pod called the boll. 
It is this which contains the cottony fiber for 
which the plant is valued. When the seed is 
ripe the bolls burst and the white fiber appears. 

After the land is well plowed, the usual method 
is to bed up the ground in rows from three to four 
feet wide. The seed is dropped in the center of 
these rows, five or six seeds at a time, either in 
narrow furrows or in holes about a foot apart. 
As more than one plant every twelve inches is not 
considered advisable, the plants are thinned out 
after two weeks’ growth. Planting commences 
about March 1st in southern Texas and con¬ 
tinues to the end of May in the Piedmont region 
of North Carolina and other sections as far 
north. Deep cultivation is best for the plant, 
but exhausts the soil. Weeds and grass must be 
carefully kept down. 

Two varieties of cotton, known as the upland , 
or short fiber, and the sea-island, or long fiber, 
are raised in the United States. The upland 
variety is the one generally cultivated, and it 
is from this that the market price is determined. 
The sea-island cotton can be grown only upon 
low lands and takes its name from the fact that 
it was first raised on islands off the coast of 
South Carolina and Georgia. What is known 
as the cotton belt in the United States includes 
South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, 
Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas and Oklahoma, 
including the former Indian Territory. Cotton 
can be raised in nearly all states south of the 
thirty-sixth parallel, north latitude, and east of 
the Rocky Mountains. Texas is the leading 
state in its production and usually produces 
more than any other two states. The annual 
product of the United States is about ten and 
one-third million bales of 500 pounds each. 

As fast as the bolls ripen they must be picked. 
Since only a portion of the bolls ripen at the 
same time, there must be several picking times 
for the field.' Formerly the picking was all done 
by hand labor, but successful cotton-picking 
machines have been invented and are in use in 
large fields. They save considerable expense 
in harvesting the crop. When the cotton is 
picked it is sent to the gin house, where it 
is ginned, or separated from the seeds. The 
fiber is then placed in presses and pressed into 


Cotton 


Cotton Gin 


bales of 500 pounds each. These are bound 
with iron hoops, when they are ready for ship¬ 
ment. The United States raises about four- 
fifths of the cotton grown and supplies the 
markets of Europe as well as the mills in our 
own country. The leading ports from which 
cotton is exported are Galveston, New Orleans 
and Savannah. That retained in the country 
is manufactured in the great cotton mills of 
the New England states and in those more re- 
recently built in North Carolina, South Carolina, 
Georgia and Alabama. 

Cotton has been used since about the eighth 
century b. c. It was known to the Egyptians, 
the Greeks and the Romans, and its cultivation 
was introduced into Europe by the Moham¬ 
medans during the Middle Ages. The European 
cotton is probably a native of India, but the 
plant i 3 also native to America. When this 
continent was discovered the inhabitants of 
Mexico and Peru had attained a good degree 
of skill in raising cotton and manufacturing it 
into cloth. The planting of cotton began in 
the Southern states soon after the settlement of 
the older colonies, but the expense of separating 
the fiber from the seed was so great that cotton 
was not a profitable crop. In the latter part 
of the seventeenth century the invention of the 



FIRST COTTON GIN 


power loom and the mule jenny for spinning 
so increased the facilities for manufacturing 
cotton goods that enough cotton could not be 
raised to supply the demands of English manu¬ 
facturers. In 1793 the cotton gin was invented 
by Eli Whitney (See Cotton Gin; Whitney, 
Eli). This machine enabled one man to do 
more in separating the cotton from its seeds 
than a hundred men could accomplish by hand 
labor, and it revolutionized the cotton industry. 
Of all the fibers used in the manufacture of cloth, 
cotton is the most extensively employed. It can 


be made into almost all grades of fabric, from 
the heavy canvas to the most delicate muslin. 
It is easily dyed to almost any tint or hue, and 
fabrics made from it are reasonably durable. 
These qualities, combined with its cheapness, 
create for it a universal demand. But the fiber 
is not the only valuable part of the cotton plant. 
The seeds are used in the manufacture of cotton¬ 
seed oil, and the cake from which the oil has been 
pressed is ground into a meal that is used as 
fodder and as a fertilizer for cotton lands. 

Destructive Insects. Cotton is subject to 
damage and destruction by a number of insects, 
the worst being the cotton worm and the boll 
weevil. The worm is the larva of a moth having 
a reddish-brown body and brown and gray 
wings. The worm feeds upon the leaf and 
destroys the foliage of the plant. The boll 
weevil is the larva of an insect that lays its eggs 
on the growing boll. The larvae bore into the 
boll and attack the seeds and fiber, spoiling the 
fiber for spinning. The United States Depart¬ 
ment of Agriculture has given much attention to 
the extermination of these pests. See Cloth, 
Spinning; Weaving. 

Cotton, John (1585-1652), a Puritan clergy¬ 
man and profound scholar, bom at Derby. 
He was tutor at Cambridge, had a charge in 
Lincolnshire about 1612, and when summoned 
to appear before Laud in 1633 because of his 
Puritan views, he fled to Boston, New England, 
and preached there till his death. Cotton was 
the author of a catechism, forms of prayer and 
other works, and in a controversy with Roger 
Williams he defended the right of civil authority 
to interfere in religious matters. 


Cotton Gin (a corruption of cotton engine). 



BATTERY OF MODERN COTTON GINS 


a machine for separating cotton fiber fvom its 
seeds. The cotton gin was invented by Eli 













Cottonseed Oil 


Counter-Reformation 


Whitney in 1793. The original machine con¬ 
sisted of a wooden cylinder, into which were 
fastened strong wire hooks resembling the teeth 
of a saw. The points of these hooks passed 
between vertical wires held by a frame, and as 
the cylinder revolved, the teeth drew the fiber 
between the wires and let the seed fall to the 
ground. The cylinder was afterwards replaced 
by saws operating on the same principle. A 
modern gin contains 70 saws and will clean 5000 
pounds of cotton in 12 hours. By diligent labor 
it was possible for one person to separate the 
seeds from one pound of fiber in a day by hand. 
See Cotton; Whitney, Eli. 

Cottonseed Oil, a valuable oil, pressed 
from the seeds of the cotton plant. It is used 
in the manufacture of cottolene, a substitute for 
lard, as a substitute for olive oil and for various 
other purposes. The oil cake of cottonseed is 
a valuable feed for cattle. 

Cougar, koo'gur. See Puma. 

Cough, kojj, usually an involuntary action of 
the muscles of the body, by which foreign sub¬ 
stances are thrown out of the trachea or larynx. 
It really consists in driving a current of air 
forcibly outward through the trachea. Cough¬ 
ing is a symptom of disease when it occurs 
from irritation of the mucous membrane of the 
organs of respiration, and its treatment under 
such circumstances should be conditioned on 
the disease which causes the cough. In pneu¬ 
monia, bronchitis, tuberculosis and catarrhal 
affections of the throat, coughing is a universal 
symptom. 

Coulter, kole'tur, John Merle (1851- ), 

an American botanist, successively professor of 
botany at Hanover College and Wabash College 
in Indiana, president of Indiana State Univer¬ 
sity and head of the department of botany in 
the University of Chicago. Among his publi¬ 
cations are Plant Studies, Manual of Rocky 
Mountain Botany and Handbook of Plant 
Dissection. 

Council, kown'sil, Bluffs, Iowa, the county- 
seat of Pottawattomie co., 4 mi. e. of Omaha, 
near the Missouri River, and on the Union 
Pacific, the Chicago & Northwestern, the Chi¬ 
cago, Burlington & Quincy and other railroads. 
The city has an extensive trade in live stock, 
fruit and farm produce. Its manufactures in¬ 
clude agricultural implements, lumber and paper. 
There are several beautiful parks. It is the seat 
of the Iowa School for the Deaf and the Chris¬ 
tian Home. The city has an excellent school 
system. There are sixteen good school build¬ 


ings, a large number of churches and three 
well-equipped hospitals. In about 1804 Lewis 
and Clark are supposed to have held a council 
here with the Indians; hence the name, Council 
Bluffs. The Mormons settled here for a time, 
but in 1846 they moved to Salt Lake City. 
Council Bluffs was chartered as a city in 1850. 
Population in 1910, 29,292. 

Counterfeiting, kown'tur fit ing, fraudulently 
producing an article in imitation of another, 
for the purpose of inducing the use of the false 
article for the genuine. The term is most com¬ 
monly applied to the imitation of money. In 
the United States the offense is dealt with by 
Federal statute, especially the counterfeiting of 
money, and it constitutes a crime punishable 
by fine and imprisonment. 

Count'erpoint, in music, a term used to 
describe the adding, to a given melody or theme, 
of other melodies, independent of it in movement, 
but related to it by certain rules. When a single 
part is added, the result is known as two-part 
counterpoint. When two points are added, the 
result is three-part counterpoint. When the notes 
of the added parts are of the same value as 
corresponding notes in the original melody, the 
composition is known as simple counterpoint, and 
when more than one note of the added part are 
made equivalent to one note of the original 
melody the resulting composition is called florid 
counterpoint. The term is sometimes used 
synonymously with harmony. The name arose 
from the early system of notation, in which 
points were used for notes; hence one point was 
set opposite another point, punctus contra pundus. 

Counter-Reformation. As the Reformation 
spread, the Roman Catholic Church attempted 
to counteract its influence by adopting certain 
measures to check its growth in those countries 
where it had already gained a hold, to prevent 
its further spread and to abolish abuses that had 
grown up in the Church. To these measures has 
been given the name of Counter-Reformation. 
The question of the reform of abuses had been 
receiving much attention in the Church previous 
to the beginning of the Reformation, but it was 
not until the Council of Trent (1545-1563) that 
any effective work was done toward this end. 
This council formulated a creed and discipline 
which is practically that of the modern Church, 
and which did away with the most flagrant 
abuses. The attempt to check the spread of 
Protestantism led in Italy and Spain to the 
Inquisition. In these two countries Protestant¬ 
ism was easily uprooted, because it had never 


Countersign 

had there more than a feeble existence. In 
Bohemia it was abolished only by means of the 
Thirty Years’ War, and in a number of other 
countries, particularly in the Netherlands, the 
attempt to replace it with Catholicism led to 
serious wars. See Reformation. 

Countersign, a private signal, word or 
phrase given to soldiers on guard, with orders 
to let no man pass unless he first give that sign; 
a military watchword. 

Coun'ty, originally a district of a country 
subject to a count or earl. In the United States, 
it is now a civil district, corresponding with shire 
in England and Scotland, constituting in itself 
a unit of local government, and divided into 
smaller units, usually called towns or townships. 
See United States, subhead Government, Local. 

Coup£, koo pay", a four-wheeled, inclosed 
carriage, with a low body and an outer seat for 
the driver. The term is often used very loosely 
and applied to broughams and cabs. 

Coupling, kup'ling, in machinery, a contriv¬ 
ance for connecting one portion of a system of 
shafting with another. A common form is the 
flange or plate coupling, which consists of two 
flanges, separately fitted onto the two ends of 
the lengths of shaft to be connected, and firmly 
secured together by screws or bolts. The most 
useful kinds of couplings are those that are adjust¬ 
able, or that can be readily put on and off. The 
term is also applied to an organ register, by which 
two or more rows of keys can be connected by 
a mechanism, so that they can be played together. 

Court Fool, a name given to the professional 
jesters who were common at courts during 
ancient and medieval times. Such persons were 
known in the time of Philip of Macedon, but 
they formed a more important part of court life 
during the Middle Ages than at any other time. 
The fool dressed in gay colors, with a cap orna¬ 
mented with bells and surmounted with ass’s 
ears, carried a scepter, usually ornamented with 
bells, and wore a large collar. The Stuart kings 
were the last English kings to have court jesters, 
but at the Russian court such personages existed 
to the nineteenth century, and Marie Antoinette 
of France had a jester just before the Revolu¬ 
tion. Shakespeare in several of his plays, as 
King Lear, As You Like It and Twelfth Night, 
introduces the court fool. 

Court-martial, kort mahr'shal, a court con¬ 
sisting of military or naval officers, for the trial 
of military or naval offenses. In the army of the 
United States there are general courts-martial, 
before which only officers can be tried, and regi- 


Courts 

mental and garrison courts-martial. In the navy 
summary courts-martial are held for the trial of 
petty officers and persons of inferior rating, and 
general courts-martial for the trial of the higher 
officers. 

Court'-plas'ter, black, flesh-colored or trans¬ 
parent silk, varnished over with a solution of 
isinglass and often perfumed with benzoin. It 
is now used for covering slight wounds, but it 
is said to have received its name from the fact 
that at one time the ladies of the court wore it 
on their faces in patches, to make their com¬ 
plexions appear more brilliant. 

Courts, of law, institutions with authority to 
try and punish persons accused of committing 
offenses against the State, the public or indi¬ 
viduals, and to settle controversies. Courts have 
existed from remote times and probably had 
their origin in the executive power possessed by 
kin gs or chiefs, or in the power of pardon be¬ 
longing to priests and other church dignitaries. 
The systems of courts differ among different 
modern nations, but their general powers and 
constitutions are the same, their acts being in 
most cases independent of all other authority and 
their decisions being regarded as final in most 
cases. Courts of England are in four divisions: 
(1) the county courts, which have a large and 
constantly expanding jurisdiction in both civil 
and criminal cases; (2) the high court of justice, 
which consists of twenty-three judges and is 
divided into three divisions: the court of chancery, 
which handles cases of equity, the king’s bench, 
which was originally a criminal court, but now 
includes civil jurisdiction, and the probate, divorce 
and admiralty court, whose jurisdiction covers 
the subjects indicated by its title; (3) the court 
of appeal, which can decide only cases appealed 
from the decisions of lower courts, and (4) the 
House of Lords, which is the supreme judicial, 
as well as the supreme legislative, body of the 
Empire. Within the counties are justices of the 
peace, who are usually country gentlemen of 
high standing, appointed for life to aid in pre¬ 
serving order. On the continent of Europe the 
highest judicial tribunal has generally only the 
power to return the case to a lower court for 
rehearing. 

United States courts include Federal courts, 
controlled by Federal laws, and the state courts, 
controlled by state laws. The lowest Federal 
courts are district courts, which hear cases arising 
under Federal law in certain districts, no one of 
which crosses a state line. These districts are 
grouped together in nine circuits, in each of 


Cousin 

which is held a circuit court and a circuit court 
of appeals. At the head of the whole system is 
the Supreme Court of the United States. The 
courts of the state differ in powers and juris¬ 
diction in the various states. At the foot of the 
whole system are the justices of the peace, who 
try petty criminal and civil suits. In some states 
there are county courts, which hear appeals 
from justices and have original jurisdiction in 
some cases. Next come circuit courts, each of 
which has jurisdiction over several counties and 
hears appeals from the lower courts. Over 
all is the Supreme court of the state, usually a 
court of appeal only, but occasionally having 
original jurisdiction. Cases may be carried 
from the supreme court of the state to the 
Supreme Court of the United States, usually in 
questions involving the interpretation of the 
United States Constitution. See Law; Pro¬ 
cedure; see, also, Vol. V. Civil Government. 

Cousin, koo zaN', Victor (1792-1867), a 
French philosopher, historian and writer, the 
founder of an eclectic school of philosophy. He 
was educated at the Normal School and so dis¬ 
tinguished himself as a student that when but 
twenty-three he was made deputy professor 
of philosophy at the Sorbonne. However, after 
two years he lost his position on account of his 
revolutionary political views and did not resume 
teaching for six years. During this time he 
visited Germany and became acquainted with 
German idealistic philosophy. On resuming 
teaching he became very popular. In 1832 he 
was made a peer of France, and in 1840 he was 
appointed minister of public instruction in the 
cabinet of Thiers. His public career came to a 
close soon after the Revolution of 1848. As a 
philosopher Cousin was not a propounder of any 
new system. The value of his labor consists 
chiefly in the unusual clearness and beauty of 
expression with which he explained the thoughts 
of his great predecessors and contemporaries, 
and in his translation of Plato, which is one of 
the best existing. His historical works consist 
chiefly of biographical sketches of leading 
characters of the seventeenth century. While 
minister of public instruction he made a careful 
investigation of the educational system of 
Germany and embodied the results in a report 
to the French government, which had a marked 
influence on the organization of primary edu¬ 
cation. See Education, National Systems 
of, subhead France. 

Covenanters, kuv'e nan turz. See Cove¬ 
nants. 


Coventry 

Covenants, kuv'e nants, a term used in the 
Bible in several indefinite senses, sometimes 
with the meaning of promise, sometimes in place 
of agreement. Covenants between man and 
man are frequently mentioned, but special 
emphasis is laid upon those between God and 
the Israelite nation, given through Noah, 
Abraham and others. This was a pledge of 
God’s blessing upon the Israelites in return for 
their faith and devotion. 

The same term was used by the Scottish people 
to denote associations or bands of persons joined 
together for mutual support and assistance, 
either in the maintenance of a principle or in 
resistance to oppression. Two of these cove¬ 
nants were especially noted, namely, the Na¬ 
tional Covenant of 1638 and the Solemn League 
and Covenant of 1643. The first had for its 
object the maintenance of the Presbyterian or 
Reformed religion and grew out of the fear in 
Scotland that Charles I would introduce the 
English Book of Common Prayer and increase 
the power of the Scottish bishops. The nobles 
opposed the latter act because of their jealousy 
of the bishops and their fear that Charles I would 
attempt to recover Church lands. The Commons 
opposed the introduction of the Book of Prayer, 
first because it was English; and second, because 
it seemed to be a step in the direction of popery. 
The Solemn League and Covenant was a contract 
entered into between the General Assembly of 
the Church of Scotland and commissioners in 
the English Parliament, according to which Scot¬ 
land was to furnish an army to help the English 
against Charles I, upon the condition that 
Presbyterianism be made the established religion 
in England, Scotland and Ireland. Both cove¬ 
nants were abrogated after the restoration of 
the Stuarts in 1660, and their adherents were 
severely criticised and regained freedom of wor¬ 
ship only after the revolution of 1688. 

Co vent, kuv'ent, Gar'den, a large market 
place in London, which was originally a garden 
belonging to the abbot and monks of West¬ 
minster. In the seventeenth century it was a 
very fashionable part of town and was not used 
as a market until 1656. In 1828 the present 
buildings were erected by the duke of Bedford, 
whose family had received the land as a gift of 
the crown. 

Coventry, kuv'ent ry, a city of England in 
the county of Warwickshire, 85 mi. n. w. of 
London. It is also the Parliamentary and 
municipal borough for this county. Coventry 
is a place of great antiquity. In 1043 Earl 


Coventry 

Leofric and his wife, Lady Godiva, founded 
here a Benedictine monastery, and many religious 
mysteries and pageants were acted before the 
king in the fifteenth century. Henry VIII 
destroyed this abbey and the ancient walls which 
surrounded the city. To-day there are several 
fine churches. Saint Michael’s being the largest 
parish church in England. It is a prosperous 
manufacturing city, and owing to its rapid indus¬ 
trial growth the boundaries have been extended. 
Its chief manufactures are bicycles, ribbons, 
watches and fringes. Population in 1911,106,377. 

Coventry, R. I., a town in Kent co., 13 mi. 
s. w. of Providence, on the New York, New 
Haven & Hartford Railroad. It is in an agricul¬ 
tural district and has manufactures of cotton 
and woolen goods. The town was incorporated 
in 1871. Population in 1910, 5848. 

Coverdale, kuv'ur dale, Miles (1488-1568), 
an English Bible translator. At the beginning 
of the Reformation he was in an Augustinian 
monastery at Cambridge, but he soon adopted 
the doctrines of the Reformation and became 
their very enthusiastic supporter. In 1535 he 
published the first complete English translation 
of the Bible, and the Psalms of his translation 
are still used in the Book of Common Prayer. 
In 1550 Coverdale was made bishop of Exeter. 
He held this office until 1553, when, on the 
accession of Mary, he was thrown into prison. 
The next year he was released and obliged to 
leave England, but after the accession of Eliza¬ 
beth he returned. 

Covington, kuv'ing ton, Ky., the county-seat 
of Kenton co., at the junction of the Ohio and 
the Licking rivers, opposite Cincinnati and on 
the Louisville & Nashville, the Chesapeake & 
Ohio and other railroads. The city is connected 
with Cincinnati and Newport by bridges, one to 
Cincinnati being a notable suspension bridge 
2250 feet long. The place is a residence town 
for many Cincinnati business men. There are 
many handsome private dwellings and public 
buildings, among which are a public library, a 
fine Federal building, Notre Dame Academy 
and a beautiful cathedral. There are extensive 
distilleries, cotton and woolen mills, packing 
establishments and glass factories. The city was 
settled in 1812 and was chartered in 1834. 
Population in 1910, 53,270. 

Cow. See Cattle. 

Cow'age. See Cowitch. 

Cow'berry, the popular name for the small 
red huckleberry, edible only when cooked. See 
Huckleberry. 


Cow Parsnip 

Cow'bird or Cow Bunting, an American 

bird of the starling family, which resembles the 
European cuckoo in that it lays its eggs in the 
nests of other birds and leaves them to be 
hatched by the foster parent. While a single 
bird lays several eggs, it has never been known 
to deposit more than one in the same nest. 
The small birds whose nests are used for this 
purpose do not usually seem to notice the differ¬ 
ence, and the young cowbird, being larger, 
secures most of the food intended for the true 
children. Sometimes, however, the yellow 
warblers and other small birds recognize the 
presence of the intruding egg and abandon the 
nest or seal it over and build another upon the 
top of the old one, rejecting not only the strange 
egg but all of their own, as well. From its 
peculiar habit of making no nest, the cowbird is 
sometimes called the lazy bird. The cowbird is 
migratory and spends its winters regularly in 
the Carolinas and Georgia. The birds are to 
be seen usually in small flocks accompanying 
cattle, feeding on seeds and worms. There are 
usually more males than females in a flock. 

Cow'itch, Cowhage or Cow'age, the hairs 
of the pods of certain leguminous plants which 
grow in the East and West Indies. The hairs 
are stiff and brittle, with finely serrated tips, 
which enables them easily to penetrate the skin, 
where they produce an intolerable itching. They 
are employed medicinally. 

Cow'ley, Abraham (1618-1667), an English 
poet of great celebrity in his day, born in Lon¬ 
don. He was educated at Saint John’s College, 
Oxford. He engaged actively in the royal cause, 
and when the queen was obliged to leave Eng¬ 
land Cowley accompanied her. For nearly ten 
years he was absent from his native country, and 
it was principally through him that the corre¬ 
spondence was maintained between the king 
and queen. Besides his epic, Davideis, and 
several elegies which are among his best 
work, he wrote numerous love poems, which to 
readers of the present day seem stilted and 
artificial. 

Cow Par'snip, a large, coarse plant of the 
parsley family, that grows to a height of from 
three to six feet and bears handsome leaves and 
large clusters of small white flowers. Though 
rather striking in appearance, the cow parsnip 
becomes a troublesome weed if allowed to grow 
in damp soil near the water. There are a num¬ 
ber of different species, but none of them is 
especially valuable, though one or two are used 
for fodder or as a substitute for celery. 


Cowpens 


Cox 


Cow'pens, Battle of the, a battle of the 
American Revolution, fought in Spartansburg 
co., S. C., near King’s Mountain, January 
17, 1781. The English force of 1100 under 
Tarleton was opposed by a thousand Americans 
under Morgan and other partisan leaders. The 
British army was attacked on both flanks simul¬ 
taneously, and the whole force ; with the excep¬ 
tion of 270, was captured or killed. The Ameri¬ 
cans lost but 12 killed and 61 wounded. 

Cow'per, William (1731-1800), an English 
poet. He lost his mother when he was but six 
and was placed at a school in Hertfordshire, 
from which, on account of rough treatment 
from one of his schoolmates, he was removed 
when ten years of age. He left Westminster 
School at eighteen, with a fair reputation for 
classical learning and with a horror of the school 
discipline which he afterward expressed in his 
Tirocinium. He was then apprenticed for three 
years to a solicitor, and at the expiration of his 
service he took chambers in the Middle Temple. 
In 1754 he was called to the bar. The interest 
of his family procured for him the post of clerk 
to the House of Lords; but having to appear for 
examination at the bar of the House, his nervous¬ 
ness was such that on the very day appointed 
for the examination he resigned the office and 
even attempted suicide. Soon afterward he 
became insane, and from December, 1763, to 
June, 1765, he remained under the care of 
Doctor Cotton at Saint Albans. The skill and 
humanity of that gentleman restored him to 
health, and he went to live in Huntingdon. 
Here he became acquainted with Mr. and Mrs. 
Unwin, in whose house he lived for some time. 
When Mr. Unwin died, Mrs. Unwin moved with 
Cowper to Olney, and here she carefully tended 
him through a second attack of his malady. In 
1776 he commenced a poem on the Progress of 
Error, which he followed by three other poems, 
Truth, Table Talk and Expostulation. These, 
with some others, were published in a volume 
in 1782. One of his friends. Lady Austen, 
suggested The Task, which on its publication in 
1785 made Cowper famous. It had a real effect 
in helping to bring into poetry a spontaneity 
and a feeling for natural beauty, in contrast to 
the artificiality of most of the poetry of the 
eighteenth century. The Diverting History of 
John Gilpin, by which Cowper is perhaps best 
known, is also due to the suggestion of Lady 
Austen. The translation of Homer, begun in 
1784, occupied him for the next six years, and 
was published in 1791. He removed during its 


progress from Olney to Weston. In the begin¬ 
ning of 1794 he was again attacked with insanity. 
The revision of his Homer and the composition 
of some short pieces occupied the latter years 
of his life. 

Cow'pox, a disease which appears on the teats 
of the cow. in the form of eruptions. This is 
the same disease as smallpox in man, and the 
fluid from cowpox eruptions injected into human 
beings gives them a mild form of the disease 
and protects them from its virulent forms. See 
Vaccination; Smallpox. 

Cow'rie or Cow'ry, the shell of a small mol- 
lusk, which in some parts of Africa and in many 
parts of southern Asia is used for coin. The 
beauty of these shells has given them a place 
among ornaments, and both civilized and unciv¬ 
ilized nations have always used them. The 
shells which are used as currency are found 
principally in the Philippine Islands, and they 
vary in value in different localities. 

Cow'slip. In England this name is given to 
the primrose, a pretty little herb found in pas¬ 
tures and meadows. It has a cluster of buff- 
yellow, scented flowers, in the midst of a rosette 
of spreading leaves. In the United States the 
marsh marigold, a large yellow-flowered plant 
of the buttercup family, is called cowslip. This 
grows in swampy places, and in early spring its 
leaves and stems are often gathered for greens. 
The flowers are a bright yellow. The beautiful 
plant of the primrose family, known in the 
western states as the shooting star, is called the 
American cowslip, while the Virginian cowslip 
belongs to the borage family and is known as 
the bluebell, or lungwort. 

Cow Tree, a name of various trees having 
an abundance of milky juice; especially, of a 
South American tree, which, when wounded, 
yields a rich, milky, nutritious juice in such 
abundance as to render it an important article 
of food. This fluid resembles in appearance 
and quality the milk of a cow. The tree, which 
is common in Vehezuela, grows to the height 
of 100 feet. The leaves are leathery, about 
one foot long and three or four inches broad. 

Cox, David (1783-1859), an English land¬ 
scape painter, the greatest English water-colorist, 
born in Birmingham. His works are chiefly 
of English and Welsh scenery. Cox was the 
most important of the followers of Constable 
and almost equaled that painter. His works 
show attention to general effects and neglect 
of small details. He is especially praised for 
his treatment of light and shade and for his 


Cox 

skill in colors. Among the best specimens of 
his art are Hay Field, Bolton Abbey and Peace 
or War. 

'Cox, Kenyon (1856- ), an American 
painter, born in Warren, Ohio. After studying 
in the United States he went to Paris, where he 
continued his study under the instruction of 
Carolus Duran and Ger6me. Among his best 
pictures are a portrait of the sculptor Augustus 
Saint Gaudens and An Eclogue. Examples of 
his work in mural decoration are to be seen in 
the Congressional Library in Washington and 
at Bowdoin College. 

Cox, Palmer (1840- ), an American 
artist and author, born in Quebec. He lived 
for some time in California and began his liter¬ 
ary work with contributions to the Golden Era 
and other western papers, but in 1875 he moved 
to New York City. He is especially known by 
his drawings and his verses of the Brownies. 

Cor, Samuel Sullivan (1824t- 1889), an 
American statesman and author, bom in Zanes¬ 
ville, Ohio. He graduated from Brown Univer¬ 
sity, entered the law, then became a journalist, 
and removed to New York City in 1866. Two 
years later he was elected to Congress r,nd 
served until 1882. In 1885 he was appointed 
minister to Turkey, resigned the foilxving year, 
and in November, 1886, again beca nv, con¬ 
gressman. He was the author of a very valuable 
work, Three Decades of Federal Legislation 
(1855-1885). 

Coxe, Arthur Cleveland (1818-1896), an 
American Protestant Episcopal bishop, born at 
Mendham, N. J. s and educated at the Univer¬ 
sity of New York and the General Theological 
Seminary. After completing his education he 
became rector at Hartford, Conn., at Baltimore, 
Md., and in New York City. In 1865 he was 
appointed bishop of Western New York. He 
was the founder of the Christian Literature 
Company and edited numerous theological and 
other works which they published. Bishop 
Coxe was a prolific writer, both in prose and 
poetry. Among his best-known works are 
Christian Ballads; Apollos, or the Way of God, 
and The Institutes of Christian History. 

Cox'ey’s Army, a band of laboring men 
organized through the efforts of an agitator, 
Jacob S. Coxey, of Ohio, in 1894. The so-called 
army, known as the Commonweal Army, con¬ 
sisted of 336 men. It marched to Washington 
and there attempted to impress the government 
with the necessity of heeding the demands of 
labor, but its leader was arrested upon a trivial 


Crab 

charge and lodged ir jail. His followers soon 
dispersed. 

Coyote, Jci'ote or Hot e, the American prairie 
wolf. It is the American representative of the 
old world jackal. It is about forty inches long. 



COYOTE 


with a tail about eighteen inches long. The 
voice is a kind of snapping bark, whence the 
name of barking wolf. 

Crab, a popular name for a large group o£ 
small animals, of which there are about one 
thousand species. The head and breast are 
united, and the whole is covered with a strong 
shell. The mouth has several pairs of strong 
jaws, in addition to which the stomach has its 
internal surface studded with hard projections 
for the purpose of grinding the food. The liver 
is the soft, rich, yellow substance usually called 
the fat of the crab. The young crabs throw off 
their covering at intervals as they increase in 
size, but after they are full-grown, three or four 
years at least may pass without a change of this 
character. The first pair of limbs are not 
used for locomotion, but are furnished with 
strong claws or pincers, and the right claw is 
generally larger than the left. The crab’s eyes are 
compound and are placed upon stalks, which 
sometimes are over an inch in length. Crabs 
generally live on decaying animal matter, 
though some live on vegetable substances, as 
the racer crabs of the West Indies, which suck 
the juice of the sugar cane. Crabs inhabit both 
sea water and fresh water; some live on the 
land, only going to the sea to spawn. Several 
species are highly esteemed as food, notably the 
blue crab of the eastern United States, and the 
great or edible crab of Europe, and fishing for 
them constitutes an important industry on 
many coasts. See Crawfish; Hermit Crab; 
Horseshoe Crab; Fiddler Crab. 


Cracow 


Crane 


Cracow, kray'ko, once the capital of the 
kingdom of Poland, now the capital of the 
Austrian province of Galicia. It is still the 
center of the intellectual life of the Polish 
people, and in historic associations no Polish 
city or town is its rival. Here, in the six- 
centuries-old Stanislaus Cathedral, the kings 
were crowned, and here lie buried the nation’s 
heroes—John III Sobieski, Kosciusko, Ponia- 
towski and Mieckiewicz. At the third parti¬ 
tion of Poland, Cracow fell to Austria, but 
during the Napoleonic era it was held first by 
the French and then by the Russians. From 
1815 to 1846 it was a free and independent city, 
under the protection of Prussia, Russia and 
Austria, but in the latter year a rebellion was 
made the pretext for annexation to Austria. 

Situated on the left bank of the Vistula, which 
separates it from Russian soil, Cracow is of 
great strategic importance, both in a commer¬ 
cial and in a military sense. From it spread 
out the main railway lines running into the 
heart of Germany and Austria. Its trade, by 
rail and water, is chiefly in lumber, grain, cattle 
and salt, the salt mines, eight miles away, being 
among the largest in Europe. The city’s ancient 
walls have long been torn down, but it is 
protected by modern fortifications of great 
strength. In 1914 the Russians, by captur¬ 
ing Lemberg and Przemysl, for a time 
threatened the security of Cracow, but in the 
next year the recapture of these cities by the 
Austro-German forces made the siege of Cracow 
a remote possibility. Population in 1910,151,886. 

Crad'dock, Charles Egbert. See Mur- 
free, Mary Noailles. 

Craik, Dinah Maria Mulock (1826-1887), 
an English novelist, known chiefly for her story 
John Halifax, Gentleman, whicn has always 
been very popular and has been widely trans¬ 
lated. Among her less generally known novels 
are The Ogilvies, Olive, A Life for a Life and 
Mistress and Maid. 

Crake'berry. See Crowberry. 

Cran'berry, a native fruit of northern Asia, 
Europe and North America. It is also called 
moss berry or moor berry, as it grows only on peat 
bogs or swampy land, usually among masses of 
sphagnum. The berry, when ripe, is globose 
and dark red and is a little more than a quarter 
of an inch in diameter. The American cran¬ 
berry, a native of the United States and Canada, 
has larger berries than the European species 
and is extensively cultivated in some localities. 
It thrives best in swampy lands. 


Crane, a machine for raising and moving 
heavy weights. The most common form of 
crane is the ordinary derrick (See Derrick). 
The power may be applied to a crank by hand, 
or to a train of wheelwork by a steam engine or 
an electric motor. The hoisting engine is in 
ordinary use for furnishing power for cranes 
of this sort, where buildings or other structures 
are being erected. The weight is hoisted by 
winding a rope or cable around a cylinder. In 
shipyards, steel mills, locomotive works and 
other places where heavy weights have to be 
moved from one part of the yard or factory to 
another, the traveling crane is employed. This 
consists of a hoisting device similar to that used 
on the ordinary crane, with the exception that 
no jib is used. This device is mounted on a 
traveling table, which runs on rails supported 
on the opposite sides of the building, or on a 
trestle constructed for the purpose. These 
cranes are usually operated by electric motors. 
One motor operates the hoisting machinery, 
and another operates the machinery by which 
the crane is moved over the track. Cranes 
of this pattern are constructed with sufficient 
power to lift an entire locomotive and carry it 
from one part of the factory to another, where 
it is set down as carefully as though it weighed 
but a few pounds. 

Crane, the common name of a number of 
different species of wading birds, generally of 
rather large 
size and re- 
markable 
for their long 
necks and stilt¬ 
like legs, which 
fit them for liv¬ 
ing in marshes 
and lands that 
are frequently 
overflowed. The 
food of cranes is 
partly of vege¬ 
table matter, 
but they also eat 
insects, worms, 
frogs, reptiles, 
small fish and 
the spawn of 
various aquatic 
animals. They 
nest among the bushes or in the marshes and lay 
but two eggs. The cranes spend their summers in 
the north temperate regions, but on the approach 



Crane 


Cranial Nerves 


of winter they make exceedingly long migrations 
to the south. They feed chiefly in the early part 
of the day and spend the rest of the time often 
dozing, standing on one leg, with the head drawn 
back on the shoulders. Some species are easily 
domesticated and are regarded as sacred in parts 
of Japan and India. Some species carry beautiful 
crests of long, slender feathers, and most of them 
are noted for the peculiar dances and antics 
through which they go during their courtships. 
The demoiselle crane, found in Central Asia and 
in winter in Africa, is especially noted for its 
graceful performances. In the United States 
there are three species, the whooping crane being 
the largest. The windpipe of this crane is 
coiled at the lower end into the crevices of the 
breast bone and is sometimes eight feet in 
length. This accounts for the peculiar resonance 
of the bird’s cry. 

Crane, Stephen (1870-1900), an American 
novelist, born in Newark, N. J. He studied at 
Lafayette College and Syracuse University 
and then began newspaper work. While thus 
engaged, he wrote and published, at his own 
expense, Maggie, a Girl of the Streets, a realistic 
novel of street and slum life. The Red Badge 
of Courage, which eventually came into notoriety, 
was written before the author attained his 
majority. The story deals with a raw recruit 
in battle, and his first fear on confronting the 
foe and hearing the whistle of shot and shell 
are described in a most vivid manner. He was 
able to describe the battle scenes and tactical 
evolutions in such a way as to deceive the critics, 
who declared that such descriptions could only 
have been written by an old veteran. Among 
his other books are The Little Regiment, On 
Active Service and Whilomville Stories. 

Crane, Walter (1845-1915), an English 
painter and engraver, born in Liverpool. Among 
his works are Birth of Venus, The Fate of 
Proserpina, Plato’s Garden, Date Trees on Monte 
Pincio and End of the Year. Crane is specially 
known by his drawings in juvenile subjects, 
among which are Echoes from Hellas, Flora’s 
Feast and Queen Summer. He has also done 
designing for glass windows, tapestries and the 
like and has written on various subjects. 

Crane, Winthrop Murray (1853- ), an 

American manufacturer and politician, born at 
Dalton, Mass. After receiving a public school 
education, he engaged in the manufacture of 
paper. He was Republican lieutenant governor 
of Massachusetts from 1897 to 1899, was elected 
governor in 1903 and was chosen United States 


senator to succeed Senator Hoar in 1904. He 
served until 1913. 

Cra'nial Nerves, the nerves which originate 
at the base of the brain and pass directly from 
these centers to the various organs of the head 
and face and the upper part of the thorax. In 
structure the cranial nerves are more simple 
than the spinal nerves, and in function they 
include both sensory and motor nerves. They 
are arranged in 12 pairs. The first pair is the 
nerve of smell (See Smell). The second pair 
contains the optic nerves, or nerves of sight (See 
Eye; Vision). The third pair has nerve fibers 
distributed to the -muscles of the eyeball, and, 
together with those of the fourth and sixth pairs, 
these nerves produce all the movements of the 
eye, including those of the iris and the eyelids. 
The fifth pair has two roots, containing both 
sensory and motor nerves. This pair divides 
into three branches, the first sending fibers to 
the mucous membrane of the nostrils and the 
muscles of the skin of the forehead and upper 
eyelid, the second sending branches to the lower 
eyelid, the skin of the nose, temples, cheeks, 
upper lip, palate and the teeth of the upper jaw; 
the third divides into three branches and is 
distributed to the side of the head, the external 
ear, the skin of the lower part of the face, the 
mucous membrane of the mouth, the tip of the 
tongue and the teeth and the muscles of the 
salivary glands of the lower jaw. The nerves of 
the seventh pair are distributed to the muscles 
of the face and are composed almost entirely of 
motor fibers, which control the muscles of expres¬ 
sion. This nerve is sometimes called the nerve 
of expression. The eighth pair is the nerve of 
hearing (See Ear). The ninth pair contains 
sensory and motor nerves, and some of its fibers 
constitute the nerves of taste, while others extend 
to the muscles of the pharnyx and the mucous 
membrane at the back of the nose and pharynx. 
Another branch controls the secretions of the 
parotid glands. 

The tenth pair, generally known as the pneu- 
mogastric nerve, has the longest and most widely 
distributed trunks. The nerves are both motor 
and sensory, and the branches extend to the 
pharynx, esophagus, larynx, windpipe, lungs, 
heart, stomach and intestines, and probably to 
the liver and the kidneys. The motor fibers of 
this nerve control all muscles of these organs. 
The fibers extending to the heart have an 
inhibitory function, and those extending to the 
lungs control respiration. The eleventh pair 
controls the movements connected with swallow- 


Cranmer 


Crawford 


ing and the respiratory movements associated 
with any effort. The twelfth pair are distributed 
to the muscles of the tongue and control its 
movements in swallowing and in speech. 

Cran'mer, Thomas (1489-1556), archbishop 
of Canterbury, famous for the part he played 
in the English reformation during the reign of 
Henry VIII. He was bom at Aslocton. In 
January, 1533, he was appointed archbishop 
of Canterbury. He zealously promoted the 
cause of the Reformation; through him the 
Bible was translated and read in churches, and 
monastic institutions were vigorously suppressed. 
Henry VIII appointed him by will one of the 
Council of Regency to Edward VI. By the will 
of Edward VI. his sister Mary was excluded 
from the crown, and Cranmer upheld the cause 
of Lady Jane Grey. With others who had 
been most active in Lady Jane’s favor, he was 
sent to the Tower when Mary ascended the 
throne. He was tried on charge of treason and 
condemned to die, but was not executed on that 
sentence. In 1554, with Latimer and Ridley, 
he was removed to the common jail on the 
charge of heresy. Cranmer signed several 
recantations, but he finally said he would retract 
all his hand had written in fear of death. He 
was burned at the stake, and when the fire was 
lighted he thrust his hand into it, saying, “This 
hath offended: Oh, this unworthy hand!” 

Cran'ston, R. I., a town in Providence co., 
on the New York, New Haven & Hartford rail¬ 
road. It is a residence place near Providence, 
of which it was a part until 1754. There are 
breweries, vegetable gardens and manufactures 
of cotton goods and wire. The town has four 
village libraries, state reform schools for boys 
and girls, a state prison, an almshouse, an 
insane asylum and a workhouse. Population 
in 1910, 21,107. 

Crape or Crepe, a crinkled, wiry, trans¬ 
parent stuff, made of raw silk, well twisted 
and gummed, and commonly dyed black, to be 
used for mourning garments. It is manu¬ 
factured in Italy, England and France. China 
crape, or crdpe de chine, is a soft, white or 
colored silk fabric, of gauzy texture and wavy 
appearance, used for ladies scarfs, shawls, hat 
trimmings and evening dresses. 

Cras'sus, Marcus Licinius (114-53 b. c.), 
a Roman triumvir, surnamed Dives (the rich). 
He took part with Sulla in the civil war, and as 
praetor in 71 b. c. he defeated Spartacus and 
the revolted slaves at Rhegium. In 70 he was 
elected consul, with Pompey as his calleague, 


but the two shortly came into conflict and were 
not reconciled until 60 b. c., when Caesar induced 
them to form with him the first triumvirate. Five 
years later Crassus again became consul, and, 
obtaining Syria for his province, he made war 
on the Parthians, but was defeated and slain. 

Cravat', a neckcloth, or necktie, worn about 
the collar. The cravat in its modern form 
first came into use when the Croats, called 
Cravates by the French, entered the French 
service in the seventeenth century, wearing this 
piece of dress. The fashion soon spread, and 
cravats were worn by the soldiers and officers, 
the former wearing common cloth or cotton, 
and the latter, elaborate and embroidered 
cravats. Toward the end of the eighteenth 
century and the beginning of the nineteenth, 
the fashion was very extravagant, but changed 
when the simple necktie was introduced, which 
style has since prevailed. 

Craw' fish or Cray'fish, a name of various 
crustaceans. In structure they are very like the 
lobster, and the young are carried under the 
broad tail of the mother 
in the same way as the 
lobsters. The crawfish 
inhabits the fresh waters 
of the United States, 

Europe and the north 
of Asia, and is common 
in some of the streams 
of England, where it is 
considered an excellent 
article of food. It lurks 
under stones or in. holes 
in the banks. Its food 
consists of small mol- 
lusks or fishes, the larvae crawfish 

of insects and almost any sort of animal mat¬ 
ter Some crawfish, by their burrowing habits, 
injure milldams and levees. About thirty 
species are known in America, where they are 
often called crabs. 

Craw'ford, Francis Marion (1854-1909), 
an American novelist. He received his educa¬ 
tion at Concord, New Hampshire, in Trinity 
College, Cambridge, and at Karlsruhe and 
Heidelberg. At Rome he devoted himself to 
the study of Sanskrit, and during 1879 and 1880 
was engaged in press work at Allahabad, where 
he was admitted to the Catholic Church. He 
was selected by the government committee to 
write the national ode at the centennial of the 
American Constitution, Sept. 17, 1887. His 
first novel, Mr. Isaacs (1882), was a book of 



Crawford 


Cream of Tartar 


striking and quite unusual merit and at once won 
for its author popularity. The rich romantic 
elements in certain of the aspects and contrasts 
of modern Oriental life were a distinct discovery 
to worked-out novelists. Among its successors 
are Dr. Claudius, A Roman Singer, Zoroaster, 
The Story of a Lonely Parish, Saradnesca, The 
Witch of Prague, Paul Patoff, Don Orsino and 
Sant’ Ilario. Mr. Crawford possesses imagi¬ 
nation, originality and vigor, with a graceful and 
vivid style and remarkable power of description. 

Crawford, Thomas (1814-1857), an Amer¬ 
ican sculptor, born in New York. He studied in 
Rome and became the pupil of Thorwaldsen. 
His best known works comprise Orpheus and 
Cerberus, Adam and Eve, Hebe and Ganymede, 
Mercury and Psyche and The Indian. He 
executed important works for the National 
government and for the State of Virginia, 
among which is a statue of Liberty in the Cap¬ 
itol in Washington. 

Crawford, William Harris (1772-1834), 
an American statesman, born in Nelson co., 
Va. He removed to Georgia, was admitted to 
the bar in 1798 and in 1800 was appointed to 
revise the laws of Georgia. He was elected to 
the legislature in 1802 and in 1806 to the United 
States Senate. In 1813 he declined the office 
of secretary of war in President Madison’s cab¬ 
inet and was appointed minister to France. 
He returned to this country two years later and 
was made secretary of war and then secretary 
of the treasury, serving through both terms of 
Monroe’s administration. In the presidential 
contest of 1824, Crawford was a prominent 
candidate, being one of three from whom the 
House of Representatives was to choose (since 
no candidate had a majority of electoral votes). 
A stroke of paralysis at about this time ruined 
his chances of election. He was made judge 
of the northern circuit of Georgia in 1827, 
which office he held until his death 

Craw'fordsville. Ind., the county-seat of 
Montgomery co., 40 mi. n. w. of Indianapolis, 
on the Sugar Creek, and on the Terre Haute & 
Indianapolis, the Big Four and other railroads. 
The manufactures of the city include wagons, 
flour, and lumber and foundry products. It is 
the seat of Wabash College and contains a fine 
county courthouse. The place was settled in 
1822 and was incorporated as a city in 1865. 
Population in 1910, 9371. 

Cray' fish. See Crawfish. 

Cray'ons, colored pencils obtained from 
certain mineral substances in their natural 


state, but more commonly manufactured from 
a fine paste of chalk or pipe clay, colored with 
various pigments. Crayons used in lithography 
are commonly made of a mixture of wax, soap, 
resin and lampblack. Colored crayons are 
made by mixing pigments with the chalk. 
Black crayons are made of the finest quality of 
charcoal. A kind of crayon painting is prac¬ 
ticed to some extent, the coloring matter in a 
soft state being rubbed on with the finger. Its 
chief advantages consist in the facility of its 
execution and the soft beauty and richness of 
the coloring. 

Creamery, kreem'ur y, or Butter Factory, 

a factory where butter is made. Creameries 
are organized on three plans: by the associa¬ 
tion of farmers of the neighborhood, who build 
and operate the creamery and share propor¬ 
tionally in its profits; by the formation of a stock 
company, in which the stockholders are patrons, 
and by individuals, who build the creamery, 
buy the milk and sell the butter. The last plan 
is being rapidly extended throughout the coun¬ 
try. Creameries gather both cream and milk 
and pay for each according to the amount of 
butter fat it contains, this being determined by 
a milk or cream tester. The by-product of the 
creamery is skim milk, most of which is returned 
to the patrons or is sold. It is taken to the 
farms and fed to calves or pigs. Dried curd, or 
casein, is also made from it and is of some com¬ 
mercial importance. 

A well-equipped creamery contains apparatus 
for testing the milk and cream, a tank for 
receiving the milk, another for holding the 
cream and a third for the skim milk. The 
machinery consists of a motor, which is usually 
a gas engine, the cream separator, chums and 
butter works. An average-sized creamery will 
use from 8000 to 10,000 pounds of milk in 
a day. and some of the largest have a capacity 
for making fifteen tons of butter every twenty- 
four hours. Creameries are in charge of skilled 
butter-makers, who have usually learned their 
trade at agricultural experiment stations or 
agricultural colleges. See Butter; Dairying; 
Milk. 

Cream of Tar'tar or Potas'sium Bitar'- 
trate exists in graeps, tamarinds and other 
foods. It is prepared from the crystalline crust 
called argol, deposited on the vessels in which 
grape juice has been fermented. The argol is 
dissolved by boiling with water, the mixture is 
filtered and the cream of tartar is allowed to 
crystallize. The commercial product usually 


Creasy 

contains a small percentage of calcium tartrate. 
It is frequently employed in medicine, in dyeing 
wool, to fix colors and as a part of baking 
powder. 

Creasy, kre’sy, Edward Shepherd, Sir 
(1812-1878), an English historian. In 1840 
he was appointed professor of history at the 
London University, and in 1860 he was made 
chief justice of Ceylon, receiving at the same 
time the honor of knighthood. His principal 
work is Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World . 

Crecy, hra se\ a town of France, about 100 
mi. n of Paris, celebrated for the victory gained 
Acre by Edward III over a French army under 
Philip VI, August 26, 1346. About 300,000 of 
Jie French army were slain, including King 
John of Bohemia and many of the nobles. 
The motto Ich dien (I serve), which is borne by 
the Prince of Wales, and the three feathers of 
his crest, are those of King John. These were 
adopted by the Black Prince, son of Edward III, 
after the battle. Population, about 1500. 

Cred'it, in economics, generally speaking, 
the confidence existing between the creditor 
and his debtors, by which the payment of 
amounts due to him is postponed. This con¬ 
fidence may be based on either or both of two 
factors, trust in the honor and ability of the 
debtor, or security deposited by him to assure 
the payment of the debt. A common example of 
the former kind of credit is that of the so-called 
trust or book accounts of retail merchants. 
Credit transactions of the latter kind are usually 
evidenced by a so-called instrument of credit— 
that is, a note, bill, mortgage or bond. Trans¬ 
actions of this latter kind have become common 
in business, for when a debt is evidenced by a 
written instrument, the account can be trans¬ 
ferred from one party to another, and money 
can be raised immediately, even before the debt 
is due. The development of the credit system 
in business is of comparatively recent date, and 
its growth has been favored by several move¬ 
ments, namely, the general raising of moral 
standards incident to advancing civilization, 
and the gradual increase in the rigidity of 
business law, through statutes and judicial 
interpretation, always toward the greater 
security of the creditor. The credit system 
to-day underlies a vast majority of commercial 
transactions. Its advantage lies in the fact that 
by obviating the use of actual money in many 
instances, it frees for investment and other 
commercial purposes funds which otherwise 
would have to be held for use in minor affairs. 


Credit Mobilier 

It is in this way that modem banks have become 
such an important part of the industrial system. 
By collecting wealth which has been lying idle 
in the hands of a great number of persons who 
are either unwilling or unable to make loans, 
they make possible transactions of much greater 
importance, with saving of time, trouble and 
expense. 

The term public credit signifies the confidence 
which men feel in the ability and disposition 
of a nation to pay its debts. The credit of an 
individual or firm refers to the reputation for 
meeting obligations; so the credit of a bank 
depends upon the degree of confidence which 
the community places in its ability to redeem 
its notes. See Banks and Banking. 

Credit, Letter of, an order given by bankers 
or others at one place, to enable a person to 
receive money from their agents at another 
place. It differs from the common check or 
draft, in containing a statement, not of the 
exact amount to be paid, but of an amount 
which the payment shall not exceed. It may 
contain coupons, each of which calls for a cer¬ 
tain amount, in which case it is sometimes 
called a traveler’s note. If it names several 
banks which shall honor drafts, it is known as 
a circular letter of credit, and in this form it is 
much used by travelers. 

Credit Mobil'ier. In 1852 the French 
government sanctioned the foundation of a 
new bank, under the name of the Societe 
Generate de Credit Mobilier, whose object was 
to assist all kinds of industrial enterprises 
through loans upon their personal or movable 
property. It was allowed to acquire shares in 
public companies and to pay the calls made 
upon it, through such investments, by its own 
obligations (or bonds). The operations of the 
society were conducted upon a very extensive 
scale. In 1854 it subscribed largely to the 
government loan on account of the Russian 
War and to various other important public 
undertakings. In 1855 it loaned two su ms to 
the government—one of 250,000,000 francs 
and another of 375,000,000. Its dividends in 
this year amounted to 40 per cent. The public 
became alarmed so that, in 1856, the French 
government deemed it necessary to prohibit the 
carrying out of certain proposed schemes. 
Thereafter the institution rapidly declined; it 
was reorganized in 1871, but never regained its 
former influence. 

The title Credit Mobilier of America was 
adopted by a joint stock company organized 


Cree 


Creeper 


to Pennsylvanin in 1863, with a capital of 
$2,500,000. In 1867 the charter was purchased 
by a company organized for the construction 
of the Union Pacific railroad, and in 1872 it 
became known that several members of Con¬ 
gress, as well as the vice-president, were secret 
stockholders. This fact, together with the 
enormous rights and profits connected with the 
company, led to a congressional investigation, 
which developed a huge attempt at bribery and 
corruption. It was charged that several leading 
advocates of the plan had been bribed by dona¬ 
tions of large blocks of shares in return for their 
influence. As a result, resolutions of censure 
were passed by Congress, and one member was 
sentenced to expulsion, but the sentence was 
never carried out. The scandal, after a time, 
died away, and the road proposed was finally 
built and is now in operation. See Pacific 
Railroads. 

Cree, once one of the largest and strongest 
of the Algonquian tribes, whose home lay 
chiefly in British America, but who often came 
into the United States from Lake Winnebago 
and westward. About 10,000 now remain on 
Canadian reservations. 

Creed, a summary of the articles of Chris¬ 
tian faith. The Apostles’, the Nicene,- the 
Chalcedonian and the Athanasian may be said 
to form the great Catholic creeds of the Church. 
The Apostles’ Creed is so called from the belief 
that it originated with the Apostles themselves. 
The present text dates from the year 500, but 
evidently depends upon an earlier form, which 
may be traced back to about 150 a. d. The 
Nicene, the next oldest creed in the history of 
the Church, was adopted by the Council of Nice, 
325 a d , to settle the controversy concerning 
the dignity and character of Christ, and its 
essence is the expression of the belief that 
‘Christ is of the same substance with the 
Father.” The Creed of Constantinople, which 
supplements the Nicene, emphasizes in par¬ 
ticular the divinity of the Holy Ghost. The 
Athanasian Creed, dating from about the sixth 
century, is so called because it embodies par¬ 
ticularly the Catholic doctrines of the Holy 
Trinity and the incarnation of the Son of God, 
which were so ably upheld by Saint Athanasius. 
These creeds were later supplemented by the 
Councils of Trent and of the Vatican. Besides 
these great creeds, the various Protestant 
churches have their confessions of faith, which 
give a more detailed statement of their doctrines. 
Thus, the Lutheran Church has the Symbolic 


Book of the Evangelical Church', the Church of 
England, the Thirty-nine Articles, and the 
Presbyterians, the Westminster Confession of 
Faith, which is one of the most elaborate of all 
creeds and grew out of the Puritan agitation of 
the seventeenth century. Other modern church 
creeds are chiefly modifications or revisions of 
these, many differing but slightly in essential 
features. 

Creeks, once the strongest indian confederacy 
south of New York, 'excepting the Cherokee. 
They occupied a large portion of Georgia and 
Alabama and probably numbered 30,000. They 
built log houses in permanent villages. During 
the Revolution they sided with the English 
and in the War of 1812 a part of them rose 
against the Americans and indulged in the 
terrible massacre at Fort Mims. In 1814, in a 
fierce battle at Horseshoe Bend, they were com¬ 
pletely defeated. They stubbornly resisted 
every effort of the government to educate them 
and refused to give up their lands until they 
were forced to do so. They are now living in 
Oklahoma as the Creek Nation, and number 
about 8000 Indians, 7000 negroes and 25,000 
Whites. See Five Civilized Tribes. 

Creep'er, a name given to almost any small 
bird that runs up and down the trunks of trees 



BROWN CREEPER 


looking for insects. The common brown creeper 
of the United States is a good example. It 
builds its nest usually in holes or in the crevices 
of trees, and it is remarkably active in its habits. 
It begins at the bottom of a tree and works 
rapidly up, searching all the crevices of the 


Cremation 


Cretaceous System 


bark. When it decides to leave the tree, it flies 
to the bottom of another and again works its 
way up, using its sharp-pointed tail feathers to 
push itself along. 

Crema'tion, the burning of the bodies of 
the dead, a practice which was frequent in 
ancient times, instead of burial, and which has 
recently been advocated on hygienic grounds by 
many scientific men in Europe and America on 
account of the dangers to the living caused by 
the presence of graveyards and cemeteries. 
Various methods of cremation have been pro¬ 
posed; the great difficulty is to consume the body 
without permitting the escape of noxious exhala¬ 
tions, and without mingling the ashes with 
foreign substances. In Siemens’s process, a 
modification of a plan of Sir Henry Thompson, 
this is successfully accomplished. Cremation 
societies have befen instituted in every European 
country and in many states of the Union. 

Cremona, kra mo'na, a city of Italy, capital 
of a province of the same name, 48 mi. s. e. of 
Milan, on the left bank of the Po River. The 
most remarkable building is the cathedral, be¬ 
gun in 1107 and finished in 1492. Near by, con¬ 
nected with the cathedral, is the Torazzo, one 
of the loftiest and most beautiful towers in Italy. 
Cremona has now a number of successful manu¬ 
factories of silk, earthenware and, especially, of 
mustard. The city is especially famous as being 
the residence of the Amati family and of Stradi- 
varius, who for more than a hundred years were 
the makers of excellent violins. Population in 
1911,40,436. 

Creole, foe* ole, the name which was originally 
given to all the descendents of Spaniards or 
Frenchmen born in the southern part of the 
United States and in the West Indies. The 
term is sometimes incorrectly applied to a 
mulatto. 

Cre'osote, a substance discovered by Reich- 
enbach in 1832 in wood tar from which it is 
separated by a tedious process. It is generally 
obtained, however, from the products of the 
destructive distillation of wood. In a pure state 
it is oily, heavy, colorless, has a sweetish, burning 
taste and a strong smell of peat smoke or smoked 
meat. It is a powerful antiseptic. Wood 
treated with it is not subject to dry rot or other 
disease. It has been used in surgery and 
medicine with great success. 

Crepe, krape. See Crape. 

Crescent, kres'sent, a representation of the 
moon in her horned state, used by the ancient 
Egyptians and the Greeks as the symbol of their 


moon goddesses. It was the emblem of the old 
city of Byzantium, and was adopted by the 
Turks when they captured Constantinople in 
1453. Since the establishment of the Turks in 
Europe, it has been the universal emblem of 
their Empire. A Turkish order of knighthood, 
instituted by Selim, sultan of Turkey, in 1799, 
was known as the Order of the Crescent. 

Crescent City, a name given to the city of 
New Orleans, because formerly the greater pari 
of it lay in a great bend of the Mississippi River. 

Cress, the name of several species of plants, 
most of them of the mustard family. Water¬ 
cress makes a delicious salad, as its leaves have 
a moderately pungent taste. It grows in cool 
springs and rivulets. 

Crest, in ancient armor, the plume or tuft 
of feathers affixed to the top of the helmet. In 
heraldry the crest is a figure originally intended 
to represent the ornament of the helmet, 
but it is now generally placed upon a wreath, 
coronet or cap of maintenance, above both 
helmet and shield. The crest is considered a 
greater criterion of nobility than the coat of 
arms itself. 

Cres'ton, Iowa, the county-seat of Union 
co., 70 mi. s. w. of Des Moines, on the Chicago, 
Burlington & Quincy Railroad. The industries 
of the city include machine shops, car works 
and wagon factories. It was settled in 1868 
and was incorporated the next year. Popula¬ 
tion in 1910, 6924. 

Cres'wick, Thomas (1811-1869), an English 
landscape painter. His first pictures were 
admitted into the Academy exhibition when he 
was only in his seventeenth year, and his success 
was afterward continuous. Among his great 
works are London Road a Hundred Years Ago, 
Weald of Kent and Welsh Glen. 

Cretaceous, kre ta'shus, System or Chalk 
System, a system of rocks between the Jurassic, 
below, and the Tertiary, above, and the oldest 
system of the Mesozoic era. It takes its name 
from the chalk beds which form a prominent 
feature of it in England and France, but the 
chalk formations constitute only a small portion 
of the system. In North American cretaceous 
rocks are numerous and extend over large areas, 
following the Atlantic coast from New Jersey 
to Florida, and the gulf coast from Florida to 
Texas, then extending up the Mississippi Valley 
to the mouth of the Ohio. They also form 
extensive areas in the great plains along the 
Rocky Mountains, extending northward as far 
as the mouth of the Mackenzie River and south* 


Crete 


Crichton 


ward into Mexico. On the Pacific coast the 
rocks of the system appear at numerous points 
from California to British Columbia. The 
fossils show a great variety of animal and 
vegetable life. Among the animals were flying 
reptiles, birds with teeth, large sea serpents 
and land reptiles of great size. The plants 
show that trees similar to the oak, birch and 
poplar existed. See Jurassic System; Ter¬ 
tiary Period. 

Crete or Can'dia, an important island in 
the Mediterranean, belonging since December, 
1913, to Greece. It is 156 miles long, is from 
7 to 30 miles wide and has an area of 3330 
square miles. High mountains, covered with 
forests, run through the whole length of the 
island. On the north the island declines mod¬ 
erately to a fertile coast, provided with good 
harbors; on the south side it descends steeply 
to a rocky shore, with few roadsteads; and 
it reaches its greatest height in Mount Ida, 
7670 feet high, always covered with snow. 
Numerous springs give fertility to most of the 
valleys in which, and on the declivities of the 
mountains, is seen a luxurious vegetation. 
The island produces grain, wine and oil, wool, 
flax, silk and cotton, fish, honey, game, cattle, 
fruits and even metal in abundance. Manu¬ 
factures, trade and navigation are insignificant. 
Most of the harbors are silted up. The principal 
ports are Candia, the capital, Retimo and Khania. 

The early history of Crete is lost in the fables 
of Greek mythology, in which Saturn, Zeus 
and Minos are spoken of as among its kings. 
At one time a republic, it was the seat of the 
Cilician pirates till conquered by the Romans, 
from whose hands it passed in 823 to the Saracens 
and then to the Greeks again in 962. In 1204 
the Byzantine sovereign sold it to the Venetians, 
who held it until the second half of the seven¬ 
teenth century, when the Turks conquered it 
after a desperate struggle, ending in a siege 
of the capital lasting for no less than twenty 
years. Insurrections against Turkish rule have 
more than once occurred; a formidable one, 
fomented by Greece in 1868, was with diffi¬ 
culty suppressed after a long conflict. There 
have been many revolts and uprisings in the 
last fifty years, due to the discontent under the 
rule of the sultan. In 1898 Prince George of 
Greece was made High Commissioner, with a 
guarantee of autonomy by Great Britain, Russia, 
France and Italy; after the Turko-Balkan War 
the island was formally annexed to Greece. 
The inhabitants, about 1,200,009 in ancient 


times, now number about 310,000, of whom 
275,000 are Christians, mostly of Greek descent. 

Crib'bage, a favorite game at cards, played 
with the whole pack. It may be played by 
two, three or four persons; and when by two 
five or six cards may be dealt to each. Five* 
card cribbage played by two persons is the most 
scientific game. Sixty-one points make the 
game; there are no tricks and no trumps, the 
object being to make fairs, fifteens, sequences or 
the go, or to prevent the adversary from doing 
the same. Court cards and tens count as 10 
each, and all the rest count for the number of 
spots upon them. Every fair, that is, every 
couple of cards of the same value belonging to 
different suits (two aces, two fours, two kings), 
counts 2; and when there are three or four 
similar cards, as many pairs are counted as there 
are different combinations of the cards, taken 
two at a time. Every combination of cards, the 
united spots of which make up fifteen, counts 
2. A sequence consists of three or more cards 
of any suit following one another in rank, and 
counts 1 for each card. When the player whose 
turn it is to play cannot play a card without 
going beyond thirty-one, the other player scores 
1 for having been the nearest to thirty-one. 
This is called scoring 1 for the go. The last card 
played in any hand counts 1, also. When all the 
cards in a hand, either with or without the turn 
up card, are of one suit, or when all the cards in 
the crib, with the turn up card, are of one suit, 
it is called a flush and counts 1 for each card. 
When the turn up card is a knave the dealer 
scores 2 for his heels. When a knave of the 
same suit with the turn up card is found in the 
hand of either player, the player in whose hand 
it is scores 1 for his nob The counting is usually 
kept on a regular board, by means of two pins 
for each player. In the board are two sets of 
30 holes, in groups of five, and as the game 
progresses the pins are moved forward. Twice 
around the board and into the home hole makes 
the game. 

Crichton, kri'ton, James (1560-1585), called 
The Admirable Crichton, a Scottish celebrity, 
son of Robert Crichton, lord advocate. Before 
he was twenty he had perfected himself in 
almost all the knowledge of his time, and he 
visited Paris, Genoa, Venice, Padua and Man¬ 
tua, challenging all scholars to learned disputa¬ 
tions, vanquishing doctors of the universities 
and disarming the most famous swordsmen of 
the time in fencing. He was latterly tutor to a 
goo of the duke of Mantua, and is said fo have 


Cricket 


Crimea 


been stabbed to the heart in a dastardly manner 
by his pupil. 

Crick'et, a little insect about an inch long, of 
a blackish or brownish color, common in houses 
and cultivated gardens. By rubbing together 
its peculiarly formed wing covers, the male can 
produce the pleasant chirping sound by which 
these insects are so well known and which has 
become associated with cheerful fireside scenes. 
There are a number of different species, which 
differ in color and form from the common 
cricket. See Mole Cricket. 

Cricket, the English national game, played 
with bats, balls and wickets on a piece of smooth 
greensward. It is played by two opposite sets 
or sides of players, generally numbering eleven 




• 

Long Leg 

tong 

Slip 



SViort Slip 



Wicket Keeper 


PouU 

A 

o 

Batsman, 

O 

Umpire 


Cover Point 

• Mid^On 


Midriff 


O Batsman 


Bowler • Q Ump , re 


Long field 

CRICKET FIELD 

each. Two wickets of three stumps each are 
placed fronting each other at a distance of about 
22 yards apart, the stumps being upright rods 
stuck in the ground, and projecting 27 inches. 
On the top of each set of stumps are placed two 
small pieces of wood, called bails. After the 
rival sides have tossed for the choice of either 
taking the bat or fielding, two men are sent to the 
wickets, bat in hand. The opposite or fielding 
side are all simultaneously engaged; one (the 
bowler) being stationed behind one wicket for 
the purpose of bowling his ball against the 


opposite wicket, where his coadjutor (the wicket 
keeper) stands ready to catch the ball should it 
pass near him; the other fielders are placed in 
such parts of the field as are judged most favorable 
for stopping the ball after it has been struck by the 
batsman or missed by the wicket keeper. It is 
the object of the batsman to prevent the ball 
delivered by the bowler, reaching his wicket, 
either by merely stopping it with his bat or by 
driving it away to a distant part of the field. 
Should the ball be driven any distance, the two 
batsmen run across and exchange wickets, and 
continue to do so as long as there is no risk in 
being “run out,” that is, of having the stumps 
struck by the ball while they are out of their 
position near the wickets. Each time the bats¬ 
men run between the wickets is counted as a 
“run” and is marked to the credit of the striker 
of the ball. If the batsman allows the ball 
to carry away a bail or a stump, if he knocks 
down any part of his own wicket, if any part of 
his person stops a ball that would have otherwise 
reached his wicket, or if he strikes a ball so that 
it is caught by one of the opposite party before 
it reaches the ground, he is “out;” that is, he 
gives up his bat to one of his own side; and so 
the game goes on until all the men on one side 
have played and been put out. This constitutes 
what is called an “innings.” The other side 
now take the bat and try to defend their wickets 
and make runs as their rivals did. Generally 
after two innings each have been played by the 
contestants the game comes to an end, that side 
being the victors who have score the greatest num¬ 
ber of runs. 

Crime, a wrong committed against the state 
and in disobedience of its laws. It is thus dis¬ 
tinguished from a civil offense, or tort, which is 
a personal injury. The common law formerly 
divided crimes into treason, which is the highest 
of all crimes, felonies, which were heinous 
offenses formerly punishable with death or for¬ 
feiture of property, and misdemeanors, which 
were minor offenses. IVIost states now define 
by statute what offenses constitute crime. To 
constitute a crime, an act must be done with 
criminal intent, but this is usually presumed 
when a sane man does an act which he knows 
to be a crime. See Law; Procedure; and the 
names of important crimes, as Robbery, 
Murder. 

Crime'a, a peninsula of southern Russia, 
between the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea, 
united to the mainland by the Isthmus of 
Perekop. It is about 200 miles long and 110 


Crimean War 


Crinoidea 


miles broad. Three-fourths of the Crimea 
belongs to the region of steppes, but the other 
part, confined entirely to the south and stretch¬ 
ing along the coast from west to east, abounds 
in beautiful mountain scenery. Here the val¬ 
leys are luxuriant with vines and olive and 
mulberry plantations, while the northern slope 
gives a large yield in cereals and fruits. The 
most important of the productions, besides 
those already mentioned, are flax, hemp and 
tobacco, of which a large quantity of excellent 
quality is produced. The forests are of limited 
extent. Fine-wooled sheep, homed cattle and 
horses are reared in large numbers. The chief 
town and port is Sebastopol. The country was 
anciently associated with the Cimmerians and 
in later times with various Greek settlements 
and minor kingdoms. After being for some 
time a dependency on Rome, it was overrun 
by barbarians, and in 1237 it fell into the hands 
of the Mongols, under Genghis Khan. About 
1261 the Genoese were permitted to occupy and 
fortify Kaffa, and they rapidly extended their 
power in the formation of other settlements. 
They were expelled, however, in 1475 by 
Mahomet II, who made it a dependent khanate. 
In 1783 the Russians took possession of the 
country; and with the view of overawing the 
Turks the great naval arsenal of Sebastopol, 
occupying the most commanding position on 
the Black Sea, was begun by Catharine II in 
1786. Its military resources were steadily 
developed up to the time of the Anglo-French 
campaign (See Crimean War) of 1854, when 
it fell into the hands of the allies, by whom it 
was held until March, 1856. Population, 583,893. 

Crimean War, the struggle caused by the 
attempt of the allied powers of England, France 
and Turkey to prevent the aggressions of Russia 
in Turkey. The old plans for the extension of 
Russian power conceived by Catharine II were 
revived by Nicholas I, who, believing that he 
had secured himself from interference on the 
part of Austria and Prussia, and that an Anglo- 
French alliance was impossible, prepared to carry 
them out. Servia, Bosnia, Bulgaria and the 
principalities of the Danube were to become 
protectorates, and Constantinople was to be 
provisionally occupied by Russian troops. 
However, the first markedly aggressive step, 
the demand by Russia for a protectorate over 
the Greek Church throughout the Turkish 
Empire, brought matters to a crisis. After a 
vain attempt to negotiate, the Russians occupied 
the Danubian principalities, and war was 


declared by Turkey in October, 1853, by France 
and England in 1854 and by Sardinia in 1855. 
A French and English fleet entered the Baltic 
and captured Bomarsund, and in the south the 
allies landed at Varna, under Lord Raglan and 
Marshal Saint-Arnaud. While the allies were 
making preparations, Prussia and Austria 
demanded the evacuation of the Danubian 
principalities, and when evacuation was ordered 
by Nicholas, the principalities were provisionally 
occupied by the Austrians. 

It soon became obvious that the Crimea must 
be the seat of the war, and the allied troops 
landed there in September, 1854. Five days 
after their arrival the Battle of Alma was won 
by the allies, and the march was then continued 
toward Sebastopol. Soon after this Saint- 
Arnaud died and was succeeded by Canrobert. 
The siege of Sebastopol was begun in October 
by a grand attack which proved a failure, and 
the Russians retaliated by attacking the English 
at Balaklava (October 25), but were defeated 
with heavy loss. It was at this battle that the 
famous, but useless, charge was made by the 
Light Brigade. A second attack at Inkermann 
was again repulsed by the allies, but the siege 
works made slow progress during the winter, 
during which the ill-supplied troops suffered 
great privations. The death of Nicholas and 
the succession of Alexander II, in March, 1855, 
brought no change of policy. Canrobert 
resigned in favor of Prissier, and Lord Raglan 
died and was succeeded by ^ 

Simpson. The bombard- ^ 

ment was continued, and J1 Jj J' 

in September the French 

successfully stormed those 

parts of the fortifications known 

as the Malakoff and the Little 

Redan. The Russians then 

withdrew from the city to the north ''X 

forts and the allies took possession. 

The chief subsequent event was the ^k 
capture of Kars, in Asia, by the 
Russians, after a splendid defense vi 

by the Turks. By this time, how- 'A 

ever, the allies had possession of the 
Crimea, and overtures of peace IJ 

were gladly accepted. A treaty was flh 

accordingly concluded at Paris in ^ 

March, 1856, by which the inde- 
pendence of the Ottoman Empire crinoidea 
was guaranteed. 

Crinoi'dea or Sea Lilies, a group of animals, 
consisting of creatures which are attached during 


Crinoline 


Crittenden Compromise 


the whole or a portion of their lives to the sea 
bottom, by means of a jointed stony stem, from 
the tip of which radiate feather-like, flexible 
appendages or arms, in the center of which is a 
mouth. Though now comparatively few in 
number, they were immensely numerous in 
former ages, and many carboniferous limestones 
are almost entirely made up of the stems, which 
break apart into circular sections. See Echi- 
Nodermata. 

Crinoline, krin'o lin, originally, a stiff, wiry 
fabric, made of horsehair and used by women 
for petticoats, to make their dress skirts stand 
out from the figure. Later, the same name was 
applied to the hoop skirt, an article made of 
steel wire and tapes and used for the same 
purpose as the crinoline. Modem crinoline is a 
cotton gauze, dressed with glue and used for 
stiffening garments. 

Crip'ple Creek, Col., the county-seat of 
Teller co., 30 mi. s. w. of Colorado Springs, on 
the Florence & Cripple Creek, the Midland 
Terminal and other railroads. The place was 
founded in 1890 as a mining town and developed 
rapidly after 1893, although it was almost 
destroyed by fire in 1896. The location has 
attractive scenery among the mountains, at an 
elevation of 9800 feet. It is the trade center of 
the famous Cripple Creek gold mining district, 
has several cyanide mills and other mining 
industries. Mining is the chief occupation, and 
the output is almost entirely of gold. Popu¬ 
lation in 1910, 6206. 

Crisp, Charles Frederic (1845-1896), an 
American soldier, jurist and statesman, born in 
Sheffield, England. He came to the United 
States at an early age, served in the Confed¬ 
erate army three years, took up the practice of 
law and rose rapidly in his profession, becoming 
solicitor general and judge of the superior court 
of the State of Georgia. He was a Democratic 
member of Congress from 1882 until his death, 
and from 1892 to 1896 he was speaker of the 
House of Representatives. 

Crispi, krc'spe, Francesco (1819-1901), an 
Italian statesman. He attempted to‘secure the 
overthrow of Ferdinand II and to unite the 
two Sicilies, aided in the insurrection of Palermo 
and was obliged to flee to Marseilles when the 
Neapolitans entered Palermo in 1849. Ten 
years later he returned to Italy in disguise, 
joined Garibaldi and became a leader in the 
movement that made Italy a free and united 
kingdom. Crispi entered the cabinet of Victor 
Emm annd and was made premier in 1887. 


His greatest work as a statesman was the forma¬ 
tion of the Triple Alliance. See Triple 
Alliance. 

Crit'tenden, George Bibb (1812-1880), an 
American soldier, born at Russellville, Ky. He 
graduated at West Point in 1832, served in the 
Mexican War and became lieutenant colonel 
in 1856. He joined the Confederate army at 
the opening of the Civil War and was appointed 
major general, having charge of a large part of 
Kentucky and Tennessee. He was defeated at 
Mill Spring and left the service, later reenter¬ 
ing it as a volunteer. 

Crittenden, John Jordan (1787-1863), an 
American statesman, born in Woodford co., 
Ky. He graduated at William and Mary College, 
served in the War of 1812, in the state legis¬ 
lature, in the United States Senate, several times 
as attorney general and finally as governor of 
Kentucky. Largely through his influence the 
state of Kentucky maintained its adherence to 
the Union. He was the author of the “Crit¬ 
tenden Compromise,” which, however, failed of 
adoption. See Crittenden Compromise. 

Crittenden, Thomas Leonidas (1815- 
1893), an American soldier, born in Russellville, 
Ky., the son of John Jordan Crittenden. He 
studied law, became prosecuting attorney and 
served as lieutenant colonel of a regiment dur¬ 
ing the Mexican War. Later he was appointed 
to the consular service at Liverpool and at the 
opening of the Civil War he entered the Union 
army. He was appointed brigadier general of 
volunteers and later major general of volunteers 
for galantry at the Battle of Shiloh. He also 
took a conspicuous part in the battles of Mur¬ 
freesboro and Chickamauga, but resigned from 
the army in December, 1864. Crittenden en¬ 
tered the regular army as colonel in 1866, was 
brevetted brigadier general and served on the 
frontier until 1881, when he retired. 

Crittenden Compromise, a proposition intro¬ 
duced in the United States Senate in 1860 by 
Senator John Crittenden, for the passage of an 
amendment to the Constitution, which would 
divide the Union into two sections, one com¬ 
posed of free states and one of slave states, the 
boundary line being the latitude of 36° 30 
The Federal government was not to have the 
power to abolish slavery in the District of 
Columbia, nor to prohibit the interstate slave 
trade, nor to abolish slavery in a slave state. 
It was lost in the Senate on March 2, 1861, by 
a vote of 20 to 19, and in the House, January 
14,1861, by a vote of 113 to 80. 



Croatia and Slavonia 


Crocus 


Croa'tia and Slavo'nia, a crown land of 
Austria-Hungary, bounded on the n. w. by 
Carniola and Styria; on the n. e. and e. by 
Hungary; on the s. by Servia, Bosnia and 
Dalmatia, and on the s. w. and w. by the 
Adriatic Sea and Istria. It is composed of 
Croatia, the larger part, occupying the western 
portion, and Slavonia, between the Drave, the 
Danube and the Save, in the east. The country 
is mountainous and hilly and is traversed by 
offshoots of the Alps. /Hong the Drave and 
the Save are level plains. In Croatia there are 
highlands known as the Karst, remarkable for 
their deep-cut valleys and for their subterranean 
watercourses. The country in general is very 
fertile, both in the mountainous parts of Croatia 
and in the plains of Slavonia. Among the crops 
are wheat, maize, pulse, potatoes, flax, hemp 
and tobacco. There is also much timber. 
Manufacturing industries are carried on in a 
small way, the chief of them being the production 
of cotton and silk fabrics. Most of the popu¬ 
lation are Croats and Serbs, and three-fourths 
are Roman Catholics, the remainder being mem¬ 
bers of the Greek Church. Area, 16,423 square 
miles; population in 1910, 2,619,291. 

Crocid'olite, a sort of fibrous quartz of 
lavender-blue or leek-green color, found in 
South Africa and used to some extent in mak¬ 
ing ornaments. 

Crock'et, in Gothic architecture, an orna¬ 
ment placed on the angles of the inclined sides 



CROCKETS 

A. from choir of Notre Dame, Paris, about 1160; B, 
gable crocket, fourteenth century 


of pinnacles, canopies or gables. Crockets were 
usually carved in the form of curved or bent 
foliage, and also in the form of animals. 

Crock' ett, David (1786-1836), a famous 
American frontiersman, soldier and politician, 
bom in the State of Tennessee. His early train¬ 
ing was that of the typical wild frontier of the 
early nineteenth century. He received little or 
no education, but had considerable native 
shrewdness and wit and by an outdoor life 
he became a remarkably skilful hunter. He 


took part in the war against the Creek indians, 
serving under General Andrew Jackson, and 
was three times elected to Congress, where he 
attracted no little attention by his eccentricity 
of manner and dress. Soon after retiring from 
Congress, he took up arms with the Texans in 
their war for independence, and at the Alamo 
in 1836 he was one of the six survivors of the 
siege who were captured and massacred by the 
Mexicans under General Santa Anna. He pub¬ 
lished during his lifetime several books of travel 
and adventure, among which were A Narrative 
of the Life of David Crockett, A Tour to the 
North and Down East and Exploits and Adven¬ 
tures in Texas. They were all characterized 
by atrocious grammar and crude and often 
coarse humor, but they displayed the same 
untrained common sense which he exhibited in 
his eventful career. 

Crockett, Samuel Rutherford (1860-1914), 
a Scotch novelist, educated at Edinburgh Uni¬ 
versity. Some years after his graduation he 
traveled in Europe, North Africa and Asia, and 
for the eight years following 1886 he was a 
minister at Penicuik. Among his best-known 
works are The Stickit Minister, The Lilac Sun- 
bonnet, Bog-Myrtle and Peat, Ladies’ Love, 
The Standard Bearer and The Banner of Blue. 

Croc'odile, the most highly developed rep¬ 
tile, allied to the alligator. The true crocodile 
inhabits the warm regions of the eastern hemi¬ 
sphere, though some species are found in North 
and South America. The crocodile of the Nile 
is one of the best known members of the family. 
In olden times this animal 
was worshiped by the Egyp¬ 
tians, who'preserved the bodies 
of crocodiles with almost as 
great care as the bodies of 
human beings. The natives 
southern Asia and the 
Moluccas fear the species 
common there, because of its 
fondness for human flesh. 

The skin and flesh of the 
crocodiles form articles of 
commerce of considerable 
importance in the East. See 
Alligator; Gavial. 

(See illustration 
next page.) 

Cro'cus, a genus of 
plants of the Iris family, 
one of the most common ornaments of our 
spring gardens. Most of the species are natives 





CROCUS 







Croesus 


Cromwell 


of the south of Europe and the levant; and 
three grow wild in Britain. The early spring 
flowers appear as soon as the snow has left the 
ground, even before their leaves. They are of 
a great variety of colors, and unless the winters 
are very cold, will grow from year to year. 

Croesus, kree'sus, the last king of Lydia, who 
lived in the sixth century b. c. His riches, 
obtained chiefly from mines and the gold dust 
of the river Pactolus, were greater than those 
of any king before him, so that his wealth became 
proverbial. 

Cro'ker, John Wilson (1780-1857), an 
English writer and politician. He was one of 
the founders of the Quarterly Review and one of 


bankruptcy, and made equal, from an adminis¬ 
trative point of view, to other modern states. 
In 1908 he published Modern Egypt, a just and 
interesting history of the country from 1876. 

Cromlech, krom'lek, an ancient monument, 
consisting of several large stone slabs fixed 
vertically in the ground and supporting a fiat 
stone, which served as a roof for the sepulchral 
chamber. Sometimes the cromlech was sur¬ 
rounded by a ring of standing stones, and some¬ 
times it was covered over with earth to form a 
mound. Some of these mounds were of great 
size, that of Silbury Hill, Wiltshire, England, 
being 170 feet high and 316 feet along the slope. 
Remarkable cromlechs are found in Great 



its ablest contributors. Besides his articles 
for that magazine, he wrote Talavera, a poem 
and Stories from the History of England for 
Children. He also brought out an edition of 
Boswell’s Johnson. 

Cromer, Evelyn Baring, first Earl (1841- 
1917), a British diplomat, born at Cromer Hall, 
in Norfolk. He joined the Royal Artillery in 
1858, and received several promotions before 
his appointment, in 1872, as secretary to Lord 
Northbrook, viceroy of India. In 1876 he be¬ 
came British commissioner of the Egyptian 
public debt, and three years later controller- 
general in Egypt. He distinguished himself in 
these positions, but in 1880 was transferred to 
India, where he became finance minister. Three 
years later he was appointed British consul- 
general and minister plenipotentiary in Egypt, 
and in these capacities served until 1907, when 
ill-health compelled him to resign. He was 
created earl in 1901. Every department of 
Egyptian government profited from Lord 
Cromer’s rule; the country was saved from 


Britain, Ireland, Scandinavia and northern 
France. 

Cromp'ton, Samuel (1753-1827), inventor 
of the mule jenny. When only twenty-one years 
of age he invented his machine for spinning 
cotton, which was called a mule, from its com¬ 
bining the principles of Hargreaves’ spinning- 
jenny and Arkwright’s roller-frame, both invented 
a few years previously. Though his invention 
was a very important one, Crompton received 
little reward or recognition and died in poverty. 

Cromwell, Oliver (1599-1658), Lord Pro¬ 
tector of the Commonwealth of England, Scot¬ 
land and Ireland, was born at Huntingdon and 
educated at Sidney-Sussex College, Cambridge. 
He married Elizabeth, daughter of Sir James 
Bourchier, and for some years after his marriage 
he lived on his estate in Huntingdon. In 1628 
he was member of Parliament, but he seems to 
have made no pronounced impression on that 
body at that time. In 1631 he went with his 
family to a farm which he had taken at Saint 
Ives; and some years later he removed to Ely, 























Cromwell 


Crookes Tubes 


where he had inherited a property. He was 
again elected to Parliament in 1640 and took 
part in its deliberations on all important topics, 
without, however, becoming very prominent. 
In the summer of 1642 he was actively engaged 
in raising and drilling volunteers for the Parlia¬ 
mentary party, and he served as captain and 
colonel in the earlier part of the struggle between 
Parliament and the king, distinguishing himself 
through his disciplinary powers and the well- 
drilled character of his troops. When the army 
was reorganized and, through the “self-denying'’ 
ordinance, all members of Parliament were 
excluded from commands, an exception was 
made in favor of Cromwell, who kept his com¬ 
mand of the cavalry. On the occasion of the 
surrender of Charles by the Scottish army in 
1646, Cromwell was one of the commissioners, 
and in the distribution of rewards for services 
he received $12,500 a year from the estates of the 
marquis of Worcester. Affairs in Ireland 
demanding his presence, he was appointed lord 
lieutenant and commander in chief; and by 
making a terrible example of Drogheda, he 



OLIVER CROMWELL 


crushed the royalist party in that country within 
six months. Resigning the command to Ireton, 
he undertook, at the request of the Parliament, 
a similar expedition against Scotland, where 
Charles II had been proclaimed king. He saved 
himself from almost inevitable disaster by the 
splendid victory at Dunbar, and a year later he 
put an end to the struggle by his total defeat of 
the royalists at Worcester. 

The Rump Parliament, as the remnant of the 
Long Parliament was called, had become worse 


than useless, and in April, 1653, Cromwell, with 
his soldiers, dispersed that body. He then sum¬ 
moned a council of state, consisting mainly of 
his principal officers, which finally chose a 
Parliament of persons selected from the three 
kingdoms, nicknamed Barebones Parliament, or 
the Little Parliament. Fifteen months later a 
new annual Parliament was chosen; but Crom¬ 
well soon prevailed on this body, who were 
totally incapable of governing, to place the 
charge of the Commonwealth in his hands. The 
chief power now devolving again upon the council 
of officers, they declared Oliver Cromwell sole 
governor of the Commonwealth under the name 
of Lord Protector. Although practically absolute, 
Cromwell’s government was wise and moderate, 
and restored England in the eyes of other nations 
to the position of dignity which she had lost. 

Crook, George (1828-1890), an American 
soldier, who graduated at West Point in 1852. 
He was captain at the outbreak of the Civil War, 
and at its close was brevetted major general. 
Transferred to Idaho and later to Arizona, he 
thoroughly subdued the Piutes and Apaches. 
He had much to do with making these indians 
self-supporting-tribes. 

Crookes, William, Sir (1832- ), an 

English scientist, born in London and educated 
at the Royal College of Chemistry. He began 
his career as superintendent of the meteorological 
department of Radcliffe Observatory and then 
became professor of chemistry at the Chester 
Training College. Professor Crookes occupies 
a foremost place among scientific men and is 
considered the highest authority on the appli¬ 
cation of the principles and laws of chemistry 
to the industrial arts and on sanitary matters. 
He has given much attention to the relation 
of chemistry to various lines of industry, and 
among his discoveries is the sodium amalgam 
process for separating gold and silver from their 
ores and a special method for the study of sub¬ 
stances through the spectroscope. His experi¬ 
ments in electricity led to the invention of 
Crookes tubes (See Crookes Tubes), so 
generally used in electrical experiments. Among 
his most widely known works are A Practical 
Handbook of Dyeing and Calico Printing and 
Select Methods of Chemical Analysis. He is the 
editor and proprietor of the Chemical Neics, 
which he founded in 1859. 

Crookes Tubes, glass tubes or vessels from 
which the air has been exhausted and which 
contain electrodes at opposite ends. These 
tubes are used in electricity to secure various 


Crookston 


Crossbill 


effects of electrical discharge. They take their 
name from the inventor, Sir William Crookes. 

Geissler tubes are of a similar pattern, invented 
by Geissler, When used in connection with an 
induction coil and an electrical machine in the 
dark room, these tubes produce many beautiful 
luminous effects. A peculiar pattern of them 
is also used in the production of cathode rays. 
See Cathode Rays. 

Crooks'ton, Minn., the county-seat of Polk 
co., in the northwestern part of the state, on the 
Red Lake River and on the Great Northern and 
the Northern Pacific railroads. The city : s the 
most important railroad center in that part of 
the state and is located in the Red River Valley, 
which produces enormous quantities of wheat. 
The river affords good water power, and there 
are manufactures of lumber, farm implements, 
machinery, wagons and other articles. It con¬ 
tains a fine courthouse, a gymnasium, seventeen 
churches and a public library. The place was 
settled in 1872 and was incorporated seven years 
later. Population in 1910, 7559. 

Croquet, kro ka', an open-air game, in which 
two or more persons with long or short-handled 
mallets endeavor to drive balls through a series 
of nine or ten 
wire arches 
( wickets) set in 
the ground in a 
certain arrange¬ 
ment. In the 
accompanying 
figure the wick¬ 
ets are set in 
the most com¬ 
mon way. A 
croquet set con¬ 
sists of eight 
balls, painted to 
correspond with 
eight mallets; 
two stakes, with 
bands to match 
the colored balls 
in the same 
order on each, 
and ten wickets. The object of the game is to 
start from one stake, make the circuit of the arches 
on one side, touch the lower stake and return 
through the arches of the other side to the starting 
stake (See the diagram). If two people play, 
each may use two balls; but when four play, each 
has but one ball. The game is not entertaining 
for more than six. The players play alternately, 


and the side first completing the circuit wins 
the game. Special rules are formulated to cover 
emergencies, and a number of techincal terms 
are in general use. A rover, for instance, is a 
ball that has made the circuit of the field but 
has not touched the starting stake; such a ball 
may play upon every other ball in the field in 
one turn. A dead ball is one that has been 
played upon since a point was made. 

Crosby, kroz'by, Howard (1826-1891), an 
American Presbyterian clergyman, born in New 
York. He graduated at the New York Univer¬ 
sity in 1851. In addition to contributions to 
periodicals, magazines, tracts and lectures, he 
is the author of a number of theological works. 
He organized the Society for the Prevention of 
Crime, was president of it for several years and 
was very active against the liquor traffic. He 
was a member of the American committee that 
revised the New Testament. 

Crosier, kro^zhur, the staff borne by some of 
the higher dignitaries of the Roman Catholic 
and other churches, and probably the oldest of 
the insignia of the episcopal dignity. The orig¬ 
inal form of the otaff resembled a shepherd’s 
crook, but from the middle of the fourteenth 
century the archbishops began to carry, some¬ 
times in addition to the pastoral crook, some¬ 
times instead of it, a crosier terminating in a 
cross or double cross. 

Cross, one straight body laid at any angle 
across another. Among the ancients a piece 
of wood fastened across a tree or upright post 
formed a cross, on which were executed criminals 
of the worst class. It had, therefore, a place 
analogous to that of the modern gallows as an 
instrument of punishment until, from the cruci¬ 
fixion of Christ, it came to be regarded by Chris¬ 
tians with veneration. The Church adopted 
it as the peculiar symbol of the Christian religion, 
and it is still, especially in the Roman Catholic 
Church, paid peculiar honors. 

Cross, Mary Ann or Marian. See Eliot, 
George. 

Cross'bill, a species of finch. The two 
mandibles are so strongly curved that the upper 
crosses the lower one when the bill is closed. 
These crossed bills are used with great power 
to tear pine cones to pieces for the seed which 
they contain. The crossbills can tear wood 
readily and soon destroy a wooden cage if con¬ 
fined in it. The male is reddish in color, and 
the female is of a yellowish-green. But few 
species are known in the United States, and 
these are confined almost wholly to the pine 



CROQUET GROUND 





Crossbow 


forests. One fanciful legend says that the bill 
if the bird was crossed in trying to draw the 



AMERICAN CROSSBILL 

nails from the hands of Christ when he was 
crucified. 

Cross'bow or Arbalest, formerly a very 
common weapon for shooting, consisting of a 
bow fastened across a stock. The bow, which 
was often of steel, was usually bent by a lever 
windlass, or other mechanical contrivance, the 
missile usually consisting of a square-headed 
bolt, but occasionally of short arrows, stones or 
leaden bullets. 

Cross Fertilization, fertilization by which 
the pollen from the stamens of one plant is 
conveyed to the pistils of another. This is 
accomplished by the agency of wind and water 
and by the aid of insects or birds. The effect 
of this process is that better seeds, that is, 
those which produce stronger and more fruitful 
plants, are produced. Botanists have found 
many special adaptations by means of which 
cross fertilization is effected. If, for instance, 
the anther and stigmas become mature at differ¬ 
ent times on the same plant, it is clear that the 
stigma can be fertilized only by the pollen of 
another plant; if the stigma and anthers are so 
placed that the pollen cannot fall on the stigma, 
it may fall on some insect which will carry it to 
another flower; again, in case the stigmas are 
borne on one plant and the pistils on another, 
the wind or some other agency must carry the 
pollen. More complex modes are a'so common; 
The stamens of the barberry are very sensitive 
and when touched by an insect, throw the pollen 
upon the pistil. Some plants, such as ifints, 
are provided with levers, by means of which 
the pistil is thrust forward upon the insect 
previously dusted by the pollen. The pollen is 


Croton Aqueduct 

sticky in some plants and adheres to the tongue 
of the insect. Some plants, like the orchids, 
are provided with traps, which catch the insects 
by the limbs and thus force them to scatter the 
pollen. 

Birds, as well as insects, aid flowers in dis¬ 
tributing their pollen. Birds that feed on the 
nectar become dusted with pollen, which in 
their passage they scatter upon other pistils. 
Hummingbirds are especially active in perform¬ 
ing this service. 

The term cross fertilization is also used in a 
general sense and applied in the cases of animals 
and the human race. A limited amount of cross 
fertilization, if the environment and other con¬ 
ditions are only slightly changed is beneficial, 
but crosses between individuals which are too 
different in constitution and habits are usually 
detrimental. Mingling of species too closely 
related is also usually to the disadvantage of the 
offspring. 

Cross'-staff, an instrument used by survey¬ 
ors, consisting of a staff carrying a brass circle, 
divided into four equal parts by two lines, 
intersecting each other at right angles. At the 
extremity of each line perpendicular sights are 
fixed, the instrument being used in taking 
offsets. 

Cro'ton, a genus of plants, either herbs, 
shrubs or trees, which are widely distributed 
and bear rather small flowers in terminal clus¬ 
ters. Many species are aromatic, and rich 
perfumes are made from some, while others 
yield important medicines. The species which 
grow in the United States are not especially 
valuable. 

Croto na, an ancient Greek colony of Italy, 
situated on the east coast of Bruttium. It was 
founded about 700 B. c. and was noted for its 
athletes, among whom was Milo. In 530 B. c. 
the disciples of Pythagoras gained authority in 
the city, which they held till about 510, when 
the people expelled them. During the war 
between Pyrrhus and tin, Romans, and in the 
Second Punic War, Crotona was nearly ruined. 
The city of to-day is called Cotrone. 

Cro'ton Aq'ueduct, the aqueduct extending 
from Croton Lake, above Ossining to New 
York City. The first aqueduct was completed 
in 1842. It is forty and one-half miles long, 
about eight and a half feet high and nearly eight 
feet wide. It is constructed of stone, brick and 
cement. The water is taken across Harlem 
River in three cast-iron pipes, which are sup¬ 
ported on a bridge one hundred fifty feet high 


Croup 


Crown Glass 


and about one thousand four hundred feet long. 
This aqueduct was designed to carry seventy- 
two million gallons a day, but it was soon found 
too small to supply the needs of the city. A 
second aqueduct was completed in 1890, also 
extending from Croton Lake to 135th Street, 
New York. It is about thirty-one miles long, 
nearly thirty miles of which are a horseshoe¬ 
shaped tunnel thirteen and a half feet square. 
The new aqueduct crosses the Harlem River 
by an inverted siphon, which is three hundred 
feet below the river bed. Its capacity is over 
300 million gallons a day. It is connected with 
the Jerome Park storage reservoir, about 
twenty-three miles from the dam. For six 
miles from this point the section is circular and 
twelve and one-half feet in diameter, having its 
capacity reduced to 250 million gallons. See 
Aqueduct. 

Croup, Icroop, a disease, usually attacking 
children only, which appears in the form of a 
hoarse cough, accompanied by difficult breath¬ 
ing and the appearance of suffocation. It 
usually occurs in the night and may be repeated, 
each attack lasting several hours and terminating 
in some fever. Sometimes, in the case of ill- 
nourished or feeble children, the disease is fatal. 
Inhaling warm vapors of water will often relieve 
the difficulty, but in severe cases a physician 
should be called. 

A second variety of the disease is known as 
membranous croup, which is diphtheria of the 
larynx and is caused by the same bacillus that 
is active in diphtheria. In false croup, as the 
first species is known, nothing is coughed up, 
but in membranous croup pieces of membrane 
are expelled. Death may come from convul¬ 
sions or from suffocation, though frequently 
the latter is prevented by the operation known 
as tracheotomy, in which a tube is inserted 
into the windpipe below the inflamed tract. 
Through this tube the patient breathes. See 
Diphtheria. 

Crow, one of a family of birds containing 
about 200 species, found in nearly all part of 
the world. The American crow is eighteen 
or nineteen inches in length and has a compact, 
glossy plumage with some greenish reflections. 
The crows are social birds that sometimes 
gather in large flocks, are readily domesticated 
and imitate human speech quite well. They 
make amusing pets and sometimes show an 
almost human intelligence, but they are mis¬ 
chievous and seem to take pleasure in annoying 
people. The wild birds also are bold, thievish 


and generally unpopular, though on the whole they 
are probably beneficial. All are birds of strong 
flight, and all 
move along 
the ground 
by hopping, 
though most 
of them can 
run also. The 
fish crow is a 
rather small 
species, very 
common in the 
eastern United 
States. The 
magpies, jack¬ 
daws, rooks, 
jays and rav¬ 
ens are closely A * crow ’ s head: B - rook ’ s head - 

related species, described under their proper 
titles. The crow of India and Ceylon is small and 
glossy, and is very bold and thievish. 

Crow, the name of a tribe of indians, about 
2000 in number, now living on a reservation in 
Montana. Originally a very warlike race, they 
sided with the whites against the Sioux and 
often proved of great assistance, especially as 
scouts. 

Crow'berry or Crake'berry, a plant resem¬ 
bling the heath, and bearing a jet-black berry, 
common in all the northern parts of Europe 
and Asia and North America. The berries, 
which have a slight acid taste and are sometimes 
eaten, afford a purple dye. 

Crow Black'bird or Purple Grack'le, a 
large, handsome blackbird, found in the eastern 
parts of the United States. It is about a foot 
long, with glossy jet-black color and fine greenish 
and metallic reflection. West of the Allegnany 
Mountains its representative is the veiy simila r 
bronze grackle. 

Crown, an English coin, equivalent to five 
English shillings, or about $1.22 in United 
States money. It was originally made of gold, 
but since 1551 it has been issued in silver. It 
bears the imprint of a crown on one side and a 
likeness of the ruling sovereign on the other. 
The crown weighs 436.3636 troy grains, of 
which .925 is pure silver. The name is also 
used to designate the monetary unit of Austria- 
Hungary (equal to about 20 cents in American 
money) and of Denmark, Norway and Sweden 
(equivalent to about 26.8 cents). See Sovereign. 

Crown Glass, the hardest and most colorless 
kind of glass, made almost entirely of sand. 






Crown Point 


Crusades 


soda and a little lime. The use of crown glass 
is now confined to the manufacture of ornaments 
and lenses. 

Crown Point, a township in Essex co., N. Y., 
chiefly important for its historical associations. 
It was early the site of an English trading post, 
was settled by the French in 1731, but was 
destroyed in 1759 by a British attacking party. 
At the outbreak of the Revolution a body of 
Green Mountain Boys, under Seth Warner, 
surprised and captured the garrison, and it was 
held by the Americans until Burgoyne’s invasion 
in 1777, when it was temporarily abandoned. 
The ruin of the fortifications erected at this 
point by the British after 1759, at a cost of more 
than $10,000,000, may still be seen. 

Crown Point is 110 mi. n. e. of Albany and 
10 mi. from Ticonderoga, on the w. shore of 
Lake Champlain and on the Delaware & Hud¬ 
son railroad. The village is not incorporated. 
It has small manufactures of lumber and allied 
products, and there are neighboring deposits of 
iron ore. Population in 1910, 1690. 

Croy'don, a borough of England, in Surrey, 
10 mi. s. of London, of which it is practically a 
suburb. The town, which is a favorite residence 
place of merchants and business men, is sur¬ 
rounded by villas, mansions and pleasure grounds. 
It is a place of ancient origin, but from its recent 
rapid increase it is almost entirely new. Of 
special interest are the remains of the ancient 
palace, long a residence of the archbishops of 
Canterbury. Population in 1911, 169,559. 

Crucible, kru'si b’l, an open vessel employed 
to hold substances which are to be submitted 
to a high temperature. A 
crucible is usually of a conical, Will \ 
circular or triangular shape, \ lHr all, B 
closed at the bottom and open \ |||r 
at the top, and is made of ''i* 
various materials, such as fire crucibles 
clay, platinum, a mixture of fire clay and plum¬ 
bago, or porcelain. 

Cruciferae, kru si}' ur ee. See Mustard 
Family. 

Cruelty to Animals, Society For the 
Prevention of. The first society for this 
purpose was organized in England in 1824, 
and it was soon influential in securing legis¬ 
lation which provided for the punishment of 
the beating or otherwise ill-treating of domestic 
animals, with fine or imprisonment. The first 
society in the United States was organized in 
New York in 1866, through the influence of 
Mr, Henry Bergh, who, during his lifetime, 


was the most active representative of the society 
and the idea for which it stood. Through the 
influence of this organization, legislation has 
been secured in nearly every state in the Union, 
fixing a penalty of fine or imprisonment, or both, 
for abusing domestic animals. The legislation 
has also extended to transportation of live stock 
in those sections of country where stock is car¬ 
ried long distances before reaching market. 
Railways are now required to unload animals 
every twenty-four hours and give them rest, 
feed and water. 

Cruikshank, krook' shank, George (1792- 
1878), a famous English caricaturist and illus¬ 
trator of magazines, born in London. The 
earliest of his known drawings is dated 1799 
when he was only seven years of age, and at 
fifteen he was comparatively distinguished. He 
illustrated a number of popular books, among 
which were several of Dickens’s. He was very 
industrious and left an enormous quantity of 
work, a catalogue showing more than five 
thousand titles. 

Crusades, kru saydz' (from the latin word 
meaning cross), the wars carried on by the 
Christian nations of western Europe, from the 
eleventh to the thirteenth century, for the con¬ 
quest of Palestine. They were given the name 
because the warriors wore the sign of the cross. 
The antagonism between the Christian and 
Mohammedan nations had been intensified by 
the possession of the Holy Land by the Turks 
and by their treatment of pilgrims to Jerusalem; 
and the first strenuous appeal was assured of 
response alike from the pious, the adventurous 
and the greedy. 

The First Crusade. The immediate cause of 
the first Crusade was the preaching of Peter 
the Hermit, who had joined other pilgrims on 
a journey to Jerusalem. On his return he gave 
Pope Urban II a description of the unhappy 
situation of Christians in the East and pre¬ 
sented a petition for assistance from the patri¬ 
arch of Jerusalem. The statements of the pope 
at the Council of Clermont in 1095 produced a 
profound sensation throughout Europe, and in 
1096 several armies set out in different divisions. 
Most of these earliest crusaders, ignorant as 
they were of military discipline and not provided 
with sufficient food, perished before reaching 
Constantinople, which had been chosen for their 
place of meeting. A well-conducted regular 
army, however, of almost one hundred thousand 
knights, was headed by such men as Godfrey of 
Bouillon; Baldwin, brother of Godfrey; Robert 


Crusades 


Crusades 


of Flanders; Robert of Normandy, brother of 
William II, king of England; Raymond of 
Toulouse, and other heroes. They traversed 
Germany, Hungary and the Byzantine Empire, 
passed over into Asia Minor, conquered Nicaea 
in 1097, and shortly after fought the first pitched 
battle at Dorylaeum, winning a complete vic¬ 
tory after a severe contest. They then marched 
upon Antioch, which fell into their hands in 
June, 1098. Surrounded in turn by a Turkish 
army, they were soon reduced to pitiable straits 
but succeeded in routing their besiegers, and 
after remaining nearly a year in the neighbor¬ 
hood of Antioch they began their march against 
Jerusalem. Their numbers were now reduced 
to little more than twenty thousand men; but 
after a fierce struggle the town was taken by 
storm (1099) and Godfrey of Bouillon was 
chosen ruler of the city (See Godfrey de 
Bouillon),. 

The Second Crusade (1147-1149) was occa¬ 
sioned by the loss of Edessa, which had been 
taken by the Christians in the First Crusade. 
Fearing still graver losses, the pope, seconded 
by Bernard of Clairvaux, exhorted the German 
emperor Conrad III, and the king of France, 
Louis VII, to defend the cross. Both these 
monarchs obeyed and led large forces to the 
East, but returned without accomplishing any¬ 
thing. 

The Third Crusade was undertaken after the 
capture of Jerusalem by Saladin in 1187, the 
monarchs Frederick Barbarossa of Germany, 
Philip Augustus of France and Richard I of 
England, leading their armies in person. Richard 
and Philip Augustus agreed to unite their forces 
at Messina in Sicily, where they spent six months 
at the end of 1190 and beginning of 1191. 
Jealousies arose, however, between the mon¬ 
archs, and within a few weeks after the fall of 
Acre the French king returned to Europe. 
Richard, now sole leader of the expedition, 
defeated Saladin; but having twice vainly set 
out with the design of besieging Jerusalem, he 
finally concluded a truce of three years and 
three months with Saladin, who agreed that 
pilgrims should be free to visit the Holy Sepul¬ 
cher, and that the whole seacoast from Tyre to 
Jaffa should belong to the Crusaders. 

The Fourth Crusade was set on foot by Pope 
Innocent III in 1202. Among its chief pro¬ 
moters were Geoffrey of Villehardouin, Baldwin 
of Flanders and the marquis of Montferrat, who 
was chosen leader. The Crusaders assembled 
at Venice in the spring, but were diverted from 


their original purpose, first by the capture of the 
Dalmatian town of Zara, and then by the 
expedition which ended in the sack of Con¬ 
stantinople and the establishment of a Latin 
empire there (1204). 

The Fifth Crusade (1228-1229), that of 
Frederick II, emperor of Germany, was under¬ 
taken in fulfillment of a vow. Frederick entered 
into negotiations with the sultan of Egypt, and 
without any fighting gained possession of the 
kingdom of Judea on the condition of tolerating 
in his kingdom the Mohammedan worship. He 
then concluded a useless truce of ten years and 
was crowned at Jerusalem. 

The Sixth (1248-1254) and Seventh (1270) 
Crusades were led by Louis IX of France. In 
the first of these expeditions he took Damietta 
and marched up the Nile, but was compelled 
to retreat and finally to surrender with his whole 
army. He was released only on payment of a 
large ransom. The second expedition was still 
more disastrous in its results than the first. He 
landed his army on the northern coast of Africa, 
but he himself and a large number of his knights 
died before Tunis. A crusading army under 
Prince Edward of England (after Edward I), 
originally intended to cooperate with that of 
Louis, landed at Acre in 1271, but little was 
effected beyond a new truce for ten years. 

Authorities do not all agree as to the number¬ 
ing of these Crusades, as there were in the 
intervals between the greater movements con¬ 
stant minor expeditions. Most remarkable of 
these lesser crusades was the Children's Crusade 
in 1212. It is believed that about fifty thousand 
boys and girls took part in this movement. A 
band of German children marched south to the 
Mediterranean and although thousands of them 
died of privation by the way, the remainder 
pressed on, confident that a way would be 
opened to them through the sea. When their 
hopes proved false, some of them remained in 
Genoa and some attempted to return to Germany, 
but few of them ever arrived at home. The 
French children gathered at Marseilles, and two 
merchants managed to entice them on board 
ship, with the promise of free transportation 
to the Holy Land. Two of the ships were 
wrecked and the children on the others were 
sold in Alexandria as slaves. 

Despite the fact that the Crusades failed 
entirely in their real object, they were of inesti¬ 
mable importance in European history for many 
reasons. The European nations became better 
acquainted with one another; the power of the 


Crustacea 

Church was materially increased; the citizen 
class gained much influence, partly because the 
nobility suffered by extravagant contributions to 
the Crusades, and partly because the enlarged 
commercial intercourse greatly augmented the 
wealth of the cities. Another important political 
result of the Crusades was the growth of the 
royal power at the expense of that of the nobles. 
Intellectually the Crusades were of the utmost 
value, because they brought to the notice of 
Europeans the civilization of the Saracens, 
which was much higher in many respects than 
that of any of the western nations. 

Crustacea, krus ta'she ah, the highest group 
of jointed animals (See Arthropod a). There 
are about ten thousand living species, the majority 
of them being sea animals, though a few are found 
upon the earth or in stagnant or running fresh 
waters The smaller ones are an important 
source of food to other marine animals, while 
some of the larger types are among the favorite 
sea foods of all nations. Crustaceans have five 
pairs of appendages on the head, and all of their 
limbs excepting the first pair are forked. The 
entire body is covered with a hard coating, which 
in some forms is almost bonelike, but in others 
is merely tough and leathery The animals lay 
eggs, which are almost always hatched in water, 
though some of the land species carry the eggs 
and young on the undei side of the abdomen. 
As the animal grows its skin becomes confining 
at intervals, and so it is cast off, together with 
the shell which it has secreted See Trilobite; 
Barnacle, Shrimp, Lobster; Crab. 

Cry’olite or Kry'olite, a mineral, a native 
fluoride of aluminum and sodium, found at 
Evigtok, in Greenland, whence it is exported. 
It is of a pale grayish-white or yellowish-brown, 
occurs in masses of thin layers folded upon 
one another and has a glassy luster. It has been 
employed as a source of aluminum, and in the 
manufacture of a hard, porcelain-like glass of 
great beauty. 

Cryophorus, kry of or us, an instrument for 
showing the diminution of temperature in water 
by its own evaporation. Wollaston’s cryoph¬ 
orus consists of two glass globes, united by a 
moderately wide glass tube. Water is poured 
in and boiled to expel the air, and while boiling 
continues the apparatus is sealed air-tight. 
When the instrument is to be used, the water 
is made to run into one of the globes, and the 
other is buried in a freezing mixture. The 
vapor m the globe is thus condensed, and a 
vacuum is produed; fresh vapor rises from the 


Crystallography 

water in the other globe, which is itself condensed; 
these processes repeat themselves till the water 
remaining in the globe has been, by evaporation, 
cooled to the freezing point. A toy instrument, 
similar in construction, containing sulphuric 
ether and used in physical laboratories to illus¬ 
trate the low temperature at which ethei boils 
in a vacuum, is called a pulse glass. 

Crypt, kript, a vault under a church, designed 
originally to receive the bodies of the saints and 
martyrs. It developed out of the confession and 
became enlarged so as to contain the altar and 
a room to worship relics. It generally occupied 
the space below the transept, choir and apse. 
From the ninth to the thirteenth century the 
crypt formed an important feature of church 
architecture, particularly in the Romanesque 
style. One of the famous examples is that under 
the Glasgow Cathedral, and others are found 
in the cathedrals of Canterbury, Gloucester and 
Saint Mark’s and in the Church of Saint Peter’s. 
See Altar. 

Cryptog'amous Plants or Crypt’ogams, a 

term that includes all plants of organization 
inferior to that of the flowering plants. In con¬ 
trast with these the seed-bearing plants are often 
called phanerogams. See Botany. 

Cryptog'raphy, the art of writing in secret 
characters or ciphers, or with sympathetic ink. 
The simplest method consists in choosing for 
every letter of the alphabet some sign or another 
letter or group of letters. From the earliest 
times forms of cryptography have been in 
use, and in modem times the most elaborate and 
difficult cryptograms have been invented. The 
deciphering of such cryptograms has come to be 
an art, and it may be stated with some confidence 
that any cryptogram based on a regular mathe¬ 
matical principle can be solved. 

Crystalline, kris'talline or laris'td lin Lens. 
See Eye. 

Crystalline Rocks, rocks of a crystalline 
texture, such as granite, believed to have acquired 
this character by the action of heat and pressure. 
See Igneous Rocks. 

Crystallography, the science which classi¬ 
fies the numerous forms of crystals and shows 
the relation between them. All inorganic 
substances, when solidifying, tend to form in 
crystals, and the forms thus produced are num¬ 
bered by the thousands, but these can all be 
classified under six systems, as follows: 

1. The Regular Cubic System. Crystals 
of this system have three lines or axes of equal 
length, crossing each other at the middle 


Crystallography 


Cuba 


point at right angles. The ends of the axes lie 
in the center of the respective planes of the 
crystal. The regular crystals of this system are 
cubical. Common salt, iron pyrites, galena or 
lead sulphide, silver, copper and gold are ex¬ 
amples of substances crystallizing on this plan. 

2. The Square Prismatic System. In 
this system the axes are at right angles to each 
other, but one may be longer than the other two. 
The short axes may terminate in the middle of 
the planes of the crystal or at the edges of these 
planes, and the long axis may terminate in a 
point where all the faces meet. This arrange¬ 
ment forms a pyramid, or the crystal may have 
the form of two pyramids, with them bases 
together. Binoxide of tin, calomel and yellow 
prussiate of potash are common examples of this 
form of crystals. 

3. The Right Prismatic System. In this 
the three axes are all of unequal length, but are 


some forms of tartaric acid crystallize according 
to this plan. 

6. The Hexagonal Rhombohedral Sys¬ 
tem. This system has four axes, three of which 
are in the same plane and inclined to each other 
at an angle of sixty degrees, while the fourth is 
perpendicular to them. This system gives a 
regular six-sided prism. Many varieties of 
limestone crystallize according to this plan, 
and some of the crystals are so minute that they 
cannot be seen without a microscope. 

Cu'ba, The Republic of. The Republic of 
Cuba includes Cuba, the Isle of Pines and 
several other small adjacent islands. Cuba, 
the largest of the West Indies, lies between 78° 
S' and 84° 58' west longitude and 19° 15' and 
23° 9' north latitude, between the Caribbean 
Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. It is 130 mi. s. of 
Florida and about equally distant from Yucatan 
on the w. and Haiti on the e. Its greatest 



placed at right angles to each other. The 
crystals belonging to this system are of the form 
of right rhombic prisms and rhombic-based 
octahedrons. Sulphate of potash, sulphur, ni¬ 
trate of potash and topaz crystallize on this plan. 

4. The Oblique Prismatic System, in 
which two of the axes are placed at right angles 
to each other, while the third is inclined. The 
axes may all be of different lengths. The crys¬ 
tals take the form of oblique prisms. Borax, 
copperas (sulphate of iron), sulphate of soda and 
carbonate of soda (sal soda) are common 
examples. 

5. The Double Oblique Prismatic Sys¬ 
tem. A crystal in this plan has three axes of 
unequal length, intersecting obliquely with each 
other. The crystals of this system are often 
irregular and difficult to classify. Blue vitriol 
(sulphate of copper), sulphate of manganese and 


length from east to west is 760 mi., and it varies 
in breadth from 25 mi. to 130 mi. The area, 
including the Isle of Pines, is about 43,500 sq. 
mi., or a little larger than the State of Tennessee. 

Surface and Drainage. The Copper 
Mountains traverse the island from east to west 
and form a low watershed, varying from 110 
to 400 feet in altitude. The highest peak is 
Pico Torquinos, which has an altitude of about 
8400 feet. From each side of the watershed the 
surface slopes gradually to the coast, forming 
undulating, well-watered plains, covered with 
luxuriant forests and plantations. Numerous 
lagoons and salt marshes occur in the lowlands 
along the coast.. The irregularity of the coast 
line provides a number of good harbors, but in 
many places the coast is low and rocky and the 
water is shallow. 

The island has about 200 streams large enough 























Cuba 


Cuba 


to be called rivers, but they are all short, and 
only a few are navigable; The Rio Canto, 
which is the largest, admits of the passage of 
boats for 60 miles. There are only a few small 
lakes, but the large salt water lagoons on the 
north side resemble lakes. 

Climate. Cuba has a tropical climate. 
The mean annual temperature is 78°, and the 
maximum seldom exceeds 88°. July and 
August are the hottest months. The average 
annual rainfall at Havana is 90 inches, and, 
with few exceptions, the entire island has an 
abundance of rain for all agricultural purposes. 
Only a few small areas in the interior require 
irrigation. In the highlands the climate is 
generally healthful, but in the lowlands much 



CUBAN FLAG 

The triangular field is red; the stripes are alternately 
blue and white. 


sickness prevails, although recent experience 
seems to indicate that this is due -more to the 
unsanitary condition of the country than to the 
climate. 

Mineral Resources. Deposits of coal, 
copper, gold, silver and iron are found. Cop¬ 
per has been mined in the mountains with 
profit, and iron ore is shipped from the Province 
of Santiago to the United States, the annual 
shipment amounting to about 600,000 tons. 
Asphalt is obtained in the Bay of Cardenas, 
and considerable salt is procured in other locali¬ 
ties. The other mineral deposits are not of 
sufficient extent to warrant working. 

Agriculture. The island is covered with 
a luxuriant growth of vegetation. Flowers, 
grasses and many varieties of herbaceous plants 
are found on the lowlands, while the mountains 
to their summits are clothed with heavy forests, 


containing mahogany, ebony, rosewood, gran- 
adilla, cedar, live-oak and other valuable timber. 
The soil and climate are favorable to agriculture, 
which is the leading industry. Previous to the 
last war for independence, the country contained 
over 90,000 plantations, farms, cattle ranches 
and orchards. During the war many of these 
were devastated, but since the establishment of 
an independent government agriculture has been 
rapidly advancing. Sugar, tobacco coffee and 
tropical fruits are the leading products. Of 
these sugar is the most important, and it is 
estimated that when all of the land suitable for 
growing sugar cane is under cultivation, an 
annual crop of a half million tons of sugar can 
be produced. The chief provinces devoted to 
sugar cane are Santa Clara and Matanzas. 
Tobacco is second only to sugar in importance, 
and a large revenue is derived from its growth 
and manufacture. Cuban tobacco maintains a 
standard value in all markets, on account of its 
excellent flavor, and the province of Pinar del 
Rio is the most important tobacco producing 
region in the world. Cattle raising is an impor¬ 
tant industry, and large areas are given to the 
growing of vegetables, corn and poultry. Bee 
keeping is also successful. 

The manufactures are practically confined 
to cigars and other products of tobacco and to 
the manufacture of raw sugar. 

Transportation and Commerce. Roads 
are generally poor, and lack of good means of 
transportation in the interior : s a great hindrance 
to commerce. Havana is connected with Pinar 
del Rio Matanzas, Cabanas, La Isabella and 
Cienfuegos by railway. A line of railway also 
extends across the island from Moron to Jucaro, 
and another connects Puerto Principe with the 
port of Neuvetas. In all, there are about 1350 
miles of railway, most of which is in poor condi¬ 
tion. There are also some 3000 miles of tele¬ 
graph lines. The irregularity of the coast 
provides numerous good harbors, about forty 
being accessible to ocean-going vessels. Havana, 
Matanzas, Cabanas, Cienfuegos and Santiago 
de Cuba are the important seaports. Regular 
communication is maintained with the Atlantic 
and Gulf ports of the United States and with 
the commercial centers of Europe. Cuba is 
situated at the convergence of many trans¬ 
atlantic routes, and the ships of all nations find 
their way into the harbor of Havana, the prin¬ 
cipal seaport. The commerce of the island is 
rapidly growing. In 1910 the foreign trade 
amounted to $228,420,885, of which $ 124,745,304 



Cuba 


Cuba 


were exports and $103,675,581 imports. Most 
of the foreign trade is with the United States. 

Inhabitants and Language. The inhabit¬ 
ants consist of native Cubans, who are descend¬ 
ants from the early Spanish families; Spaniards 
who have more recently settled in the country 
and constitute about one-tenth of the popula¬ 
tion, and a mixed class, descendants of the 
former slaves of African blood, and Spaniards. 
The last constitute a large proportion of the 
population. There are also a number of Chinese 
coolies and a few Americans. Spanish is the pre¬ 
vailing language. Population in 1907, 2,048,989. 

Education. Previous to the establishment 
of an independent government, education had 
been grossly neglected, and most of the people 
were illiterate. Under the regime of the United 
States (See subhead History , below), a good 
system of public schools was established on the 
American plan, and the provinces and munici¬ 
palities were made responsible for the education 
of children within their borders. The Univer¬ 
sity of Havana has faculties of letters, science, 
law, medicine and pharmacy and has an aver¬ 
age enrollment of about 600 students. 

Government. Cuba is governed in accord¬ 
ance with the Constitution adopted by a repre¬ 
sentative convention, February 21, 1901. The 
government is republican in form and differs 



A SCENE IN RURAL CUBA 

but slightly from that of the United States. 
The head of the administration is the president, 
who must be a native Cuban or a naturalized 
citizen who served ten years in the Cuban army 
during the wars for independence. He is elected 
by popular vote for a term of four years and can¬ 
not serve more than two consecutive terms. 
He appoints and removes members of his cabinet, 
who are responsible to him for the administration 
of their departments. The legislative power is 
vested in a Congress, consisting of two houses, 


a Senate and a House of Representatives. The 
former contains four senators from each of the 
six provinces. The House of Representatives 
consists of one member for every twenty-five 
thousand inhabitants or fraction thereof more 
than 12,500. They are elected for four years, 
one-half retiring every two years. Congress 
holds annual sessions, controls the financial and 
foreign affairs of the Republic and makes general 
laws for the administration of the government, 
as well as of some phases of provincial govern¬ 
ment. The island is divided into six provinces: 
Havana, Matanzas, Pinar del Rio, Puerto Prin¬ 
cipe, Santa Clara and Santiago. Each province 
has a governor and an assembly, both elected 
by the people for a period of three years. There 
is a supreme court for the interpretation of the 
Constitution, its judges being appointed by the 
president with the approval of the Senate. 
Every male Cuban over twenty-one years of age 
and not mentally incapacitated or convicted of 
crime, all Spanish residents who have been on 
the island since April 11,1899, and all foreigners 
who have resided there since January 1, 1899, 
are entitled to franchise. Foreigners who have 
taken up their residence there since January 1, 
1899, are required to show five years’ residence 
for naturalization. 

History. Cuba was discovered by Columbus 
in 1492. It was settled in 1511 by Diego Colum¬ 
bus, son of Christopher, who founded Santiago 
in 1514, and in 1519 the present city of Havana 
was established. This settlement soon became 
the foremost town in the island and the center 
of government. From the first, the Spaniards 
reduced the natives to slavery and treated them 
so cruelly that by the middle of the sixteenth 
century the race was almost extinct. This 
required the introduction of negroes from Africa, 
and they were employed so constantly and under 
such terrible conditions that mortality among 
them was greater than increase, and the govern¬ 
ment was compelled to import constantly increas¬ 
ing numbers. Havana was destroyed by the 
French in 1534 and again in 1554 and was cap¬ 
tured by the Dutch in 1624, but it was imme¬ 
diately restored and thereafter was repeatedly 
the prey of filibusters and pirates. During the 
eighteenth century, Cuba was exploited by a 
line of vicious and oppressive governors general, 
but after the Seven Years’ War, during which 
England had captured the island only to return 
it to Spain in 1763, prosperity ruled and the 
resources of Cuba were developed. Still, unscru¬ 
pulous governors general were enabled to repress 


Cuba 


Cube 


it* natural progress by exacting enormous taxes 
and vast sums in tribute. The island was 
attractive to American statesmen, especially 
those of the South, as a field for the extension 
of slavery, and it was the secret ambition of 
many presidents to gain control of it by purchase. 
Finally, in 1848, President Polk offered $100,000,- 
000 to Spain, but it was refused. In 1854 
eminent American ministers to Great Britain, 
France and Spain, among whom was James 
Buchanan, united in drawing up the Ostend 
Manifesto, which urged the United States to 
annex Cuba by force if Spain refused to sell 
Nothing came of these efforts. 

Meantime, the people of Cuba were striving 
to abolish slavery and to gain their independence. 
Many insurrections occurred, notably those of 
1849 and 1854, which, though causing great 
suffering, accomplished little. Finally, in 1868, 
began a ten years’ struggle which extorted from 
the Spanish government the promise of liberal 
government, representation in the Spanish 
parliament and the encouragement of industry. 
These promises were but partly kept, however, 
and discontent increased until 1895, when the 
last great rebellion broke out. Spain sent 
General Campos to the island to suppress the 
rebellion, but the insurgents under Gomez, 
Maceo and Garcia continued to gain successes 
and by guerrilla warfare completely checked the 
efforts of the Spanish soldiery to pacify the island. 
Campos was succeeded by Weyler, wh ' under¬ 
took such savage measures that sympathy was 
aroused for the Cubans throughout the world, 
and especially in the United States. Weyler 
was superseded by Blanco in 1897, and in spite of 
the promise of autonomy the insurrection con¬ 
tinued and seemed to gain strength in the follow¬ 
ing wirfter. Cuba meantime had frequently 
requested the United States to interfere in its 
behalf, and the time seemed opportune for such 
interference when an American warship, the 
Maine, was destroyed in Havana harbor, Febru¬ 
ary 15. 1898, by some mysterious cause which 
the American people believed to be known to 
Spain. In April of that year Congress declared 
that “the people of Cuba are and of right ought 
to be free and independent.” War was declared 
against Spain (See Spanish-American War), 
and American arms were triumphant everywhere. 
By the Treaty of Paris, December 10, 1898, 
Spain relinquished all sovereignty to Cuba. 
The United States temporarily occupied the 
island. A constitutional convention was called 
in 1901, and a Constitution was adopted, includ¬ 


ing a special amendment, known as the Platt 
Amendment, proposed by the Congress of the 
United States, to guarantee that the govern¬ 
ment should never enter into any treaty with 
a foreign power which would impair the inde¬ 
pendence of the island; that it should not 
assume any debt for whose payment it could 
not provide; that the United States could inter¬ 
fere to preserve the independence of the island 
or to protect life, property or individual liberty; 
that the United States be given certain coaling 
and naval stations. In December, 1901, r, 
president was elected, in the person of Tomas 
Estrada Palma, and on May 20, 1902, the United 
States formally withdrew. In 1906 an insurrec¬ 
tion broke out headed by a defeated candidate for 
president. The Cuban army was powerless and 
social order in some provinces was almost 
destroyed. The United States therefore inter¬ 
vened and sent a commission, headed by Hon. 
W. H. Taft, Secretary of War, to the island. 
This commission tried to reconcile the opposing 
factions, but without success. President Palma 
resigned and the Cuban Congress failed to elect 
a successor. Thereupon Secretary Taft issued a 
proclamation placing the Republic under military 
government. Hon. C. E. Magoon was soon 
appointed governor, and under the control of 
the United States order was immediately restored. 
The United States government in again assum¬ 
ing control of the island made it very plain that 
the control would continue only until the people 
of Cuba were again in condition to proceed 
peaceably with a new election, and the govern¬ 
ment could be transferred to the officers thus 
chosen. A national election was held Nov. 14, 
1908, and Gen. Jos6 Miguel Gomez was chosen 
president. On Jan. 13, 1909, President Gomez 
was inaugurated. On Jan. 13 the United States 
troops began to withdraw and in April the last 
detachment departed, leaving the Cuban Republic 
again under control of its own government. See 
Spain, subhead History; United States, 
subhead History; Spanish-American War. 
Consult Ballou’s Cuba, Past and Present, and 
Hill’s Cuba and Porto Rico . 

Cube, a geometric solid having six equal 
square faces. A cube is used as a unit of 
measure for volume. One cubic inch is a volume 
equivalent to a cube one inch in each of its 
dimensions. The volume of a cube is eaual 
to its height a, times its width a, times its length 
a, or a 3 . From this circumstance the third 
power of a number, which is the product of a 
number taken three times as a factor, is called its 


Cubebs 


Culberson 


cube. One of the famous mathematical prob¬ 
lems of antiquity was that of the “duplication 
of the cube;” that is, to find a cube whose vol¬ 
ume is twice that of a given cube. It is 
impossible of solution by the processes of ele¬ 
mentary mathematics. 

Cu'bebs, the fruit of species of plants belong¬ 
ing to the pepper family. The cubebs of phar¬ 
macy are produced by a climbing woody shrub, 
a native of the East Indies. It has round, ash- 
colored, smooth branches, each of which bears 
from forty to fifty small, globose fruits, about 
one-fifth of an inch in diameter. The odor of 
cubebs is agreeable and aromatic; the taste, 
pungent, acrid and slightly bitterish. It is used 
by the natives for flavoring, but in western 
countries chiefly in medicine. 

Cuck'OO, a bird common in warm countries 
and a summer resident in more northern lands. 
Altogether there are 175 species known. In 
the United States the rain crow or yellow-billed 
cuckoo is common, but it is a shy bird, keeping 
in the woods and flitting about quietly, uttering 
hoarse chucking notes which people used to 


say foretold rain. It is a long, slender bird of 
a pretty greenish-brown color and builds its 
flimsy nest and rears its own young. The 
European cuckoo, however, lays its small egg 
upon the ground and then picks it up and 
49 


deposits it in the nest of a smaller bird, where 
it is cared for by the unwilling mother (See Cow- 
bird). The cuckoo of Africa and Asia is closely 
allied to the European cuckoo. 

Cu' cumber, the familiar fruit of a vine which 
is closely related to the muskmelon. In south¬ 
ern Europe the cucumber is cooked before be¬ 
ing used as an article of food, but in the United 
States it is used principally as salad or pickle. 
The varieties are numerous, and each has its 
particular value. In a wild state in tropical 
Asia, the cucumber is very bitter and almost 
poisonous, and even now it occasionally hap¬ 
pens that a fruit is found that is bitter through¬ 
out, and almost always near the stem there is a 
bitter section. In southern Europe there is a 
curious relative of the common cucumber. This 
is a hairy plant which produces a small hairy 
fruit that falls from the vine when ripe and, 
through the opening where the stem grew, 
squirts its slime-covered seed some little dis¬ 
tance. This is known as the squirting cucumber. 

Cucumber Tree, a fine forest tree of the 
magnolia group, which grows in the United 
States and takes its name from the appear¬ 
ance of its fruit. Because of its lightness it 
is often used in the construction of boats. 

Cuenca, kwain'ka, the capital of the province 
of Azuay, Ecuador, situated 85 mi. s. w. of Quito, 
on a tableland 8640 feet above the level of the 
sea. Among its institutions are a cathedral, a 
university, a school of fine arts and several con¬ 
vents. The chief industries near the city are 
mining in the rich metal deposits, agriculture 
and cattle raising. Hats and pottery are manu¬ 
factured. The Aztecs have left interesting 
relics in the vicinity. Population, between 
25,000 and 30,000. 

Cu'fic or Kufic, a term derived from the 
town of Cufa, in the pashalic of Bagdad, applied 
to the written characters of the Arabian alphabet, 
in use from about the sixth century of the 
Christian era until about the eleventh. The 
earliest copies of the Koran were written in 
these characters. 

Curberson, Charles A. (1855- ), an 

American politician, born at Dadeville, Ala. 
He was the son of David B. Culberson, who was 
congressman from Texas for twenty-two years. 
He graduated from Virginia Military Institute, 
studied law, settled in Texas and became 
attorney general of the state in 1890. He was 
elected governor in 1894 and United States 
senator in 1899, to succeed Roger Q. Mills. 
He was reelected in 1905 and 1911. 







Culloden Moor 


Cummins 


Cullo'den Moor or Drummossie Moor, a 

heath in Scotland, near Moray Firth, 4 mi. e. 
of Inverness. The moor is well cultivated. Here 
was fought, April 27, 1746, the battle between 
the duke of Cumberland and the Pretender, 
Prince Charles Edward, which terminated the 
attempts of the Stuart family to recover the 
throne of England. The spot where the battb 
raged the fiercest and where many of the dead 
were buried is marked by a monumental cairn, 

Cul'lom, Shelby Moore (1829-1914), an 
American statesman, born in Wayne co., 
Ky. He was admitted to the bar in Illinois 
and began his practice in Springfield, where he 
was soon drawn into politics and elected to the 
legislature and to Congress. From 1876 to 
1883 he was governor of Illinois, in the latter year 
beginning a career of 30 years in the United 
States Senate as a Republican. He was an ad¬ 
vocate of the interstate commerce law of 1889, 
and was one of the commissioners to establish 
American Government in Hawaii. In 1913 he 
was appointed commissioner in charge of the 
great Lincoln Memorial at Washington, D. C. 

Cumae, ku’me, an ancient Greek city of Italy, 
in Campania, situated on the Mediterranean, 
11 mi. w. of Naples and, according to Strabo, 
the most ancient of Greek colonies in Italy. 
Cumae founded Naples and, in Sicily, Messina, 
and for two hundred years was a very important 
and prosperous city. As a result of the jealousy 
of its power, the Etruscans waged war in 474 
b. c. against Cumae, in which the Cumaeans, 
with the aid of Hiero of Syracuse, were successful. 
The city was destroyed in 1205 by the people of 
Naples, as it had become the center of a band of 
pirates, and now only a few ruins exist. 

Cumana, koo ma nah', a seaport city in Vene¬ 
zuela, situated on the Manzanares River, 100 
mi. w. of Barcelona and 160 mi. w. of Caracas. 
This is possibly the oldest city in America, having 
been founded in 1520. The place is frequently 
visited by earthquakes and was almost entirely 
destroyed in 1853. It exports sugar, cocoanuts, 
cacao, sugar, hides, tobacco and coffee. Popu¬ 
lation, about 12,000. 

Cum'berland, Md., the county-seat of Alle¬ 
gany co., 152 mi. n. w. of Washington, on the 
Potomac River and on the Baltimore & Ohio, 
the Cumberland & Pennsylvania and other rail¬ 
roads. It is the trade center of the Cumberland 
and Georges Creek coal district and in population 
and importance is the second city of the state. 
The industries include paper mills, glass works, 
tanneries, flour mills, steel and iron works and 


railroad repair shops. The place was laid out 
in 1785 on the site of Fort Cumberland, which 
was erected at the outbreak of the French and 
Indian War. Cumberland was incorporated 
as a city in 1850. Population in 1910, 21,839. 

Cumberland, R. I., a town in Providence co., 
6 mi. n. of Providence, on the Blackstone River, 
and on the New York, New Haven & Hartford 
railroad. It has large manufactures of horse¬ 
shoes and cotton goods. The town was incor¬ 
porated in 1747. Population in 1910, 10,107. - 

Cumberland Mountains, The, a part of the 
Appalachian system. The several ridges of 
these mountains extend from West Virginia 
along the boundary of Virginia and Kentucky, 
across Tennessee into Alabama and form a 
plateau about 50 miles wide. They rarely ex¬ 
ceed 2000 feet in height. They are covered with 
good timber, but the soil is not very rich. See 
Appalachian Mountains. 

Cumberland River, a river which rises in 
Kentucky in the Cumberland Mountains, flows 
nearly westward into Tennessee, where it makes 
almost a semicircle, returns into Kentucky and 
finally empties into the Ohio at Smithland. It is 
about 650 mi. long. It is navigable for steam¬ 
boats to Nashville, nearly 200 mi. from its mouth. 

Cumberland Road, a road constructed by the 
United States government, extending from Fort 
Cumberland, Md., to Vandalia, Ill., a distance 
of 800 miles. It was begun about 1806 and was 
finished about 1840. It was for years under 
Federal control and was commonly called the 
Great National Pike, but by 1856 each state 
through which it passed was controlling the 
section within its borders. It played an impor¬ 
tant part in opening the West to settlement and 
was for years the chief avenue of westward 
migration. 

Cummins, Albert Baird (1850- ), an 

American lawyer and statesman, born at Car¬ 
michaels, Pa. He practiced law in Chicago 
from 1875 to 1878, when he removed to Des 
Moines. Here he became prominent in Repub¬ 
lican politics, and from 1902 to 1908 was gov¬ 
ernor of Iowa. He achieved fame as an earnest 
advocate of tariff revision by the Republican 
party, a policy known for a time as the “Iowa 
idea.” In 1908, on the death of Senator Allison, 
he became United States senator, and at the 
election in 1909 was reelected for the full term. 
He was prominently mentioned as a candidate 
for the vice-presidency on the Republican 
ticket in 1908, and in 1912 was an active 
candidate for the nomination for president. 


Cunard 


Curfew 


Cunard', Samuel, Sir (1787-1865), an English 
capitalist, founder of the Cunard line c' steamers, 
which was the first line to establish regular 
steamship communication between England and 
the United States. 

Cuneiform, ku ne'i form, Inscriptions, the 

name applied to the wedge-shaped characters 
of the inscriptions on old Babylonian and 
Persian monuments, sometimes also described 
as arrow-headed or nail-headed characters. 
These characters appear to have been originally 
of the nature of hieroglyphs and to have been 
invented by the primitive Accadian inhabitants 
of Chaldea, from whom they were borrowed, 
with considerable modification, by the con¬ 
quering Babylonians and Assyrians, who were 
Semites by race and spoke an entirely different 
language. The use of the cuneiform characters, 
however, ceased shortly after the reign of Alex¬ 
ander the Great; and after the lapse of nearly 
two thousand years it was doubted by many 
if the signs had ever had an intelligible meaning. 
They were even regarded by some as the work 
of a species of worm, by others as mere talismanic 
signs or astrological symbols. Gradually, how¬ 
ever, through the efforts of Grotefend, Lassen, 
Rawlinson and other investigators, the means 
of translation were perfected. Many of the 
inscriptions first discovered are in three different 
languages and in as many varieties of cuneiform 
writing. The most prominent, and a( the same 
time the simplest and latest of these, is the 
Persian, with about sixty letters. Next older 
in time and much more complex is what is 
designated as the Assyrian or Babylonian system 
of writing, consisting of from six hundred to 
seven hundred characters, partly alphabetic, 
partly syllabic. Lastly comes the Accadian 
inscriptions, the oldest of all, originally pro¬ 
ceeding from a people who had reached a high 
state of civilization three thousand years before 
Christ and whose language ceased to be a living 
tongue about 1700 b. c. The most celebrated 
trilingual inscription is that at Behistun, cut 
upon the face of a rock seventeen hundred feet 
high, recording a portion of the history of Darius. 
The British Museum contains many thousands 
of inscribed clay tablets, cylinders, prisms and 
the like, the decipherment of which is still in 
progress. See Assyria. 

Cu'pid, according to classic mythology, the 
god of love. He was the son of Mars, the god 
of war, and Venus, the goddess of love. His 
attributes were the bow, quiver and wings, and 
he was represented in painting and sculpture 


as a chubby child with gauzy wings and roguish, 
dimpled face. Cupid loved a fair mortal 
princess, Psyche, who after many trials was 
granted immortality by the gods. As Cupid is 
the emblem of the heart, his love. Psyche, is the 
symbol of the soul. See Psyche. 

Cu'pola, in architecture, a spherical, dome¬ 
like vault, on the top of an edifice, so called 
because of its resemblance to a cup. The 
Italian word cupola signifies a hemispherical 
roof which covers a circular building, like the 
Pantheon at Rome and the Round Temple of 
Vesta at Tivoli. The term is also applied 
distinctively to the concave interior, as opposed 
to the dome, which is the entire curved structure. 
The term cupola is commonly, though incorrectly, 
applied to any small dome-lantern or observatory 
projecting above a roof. See Dome. 

Curasao, hoo ra sah'o , or Cura^oa, koo ra so’. 
Island, one of the Dutch West Indies,40mi. from 
the coast of Venezuela. It has an area of about 
210 sq. mi. Its surface is usually low, with 
lagoons and coral reefs along its coasts. Agri¬ 
culture is backward, owing to the lack of rain, 
but fruits, tobacco, corn, sugar cane and vege¬ 
tables are raised. Phosphate of lime and sea 
salt are the principal minerals. The Dutch 
colony of Cura 9 ao includes Cura 9 ao, Buen 
Ayre, Oruba, Saint Martin, Saint Eustache and 
Saba. The governor and council, appointed by 
the king of the Netherlands, live at Willemstad, 
the capital, on the Bay of Saint Anna. Popu¬ 
lation of. the colony in 1909, 52,741, and of the 
island of Cura 9 ao, 30,930. 

Curasao or Cura^oa, a liquor or cordial pre¬ 
pared from a peculiar kind of bitter oranges 
growing in Cura 9 ao, which have a persistent 
aromatic odor and taste. It is prepared from 
the yellow part of the rind, which is steeped in 
strong alcohol, the infusion being afterward 
distilled, purified and mixed with syrup. For 
the true orange, the common bitter orange of 
Europe is often substituted, and the genuine 
deep-yellow color is imitated by caramel. 

Curas'SOW, a name given to a bird closely 
related to the crows or partridges. The crested 
curassow is found in Guiana, Mexico and Brazil 
and is a handsome bird, nearly as large as a 
turkey and more noble in appearance, being 
of a dark violet color with a purplish-green gloss 
above and on the breast. The abdomen is 
snowy white and the crest is golden. See Guan. 

Cur'few, the ringing of a bell at a certain 
hour of the evening, usually eight o’clock, to 
indicate that all outdoor occupations must cease 


Curie 


Currency 


and that people must remain within doors. 
The custom was common during the Middle Ages 
and was introduced into England by William 
the Conqueror. The law was repealed by 
Henry I in 1103, but the bell continued to be 
rung in many districts to modem times and 
probably may still be heard. Similar ordinances 
for keeping children off the streets have been 
passed in some American cities. 

Curie, ku re', Pierre (1850-1906), and Marie 
Sklodowska (1867- ), French scientists, the 

discoverers of the wonderful properties of radium. 
Professor Curie was born in Paris, was educated 
at the Sorbonne, and later became professor of 
physics there. In 1898, after several years of 
investigation, Curie and his wife announced the 
existence of radium. In 1903 they were awarded 
the Davy Medal of the Royal Society and one- 
half of the Nobel prize in physics. After the 
death of her husband in 1905, Madame Curie, 
a Polish woman educated in Paris, succeeded 
him as professor of physics at the Sorbonne, and 
in 1911 her further researches won for her the 
Nobel prize in chemistry. 



MADAME CURIE 


Cur'lew, a genus of bjrds belonging to the 
same family as the snipe and woodcock. The 
birds have long, slender, partly naked limbs, 
short, rounded tails and very long, slender bills. 
The American species, which is common east and 
south, has a bill sometimes eight inches long 
that curves downward at the tip and is covered 
with a sensitive skin, which enables it to detect 
its food in the mud. 



’CURLING STONE 


Curl'ing, a favorite Scottish winter amuse* 
ment, played, also, to some extent in the United 
States. Large, smooth stones having somewhat 
the shape of a flattened hemisphere, with an iron 
or wooden handle at the top, and from 30 to 45 
pounds in weight, are 
slid along a prepared 
course on the ice. The 
object of the player is 
to lay his stone as 
near to the mark as 
possible, to guard that 
of his partner which 
has been well laid be¬ 
fore or to strike off 
that of his antagonist. Each player throws two 
stones, and then the count is made and the 
play resumed from the other end of the course. 
A series of match games is called a Bonspiel. 
Some of the international and interstate matches 
attract large numbers of people. 

Cur'rant, the name of two well-known shrubs 
cultivated in gardens for their fruit. The red 
currant, which is used principally for jellies, is a 
native of southern Europe, Asia and Americas 
The white currant is a cultivated variety of the 
red. The black currant, native to most parts 
of Europe and found abundantly in Russia, has 
a strong taste and odor, but it is used for jelly and 
in making tarts and puddings, to which it adds 
excellent flavor. The dried currants of com¬ 
merce are really raisins, a small variety of grape, 
which originally came from Corinth and there¬ 
fore received the name of currant. 

Cur'rency, the medium of exchange by 
which the processes of trade are transacted. 
The terms currency and money are used synony¬ 
mously, but there is a technical distinction. 
In using the term currency, emphasis is laid upon 
the characteristic by which it becomes a medium 
of exchange, while money includes not only this 
characteristic but also other functions, such 
as being a measure of value and a standard of 
value (See Money). In common speech, also, 
the term currency is restricted chiefly to repre¬ 
sentative money, or paper money, and the 
problem of the adjustment of the currency, 
so-called, has to do chiefly with the relation of 
these representative forms of money to the 
standard money. Thus, the circulating medium 
in the United States comprises at least nine 
different classes of money, of which only the 
gold coin may be considered to have all the 
essential attributes of money. The others are 
gold certificates, silver certificates, standard 



Currents 


Currents 


silver dollars, silver subsidiary coins, minor coins 
of various metals, treasury notes (by the law of 
1890), United States notes, national bank notes. 
Of these the gold and silver certificates represent 
a quantity of money equal in amount to the 
issues of the certificates deposited in the United 
States treasury for the express purpose of redeem¬ 
ing the certificates when due. They are not full 
legal tender. The United States notes are con¬ 
vertible into gold on demand, but the reserve of 
gold held to redeem them is not equal to the total 
issue of the notes, being usually about $150,000,- 
000, which is ordinarily sufficient to meet the 
demands for the redemption of the notes. The 
treasury notes of 1890 were issued under the 
Sherman Bill, in payment for silver bullion 
bought between the passage of the bill and its 
repeal in 1893. They were expressly made 
legal tender by the law and are redeemable in 
gold. The national bank notes are issued by 
the national banks to an amount equal to the 
value of government bonds or of gold bullion 
deposited in the treasury to secure them. They 
pass at par throughout the country and are 
payable to the government for all debts except 
customs duties; the government may pay its 
debts in them, excepting the interest on the 
public debt and the redemption of its own notes. 
They are therefore to a certain extent govern¬ 
ment currency, but they are not legal tender. 

Checks and drafts upon banks are in a sense 
currency, to the extent to which they are received 
in the payment of debt in the community, b”t 
they have no legal status as currency. 

Paper, or representative, currency, differs from 
standard currency in that its issue is not con¬ 
sidered purely a governmental function. The 
government may constitute itself the sole issuer 
of such money, or it may grant the privilege to 
corporations, companies or private individuals, 
and this right has been used at different times in 
history. One essential for the safe issue of 
such money is that it shall he secured by such 
deposits of real money or of other articles of 
equivalent value that the community shall have 
confidence that it will be redeemed on demand. 
See Banks and Banking; Coining; Money. 

CurTentS, Ocean, streams of water, or drifts, 
flowing regularly through the sea. Accord¬ 
ing to their position currents are classified as 
deep sea currents, surface currents and drift 
currents, and according to their temperature as 
warm and cold. Marine currents are very 
numerous, and taken together they constitute 
an oceanic circulation which secures a complete 


interchange of waters in each of the great 
branches of the ocean, as the Atlantic, Pacific 
and Indian oceans. Many theories have been 
advanced to account for the existence of these 
currents. It is now generally conceded that 
oceanic currents are due to the difference in 
temperature of the water in different localities, 
and to winds. Water contracts as it cools until 
it reaches the temperature of 39° F. Because 
of this, water in the polar regions is heavier 
than that in the equatorial regions. This heavy 
cold water tends to settle to the bottom of the 
ocean and the continuous settling forces the water 
below to move forward. Thus there is developed 
a deep sea current in each of the oceans, moving 
slowly from the polar to the equatorial regions. 
As these currents move to the warmer regions 
they become warmer and gradually rise, coming 
to the surface within the tropics. Surface cur¬ 
rents counter to these flow from the tropics 
towards the poles. These are currents of warm 
water. The best illustration of them is the Gulf 
Stream in the North Atlantic and the Kuro Sivo, 
or Japan Current, of the North Pacific. See 
Gulf Stream; Kuro Sivo. 

Were it not for the rotation of the earth these 
currents would take a due north and south 
course, except where their direction was changed 
by coming in contact with islands or other 
obstructions in the bed of the ocean; but because 
of the rotation the currents moving from the 
equatorial towards the polar regions are deflected 
eastward and those moving in the contrary 
direction are deflected westward. For this 
reason warm currents usually strike the western 
coasts of the continents and cold currents the 
eastern. The effect of these currents upon 
climate is seen in comparing the climatic con¬ 
ditions of places with the same latitude on the 
Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the United States. 
The warm climate of northern Europe is due 
partly to the warm currents of air blowing over 
that region from the Atlantic, and these winds 
become warm by blowing for a long distance 
over the waters of the Gulf Stream. 

In the equatorial regions surface currents flow 
westward. When these currents strike the 
eastern coasts of the continents, they divide, a 
portion going northward and a portion south¬ 
ward, so that in the Atlantic and the Pacific 
oceans there are practically two systems of cur¬ 
rents, those in the North and South Atlantic 
and those in the North and South Pacific. 
Because of the shape of the latter ocean, the 
currents in the South Pacific are less marked 


Curry 


Curtis 


than those in each of the other localities. In 
the center of each of these areas is a large tract 
of water in which there are either no currents or 
currents of a very low velocity. In the North 
Atlantic this region is characterized by the 
gathering of large quantities of seaweed, and it 
is often known as the Sargasso Sea. Drift cur¬ 
rents are those broad, general movements of 
water in the open ocean, in which the water over 
a large area turns slowly in one direction. They 
are well illustrated by the drift of the Antarctic 
Ocean northward and the drift in the southern 
part of the Indian Ocean. 

Cur'ry, Jabez Lamar Monroe (1825-1903), 
an American statesman and educator, born in 


dent of Richmond College, Virginia, but upon 
the death of Barnas Sears was chosen agent of 
the Peabody Educational Fund, and as the 
administrator of this and the Slater Fund he 
gained his widest and most enduring reputation. 
During President Cleveland’s second adminis¬ 
tration Doctor Curry was United States minister 
to Spain. See Peabody Educational Fund; 
Slater Fund. 

Cur' tin, Andrew Gregg (1817-1894), an 
American statesman, born in Bellefonte, Pa. 
He was educated at Dickinson College, engaged 
in the practice of law, entered politics and was 
elected governor of Pennsylvania in 1860. 
During the Civil War his prompt and efficient 



OCEAN CURRENTS 


1— Gulf Stream. 4—Benguela Current. 7—California Current 

2— Canary Current. S—Brazilian Current. 8—Peruvian Current. 

3— Equatorial Current. 6—Japan Stream. 9—Monsoon Current. 

10—Mozambique Current. 11—Australian Current. 


Lincoln co., Georgia, and educated at the Uni¬ 
versity of Georgia and the law school of Harvard 
University. He began his work as a lawyer, 
served in the Mexican War, became a member 
of the Georgia legislature and later of the 
national House of Representatives. At the 
breaking out of the Civil War, he joined his 
state in the secession movement and was a 
member of the Confederate congress, where 
he took a prominent part in drafting the con¬ 
stitution of the Confederate States. At the 
close of the war, Doctor Curry entered upon 
an educational career and became president of 
Howard College, Alabama. He was later presi- 


support of the Union won him a favorable 
reputation as one of the distinguished “war 
governors.” In 1869 he became minister to 
Russia, and he sat in Congress as a Democrat 
from 1881 to 1887. 

Curtis, George William (1824-1892), an 
American writer, orator and publicist, bom in 
Providence, R. I. He was a member of the 
Brook Farm Community for eighteen months, 
and after leaving there he traveled for a time in 
Europe and the Orient. For years he was editor 
of Putnam’s Monthly, and he began in 1853 the 
“Editor’s Easy Chair” papers in Harper’s 
Monthly. On the establishment of Harper’s 














































Cur tius 

Weekly he became one of its editors. During the 
later slavery struggle he worked earnestly, 
through the press and from the platform, for 
the cause of liberty. After the Civil War he 
devoted himself to reform movements, especially 
civil service reform, in the agitation of which 
he was long the most conspicuous figure, All 
his works, both his addresses and his purely 
literary productions, are marked by grace of 
diction, dignity and high moral sentiment. A 
novel, Trumps, and many of his other books 
appeared first in periodicals. Perhaps the best 
known of his writings is True and I. 

Curtius, koor’tseoos, Ernst (1814-1896), 
a German archaeologist and historian, born at 
Liibeck. After studying at Bonn, Gottingen 
pnd Berlin, he traveled in Greece, but returned in 
1841 to Germany, where he became lecturer of 
the University of Berlin and tutor to the crown 
prince, who was afterwards Frederick III. 
His Classical Studies, Twelve Attic Inscriptions 
and The Acropolis of Athens brought him great 
renown, and in 1844 he was made a member of 
the Royal Academy of Sciences. After having 
filled the chair of classical archaeology and 
philology at Gottingen, he returned to Berlin 
in 1868 as professor of ancient history and 
director of the department of antiquities in the 
Royal Museum. His interest in the ruins of 
Olympia gained him the support of the German 
government in his plans for carrying on his 
excavations there. His investigations and dis¬ 
coveries have been especially valuable and have 
contributed much to our knowledge of Greek 
antiquities. Curtius was one of the foremost 
of German scholars and one of the most promi¬ 
nent teachers of his day. Besides his numerous 
lectures, pamphlets and treatises, he wrote the 
following works: The Peloponnesus, History of 
the City of Athens and, in collaboration with 
Adler arid Hirschfeld, The Excavations at 
Olympia. 

Cu'rale Magistrates, in ancient Rome, the 
highest dignitaries of the state, distinguished 
by enjoying the privilege of sitting on ivory chairs 
when engaged in their public functions. They 
were the consuls, praetors, censors and chief 
aediles. 

Curve, a line which changes its direction at 
every point. Every curve can be represented 
by an algebraic equation containing two variable 
unknown quantities, the position of the points 
of the curve with reference to coordinates (See 
Coordinates) being determined by the values 
of these unknowns. Curves are said to be of the 


Cushing 

first, second, third, etc., order, according as the 
unknown quantities in their corresponding 
equations are raised to the first, second, third, 
etc., powers. Thus, the equation representing 
a circle will contain two unknown quantities, each 
raised to the second power, and the circle is said 
to be a curve of the second order. 

Cur'zon, George Nathaniel, Lord (1859- 
), an English diplomat and statesman, born 
at Kedleston and educated at Baliol College, 
Oxford. He first became private secretary to 
the marquis of Salisbury. After this he sat in 
Parliament for twelve years, and during a por¬ 
tion of the time he was under secretary of state 
for India and during the remaining portion was 
under secretary of state for foreign affairs. In 
1898 Lord Curzon was appointed viceroy and 
governor general of India, which position he 
held until 1905. His administration was char¬ 
acterized by energy and ability and was notable 
for the aid which he gave to education in the 
Empire, the strengthening of the military forces 
and his open opposition to the encroachments 
of Russia upon English territory in the East. 
He is the author of Russia in Central Asia, 
Persia and the Persian Question and Problems 
of the Far East. 

Cus'cus, a genus of animals of the phalanger 
family, native to the islands of the Australian 
group and New Guinea. The cuscus somewhat 
resembles the opossum, having dense, woolly 
fur and a prehensile tail. It is sought by the 
natives for its fur and flesh. 

Cush'ing, Caleb (1800-1879), an American 
statesman and diplomatist, born in Salisbury, 
Mass. After graduating at Harvard in 1817, 
he was tutor of mathematics and natural philos¬ 
ophy there until 1819 and was admitted to the 
bar in 1822. In 1825 he served in the legis¬ 
lature and ten years later was elected to Con¬ 
gress, where he served until 1843. Cushing was 
nominated by Tyler for secretary of the treasury, 
but he was rejected by the Senate. In 1843 he 
was appointed commissioner to China and 
negotiated the first treaty between that country 
and the United States, which was ratified in 
1845. He served in the Mexican War, becoming 
brigadier general, and in 1852 he was appointed 
an associate justice of the supreme court of 
Massachusetts. The next year he was made 
United States attorney general. In 1870 he 
prepared the protocol of the Treaty of Washing¬ 
ton and afterward the statement to be laid before 
the tribunal of arbitration in Geneva. In 1873 
he was nominated as chief justice of the United 


Cushing 


Customs Duties 


States, but was not confirmed by the Senate, 
and in the same year he was made minister to 
Spain. He was the author of Reminiscences of 
Spain: The Country, Its People, History and 
Monuments, and Historical and Political Review 
of the Late Revolution in France. 

Cushing, Thomas (1725-1788), an American 
statesman, born in Boston. He took an active 
part in the pre-Revolutionary discussion and 
was elected to the first and second Continental 
Congresses and, though opposing the Declaration 
of Independence, supported the American cause 
with energy. He was considered in England 
the leader of the Revolution, and his ability and 
services were held in high regard in America. 

Cushing, William Barker (1842-1874), an 
American naval officer, bom at Delafield, Wis. 
He graduated from the naval academy at Annap¬ 
olis in 1861 and immediately entered the navy, 
where he soon became conspicuous for his 
gallantry, his most notable feat being the destruc¬ 
tion of the Confederate ram Albemarle, October 
27. 1864, in Plymouth Harbor, N. C. For his 
service he was made lieutenant commander. 
After the war he served in the Pacific and Asiatic 
squadrons and in 1872 was commissioned com¬ 
mander. 

Cush'man, Charlotte Saunders (1816- 
1876), an American actress, born in Boston. 
She made her first appearance in opera and 
scored a distinct success, but the loss of her voice 
decided her to study for the drama. Her first 
role was Lady Macbeth, which remained 
throughout her career her greatest part. Among 
her other roles were Juliet, and Meg Merrilies 
in Scott’s Guy M annexing. Although most 
famous in tragedy, she was very successful, also, 
in such r6les as Lady Teazle. She retired from 
the stage in 1875. 

Cushman, Pauline (1833-1893), a spy, born 
in New Orleans, La. At first she was a variety 
actress. When the war began she was employed 
by the United States government as a detective 
of Southern sympathizers in Louisville, Ky. 
For some time she posed in the Southern states 
as a Confederate sympathizer, but remained 
steadfast to her affiliations with the national 
government. Eventually she was captured as a 
Northern spy, court-martialed and sentenced to 
be hanged. But when the Confederates left 
Shelbyville she was left behind and was released 
by entrance of the Union army. 

Cus'ter, George Armstrong (1839-1876), 
an American soldier born in New Rumley, Ohio. 
He graduated from West Point and at the out¬ 


break of the Civil War was given a commission 
in a cavalry regiment. Sent from Washington 
with dispatches to General McDowell, he 
arrived at the front in time to t he part . th? 
first Battle of Bull Run. G neral McClellan 
was so impressed by his energy and bravery 
that he appointed him aid-de-camp. Captain 
Custer took the first colors captured by the 
Union army. In 1863 he was appointed briga¬ 
dier general of volunteers, and he gained the 
rank of major the same year. For gailantry 
at the Battle of Winchester he was made brevet 
colonel and major general of volunteers. He 
served on the plains from 1866 to 1871, was 
stationed for two years with his regiment in 
Kentucky and was then sent to Dakota in an 
expedition against the Sioux. In June, 1876, 
General Custer with his whole command was 
defeated and slain on the Little Big Horn, by 
the confederate Sioux under Sitting Bull. The 
spot has become a national cemetery. 

Cus'tis, George Washington Parke (1781- 
1857), an American author, the grandson of 
Martha Washington and the adopted son of 
George Washington. He became a fluent 
speaker, wrote plays for his own amusement 
and published Recollections of Washington. 
His daughter married Robert E. Lee. 

Cus'toms Du'ties, the taxes levied upon 
goods passing from one country to another. 
The system of customs duties dates probably as 
far back in history as ancient Greece, though 
the name is of comparatively recent origin. 
This arose in the long conflict between the crown 
and Parliament over the right of taxation. To 
meet the claims made by the House of Commons 
to the exclusive right to vote all supplies, it used 
to be maintained that there were certain duties 
on exportation and importation to which the 
crown had acquired a right by custom', and the 
name thus acquired was retained after the power 
claimed by the lower branch of Parliament had 
been settled by permanent legislation. The 
fii st customhouse was erected in London in 1304. 

Customs duties are now seldom levied on 
exports, so that the term is practically synony¬ 
mous with import duties. They are of two 
kinds, specific, that is, reckoned by unit of quan¬ 
tity (weight or number), and ad valorem, reck¬ 
oned by unit of value. The former are far 
more easily assessed and collected. A bitter 
controversy has always been waged over the 
expediency cf customs duties, between the advo¬ 
cates of absolutely free trade, those who wish 
to have no impediment to the free transfer of 


Customs Duties 


Cuttlefish 


goods, and the ‘protectionists, who wish to set up 
duties, by which to exclude foreign goods from 
competition with those of home production (See 
Tariff; Free Trade). 

Upon the organization of the United States 
government after the close of the Revolution, the 
system of customs duties then in operation in 
England was adopted with scarcely any modifi¬ 
cation, under the direction of Alexander Hamil¬ 
ton, the first secretary of the treasury. Among 
the especial features of the system was that of 
debentures, or drawbacks, which were certif¬ 
icates entitling an exporter of imported goods 
to a rebate of duties paid on their importation, 
and also to re-export them to foreign ports. 
Subsequently the object thereby accomplished 
was more directly facilitated by permitting the 
importer to ‘‘bond” his goods in government 
warehouses until he was able to pay the duties; 
and later on the practice was modified still more 
in favor of the importer by permitting him to 
take out of “bond” from time to time portions 
of the invoice of goods consigned to him, paying 
the proportionate amount of duties. This 
system of bonded warehouses, which is now a 
feature of the customs service in every civilized 
country of the world, was embodied in an act of 
Congress passed in 1846, known as the Walker 
act. 

The first customhouse in the United States 
was established in New York City in 1799, under 
an act of Congress passed the previous year. 
The ten customhouses which render the largest 
returns to the United States government are, in 
their order, New York, Boston, Philadelphia, San 
Francisco, Chicago, Baltimore, New Orleans, 
Saint Louis, Detroit and Tampa, Florida. 

The net revenues received by the government 
through the customhouses of the country since 
the organization of the revenue system are as 
follows: 


From 1791 

to 

1800 . 

.$ 50,321,485.87 

it 

1801 

to 

1810. 

. 129,540,517.63 

it 

1811 

to 

1820 . 

. 163,804,167.09 

a 

1821 

to 

1830 . 

. 198,523,207.69 

it 

1831 

to 

1840 . 

. 204,703,913.92 

it 

1841 

to 

1850 . 

. 243,666,681.78 

H 

1851 

to 

1860 . 

. 544,980,470.30 

it 

1861 

to 

1870 . 

. 1,239,458,442.34 

it 

1871 

to 

1880 . 

. 1,663,973,043.74 

it 

1881 

to 

1890 . 

. 1,992,600,748.76 

it 

1891 

to 

1900 . 

. 1,824,538,519.00 

U 

1901 

to 

1905 . 

. 1,300,844,840.00 


1906 

to 

1910. 

.1,551,663,150.00 


1911 

to 

1913. 

. 944,710,139.00 


[Note.] In accordance with an act passed by 
Congress in 1842, the fiscal year since that time 
has begun on the first of July. Therefore the 
decade from 1841 to 1850, in the above list, 
embraces only nine and a half years. 

Cuticle, ku'ti kl. See Skin. 

Cut'ler, Manasseh (1742-1823), an Ameri¬ 
can clergyman, botanist and pioneer. He was 
bom in Killingly, Ky., was educated at Yale and 
was admitted to the bar. Later he studied 
theology, was ordained as a preacher and during 
the latter part of the Revolution served as 
chaplain of a Massachusetts regiment. He 
gained note by careful study and classification 
of the flora of New England. After the Revolu¬ 
tionary War he represented a company of 
veterans in making a contract with Congress 
for the purchase of 1,500,000 acres of land in 
the Northwest Territpry and was probably the 
author of the first draft of the Ordinance 
of 1787 (See Ordinance of 1787). In 
1788 he took a prominent part in the set¬ 
tlement of Marietta, Ohio, but returned to 
Massachusetts and sat in Congress from 1801 
to 1805. 

Cut'lery, a term applied to all cutting instru¬ 
ments made of steel. The finer articles, such 
as the best scissors, penknives, razors and lancets, 
are made of cast steel. Table knives, plane 
irons and chisels of a very superior kind are made 
of shear steel, while common steel is wrought 
into ordinary cutlery. One of the commonest 
articles of cutlery, a common razor, is made as 
follows: The workman, being furnished with a 
bar of cast steel, forges his blade from it. After 
being brought into true shape by filing, the blade 
is exposed to a cherry-red heat and instantly 
quenched in cold water. The blade is then tem¬ 
pered by first brightening one side and then 
heating it over a fire free from flame and smoke 
until the bright surface acquires a straw color. 
The blade is again cooled and is then ready to 
be ground and polished. 

Cut'tlefish, the common name for certain 
mollusks, generally applied to the particular 
species from which sepia is prepared (See 
Sepia). A small shell or bone, sometimes called 
the pen, is inside the animal, and this is the 
cuttlefish bone placed in bird cages. When a 
cuttlefish is pursued and in danger of being 
captured, it throws out from a bag a black sub¬ 
stance which makes a cloud and enables the 
animal to escape. All cuttlefish are marine 
animals, and in the tropics some very large 
specimens have been taken. 
















Cuvier 


Cyclometer 


Cuvier, koo vya f , George Leopold Chretien 
Frederic Dagobert, Baron (1769-1832), a 
distinguished modern naturalist, bom at Mont- 
beliard. His lectures on natural history, dis¬ 
tinguished not less for the elegance of their style 
than for profound knowledge and elevated specu¬ 
lation, were attended by all the accomplished 
society of Paris. In 1800 he was made professor 
of natural history in the College of France. 
Under Napoleon, who fully recognized his 
merits, Cuvier held important offices in the 
department of public instruction. In 1819 he 
was received among the forty members of the 
French Academy. Among his best-known 
works are An Elementary Table of Animals , 
Lessons in Anatomy and The Animal Kingdom. 

Cuyler, ki’lur, Theodore Led yard (1822- 
1909), a Presbyterian clergyman, bom at Aurora, 
N. Y. He graduated at Princeton and at 
Princeton Theological Seminary, and after filling 
three other pastorates was pastor of a Presby¬ 
terian church in Brooklyn from 1860 to 1890. 
When he resigned to take a ministry at large, the 
church gave him a purse of S30,000. He 
preached afterward in many places, wrote 
hundreds of articles in religious papers and 
was the author of many religious works. 

Cuzco, koos'ko, an inland city of Peru, capital 
of a department of the same name, situated in a 
valley about 11,300 feet above sea level. Among 
the fine buildings are a college, a museum, a uni¬ 
versity and a convent and cathedral, which are 
the finest in South America. An extensive trade 
in sugar, gold and silver work, cotton and woolen 
goods and embroidery is carried on. Cuzco was 
founded in 1020 and was at one time the capital 
of the Incas. It was taken and destroyed by 
Pizarro in 1535. Population, estimated, about 
15,000. 

Cyanogen, si an'o fen, a compound of carbon 
and nitrogen. It is a gas of a strong and peculiar 
odor and bums with a rich purple flame. It 
is highly poisonous. It unites with oxygen, 
hydrogen and most non-metallic elements, as 
well as with the metals, forming cyanides. 
Combined with hydrogen it forms prussic acid, 
which is the most powerful poison known. 

Cyanometer, si an om'e tur (measurer of 
blue), the name of an instrument invented by 
Saussure for ascertaining the intensity of color 
in the sky. It consists of a circular piece of 
metal or pasteboard, with a band divided by 
radii into fifty-one portions, each of which is 
painted with a shade of blue, beginning with the 
deepest, not distinguishable from black, and 


decreasing gradually to the lightest, not distin¬ 
guishable from white. The observer holds this 
between himself and the sky, turning it gradu¬ 
ally round till he finds the tint of the instrument 
exactly corresponding to the tint of the sky. 

Cybele, sib'e le, originally a Phrygian goddess, 
whose worship was later introduced among the 
Greeks and Romans. She was considered to be 
the mother of Jupiter and was represented as 
a stately matron, often crowned with towers, 
seated on a throne, with a lion at her side. In 
her attributes she was practically the same as 
Rhea, for she symbolized the fruitfulness of the 
earth, and might by her favor grant bounteous 
harvests to her worshipers. 

Cycads, si'kadz, a family of plants resembling 
palms or ferns in their general appearance, but 
more nearly related to the pines. The leaves are 
large and pinnate and usually rolled like a 
crozier when in bud. All are natives of the 
tropics, and many are handsome plants. Fossil 
remains show that cycads are trees of great 
antiquity and that they once formed a much 
larger part of vegetation than they do at the 
present day. 

Cyclades, sik'la deez, the group of islands in 
the Grecian archipelago lying southeast of 
Greece, in the possession of Greece, forming a 
separate province. The largest islands belonging 
to this group are Andros, Paros, Tenos, Delos, 
Naxos and Rhenea. The islands are mountain¬ 
ous and have productive soil. Grapes and olives 
are raised, and fishing is one of the most import¬ 
ant occupations of the people. ' Hermopolis is 
the principal trade center and is situated on the 
island of Syra. Much valuable building stone, 
including marble, i3 obtained from the Cyclades. 
Population in 1907, 134,747. 

Cyclamen, sik'lah men, a genus of primrose- 
like, bulbous plants, natives of Europe and Asia, 
but now commonly 
grown in the United 
States. They are all 
herbs, with handsome, 
white, rose-colored or 
purplish flowers, and are 
favorite greenhouse 
plants. The leaves, 
which are large, heart- 
shaped and variegated 
in color, add much to the 
beauty of the plant. The flowers are scentless. 

Cycling, si'kling. See Bicycle. 

Cyclometer, si klom'e tur, a machine attached 
to a wheel to measure and record the distance 



Cyclone 

traveled. Originally cyclometers were used on 
coaches and carriages, but now they are practi¬ 
cally confined to bicycles and automobiles. The 
common bicycle cyclometer consists of a small 
cylindrical box containing a system of clock¬ 
work and a dial. This is usually attached to 
the fork of the wheel, so that a cam on a spoke 
will cause the clockwork to move every time 
the wheel makes a revolution. The distance 
traveled by the wheel in making the revolution 
being known, the number of revolutions neces¬ 
sary to measure a mile are easily determined. 
In a bicycle of the usual size 733 revolutions 
constitute a mile. By means of the wheelwork 
every five miles and ten miles are registered until 
one hundred or more are reached, when the 
registration begins over again. 

Cyclone, si'klone, a circular, or rotary, 
storm or system of winds, varying from 50 to 



500 miles in diameter and revolving around a 
center, which advances at a rate that may be as 
high as 40 miles an hour and towards which the 
winds tend. The term is popularly, however, 
applied only to a storm having great force, such 
as a tornado. Cyclones of greatest violence 
occur within the tropics. Two storms in different 
hemispheres revolve in opposite directions. In 
the southern hemisphere the direction of a storm 
is like that of the hands of a clock, and in the 
northern hemisphere it is opposite to that of the 
hands of a clock. The cyclones of the West 
Indies are described in the article Hurricane. 
An anticyclone is a storm of opposite character, 
the general tendency of the winds being away 
from the center. The anticyclone usually 
follows the cyclone and produces fair weather. 
Cyclones are preceded by a singular calm and 


Cynic School of Philosophy 

a great fall of the barometer. Nearly all storms 
are cyclonic in their nature, but in the temperate 
regions the movements are so mild that the rotary 
motion of the storm is lost sight of except by 
trained observers of the weather bureau. See 
Storms; Tornado. 

Cyclops, si'klops, in Greek myths, a fabled 
race of one-eyed giants, the sons of Uranus and 
Ge (Heaven and Earth), slain by Apollo. They 
were usually represented as a numerous race 
living in Sicily and rearing cattle and sheep, but 
later traditions describe them as the servants 
of Vulcan working under Aetna and engaged 
in forging armor and thunderbolts. 

Cydnus, sid’nns, a river in Cilicia, rising in 
the Taurus Mountains and emptying into the 
Mediterranean. It was anciently celebrated 
for the clearness and coolness of its waters. 

Cylinder, siVin dur, a geometrical solid, 
which may be generated by the revolution of a 
rectangle about one of its sides. Its surface, 
exclusive of its bases, is equal to the circum¬ 
ference of one base multiplied by the perpendic¬ 
ular distance between the bases. Its volume 
is equal to the area of one base multiplied by the 
distance between the bases. 

Cyma, si’mah, in architecture, a wavy molding, 
the profile of which is in the form of the letter S, 
either concave at top and convex at bottom, or 
the reverse. It is practically the same as the 
modern ogee molding. 

Cymbals, sim’balz, two circular hollow plates 
of brass, used as musical instruments, being 
held one in each hand and struck sharply to¬ 
gether. They are of very ancient origin. 

Cymri, kim’ri, a branch of the Celts, which 
appears to have succeeded the Gaels in the 
great migration westward, and to have driven the 
Gaelic branch into Ireland, the Isle of Man and 
the Highlands of Scotland, while they them¬ 
selves occupied the southern parts of Britain. 
At a later period they were themselves driven 
out of the Lowlands of Britain by the invasions 
of the Angles, Saxons and Jutes and were com¬ 
pelled to take refuge in the mountainous regions 
of Wales, Cornwall and the northwest of Eng¬ 
land. Wales may now be regarded as the chief 
seat of the Cymri. 

Cynics, sin'iks. See Cynic School of 
Philosophy, The. 

Cynic School of Philosophy, The, founded 
in the first half of the fourth century B. c., 
developed a system of doctrines based upon the 
principle that virtue is the only good. As 
defined by Antisthenes, virtue is practically a 









Cypress 

wise direction of life, and of itself it constitutes 
happiness. Since continued happiness is not 
possible if wants and desires which may not be 
satisfied are regarded, virtue consists in living, 
as much as possible, in independence of dis¬ 
turbing wishes. The simplest, most natural 
life is desirable. Art, literature, science, wealth, 
honor, pleasure and all other products or accom¬ 
paniments of civilization, as well as family and 
other social relations, are to be discarded, 
because they give rise to wants that cannot be 
satisfied and to circumstances that cannot be 
controlled. One should be bound by loyalty 
to no particular state or society. Knowledge 
or science is valuable only as it makes possible 
an intelligent government of the individual’s 
actions. The most ardent follower of this school 
was Diogenes, by whom its doctrine was carried 
to ridiculous extremes in the ordinary affairs 
of life. A cynic is one who, governed to a 
greater or less extent by the doctrines of this 
school, disbelieves in or doubts the wisdom of 
social usages, or of personal character or 
motives, and expresses his doubts by sarcasm or 
sneers. 

Cypress, si’pres, a genus of cone-bearing 
trees, distinguished by their small, dark, ever¬ 
green, opposite leaves and their tiny, solitary 
flowers. The best-known species is the common 
cypress of Europe, which is a dark-colored ever¬ 
green, with extremely small leaves, which 
entirely cover the branches. It has an almost 
quadrangular shape, except at the top, where 
it becomes pyramidal. Cypress trees are rather 
dark and somber in appearance and have long 
been used for decorative purposes in cemeteries; 
and branches of cypress were formerly worn at 
funerals as emblems of mourning. The wood 
is hard, compact and durable and has a reddish 
color and pleasant odor. The bald cypress, 
common to the swamps of the Southern states, 
is a deciduous tree and one of the most valuable 
of timber trees. Although the wood is soft, its 
remarkable durability under water makes it of 
great value, and the size of the tree furnishes 
timbers of large size. In the regions where the 
tree grows to best advantage, it forms great 
forests, covering many square miles of territory. 
A peculiar feature of the tree is the development 
upon its roots of peculiar knots, or growths, 
called knees, which sometimes reach a height 
of ten feet and when fully grown have their tops 
above the water. It is not well understood of 
what use these knees are to the trees. In the 
United States the annual lumber cut of cypress 


Cyprus 

amounts to nearly 1,000,000,000 feet and is 
valued at more than £20,000,000. 

Cyprus, si'prus, an island lying south of Asia. 
It is the most easterly island in the Mediterranean 
Sea. Its greatest length is 145 mi., its breadth is 
about 60 mi., and its area, 3584 sq. mi. The 
chief features of the surface of Cyprus are two 
mountain ranges, both stretching east and west. 



The one running close to the northern shore and 
extending through the long northeastern horn, 
or prolongation, of the island, never rises to a 
height exceeding 3200 feet. The southern 
range is loftier and is known as Olympus. The 
highest summit is Mount Troodos, whose height 
is about 6500 feet. The mountains are covered 
with forests of excellent timber, now under 
government supervision. The climate varies 
in different places; it is excessively hot in the 
central plain during the months of September 
and October, and the winter is short and cold, 
though snow never falls except on the highest 
mountain peaks. Agriculture is in a very back¬ 
ward state, and locusts sometimes cause great 
damage. Wheat, barley, cotton, tobacco, olives, 
raisins and carobs are the most important vege¬ 
table products. The success of agriculture in 
most regions is dependent upon irrigation. 

The wine made in Cyprus is famous, especially 
that known as commandery. Silkworms are 
reared, and a coarse kind of silk is woven. In 
ancient times the island was famous for its 



Cyrenaic School of Philosophy 


Cyrus 


minerals. Silver was produced in large quanti¬ 
ties, and some precious stones were found; but 
copper was the most important of all. This 
metal takes its name from the name Cyprus. 
The copper mines are again being worked, 
though not on a large scale. Salt is produced 
in large quantities, and gypsum and terra umbra 
are found. Large numbers of sheep and goats 
are reared on the extensive pasture lands of the 
island. The principal towns are Lefkosia, or 
Nicosia, the capital, the only considerable 
inland town, and the seaports Larnaca and Lima- 
sol. Salamis, a famous port in ancient times, 
and Famagosta, important as a commercial 
point somewhat later, are now practically de¬ 
serted, though the English have expended large 
sums in reconstructing the harbor at the latter 
point. There are several hundred miles of 
telegraph lines in the island, and good roads 
connect all the principal towns. 

The early history of Cyprus is known only 
from excavations made recently, but certain 
facts have been well established. It belonged 
successively to Phoenicia, Egypt, Greece, Persia 
and again to Egypt, and it finally became a 
Roman province in 57 b. c. At the division of 
the Empire it passed to the eastern branch. 
Later it passed into the hands of the Arabs, the 
Greeks, the English, the Venetians and the 
Turks, who in 1570 invaded the country, took 
the capital, murdered 20,000 people and tor¬ 
tured the governor to death. It remained a 
Turkish possession until 1878, when by treaty 
it was placed in the control of England. It 
still occupies this position, though it is nomi¬ 
nally a part of the Turkish Empire. Under 
British administration the island has become 
much more prosperous. Roads, harbors and 
other public works have been constructed, trees 
have been planted and schools opened. Popu¬ 
lation in 1911, 274,108. 

CyUena'ic School of Philosophy, a system 
of philosophy established by Aristippus of 
Cyrene, a pupil and follower of Socrates. It 
taught that the highest good of life was pleasure, 
virtue consisting in the course of conduct that 
produced the greatest pleasure. Wisdom was 
lauded, because the pleasures resulting from 
untrained instincts and impulses often are incon¬ 
sistent and in the end cease to be enjoyable. 
The doctrine was modified in various ways by 
Theodorus, Hegesias and others, until it merged in 
a sort of pessimism and finally in Epicureanism. 

Cyrene, si re'ne, in ancient times a celebrated 
city in Africa, about 10 mi. from the north coast, 


founded by Battus and a body of Dorian colo¬ 
nists in 631 B. c., and famous as a seat of Greek 
culture Numerous interesting remains have 
been discovered here. The town now occupy¬ 
ing the site of the ancient Cyrene is Grenna, in 
the Province of Barca. 

Cyril, sir'il, Saint (about 315-386), a Church 
father who became bishop of Jerusalem in 351. 
Through controversies with the Arians he was 
three times deposed, but each time he was 
restored. In 368 the emperor Valens banished 
him from his see, and he was not allowed to 
return until after the death of Valens in 378. 

Cyril, Saint (?-444), one of the fathers of 
the Greek Church, who became bishop of Alex¬ 
andria in 412. An assault of the Jews upon the 
Christians of Alexandria led Cyril to expel all 
the Jews from the city, and this was well in 
accord with his usual severe and uncompro¬ 
mising character. His part in the Nestorian 
controversy was the most important event of 
his career,'and he presided over the Council of 
Ephesus which deposed Nestorius. Among his 
numerous writings are commentaries, treatises 
and epistles. 

Cyrus, si'rus (about 600-529 B t c\), king of 
Persia, a celebrated conqueror. According to 
Herodotus, he was the son of Cambyses, a fa¬ 
mous Persian, and of Mandane, daughter of the 
Median king Astyages. Herodotus states that 
Astyages, troubled by a prophecy that his 
grandson was to dethrone him, gave orders that 
Cyrus should be destroyed immediately after 
his birth, but the boy was preserved by the 
kindness of a herdsman and at length was sent 
to his parents in Persia. He soon gathered a 
formidable army, conquered bis grandfather and 
became master of Media and founded the Medo- 
Persian Empire. According to the records, he 
proved a wise and moderate king. After his 
conquest of Media and Persia he invaded Lydia, 
conquered the country and then turned against 
Babylon, which fell almost without a contest 
before the victorious arms of the hosts of Cyrus. 
The conqueror entered the city in triumph and 
made himself king. Here he showed his gen¬ 
erosity toward conquered peoples by at least 
contributing to the release of the Jews from 
captivity. Cyrus was killed in an expedition 
against the Scythians, who dwelt north of his 
domains. The character and achievements of 
Cyrus the Great have been celebrated in the 
records of all peoples that came under his 
sway, as well as those whom he met as ene¬ 
mies. 


Cyrus 


Czerny 


Cyrus (?-401 b. c.), called The Younger, to 
distinguish him from Cyrus, the founder of the 
Medo-Persian monarchy, was the second son of 
Darius II. He formed a conspiracy against his 
elder brother, Artaxerxes Mnemon, and was con¬ 
demned to death, but was released at the request 
of his mother and made governor of Asia Minor. 
Here he secretly gathered an army, of which 
ten thousand were Greek auxiliaries, and 
marched eastward. His brother with a large 
army met him in the plains of Cunaxa (401 b. c.), 
and in the battle which followed, Cyrus was 
slain. The account of the expedition and the 
retreat of the Greek soldiers is given by Xeno¬ 
phon in the Anabasis. 

Czar or Tsar, zahr, a title of the emperor of 
Russia, a corruption of the Roman title Caesar, 
first adopted in 1547 by Ivan the Terrible. 
The empress of Russia bears the title czarina, 
while the heir apparent and his wife are known 
as the cesarevitch and cesarevna. 

Czech, chek, the most westerly branch of the 
great 'Slavonic family of races. The Czechs are 
most numerous in Bohemia, where they arrived 
in the fifth century. The total number of 
Czechs is about 6,000,000, nearly all of whom 


live in Austria-Hungary. The Bohemians 
proper number about 2,700,000. The Czech 
language is complex in its structure and is highly 
finished grammatically. The alphabet consists 
of forty-two letters, expressing a great variety 
of sounds. In musical value Czech ranks next 
to Italian. 

Czernowitz, cher'no vits, the capital of the 
Austrian crownland of Bukowina, about 164 mi. 
e. of Lemberg. Among the prominent buildings 
are the archiepiscopal palace, the Greek-Oriental 
cathedral and a handsome Jewish synagogue. 
The educational institutions are a university, 
with a library of 60,000 volumes, a gymnasium 
and industrial and trade schools. There are 
manufactures of machinery and oil, saw mills 
and breweries. Population in 1910, 87,128. 

Czerny, cheque, Karl (1791-1857), an Aus¬ 
trian composer and piano virtuoso. He studied 
under his father, an accomplished musician, 
then under Beethoven, and at the age of 
fifteen he had already gained wide popu¬ 
larity as pianist and teacher. Among his pupils 
were Liszt and Thalberg. His exercises and 
books of instruction for the piano are widely 
used. 










































































































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